Dealing With Conflict (Part 4)

Now Jesus meets a man who represents a different group, the seeker.

This teacher of the law knew what the scripture said, but he wondered which one of the commandments was the most important. In Judaism there were 613 commandments, broken up into sub groups such as "heavy" - "light" - etc., meaning that some were greater than others. In his struggle to know the truth he sincerely asks, "Of all the commandments, which is the most important?"

The question, unlike the other ones Jesus had been given, was not intended to trap Jesus but to help him find the right answer and way to God. God never turns away from someone with honest questions that is looking to find their way to God. Jesus quickly and correctly tells him that loving God with every part of our existence is the first and greatest commandment, and the second is like it, to love our neighbor as ourselves. Nothing is greater than this.

Jesus had started out his response to this man with the "Shema" - "Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one." - so named after the first word in Deut. 6:4 that is translated, "Hear." God is the one priority of man's need and focus. The idea of priority is that God is first and foremost. This man agreed with Jesus, unlike the other groups that had tried to trip Him up. Obviously this man's heart was in the right place, Jesus had a seeker on His hands.

Jesus knew this man was genuine when he responded with "To love him with all your heart, with all your understanding and with all your strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself is more important than all burnt offerings and sacrifices." This man had a true understanding of God and what was expected. He was close to the kingdom of God; indeed Jesus tells him this. All the others had heard the same words from Jesus but completely missed the real point Jesus was making. When we are not really seeking God His Word is not comprehended correctly, we will usually hear the wrong thing. The heart tuned into Jesus will be tuned into Jesus' words as well.

Only days before He dies on the cross he encounters several groups of people, all but one is in conflict with Him, only the seeker is on the right path. If you are looking for truth you will find it in Jesus, and you will find a savior who can cleanse all yours sins, your guilt, and give you peace now and life in eternity.

The closer Jesus came to the cross the greater the conflict with this world. To the world the cross represents conflict, it means death to self, powerlessness, laying down your life. To the believer however the cross is the end of conflict with God, our sins are gone, the power of sin no longer destroys us or controls us. As long as we are people of the cross we will have conflict with this world, but we will overcome the world in the end - the cross is not the end, resurrection and eternal life is.