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 The
man was a teacher. He taught the Law of Moses. He was impressed to see Jesus
answering the questions of hypocrites and heretics with wisdom:
“One of the teachers of the law came and heard them
debating. Noticing that Jesus had given them a good answer, he asked him, ‘Of
all the commandments, which is the most important?’”
He felt it was his opportunity to ask Jesus, the Great
Teacher, what was the most important commandment, how he can be saved, enter
life and the Kingdom of God.
Now, we need to shed all our biases, everything we have
been taught in Sunday schools, and all the teachings of mortal men. All who
love Jesus should let him talk:
“The most important one,” answered Jesus, “is this: ‘Hear,
O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all
your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your
strength.’”
A great answer to a great question: accept the Lord our
God is One, love Him, and worship Him to the best of your ability.
Jesus was not finished. He had more to teach. Obviously
Jesus was teaching the man everything he needed to get into the Kingdom of God. Jesus added:
“…The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’”
The Great Teacher further clarified:
“There is no commandment greater than these.”
The man who questioned Jesus repeated the commandments
to make sure he got them right:
Mark 12:32 “‘Well said, teacher,’ the man replied. ‘You
are right in saying that God is one and there is no other but him…’”
Jesus seeing the man had learned the greatest
commandment correctly gave him the good news:
Mark 12:34 “When Jesus saw that he had answered
wisely, he said to him, ‘You are not far from the kingdom of God.’”
There are some significant lessons in this story:
First, Jesus taught the man more than he asked,
yet he did not say he is the son of God, or the Savior sent to redeem mankind
of its sins. He did not say anything remotely similar to what people are
instructed to repeat to be ‘born again’ in Christ, “You should individually receive
me, accept me as the Son of God, your personal Lord and Savior who will die on
the cross for your sins and will rise from the dead. Let the Holy Spirit fill
you…”
Take what Jesus said and leave what people have added.
Second, salvation depends on this commandment. Jesus
made it clear when another man approached Jesus to learn from him (Mark
10:17-29). The man fell on his knees and said to Jesus:
Mark 10:17-18 “Good teacher, what must I do to
inherit eternal life?” Jesus replied: “Why do you call me good? No one is
good — except God alone.”
Third, Jesus confirmed there is no commandment
greater than these. In case, someone might think the greatest commandment changed
afterwards, Jesus told us:
Matthew 5:17-19 “For assuredly, I say to you, till
the heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one title will by no mean pass from
the law till all is fulfilled. Whoever therefore breaks one of the least of
these commandments, and teaches men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of
heaven; but whoever does and teaches them, he shall be called great in the
kingdom of heaven.”
Fourth, anyone who loves Jesus and wants to enter
life must keep the greatest commandment of Jesus as he said:
John 14:15 “If you love me, keep my commandments.”
Matthew 19:17 “If you want to enter life, obey the
commandments.”
Fifth, a sincere Christian should accept what
Jesus said without twisting his words or finding hidden meaning in them. Jesus
taught exactly what Moses taught some 2,000 years before him:
Deuteronomy 6:4-5 “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our
God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all
your soul and with all your strength.”
Jesus, may the mercy and blessings of God be upon him, taught
the same eternal truth ALL the prophets of God taught to their people: God is
One, worship Him alone.
Deuteronomy 6:13 “Fear the Lord your God, serve Him only
and take your oaths in His name.”
Deuteronomy 5:7 “You shall have no other God besides Me.”
Isaiah 43:11 “I even, I am your Lord and besides Me,
there is no Savior.”
Hosea 13:4 “I am the Lord your God who brought you out
of the Egypt. You shall acknowledge no God but me, no savior except me.”
Psalms 95:6-7 “O come, let us bow down and worship, let
us kneel before the Lord, our Maker. For we are the people of His pasture and
the sheep of His voice and He is our God.”
Jesus emphasized this teaching to Satan as well:
Matthew 4:10 “Away from me, Satan! For it is written:
Worship the Lord your God, and serve Him only.”
Sixth, the Quran confirms the greatest
commandment of Jesus. The Quran teaches us exactly that God sent all the
prophets with the same teaching: to worship the One true God alone.
“…And your God is One God: there is no god but He…” (Quran 2:163)
“And your Lord has decreed that you worship none but Him...” (Quran
17:23)
“And We did not send any Messenger before you (O Muhammad) but
We revealed to him (saying): ‘none has the right to be worshipped but I, so
worship Me.’” (Quran 21:25)
Seventh, on the Day of Resurrection, the Quran
tells us that God will ask Jesus:
“And [beware the Day] when God will say, ‘O Jesus, Son of
Mary, did you say to the people, ‘Take me and my mother as gods besides God?...’”
(Quran 5:116)
Jesus will respond:
“He will say, ‘Limitless are You in Your glory! It was not for
me to say that to which I have no right. If I had said it, You would have
known it. You know what is within myself, and I do not know what is within Yourself.
Verily, it is You alone who fully knows all the things that are beyond the
reach of a created being’s perception. I said not to them except what you
commanded me – to worship God, my Lord and your Lord. And I was a witness over
them as long as I was among them; but when You took me up, You alone had been
their keeper:’ for You are witness unto everything. If You should punish them
– indeed they are Your servants; but if You forgive them – indeed it is You who
is the Exalted in Might, the Wise.” (Quran 5:116-118)
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