Red Letter Christians – Part One – Love and Compassion
https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%2022%3A34-40&version=NIV
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Love is a Verb
A man notices his elderly neighbor’s yard is overgrown. Technically, it’s not his problem. He has his own chores, his own work, his own Saturday to-do list. He would like to sit down and watch the game later. But he pulls out the mower and cuts her lawn anyway.
The next week she leaves him a thank-you note in his mailbox, written in shaky handwriting: “You didn’t just mow my yard. You reminded me I’m not forgotten.”
Love of neighbor often looks simple, but to the person receiving it, it is profound. – Let’s talk about it.
Head/Mind – Useful Information to Get the Conversation Going
When Jesus was asked about the greatest commandment, He didn’t invent something new. The Torah already said, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, and strength.” It already said, “Love your neighbor as yourself.” What Jesus did was take those two truths and bring them side by side, so that each could only be understood in the light of the other.
It’s a little like Einstein’s discovery about space and time. For centuries, people thought they were separate. But Einstein showed us that space and time form one fabric—space-time—and only together do they explain the way the universe really works.
Or think about DNA. A single strand doesn’t tell you much. But when you see the double helix, two strands joined together, you realize it’s the very code of life.
Or consider Monet’s paintings. If you stare at just one patch of color, it may look confusing. But when the colors and the light are taken together, the water lilies come alive.
Even something as ordinary as eyeglasses shows us this truth: one lens or one frame on its own doesn’t help. But bring them together, and suddenly the world comes into focus.
That’s what Jesus does with the law. Love of God and love of neighbor aren’t two separate commandments competing for first place. They are one great commandment with two parts, and only when held together do they become the lens through which we see the whole of God’s
So what is Jesus’ innovation: He brought together two familiar but usually separate commandments—Deut. 6:4–5 (love of God) and Lev. 19:18 (love of neighbor)—and said they were inseparable. To love God is to love neighbor. To neglect neighbor is to neglect God.
And, the raw material for doing that was already coming together in the time of the Old Testament prophets. Amos, Micah, Isaiah, and Hosea all stressed that rituals religious practices mean nothing without justice and mercy.
Jesus stands in this line of prophets but brings radical clarity, brining it all together like a focused light becoming a laser that can cut diamonds.
Jesus’ insight becomes a Radical demand: Jesus makes love the “organizing principle” of the entire law and prophets. It is not optional or secondary it is the center core.
Imagine if the IRS simplified the entire U.S. tax code into one rule: “Spend your money in a way that blesses your family and your community.” That would be radical. Jesus essentially does this with God’s law—He reduces it to one clear, central demand: love. Love God and love other people.
Heart – The Personal Connection
The truth is, it’s easier to say we love God than it is to actually love the people around us. We can sing about our love for God in worship. We can pray with beautiful words. But then we go back to work on Monday and find ourselves frustrated with the coworker who always irritates us, or we walk past the neighbor who never waves back, or we mutter under our breath at the stranger who cuts us off in traffic. Jesus ties those things together. Our devotion to God is tested not by what we say to him in prayer but by the way we treat the people he has placed in our lives.
Sometimes this love shows up in small, everyday ways. I think of a teacher who noticed a student who never seemed to have enough food at lunch. She didn’t make a big announcement about it. She just quietly began packing an extra snack each day, not because she had to, but because she saw that child as her neighbor. That’s what love looks like in the ordinary rhythm of life.
Other times, love is far more difficult. I think of a church member who had been deeply hurt by a family member. Forgiveness didn’t come quickly or easily. But over time, instead of seeking revenge, they chose to respond with grace. That decision didn’t erase the wound, but it did break the cycle of bitterness. That, too, is love.
And when you look back over your own life, think about the people who have loved you best. Were they the ones who could quote the most scripture? Or were they the ones who embodied patience, kindness, and sacrifice?
I’m reminded of Mr. Rogers, who once said, “Love is at the root of everything.” He was ordained to preach the gospel but decided his pulpit would be a television camera. And so his ministry became a ministry of presence, showing love to children and neighbors in small, simple, but profound ways. That’s the kind of love Jesus is pointing us toward.
Hands – Practical Application
So let’s bring this home. Start close to where you live. Who is one person in your life that you find hard to love? A coworker, a family member, maybe even a neighbor on your own street. This week, I want you to pray for them by name. And don’t stop there—look for one tangible act of kindness you can do for them. It doesn’t have to be dramatic. Sometimes the smallest gesture of grace can open the biggest door.
From there, we expand outward together as a church. Where are the places in our community where love is least expected, but most needed? Maybe it’s serving at a local shelter. Maybe it’s supporting teachers who are carrying heavy loads in our schools. Maybe it’s simply checking in on an elderly neighbor who feels forgotten. As a body of believers, we are called to show the kind of love that doesn’t stop at the walls of this sanctuary.
And make no mistake—Jesus doesn’t command us to feel love. He commands us to act in love. That might mean calling the friend you’ve been putting off. Sharing a meal with someone who’s lonely. Refusing to join in gossip at work. Volunteering in a place where people are hurting. Love in action is what proves the depth of our devotion to God.
I think back to a few years ago, when tornadoes ripped through Mayfield, Kentucky, just a few miles from my parents’ home. The people of the community pulled together. Some were out handing out bottled water, others opening their houses, grilling food for neighbors, setting up makeshift shelters. Nobody stopped to ask who you voted for, what denomination you belonged to, or what color your skin was. The only question was, “What do you need?” That’s what love looks like when all the excuses are stripped away. That’s what Jesus calls us to live out every day, not just in moments of crisis, but in the ordinary moments of grace.
Closing Invitation
Friends, the message today is both simple and demanding. Jesus said that the greatest commandment is love. Love for God with all that we are, and love for our neighbor as ourselves. He didn’t separate the two—He joined them together.
This command is not a burden meant to weigh us down. It is an invitation into the life we were created for. To love God in worship, yes—but also to love Him in the way we speak to our families, the way we treat strangers, and the way we serve those in need.
The truth is, every one of us is called to love. Some acts of love may seem small, offering a kind word, a patient spirit, a helping hand. Others may stretch us to forgive or to serve in ways we never imagined. But together, they are how God’s love shines into the world.
So today, I invite you to say yes.
Yes to loving God with all your heart.
Yes to loving your neighbor as yourself.
Yes to letting the love of Jesus shape your life.
If you have never placed your trust in Jesus, this is the time to begin that journey of love—receiving His grace and learning to walk in His ways. And if you are already following Him, then let today be a day of recommitment. A day to say yes again to love—love in your home, in your workplace, in this community.
The world is waiting. The invitation is before us. Let’s say yes together.
Closing Prayer
Let’s pray.
God of love,
From the beginning You have been drawing Your people to Yourself. You called Israel to love You with all their heart. You commanded them to love their neighbors as themselves. And in Jesus, You brought those two commands together into one life-giving way.
Forgive us for the times we have said we loved You, but failed to love those around us. Forgive us for separating what You have joined together. Renew our hearts with Your Spirit. Open our eyes to the neighbors You have placed in our path, and give us courage to love as You have first loved us.
Today we say yes.
Yes to loving You with all that we are.
Yes to loving our neighbors as ourselves.
Yes to letting Your love guide our lives—not in our strength, but in the power of Your Spirit.
Send us out with joy, Lord, so that our homes, our neighborhoods, and our world may be filled with Your love, and the name of Jesus lifted high.
In His name we pray,
Amen.
*Below is the background research for this sermon.
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- Love and Compassion:
In A Marginal Jew: Rethinking the Historical Jesus, John P. Meier addresses Jesus’ combination of the two great commandments—love of God and love of neighbor—and its significance in Jesus’ teachings. Here is a summary of his key observations on the topic:
1. The Innovation in Combining the Commandments
Meier points out that while both commandments—love of God from Deuteronomy 6:4-5 (the Shema) and love of neighbor from Leviticus 19:18—were well-known and respected in Jewish tradition, their explicit combination as the “greatest commandment” was not standard in Jewish thought before Jesus.
- Deuteronomy 6:4-5: “You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your might.”
- Leviticus 19:18: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”
Meier suggests that Jesus’ synthesis of these two commandments into a singular summary of the law was a distinctive and influential move, even if not entirely unprecedented. By linking the two, Jesus emphasized their inseparability—love for God is demonstrated and lived out through love for others.
2. The Centrality of Love in Jesus’ Ethics
Meier notes that Jesus’ prioritization of these commandments highlights His focus on love as the essence of the law. This emphasis on love marked a radical simplification of the complex web of Jewish legal traditions, offering a profound ethical core that is accessible and applicable to all.
3. A Prophetic Tradition
Meier connects Jesus’ teaching to the prophetic tradition within Judaism, where the prophets often emphasized justice, mercy, and faithfulness over ritual observance. He sees Jesus’ linking of these two commandments as consistent with this prophetic spirit, which sought the heart of God’s requirements rather than mere external adherence to the law.
4. Continuity and Discontinuity with Jewish Thought
While Meier acknowledges that love of God and neighbor were deeply rooted in Jewish Scripture and tradition, he emphasizes the distinctive emphasis Jesus placed on these commandments as the foundation of the entire law and prophets (as seen in Matthew 22:34-40 and Mark 12:28-34). This move may not have been entirely unique, but it was striking in its clarity and centrality in Jesus’ teaching.
5. Universality and Radical Demands
Meier notes that Jesus’ teaching on these commandments also carried a universal appeal. By placing love of God and neighbor above ritual and ethnic boundaries, Jesus opened a path for understanding the law that extended beyond traditional Jewish contexts. At the same time, the radical nature of Jesus’ demand—to love God with all one’s heart, soul, and strength, and to love one’s neighbor as oneself—required total commitment.
Conclusion
John P. Meier highlights Jesus’ synthesis of the two great commandments as a profound yet simple summary of His ethical teaching. While rooted in Jewish tradition, the way Jesus combined these commandments was a hallmark of His ministry, emphasizing the integral relationship between love for God and love for others. This synthesis, Meier argues, became a defining feature of the moral vision Jesus presented, one that has resonated deeply within Christian tradition
Jesus emphasized the importance of love, both for God and for others. He taught the Great Commandment: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, and mind” (Matthew 22:37) and “Love your neighbor as yourself” (Matthew 22:39). This is seen as the foundation of all other commandments.
Loving those outside our circle. He also taught to love one’s enemies and to show mercy, as illustrated in the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5:44).