Key Passage
The man answered, “That was a good answer, Teacher. You were right when you said these things. God is the only Lord, and there is no other God. And a person must love God with all his heart, all his mind, and all his strength. And a person must love other people the same as he loves himself. These commands are more important than all the animals and sacrifices we offer to God.”
— Mark 12:32-33 ERV (Read Full Text)
Key Thought
While the agreement of the teacher of religious law is nice, it says more about him than it does about Jesus. Our judgements on Jesus’ teachings are not the issue. Our obedience of Jesus’ teachings is the issue. Spiritual arguments that are about fine points of interpretation can become excuses for pride or division. Jesus’ concern is that we honor the will of God by obeying what he says. This obedience must be obedience of the heart and not just obedience in behavior. While I hope and trust that everyone who reads this devotional today appreciates, agrees, and applauds the teaching of Jesus, we must realize that it is not our place to sit in judgement on the merit of Jesus’ teaching. Instead, you and I are called to obey him as our Lord and thus honor the Father who sent him.
Prayer
O Father, may my search for truth never end with just admiration for the teachings your Son gave to us. Help me in my resolve to not only know the truth, but to also live it. In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen.
Related Scriptures
Jesus asked, “Who is my mother? Who are my brothers?” Then Jesus looked at those people sitting around him. He said, “These people are my mother and my brothers! My true brother and sister and mother are those people that do the things God wants.”
— Mark 3:33-35
“Every person that hears these things I say and obeys is like a wise man. The wise man built his house on rock. It rained hard and the water rose. The winds blew and hit that house. But the house did not fall, because the house was built on rock. But the person that hears the things I teach and does not obey those things is like a foolish man. The foolish man built his house on sand. It rained hard, the water rose, and the winds blew and hit that house. And the house fell with a loud noise.”
— Matthew 7:24-27
Stay away from foolish and stupid arguments. You know that those arguments grow into bigger arguments. A servant of the Lord must not argue! He must be kind to every person. A servant of the Lord must be a good teacher. He must be patient. The Lord’s servant must gently teach those people that don’t agree with him. Maybe God will let those people change their hearts so that they can accept the truth. The devil has trapped those people and makes them do what he wants. But maybe they can wake up {and see that the devil is using them} and free themselves from the devil’s trap.
— 2 Timothy 2:23-26
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