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Twenty Fourth Sunday After Pentecost
Sunday, October 26, 2008
Gospel:
Matthew 22: 34-46
The Golden Rule
Highlighted
Verses: Matthew 22: 34-46
When the Pharisees heard that he had
silenced the
Sadducees, they gathered together, 35and
one of them, a lawyer,
asked him a question to test him. 36“Teacher,
which commandment in
the law is the greatest?” 37He said to him, “’You shall love the
Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all
your
mind.’ 38This is the greatest and first
commandment. 39And
a second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ 40On
these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.”
Now while the Pharisees were gathered
together, Jesus
asked them this question: 42“What do you think of the Messiah? Whose
son is he?” They said to him, “The son of David.” 43He
said to them,
“How is it then that David by the Spirit calls him Lord, saying, 44‘The
Lord said to my Lord, “Sit at my right hand, until I put your enemies
under
your feet”’? 45If David thus calls him Lord, how can he
be his son?”
46No one was able to give him an answer,
nor from that day did
anyone dare to ask him any more questions.
You
might remember that last week's Gospel story spoke about rules - and
how many of them we have to follow in life. There are family rules and
school rules... and while we don't usually talk about them, we even
have some understood rules
about what we do (and don't do) here at church, don't we?
Sometimes it feels like life is so full of rules that we can hardly
keep up with them all. But there's one rule that is so special - so
important - that it's known by people all over the world by a special
name: The Golden Rule.
The Golden Rule - which Jesus teaches in today's Gospel reading - is
called this because it could almost take the place of nearly all the
others. If you are following this rule, chances are pretty good that
you're not breaking any others (whether they're God's rules or rules
that we've created).
Do you know what it is?
It's sometimes said in slightly different ways, but the point is this: treat other people in the same way that
you would like to be treated. In today's Gospel story Jesus
says the same thing with a little bit different wording. He says to "love your neighbor as yourself."
Think about that. If you loved your neighbors as yourself would
you hurt or kill them? (No) Would you lie to them? (No) Would you steal from them? (No)
Do you see why it's called The Golden Rule? With all of the rules in
the Bible - and there are a lot - Jesus tells the Pharisees today that
all they need to know comes down to just two things: Love God and love your neighbor as
yourself. (Do you think you can remember them both?)
So this week let's remember The Golden Rule - and show our love and
respect to others in just the same way we would hope for them to show
these things to us. I promise that it will make all the difference.
Let's pray.
Dear God,
We thank you for Jesus' lessons - and for this one in particular. Help
us to love others as we love ourselves.
Amen.
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