“The Great Question for the Church”

(Matthew 22:34-40) [on screen]

Series: “God’s Fulfilled Promise”

Rev. Matthew C. McCraw, EdD

First Baptist Church, Bartow, Florida

July 26, 2020

The Passage

Matthew 22:34-40

34 When the Pharisees heard that he had silenced the Sadducees, they came together. 35 And one of them, an expert in the law, asked a question to test him: 36 “Teacher, which command in the law is the greatest?” 

37 He said to him, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. 38 This is the greatest and most important command. 39 The second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself. 40 All the Law and the Prophets depend on these two commands.”

Introduction

Sometimes when you’re a part of something important you learn that there is one crucial piece of advice, or one main thing, that you need to know. A friend of mine was in the Marine Corps and he told me that as they went through their basic training, or boot camp, the most important thing to remember was to not draw attention to yourself; just keep your head down and do what you were supposed to do.[show picture on screen]

This morning we are in Matthew 22:34-40.  Today, we’re going to hear from Jesus concerning the greatest commandment of God. 

The passage that we will look at this morning is very familiar to many Christians and probably familiar to most of us. This passage is famously known as the Great Commandment. 

As we know, the Pharisees and the religious leaders have been questioning Jesus over and over again. Now, they ask, “Which command in the law is the greatest?”

That’s a good question for us all: what’s the most important thing for us to do as followers of God?

Well, let’s see how Jesus answers the question. 

Let’s go ahead and read the passage. Look at Matthew 22:34-40:

34 When the Pharisees heard that he had silenced the Sadducees, they came together. 35 And one of them, an expert in the law, asked a question to test him: 36 “Teacher, which command in the law is the greatest?” 

37 He said to him, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. 38 This is the greatest and most important command. 39 The second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself. 40 All the Law and the Prophets depend on these two commands.”

Let’s pause for a moment and go to the Lord in prayer as we explore this passage.

(prayer)

For those of you who have a great memory, you may remember that I’ve preached this sermon before. In fact, it’s been nearly three years. I last preached this passage on August 27, 2017, as I was preaching in view of a call to be pastor at this church. 

Well, here we go again. 

Let’s look into this question and the answer that Jesus provided. 

Let’s explore first . . . 

I. The Question (v. 36) [on screen]

The Pharisees let the Sadducees have a shot in last week’s passage and now they are at it again themselves. This question came from a Pharisee who was also an expert in the law.

Most likely these experts in the law would debate each other as to which of the Old Testament laws were most important. Perhaps they thought Jesus might bring clarity, or perhaps they wanted to test Him. We religious leaders like to debate things from time to time. 

Jesus didn’t seem to mind this question, no matter the intentions of the man asking the question.  In fact, we’ll see in just a moment that Jesus answers the question straightforwardly.

We read that this man respectfully addresses Jesus as “teacher” and asks Him the question in verse 36: “Teacher, which command in the law is the greatest?”

Let me just say, this question is pertinent for the church today. No matter why the man asked the question, we can benefit from the answer. 

Well, let’s look to see how Jesus answered the question.  First, we hear from Jesus . . . 

II. Answer #1: Love God (vv. 37-38) [on screen]

Look at verse 37.