And the scribe said to him, “Correct, Teacher. In truth you said that he is one. And no other is - except him. And to love-in-action him with all one’s heart and with all one’s being and with all one’s ability, and to love-in-action one’s neighbour as oneself, is abundantly more than all of the whole burnt offerings and sacrifices.”
The thinking, educated man agrees. He weighs the value of love-in-action against the making of animal sacrifices, which were part of his religion in Jerusalem. The old love-in-action commands as “far more” than all religion.
Whereupon Jesus himself, seeing that he answered thoughtfully, said to him, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.”
Jesus gives his public assessment of this man’s position with regard to the Lord God – “not far from the kingdom of God.” On what basis? It was because he had responded “thoughtfully” to Jesus’ reply to his question. Maybe Richard Syvret needs to be more thoughtful.
In particular, whilst the scribe, after reflection, used the same words as Jesus twice (“all your heart”; “all your ability”), he merged the other two of Jesus’ words (“all your life”; “all your mind”) into one (“all one’s being”). So, yes, I too think he had seen it as true truth to be followed….
And after that no one was bold enough to question him further.
Why not? Had they begun to realise that Jesus could see inside them?
So Jesus, answering and teaching in the temple, stated, “How do the scribes state that the Christ is the son of David? David himself, in the Holy Spirit, said, ‘The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit at my right hand, until I put your enemies under your feet.”’ David himself specifically calls him Lord. So how is he his son?”
So, Jesus now asks the folk listening in the Temple a question about the teaching of the grammateon – the educated scribes like the one who had just questioned him. The scribes had examined closely a Psalm written about 1,000 years earlier by their King David (alive BC 980).
|
