If someone were to ask you what is the most important thing in the Christian faith, what would you say? Is it the Ten Commandments? Is it the rules of how we live that we're supposed to follow? Is it the Golden Rule that we're supposed to do unto others like we would have them do unto us? Is it something about Jesus? If so, what? Is it that He is a great teacher who teaches how to live the right way? Is it that He teaches us not to drink or smoke or dance? Is the most important thing the Spirit working in you by making you feel a certain way? What is it? What's the big deal? The most important? The central and highest teaching of the Christian faith. Someone asked Jesus. "Teacher, which is the great commandment?" What do you think? Not coveting? Not committing adultery? Having no other gods? Jesus answers the expert in the law. But the answer, as it always is from Jesus, point us to Him and not to ourselves.
Jesus tells him the most important commandment is to love God with all your heart and soul and strength and the second is like it, to love your neighbor as yourself. "All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments." So, Jesus is saying that everything hangs on loving God and loving your neighbor, right?. Is that it, then? The central teaching of the faith? The most important things: loving God and loving your neighbor? Well ask yourself: How's that going for you? Do you love the Lord with all of your heart and soul and strength? The answer is you don't. You love lots of thing way more than God. You spend your time and energy on far more interesting things than learning God's Word and praying, don't you? And what about loving your neighbor? Oh you probably do some nice things for some people but why? To make yourself feel good? So people will thank you? If you have to have a reason for doing good things for others, you aren't really doing it for them but for yourself because you love yourself most of all. Love God and love your neighbor. Jesus says the Scriptures hang on those two commandments. Does your life hang on those two commandments as the most important thing? How's that religion working for you?
But when Jesus says "All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments," He isn't saying that everything depends on the Law. We must pay attention to Jesus' words more closely than that! First of all, He says "All the Law and the Prophets." What does He mean by that? He means everything written in the Scriptures, specifically the Old Testament. But what is the whole Old Testament about? It's about Jesus. It's about the Savior promised to sinners. It's about the working out of the Lord's time and plan to send His Son into the world to save sinners. So when Jesus says, "All the Law and the Prophets" He means Himself! And He says "All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments." Hang. In the Law, and St. Paul quotes it again in Galatians, it says, "Cursed is everyone who HANGS on a tree." If you read in the book of Acts, the apostles preached about Jesus who was "hung" on a tree. So let's put this all together. "All the Law and the Prophets HANG on these two commandments." Law and Prophets means Jesus and He HANGS on the cross, punished for our sins, hanging on the Law and its accusing us of not loving God or neighbor. On the cross, Jesus is both loving God above all things, for He does the will of His Father and He is loving His neighbor because He is dying for you. There, on the cross, the Son of God HANGS on the Law, punished for your sins while doing what you could not. Keeping what you could not keep. Paying what you could not pay. Dying the death you cannot die. Saving you who cannot save yourself. Get it? When Jesus hangs on the cross, He's hanging on the Law for you.
Now if it were just anyone hanging there, it wouldn't do us any good. So Jesus goes on to teach the teachers about who He is. He's David's Lord. But He's also David's son. How can that be? How can Jesus be both the one that David calls "Lord" and the son of David, a descendant of David. The Bible experts don't know, because they refuse to see that the Scripture is really all about Jesus. But if they read the Scripture and understood it to be about Christ then they could answer the question. Jesus is David's Lord because He is the true Son, begotten of the Father from all eternity. But He is David's son because He is true man, born of the virgin Mary. Jesus is true God and true man in one person. And that's why HIS hanging on those two commandments, His hanging on the cross saves you. Only someone who can die like us can suffer the punishment we deserved. Only someone who is true God can be a sacrifice that counts for everybody everywhere of every time and place. The Bible experts have it all wrong. They want to make the commandments the main thing and the Savior to be another Moses, another Lawgiver. But Jesus is teaching them, in today's Gospel reading, that the most important thing is this: The Savior, who is true God and true man, fulfills the Law and hangs on the cross for sinners.
Let's say it again. The most important, highest, central thing in the Christian faith is this: Jesus, who is true God and true man, keeps the Law and hangs in death for sinners. No matter how long you are a Christian, that will never stop being the most important thing because that is your salvation. Now beware, brothers and sisters, because the world is filled with churches and preachers who think the main thing, the big deal is the commandments in and of themselves. Whole churches are based upon and preachers love to spend all their time preaching about how you are supposed to live. What you are to do and not do. How you are to demonstrate YOUR faithfulness. What to wear and not wear, say and not say, drink and not drink, eat and not eat and on and on. There are churches that say your effort and good intentions are the most important thing. There are religions and philosophies that say that all ways to God are valid; what matters is your sincerity. Brothers and sisters in Christ, I'm telling you, again, what Jesus says. Not me. Jesus. The most important thing, the big deal, the center and substance of what it means to be a Christian is this: Jesus, true God and true man, fulfilled the Law and hung on the cross for you. If any preaching or teaching or talking or writing or sermon or devotion or makes anything else the big deal then beware of it! Run away from it! Flee from it to the Savior who as true God and man has loved both God and neighbor and saved you from your sins!
So if someone asks you what the most important thing in the Christian faith is just say it again: Jesus, true God and man, keeping the Law for you and hanging on the cross for you. That is what saves you. It is by Baptism that the Savior claims you. It is by His Body and Blood that He forgives and feeds you. It is by the word and preaching that declares to you His saving work that you are saved. Love God. Love your neighbor. All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments. Therefore Jesus hangs on these two commandments when He hangs on the cross. And because He is true God and true man, His hanging there and dying and His rising again to life saves you. That is the center and substance of our faith. It's what makes the Christian faith Christian. It's what makes you a Christian. In the Name of Jesus. Amen.
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