Old Testament: Deuteronomy 6:1-9
Gospel: Mark 12:28-34
Epistle: Hebrews 9:11-14
Ok, whenever I have to work on Sundays, it is always hard to
get the blog written by the end of Sunday night. First, let me mention that this week,
Thursday, was All Saints Day, which I failed to write a post for, but still
think it is an important day to remember all those saints who have walked this
life before us. Also, Halloween, in
addition to my dad’s birthday, is also Reformation day. So next year, maybe you can hand out copies
of the 95 Theses along with the trick-or-treat candy.
Let’s move on to the Scripture. It’s been awhile since we have discussed the
Psalm, but I think this week it speaks to where we are as a country with the
election coming up in 2 days. The Psalm
is a psalm of praise. The writer praises
God because he is the ruler of all the earth.
God is the one who takes care of orphans and widows and executes justice.
Two lines really stick out; verse 3
says, “Do not trust in princes, in mortal man, in whom there is no salvation.” The final verse of the Psalm tells us who to
trust in place of the princes: “The Lord will reign forever, your God, O Zion,
to all generations.” In the time of
Israel, kings came and went, and plenty of them were not that great. Does this sound familiar? America goes through presidents as well, some
good and others not so good. But through
it all, God still reigns over the earth.
This reminds me of Isaiah 6 where it says, “In the year of King Uzziah’s
death I saw the Lord sitting on the throne…”
The king might have died, yet the Lord still sat on throne. Let this provide us some hope in the coming
elections. Kings, presidents, and even
nations come and go, but God is always on the throne.
In Deuteronomy chapter 6, we have some of the most important
verses in the Old Testament. Verses 4-9
are what is known as the Shema. These
verses are said by Jews twice daily and comprise the root of their faith. The primary verse is verse 4, “Hear, O
Israel! The Lord our God, the Lord is one!”
This passage is repeated by Jesus in Mark chapter 12. Jesus is asked what the foremost commandment is. He responds by quoting the Shema, that we are
to love the Lord our God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength. He also adds that we are to love our neighbor
as ourselves, which comes from Leviticus 19:18.
We might wonder why Jesus didn’t say one of the 10 commandments. When you look at it, all of the Old Testament,
all of the sacrifices, all of the regulations, all of the laws concerning
warfare were done out of love for the Lord.
The questioner actually confirms that what Jesus says is correct because
he states that love of God and neighbor “is much more than all burnt offerings
and sacrifices.” This sentiment is found
even in the Old Testament; for example, 1 Samuel 15:22-23, Isaiah 1:1-11, Hosea
6:6, and Micah 6:6-8. It is not that sacrifices
are bad; Jesus and the Old Testament don’t say that. But when they are unaccompanied by love and
obedience to the Lord, then they don’t serve the purpose they were intended
for.
I don’t think we today are tempted to offer sacrifices and
follow the Levitical code, but we also have our rituals. We might find ourselves going to church each
Sunday, but our hearts and minds aren’t present. They are already wandering to the pot roast
and the football (or soccer!) game.
Maybe we serve with the Church in teaching, volunteering at the shelter,
or anything else. But do we do it to be
recognized before others or out of routine?
Maybe we don’t even know why we do these things. We’ve done them for so long they just become
habit. The Shema and Jesus call to our
attention that love of God and neighbor must be our motivation for all that we
do. Perhaps this is a good week to
examine our motivations for the things we do.
They don’t have to be things we do with the Church, but anything in life
can be examined to see if we do it to bring glory to the Lord.
Grace and Peace.
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