Tag Archives: Love Neighbor

No Half-Hearted Savior – Sermon on Matthew 22:34-46 for the Eighteenth Sunday after Trinity

Matthew 22:34-46

In the name of Jesus. Amen.

You heard it twice today, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind” (Mt. 22:37; cf. Dt. 6:5). You might hear “heart, soul, and mind” and think Jesus is giving you a checklist. And you might hear the “all” before each of those as a gauge to measure how much is in each tank. So, you might check the ‘love tank’ of your soul to see if it’s full or if it’s running on fumes. Or, you might think it would be beneficial to siphon some fuel from your ‘heart tank’ to make up for the deficiency in your ‘mind tank.’

That way of thinking can send you down a rabbit trail and end up missing the point Jesus is making. For one thing, when Jesus talks about your heart, soul, and mind, He’s not talking about different ingredients that make up who you are. God didn’t take one part heart, one part soul, and one part mind, mix it together, and poof—there you are. That would leave out your body. When God created Adam, the first part He fashioned was Adam’s body; then, He breathed the breath of life into Adam (Gen. 2:7). God made a body first. The love He commands here is an action that has to be done with a body.

The Bible will regularly use each of these terms—heart, soul, and mind—to talk about you as a whole. Let me walk through each of these, but we’ll spend the most time on the heart.

When we talk about someone’s heart today, it’s usually the center of emotions. But that isn’t the way the Bible talks about the heart. In both the Old and New Testament, the heart is the center of who you are. It’s the place where you understand things. The Scripture does say that the heart has emotion, but there’s also thinking. Proverbs will talk about the heart of a man planning his way (Pr. 16:9). When people grumble after Jesus absolves the man lowered from the roof before healing him, Jesus asks them, “Why do you think evil in your hearts?” (Mt. 9:4). After the shepherds visit newborn Jesus, Mary treasures up all these things, “pondering them in her heart” (Lk. 2:19). You can think of the heart as the center of who you are, the fountain of what you love and what you understand (Heb. 4:12).

Your soul is not a spare part added to your heart. Your soul is your breath and what makes you alive (Ps. 146:4; Gen. 2:7; 35:18; 1 Kgs. 17:21-22; Lk. 8:55; Jn. 19:30; Act. 7:59). Scripturally speaking, your mind doesn’t equal your brain. Your mind is where you think, but your mind also resides in the heart. In a sense, all three—heart, soul, and mind—are all of you. Your whole self.

But also know that your heart, soul, and mind don’t just sort of hang out inside of you. They move your body. Without the body, love can’t act. Don’t let the first and great command be something no one can see. You don’t keep the first and great command by feeling or thinking something about or toward God. That’s why Jesus doesn’t leave things there.

The lawyer asked for one command. Jesus gave him two. “And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself” (Mt. 22:39). This isn’t ust a bonus command or additional hobby for people who have finished loving God. The second is like it. The love that loves God with all the heart, all the soul, and all the mind doesn’t stay there. It spills out and loves the neighbor. The mouth speaks. The hands serve. That’s how your love for God becomes something that can actually be seen.

You love God by loving the neighbor God has given you, and you do that loving with a body. The second is like the first because the first was never meant to be invisible. Love of God that never results in love of your neighbor is a false love that does not love God with the whole heart, soul, and mind. A person who withholds love from the neighbor he can see is not loving the God he cannot see (1 Jn. 4:20). The two directions of love—love toward God and love toward neighbor—hang together. On these two, Jesus says, depend all the Law and the Prophets (Mt. 22:40).

That’s why you can’t hear these words without being convicted. You know the shape and direction of this love. If the love of God is something that only stays up in your head and never gets to your hands and out to your neighbor, that’s a problem. That is sin. We have a word for that—half-hearted. The heart never put the body to work. That leads to your neighbor only getting a meager portion of love from you. Half a conversation. Half a patience. Half a mercy. 

The Law doesn’t ask you to feel warmly about God in private and then do your best toward people. The Law demands all of you, aimed at God, and landing on the person God puts next to you through what your body does. You haven’t done that, not even on your best day. Repent.

Repent and remember what God does with these two great commands. He doesn’t love you from a distance. He doesn’t just think nice things about you while He sits up in heaven. No, the Son of God became your neighbor. He took on flesh and dwelt among us (Jn. 1:14). He took a body so He could do the love and not only think it. The One who demands, “Love your neighbor,” is the God who left His throne, took a body, and became your Neighbor.

Jesus wasn’t half-hearted when He loved you. He loved you with His whole heart, whole soul, and whole mind. That whole self took a body so He could love. Christ set His face to go to Jerusalem (Lk. 9:51) knowing what was waiting there. He went anyway.

Jesus’ mind was whole. He did not scramble while these lawyers tried to test Him. He pointed them to Himself as David’s Son and David’s Lord. The Messiah stood in the flesh before them. But they refused to believe and had no answer (Mt. 22:42-45).

Jesus’ soul was whole. On the night He is betrayed, He does not desperately cling to His life. He gives it to the disciples and His Church throughout all generations saying, “This is My body. This is My blood.” A half-souled man would have been arranging an exit. Jesus doesn’t.

Christ’s heart was whole, even when He asked in the garden, “My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from Me” (Mt. 26:39). And when the Father made it clear that it wasn’t possible, Christ does not waver. He prayed, “Not as I will, but as You will.” Then, Christ, your Neighbor, went all the way to the cross for you and for all who have not loved either Him or each other.

That is the love you could not see, made visible. God’s love for you didn’t remain a mood He had for you up in heaven. Out of His love for you, God came down. His love for you is revealed in a body in the ditch of your sin, hands that touch what is unclean, feet that do not turn aside, a face set to go to Jerusalem and to the cross to save you (Lk. 9:51; Is. 50:7). God loved you by becoming the neighbor His command describes, and He did it with all of Himself in a body.

Because He did that, you are not left to manufacture a sham kind of love out of a divided heart, a love that stays inside and never acts. No, you now draw strength from Him. Christ did not save a slice or portion of you. Jesus took a body, and He still has it. He used His whole body to save your whole body. And He gives His body to you today, so He will raise your whole body on the Last Day.

He saves you—heart, soul, mind, eyes, fingers, knees, elbows. He forgives the eyes that have looked where they should not. He has mercy on the fingers that tried to cling to what they should have given to others. He cleanses the knees that have bowed to other things. He restores the elbows that preferred to rest rather than do the work of love. He redeemed all of that. And He will raise all of that. His plan is to have you, all of you, forever.

Dear saints, now you live a life that is shaped by the love of God who has neighbored you. You love Him because He first loved you by coming near in a body (1 Jn. 4:19).

Loving the Lord your God with your whole heart, soul, and mind and your neighbor as yourself is His will for you. No, you won’t do it perfectly. The Law will still accuse you of what is half-done. But you are not left to try to climb your way back to God. You have been redeemed and saved by His great love for you.

Dear saints, you do not have a half-hearted Savior. When God became your neighbor, He was resolute. Heart, soul, mind, and body, all of it, for you. From that strength, love God. From that strength, love the neighbor He has given you with the body He has redeemed. He will keep the whole of you—eyes, fingers, knees, elbows, heart, soul, and mind—until you arrive at the resurrection and the life of the world to come. Amen.

The peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus (Php. 4:7). Amen.

Depend – Sermon on Matthew 22:34-46 for the Eighteenth Sunday after Trinity

Matthew 22:34–46

34 But when the Pharisees heard that he had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered together. 35 And one of them, a lawyer, asked him a question to test him. 36 “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?” 37 And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. 38 This is the great and first commandment. 39 And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. 40 On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.”

41 Now while the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them a question, 42 saying, “What do you think about the Christ? Whose son is he?” They said to him, “The son of David.” 43 He said to them, “How is it then that David, in the Spirit, calls him Lord, saying,

44 “‘The Lord said to my Lord, 
“Sit at my right hand, 
until I put your enemies under your feet” ’?

45 If then David calls him Lord, how is he his son?” 46 And no one was able to answer him a word, nor from that day did anyone dare to ask him any more questions.

In the name of Jesus. Amen.

This Gospel reading takes place on Holy Tuesday. In other words, it is just a few days before Jesus will be crucified, and what we heard is Jesus’ last public teaching until He preaches the seven last words from the cross. The Pharisees and Sadducees are asking our Lord three questions to try to entangle Him in His words (Mt. 22:15). They want Jesus to say something they can use against Him and kill Him. The first two questions they asked were about paying taxes and the resurrection. But Jesus answers both questions so skillfully that they can’t find a way to accuse Him.

Our text begins with their third and final trick question that comes from a sleezy lawyer. “Teacher, what is the great commandment in the Law?” It seems as though the intent of this question is to get Jesus to put one of the Commandments above the others, and when He does that, they will say that He teaches that the other nine aren’t as important. But they end up looking like fools. It was Jesus’ finger that carved those words into the stone tablets and His voice that spoke them on Mt. Sinai. Jesus is the Author of the Commandments, and they are all important.

So, Jesus answers the question, “The great Commandment is this: love God with everything you’ve got and love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.” In other words, Jesus is saying, “All the Commandments matter. All of them are the greatest. They all demand that you love God and love your neighbor. All the Commandments depend on these two.” Jesus is clear here, and Scripture is clear elsewhere that what the Commandments require of us is to love. Love is the fulfilling of the Law (Ro. 13:10b). In every situation, you are to love God and love your neighbor. And it is important to spend some time on this because there is a lot of unnecessary confusion about what love looks like. A pastor friend of mine (Pr. Bryan Wolfmueller) put together a list that helps to define and shape what love looks like. And this list is biblical and, I think, very helpful.

First, love is shaped by the Ten Commandments. Love does not mean that there are no other Commandments. No, the Commandments define what love is. Love depends on the Commandments. If you are fornicating and committing adultery, you cannot presume to say that it’s ok because, “We love each other.” Adultery is always unloving.

Second, love is shaped by our vocation or our station in life. Everyone has several vocations, so I’ll use myself as an example here. Some of my vocations are husband, father, pastor, a child of my parents, a friend, etc. In each of those vocations, I am called to love. But what that love looks like depends on those different vocations. For example, part of my love as a father includes providing for my family. So, I earn a living so my wife can go and buy socks for our kids. As a pastor, my love looks different. It looks like faithfully preaching and teaching God’s Word to you, the flock that God has entrusted into my care. My vocation as a pastor does not require me to buy socks for all of you. Pastors are not called to provide socks for their congregations. But that, then, leads us to the third thing that shapes our love.

Our love is also shaped by the needs of our neighbor. If one of you, who aren’t part of my family, needs socks and can’t get them for yourself, my love for you would be to give you socks. Even if the only reason I know you and your need socks is that I’m your pastor, I’m not giving you socks because I’m your pastor. I’m giving you socks because I am your brother in Christ. And if I needed socks, I would want one of you to give me socks if you have the means and resources to provide them. In that instance, I’m loving you as I would love myself. (I think this is the most I’ve ever used the word ‘socks’ in a sermon, but I’m done now.)

That leads us to the fourth thing that shapes our love which is the gifts God has given us. God gives us stuff, skills, and talents so we can use them to love and serve our neighbor. If God has made you successful and given you a lot of money, use those resources to love your neighbor. If God has given you the talent of being good at cooking, you love your neighbor by cooking. If God has given you good mind for math, you can love your neighbor as an engineer or an accountant. The beautiful thing about this one is that the gifts God gives you can help you love your neighbor across different vocations. A person who is good at math can be a good accountant. He can earn a good living and provide for his family and, at the same time, love and serve his clients who need someone to keep their books.

Just briefly here, our neighbor’s need might mean that we have to love our neighbor in a way that we aren’t gifted. Imagine a meteor hit the church during this service. We don’t have an ER doctor here, but we do have an optometrist, a medical student, nurses, and EMTs who are gifted in knowing how the body works and how to heal. They should be the ones who go to the people who are most injured and help them. And if more people are injured, those of us who aren’t gifted in that way are called to do the best we can even though that kind of love is usually reserved for doctors and nurses. Our neighbor’s need trumps how we are gifted. Especially in an emergency, we love and serve others based on their needs rather than our love depending on our gifts. And when the ambulances get here, we who don’t know as much about first aid should step aside and let the professionals use their gifts to serve the people in need.

So, the first four things that shape our love are: 1) the Ten Commandments; 2) our vocation; 3) our neighbor’s need; and 4) our gifts. All of that is fairly obvious and reasonable. But there is another thing that shapes our love, and this last one is one that our culture fights against (for several reasons). But this one is also important to consider. The fifth thing that shapes our love is our neighbor’s sin, and this is where things can get tricky and difficult. But this is also where Jesus’ summary of the Ten Commandments – love God with everything and love your neighbor as yourself – is helpful. And God gives you wisdom to help navigate this.

Imagine you know someone who is addicted to fentanyl, your calling is still crystal clear: you are called to love that person. But now what is that love going to look like? Is it loving to just step aside and let them keep killing themselves by using that fentanyl? No, it isn’t. Their sin against themselves might even mean that you need to break one of the Commandments in order to love them. You might need to steal their fentanyl even though stealing is sin and a violation against the 7th Commandment.

Now, please recognize that the Ten Commandments are still the primary thing that shapes and defines our love. But because of your neighbor’s sin, you break the 7th Commandment about stealing in order for you to keep the 5th Commandment which calls you to do your neighbor no bodily harm, but help and defend him in every need. This is why knowing the Commandments is so important. And, again, your vocation still plays into this too. You aren’t called to travel to San Francisco, Seattle, or Portland and steal fentanyl from all the addicts in those places.

Our neighbor’s sin can hinder the ways we love them. Parents, when your children are breaking the 4thCommandment and not obeying you, your love for them looks like disciplining them; it isn’t what you want to do, but you are called to do it (Pro. 22:15; 23:13; Heb. 12:11). If you have abusive parents, you are still called to keep the 4th Commandment and honor them, but their sin could mean you have to disobey them if they demand you do something contrary to God’s Word. If your cousin, Stacy, is getting married, your love normally looks like going to her wedding and celebrating with her. But if she is breaking the 6th Commandment by trying to be married to another woman, your love for her means not going to the wedding because that would embolden her in her sin against the 6th Commandment. Yes, this is hard and difficult. Yes, this is uncomfortable. Yes, it is even confusing. You are always called to love, but sin can put constraints on love.

And that brings us to the second part of our text which is the question Jesus asks the people who are trying to trip Him up. Jesus turns the discussion to the identity of the Messiah. The Savior is David’s Ancestor and also David’s Lord. The way this is possible is that Jesus is the fully Divine, eternal Son of God and fully human. Christ is God and Man.

Your Savior’s love for you was fully shaped by the Ten Commandments, which Jesus kept perfectly. His vocation was to be the Messiah and shed His blood and bear the punishment for the sins of all humanity because that was our need. He was gifted with everything necessary to be the Savior. And He navigated our sin in such a way that He perfectly loved God by loving us and bearing our sin to the cross. Now, He is risen and lives and reigns on the throne of all creation for eternity. 

Your eternal life totally depends upon what Jesus, the Son of God and Son of David, has done. God be praised that He has done all things well (Mk. 7:37). Amen.

The peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.