The Lord Jesus had not come to invent a new religion; He was fulfilling the one and only true religion, given by God. He was personally the fulfillment of the prophecies of Scripture, and His teaching simply distilled and clarified what God’s Word had always said.

St. Augustine would explain it 400 years later, “The New Testament is hidden in the Old, and the Old Testament is revealed in the New.”

In His teaching, Jesus spoke about the Scriptures as only their Author could. Instead of saying, as the Scribes would, “What I think this means is…” He could say, “What I meant when I had My Prophet write this is…” The eyewitness accounts tell us, “They were astonished at His teaching, for He taught them as one who had authority, and not as the scribes.” (Mark 1:22)

So when He was asked which of all God’s Commandments was the most important, He answered by repeating the “sh’ma,” the first prayer that every Jewish child learns and repeats at least once every day. And then He went on to show how all of God’s commandments can be summarized in and grow out of only two: Love God with all your heart, soul, and strength, and love your neighbor as you love yourself.

And at the same time, He gently reminded the questioner with Whom he was speaking: The Lord our God, the author of these Scriptures, is One.

Lord, You are One; Lord of Heaven and earth. Your Word is true and Your commandments are right. Your forgiveness is perfect and Your plan and purpose for my life are life itself. Amen.

Pastor Dan Giles