Two Nails

Jesus drives in the 2 “nails” that hold all the commandments.

Matthew 22:34-40 (KJV)

³⁴But when the Pharisees had heard that he had put the Sadducees to silence, they were gathered together. ³⁵Then one of them, which was a lawyer, asked him a question, tempting him, and saying, ³⁶Master, which is the great commandment in the law? ³⁷Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. ³⁸This is the first and great commandment. ³⁹And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. ⁴⁰On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.

The two sects of Judaism in Jesus’ day were always trying to stump Him or back Him into a corner by arguing some point of God’s law. On this occasion, the Pharisees, who had heard that the Sadducees had lost their debate with Him, were determine to outwit Jesus and their rival sect at the same time. So they asked Him to elevate one of the commandments to the title of being the greatest one of all. They knew they would be able to argue His choice and, perhaps, had practiced that very debate many times in their lofty assemblies with each one making his case with an air of superiority. They knew they had Him just as soon as He named His “greatest” commandment.

Instead of falling into the trap, Jesus threw them a curve by giving them two new commandments instead of one old one:

1. Love God with all your heart, soul, and mind.
2. Love your neighbor as yourself.

Jesus pointed out that these two commandments were like two nails upon which you hang everything God had said. The Word of God came from two sources – the Law and the prophets. Moses was the lawgiver, or more correctly, the law receiver. God gave him instruction for His people through the law books – the Pentateuch – the first five books of the Bible. After that, God’s instruction would come through the mouth of the Prophets. Both the Mosaic Law and the words of the Prophets were sacred to the Israelites. And Jesus summed up every directive from both sources in two commands: Love God and love one another.

When you look at the Ten Commandments, it’s easy to see. The first five deal with our devotion to God. Love God. The second five deal with how we relate to those around us. Love one another.

It’s also easy to understand when you realize that God’s sole motivation is His love for humanity:

“For God so loved, that He gave…” (John 3:16)

“I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with unfailing kindness.” (Jeremiah 31:3)

“Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.” (1 John 4:8)

So often we, like the Pharisees, focus on the rules rather than the motivation for the rules. Jesus brings us back to the heart of the matter. If you want to be more like Christ and keep His commandments, get motivated by the same thing that motivates Him – LOVE. If we love God with everything in us and truly love (that’s a verb) others so much that their well-being is just as important as our own, then the commandments will be automatic. We can hang our total devotion to God on those two nails! Love God. Love one another.