You are not far from the kingdom of God

 Then one of the scribes came, and having heard them reasoning together, perceiving that He had answered them well, asked Him, "Which is the first commandment of all?"  Jesus answered him, "The first of all the commandments is:  'Hear, O Israel, the LORD our God, the LORD is one.  And you shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.'  This is the first commandment.  And the second, like it, is this:  'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.'  There is no other commandment greater than these."  So the scribe said to Him, "Well said, Teacher.  You have spoken the truth, for there is one God, and there is no other but He.  And to love Him with all the heart, with all the understanding, with all the soul, and with all the strength, and to love one's neighbor as oneself, is more than all the whole burnt offerings and sacrifices."  Now when Jesus saw that he answered wisely, He said to him, "You are not far from the kingdom of God."  But after that no one dared question Him.

- Mark 12:28-34

Yesterday we read that they sent to Jesus some of the Pharisees and the Herodians, to catch Him in His words as He taught in the temple.  When they had come, they said to Him, "Teacher, we know that You are true, and care about no one; for You do not regard the person of men, but teach the way of God in truth.  Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not?  Shall we pay, or shall we not pay?"  But He, knowing their hypocrisy, said to them, "Why do you test Me?  Bring Me a denarius that I may see it."  So they brought it.  And He said to them, "Whose image and inscription is this?"  They said to Him, "Caesar's."  And Jesus answered and said to them, "Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's."  And they marveled at Him.  Then some Sadducees, who say there is no resurrection, came to Him; and they asked Him, saying:  "Teacher, Moses wrote to us that if a man's brother dies, and leaves his wife behind, and leaves no children, his brother should take his wife and raise up offspring for his brother.  Now there were seven brothers.  The first took a wife; and dying, he left no offspring.  And the second took her, and he died; nor did he leave any offspring.  And the third likewise.  So the seven had her and left no offspring.  Last of all the woman died also.  Therefore, in the resurrection, when they rise, whose wife will she be?  For all seven had her as wife."  Jesus answered and said to them, "Are you not therefore mistaken, because you do not know the Scriptures nor the power of God?  For when they rise from the dead, they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like angels in heaven.  But concerning the dead, that they rise, have you not read in the book of Moses, in the burning bush passage, how God spoke to him, saying, 'I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob'?  He is not the God of the dead, but the God of the living.  You are therefore greatly mistaken."

 Then one of the scribes came, and having heard them reasoning together, perceiving that He had answered them well, asked Him, "Which is the first commandment of all?"  Jesus answered him, "The first of all the commandments is:  'Hear, O Israel, the LORD our God, the LORD is one.  And you shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.'  This is the first commandment.  And the second, like it, is this:  'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.'  There is no other commandment greater than these."  So the scribe said to Him, "Well said, Teacher.  You have spoken the truth, for there is one God, and there is no other but He.  And to love Him with all the heart, with all the understanding, with all the soul, and with all the strength, and to love one's neighbor as oneself, is more than all the whole burnt offerings and sacrifices."  Now when Jesus saw that he answered wisely, He said to him, "You are not far from the kingdom of God."  But after that no one dared question Him.  Jesus answers the question of the scribe by quoting Deuteronomy 6:4-5, which is the greatest Jewish confession of faith.  It is called the shema', which means "hear," the first word of the confession.  He then quotes Leviticus 19:18, creating a combination in order to forge a new understanding.  Consistent with His teaching to the apostles regarding the care of the littlest and their use of power (see all the readings from last week), and with His teachings on prayer and forgiveness (see Tuesday's reading), Jesus expresses through what is already present in the Old Testament a new lesson:  that love of neighbor is an expression of love of God.  Let us note that this scribe, a lawyer, is told by Jesus that he is "not far from the kingdom of God."  The Gospels give us a sense that among the leadership there are those who become faithful followers of Christ, including the Pharisee Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimathea, a wealthy man of Jerusalem, both members of the ruling Council.

It's important that we understand that despite what is to come, Jesus' condemnation by the Council, the Gospels teach us that all members of the Council are not alike.  Rather, the picture we get is one of manipulation from the powerful at the top through wrong use of power, violations of their own law and procedure, and for reasons of envy.  But all in leadership do not agree, and there are those who are clearly not merely sympathetic to Jesus, but who also at great risk to themselves become disciples and supporters.  This is important because the Gospels teach that there are no assumptions to be made based on a social or community identity; what is truly important is just what Christ teaches in today's reading:  who are those who keep these two great commandments, understanding that they go hand in hand?  Throughout Mark's Gospel, Jesus has set out the difference between using power as a manipulative and coercive tool, and using power and authority in ways that create and practice love and compassion.  He has Himself set the example for this.  Here, in His answer to the scribe's question, Jesus sets out the correct juxtaposition of the two greatest commandments of the Law, that in effect sum up His own teachings.  First, one must love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.  Coupled with this first and greatest commandment Jesus deliberately adds a second:  You shall love your neighbor as yourself.  Jesus teaches us about compassion.  In Matthew's Gospel, when He sums up the Judgment that will come at the end of the age, He speaks of the separation of sheep and goats, using them as images for the ways of life that people practice.  The separation takes place on the basis of the showing of compassion, and this is the summing up Jesus presents us with in these two greatest commandments.  We note the importance of the fact that one comes first.  It is God who is arbiter of all things, and God who is love, and from whom we learn concepts of love, of justice, of truth, of mercy.  It is in this model of loving God through communion that we learn how to love neighbor, how to use discernment, how to find true righteousness that does not shrink from truth about our condition and that of our neighbor.  Let us consider how we fulfill these two great commandments, and in what order of magnitude we need to understand them.  What are we to make of Jesus' reply to the scribe?  Perhaps it is the understanding that to fully live these commands is to draw the Kingdom near to us.