Greatest Commandment, Greater Christ
Greatest Commandment, Greater Christ
The Eighteenth Sunday after Trinity – 10/4/2026
Matthew 22:34-46
Rev. Dr. Christopher W. Brademeyer
That portion from God’s holy Word for consideration this morning is our reading from the Holy Gospel according to St. Matthew in the 22nd chapter with special emphasis on verses thirty-five through forty which read as follows:
“And one of them, a lawyer, asked him a question to test him. “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?” And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.”[1]
Thus far the Scriptures.
In the Name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
There are some questions that are asked because a person genuinely wants to know the answer. And then there are questions that are asked because the person asking already thinks he knows the answer. The Pharisees' question in our Gospel is of the second kind. One of them, a lawyer, asks Jesus, "Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?" It sounds like a reasonable theological question. Indeed, it is an important question. What does God require of us? What is the most important thing that God commands His people to do?
But Matthew tells us that the lawyer asked this question to test Jesus. He wants to put Jesus to the test. He wants to see whether Jesus will give the right answer, or perhaps, whether Jesus will give an answer that can be used against Him.
Jesus answers with words that every faithful Jew would have known: "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind." This is the great and first commandment. And then Jesus adds a second: "You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments," He says, "depend all the Law and the Prophets." It is difficult to argue with that answer.
It is important to notice what the Lord says here. He does not say, "Try to love God more." He does not say, "Do your best to be a good person." He does not say, "God understands that nobody is perfect." He says: "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind."
All. Not most of your heart. Not most of your soul. Not most of your mind. All. And then He says, "You shall love your neighbor as yourself." Not occasionally. Not when your neighbor is lovable. Not when your neighbor agrees with you. Not when your neighbor has earned it. As yourself.
This is the Law of God. This is His will for you. And this Law exposes us. This is the greatest commandment. Have you kept it? We have loved God, but not with all our heart. We have loved our neighbors, but not as ourselves.
However, we have loved ourselves quite well. We have defended ourselves. We have excused ourselves. We have remembered the wrongs done against us while conveniently forgetting the wrongs we have done to others. We have been patient with ourselves and impatient with others. We have been generous toward ourselves and stingy toward our neighbor.
Even our love for God is imperfect. We become distracted in prayer. We neglect God's
Word. We allow earthly concerns to consume our attention. We worry about tomorrow as though God were not our Father. We receive His gifts and then act as though we have earned them ourselves.
The problem is not that God has failed to make His will clear. The problem is that we have failed to do it. The Law says: Love God with everything you are. Love your neighbor as yourself.
So the question becomes: Who can stand before God and say, "I have done that"? None of us. That is why it is dangerous to reduce the Christian faith to the slogan, "Love God and love your neighbor." It is true, but it is not Gospel. The commandments tell us what we are to do. It does not, by itself, tell us how sinners are reconciled to the God whom we have failed to love.
And that is where St. Matthew takes us. Jesus does something very interesting after answering the lawyer. He asks the Pharisees a question. What do you think about the Christ? Whose son is He? They answer correctly: "The son of David." Then Jesus asks them: "How is it then that David, in the Spirit, calls Him Lord?" And Jesus quotes Psalm 110: "The Lord said to my Lord, 'Sit at my right hand, until I put your enemies under your feet.'" Then He asks: "If then David calls Him Lord, how is He his son?" And Matthew tells us: "No one was able to answer Him a word."
Now, at first glance, this seems like a strange way to conclude a discussion about the greatest commandment. But Jesus is bringing us to the heart of the matter. Who is Jesus? That is the question underneath every other question. Who is this Jesus who commands us to love God and our neighbor? He is the Christ. He is the Son of David. But He is also David's Lord. He is true man, descended from David according to the flesh. And He is true God, David's Lord, the eternal Son of the Father.
This matters because the One who gives the Law is also the One who fulfills it. The One who says, "Love the Lord your God with all your heart" is the One who actually loved the Father with a perfect heart. The One who says, "Love your neighbor as yourself" is the One who loved His neighbor perfectly. And He did not merely love those who loved Him. He loves sinners. He loves His enemies. He loves those who mocked Him. He loves those who struck Him. He loves those who nailed Him to the cross. He loves you.
Jesus Christ perfectly fulfilled the Law of God. Where we have failed, He succeeded. Where our love has been divided, His love was perfect. Where our hearts have turned inward upon ourselves, His heart was turned toward the Father and toward us. And then He went to the cross. There, the One who perfectly fulfilled the Law suffered for those who had not. The righteous One died for the unrighteous. The obedient Son stood in the place of disobedient sons and daughters. The One who had perfectly loved God and neighbor was treated as though He had done everything wrong, so that those who had failed to love God and neighbor might receive forgiveness.
This is why Christianity is not fundamentally about becoming better people. It is not fundamentally about trying harder. It is not fundamentally about making ourselves worthy of God. Christianity begins with Christ. What do you think about the Christ? That is the question. Who is He? He is David's Son. He is David's Lord. He is true God and true man. He is the Savior of sinners. And He has come not merely to give us another commandment, but to save us from our failure to keep God's commandments.
That changes how we should understand the two great commandments. We do not hear them as though God were saying, "If you can just love enough, then perhaps you will be worthy of Me." Rather, we hear the Law for what it is: God's good and holy will, which exposes our sin. This readies us to hear the Gospel: Christ has fulfilled the Law for you. Christ has died for you. Christ is risen for you. Your sins are forgiven.
In the Holy Name of + Jesus. Amen.
The peace of God that passes all understanding keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.
[1] Matthew 22:35-40 English Standard Version. All further quotations from the Holy Scriptures are from the ESV.
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