After 20 years in the scripture daily, I am still intrigued, fascinated, convicted by, and drawn to scripture. It is alive, and active, a double edged sword cutting to the very marrow. God is speaking to me, not others, but me. We try to make it about the historical, the greek, the hebrew, and everything else in order to evade it's truth's. Many are in a race through it, so that they can say "I've read it front to back!" But there is a haunting question Jesus asked a teacher one day. He was learned, and knew scripture. I suppose that includes me the same for me. I know it, but do I get it?
In Mark 12:28-34, this scripture has remained embedded in my mind and heart for many years. The question always comes to me "Am I merely close?" Let us look at the scripture and see what Jesus is asking us today:
"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. The second is this: Love your neighbor as yourself. There is no commandment greater than these." Well said, teacher" the man replied. "You are right in saying that God is one and there is no other but Him. To love Him with all your heart, with all your understanding and with all your strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself is more important than all burnt offerings and sacrifices." When Jesus saw that he had answered wisely, He said to him, "You are not far from the kingdom of God."
"Not far from the kingdom of God!" We really aren't any different from this teacher of the law. We have heard about the greatest commandment for years and some can even quote it, but the real qustion is "Are we living it?" This is where the rubber hit's the road for me, and all that are reading this. To love God by what Jesus is saying is to be about His business and not ours. To put Him before anything else in our lives. To love Him with every part of us, not just the parts we want to. For many today the truth is that "Its just merely words and not something that is reality." The choices we make, the things we do, the shows we watch and the many things we put before our God. And what about 'Loving our neighbor's?" Again we verbalize this love, but do we show it? Are we truly placing them above and their needs above ourselves? Are we showing them Christ in us, instead of the world in us? Our neighbors are 'ALL' and 'Everybody' that we encounter each and everyday! It's our family, our friends, and 'Yes' even the strangers around us. Do we really love them as ourselves? If we were incarcerated, in the hospital, in a nursing home, on the streets, lonely, depressed (and the list goes on) would we see the love anyone has for us if they never saw us? True love for the God is being obedient to His will. Doing His will. Being His hands and feet here on earth. Loving our neighbors as ourselves is encouraging, sharing truth in love, placing our time and resources above our needs.
Knowing this passage means nothing unless we are putting it into practice. We verbalize love, but love means nothing at all unless there is 'Action' behind the words. Unfortunately for the majority claiming to be Christians, Jesus would have to say "You are not far from the kingdom of God"
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