TOPIC:“Three Levels of Love”
“Thou shalt love the Lord thy God…Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself” (12: 30, 31)
Some time ago I came upon a statement by Henry Ward Beecher, distinguished preacher of the 19th century, which read: “There is but one thing required of man, and that is, that he shall have love.” And let me say, whether you realize it or not, this life of love has three levels to it. It may seem strange but Christians are required to have three loves - to God, to others, and then to themselves.
In view of this truth, let us investigate the works of our text to find out what Jesus meant by these words. We find the Master being asked certain questions by these Sadducees in the hope of incriminating Him before the crowd, thus charging Him with blasphemy. Three questions were thrown at Him. The third is the one which we can't afford to miss at this point.
A Jewish scribe, who no doubt was a master of the law, asked Jesus a very sincere and honest theological question. He desired to know “Which was the greatest of the commandments?” What was it that made a commandment great? It seems that among the Jewish leaders at this time there was considerable debate as to what commandments were of major importance and what commandments were of minor importance. Some were considered as great, while others were thought of as small.
The answer that Christ gave to this religious scribe can be found in verse 30: “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength.” Then also in verse 31: “Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.” Here Christ decisively answers the question. His words cannot be plainer. He declares that love is to be the dominating and motivating duty of man. It is to be the chief element in one's life. It is the end to which life was designed - to be perfected in love. “Ah,” says Christ, “the ideal Christian is one who walks in the way of love in union with the Holy Spirit who lives within the life.”
Let us try to get somewhere now in this life of love by honestly facing up to the truth as found . . .