A Matter of "Mind" Over "Might"
In Matt 22:37, Jesus gives the two greatest commandments, on which all the other commands rest (see the Ten Commandments in Ex 20). #1-4: Love God (our vertical relationship); #5-10: Love people (our horizontal relationships).
In the Jewish prayer, the Shema (Deut 6:4-9), the LORD commands: “… you shall love the LORD with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might (strength)…”
In Matthew 22:37, Jesus replaces the Shema’s physical word "might” with the spiritual aspect of mind: “You shall the love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.”
Old Testament worship required personal might, to obey 613 laws, and to do ritual sacrifices and cleansings for inevitably “missing the mark.” The purpose of the law was to show that it’s impossible to be right with God by our own strength. The Holy Spirit didn’t dwell continually in God’s people then (to convict, guide, comfort, remind us of God’s Word and give us words and prayers and direction); until Pentecost, the Holy Spirit came and went upon people as God needed to guide or use them.
It might just be me, but I think that Jesus substituting mind for might is powerful. The OT commands are about works. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus doesn’t dismiss the OT commands, but EXPANDS them by adding the spiritual aspect of sinning in our mind -that if you think it in your heart, you’re guilty of it. We’re all guilty (Rom 3:10). Jesus’s showing that faith in Him is not about our own physical strength to avoid sin or our performing the proper prayer, cleansing, or animal sacrifice to atone. He IS the atoning sacrifice that all the OT blood offerings point to! HE IS the actual Passover Lamb!
Jesus’s atoning death on the cross tore the veil of the temple in two, from top to bottom. The “Holy of Holies,” where the high priest entered once a year, was opened to all who come by faith. Through Christ, we no longer require a priest to forgive us, nor the blood of animals to make us right with God (Jesus is the High Priest and the Atoning Sacrifice). By grace, repentance, faith in Christ’s redemption work on our behalf, and through His Holy Spirit, God’s temple is IN believers. We worship in spirit and in truth (John 4:23).
It’s no longer about the physical: how ornate or big the church is, the order of worship, the dress code, or whether you can drink coffee during the sermon. This is all a matter of personal preference. We don't go to a building to FIND His presence; His presence is in believers, by His Spirit! 😮 We go to church to worship/pray/learn/grow/share/fellowship with other believers! Note: If the church isn’t Bible-based and teaching from Scripture in context, this IS a problem.
His Spirit is the power within us to help us overcome and endure by faith, not our own power. Paul spoke of disciplining his body to make it obedient (1 Cor 9:27). It’s only through a strong mindset that we can truly make our physical body stronger. Its only by faith in Christ that we’re granted eternal life with Him. It’s through abiding in His word that we are truly His disciples (John 8:31).
We don’t make a pilgrimage to a place to find Jesus, because He’s set up His temple in believers’ minds, hearts and souls! This is often how our Lord comes to prison cells, to hospitals, to drug users and prostitutes in dirty alleys; this is how He enters places where they’ve never heard the Gospel, and places where Christianity is rejected. It's how He accesses broken families and abused, poverty-stricken children- He comes first by His Spirit, in the hearts, minds and souls of His people, and then by their hands and feet, doing His kingdom work in His strength and not our own (IS 52:7, Eph 2:10).
2/3/2024 sc