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When personal desires reach their peak, they can become uncontrollable. Often, people become blind to obvious facts and deaf to thunderous sounds. The Pharisees and Sadducees were sworn enemies, but they united in their effort to eliminate the Lord Jesus because their influence and financial avenues were being severely blocked. They were determined to conspire together to murder Jesus at all costs. Although the Pharisees were pleased that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees, this didn’t mean that they saw the truth or understood what He had said. They continued to choose darkness because of their desires. Like the Sadducees, they carried on with their full effort to plot Jesus' death. The Pharisees sent a "legal expert" to confront Jesus. His goal was to trap Jesus into opposing the law given by Moses, which was deeply rooted in Jewish belief. In the hearts of the Jewish people, Moses held a transcendent position. Jesus had already anticipated this, which is why He had previously said, "I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished" (Matthew 5:18).
This "legal expert" appeared in the guise of someone knowledgeable in the law and, with a very cunning approach, set a trap. If there were distinctions of primary and secondary commands within the Mosaic law, it could imply that by keeping the primary commands, the secondary ones could be neglected, thus introducing selectivity in following the law. This would contradict Moses’ intention that all Israelites should keep all of God’s commands. The "legal expert" asked this question knowingly. But the wisdom of Jesus, which came from God, saw through the scheme and responded, "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself. All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments" (Matthew 22:37-40).
When we know that God loves us wholeheartedly, gave His life for us, and granted us the most precious gift of the Holy Spirit, He also asks that we love Him with all our heart, soul, and mind. Such love will naturally be reflected in the keeping of all His commandments. A heart that loves the Lord will also love those whom the Lord Jesus loves. This "legal expert" failed in his attempt, but Jesus saw into his heart and said, "You are not far from the kingdom of God." At that point, the Pharisees and Sadducees had exhausted all their efforts, and no one dared to ask Him any more questions (Mark 12:34).
Loving God and loving others is the path of growth for believers (2 Peter 1:5-10). After completing the doctrinally rich book of Romans, the Apostle Paul concludes by saying, "Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for whoever loves others has fulfilled the law. The commandments, ‘You shall not commit adultery,’ ‘You shall not murder,’ ‘You shall not steal,’ ‘You shall not covet,’ and whatever other command there may be, are summed up in this one command: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ Love does no harm to a neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law" (Romans 13:8-10). The Apostle Peter concludes by saying, "The end of all things is near. Therefore be alert and of sober mind so that you may pray. Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins" (1 Peter 4:7-8). The Apostle John, who transformed from a "son of thunder" into the "apostle of love," said, "We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love each other. Anyone who does not love remains in death. Anyone who hates a brother or sister is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life residing in him. This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters. If anyone has material possessions and sees a brother or sister in need but has no pity on them, how can the love of God be in that person? Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth" (1 John 3:14-18).
When we ask about tithing, what we should ask ourselves even more is, how much do we love the Lord Jesus? When we encounter people who are difficult to love, we should remind ourselves: How would the Lord Jesus love them?
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