What is the Meaning of Life? ( Sunday Sermon Review )

Sunday Sermon Review - April 28, 2013
( from my home church I attend regularly )

Topic - What is the Meaning of Life?
Matthew Series 

Matthew 22:34-46³⁴ But when the Pharisees had heard that he had put the Sadducees to silence, they were gathered together.³⁵ Then one of them, which was a lawyer, asked him a question, tempting him, and saying,³⁶ Master, which is the great commandment in the law?³⁷ Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.³⁸ This is the first and great commandment.³⁹ And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.⁴⁰ On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.⁴¹ While the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them,⁴² Saying, What think ye of Christ? whose son is he? They say unto him, The son of David.⁴³ He saith unto them, How then doth David in spirit call him Lord, saying,⁴⁴ The Lord said unto my Lord, Sit thou on my right hand, till I make thine enemies thy footstool?⁴⁵ If David then call him Lord, how is he his son?⁴⁶ And no man was able to answer him a word, neither durst any man from that day forth ask him any more questions.

Our speaker today was Pastor Ben. Here is some of what he said.

What is the meaning of life? That is what is the most important thing? 

The Jewish leader came to Jesus with another trap. 

They asked Jesus what is the most important commandment in the law. 

Jesus answers their question by going back to the Old Testament to two passages that are very important to the Jewish people. The first one is a prayer. The devout Jews pray this 2 times each day still even today. That is Deuteronomy 6:4-5  Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God is one Lord:  And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might

The second passage is Leviticus 19:18 Thou shalt not avenge, nor bear any grudge against the children of thy people, but thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself: I am the Lord.

Jesus says in verse 40 of our text that on these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets. The term law and the prophets simply means the Bible - the whole Bible.

Love the Lord your God

To love the Lord God means to love the God of the Bible - the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. There is no other true God but Him.

Loving God means to love Jesus - Jesus is fully God.

The the latter part of the text Jesus asks the Pharisees a question - What think ye of Christ? whose son is he? They say unto him, The son of David.

Jesus continues - How then doth David in spirit call him Lord, saying,
 The Lord said unto my Lord, Sit thou on my right hand, till I make thine enemies thy footstool? If David then call him Lord, how is he his son?

 We must remember that the son is always under the Father. It was that way in the Bible times, it is that way today. Why then does David call Jesus Lord?

Jesus is God but yet He was born from the line of King David when he came  to earth and that is why is both Lord and David's son. 

Jesus is the ultimate revelation of God. Loving God means loving Jesus with your heart soul and mind. Our hearts need to be fixated on Him.

What does this mean? 

((At this point Pastor Ben lead us in a prayer and then we each sat quietly before the Lord to allow the Lord to reveal to each of us individually how we are to love Him with our heart, soul and mind. Heart: for me it was trust - to trust God with the circumstances of my life - past, present and future, my health, my children, my marriage, etc. Soul: again trust - to trust God to actually take me to His heaven when my life here is over. Mind: - to become more aware of God working all around me in my own life, as well as the life of my husband, my children, family and the world all around. Everything has to do with God.))

The Hebrew word mind carries with it the thought of strength and ability.

Love your neighbor as yourself

The two commandments cannot be separated.

Loving your neighbor does not include mushy feelings.

It is a commitment to take other people's needs seriously.

1John 4:20-21  If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen?

 And this commandment have we from him, That he who loveth God love his brother also.

This includes people you are in relationship with. People around you, family, neighbors, co-workers, enemies.

Love God and the people around us.

Hatred and pride are left behind and love becomes a reality!