20060318
    Jesus answered, “The foremost is, ’HEAR, O ISRAEL! THE LORD OUR GOD IS ONE LORD; AND YOU SHALL LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD WITH ALL YOUR HEART, AND WITH ALL YOUR SOUL, AND WITH ALL YOUR MIND, AND WITH ALL YOUR STRENGTH.’
Mark 12:29-30 NASB
    The reading for today contains a stark warning to the Israelites about the holiness of the Sabbath. A man was found gathering wood on that day, in direct violation of God’s commands, and God’s judgment on him was to be stoned to death.
    While that harsh judgment does not exist within the Christian church, we are not to forget that the essence of God’s command to honor the Sabbath still holds true. Jesus reaffirmed himself that the moral law, that is the law of the Commandments, still holds true for us, even today, in his replies in Matthew 22:36-37 and Mark 12:29-30.
    What does this command mean for us today? It means that we must keep in mind that our goal here on earth is to get to Heaven, and that goal can only be achieved by our faith in our God. Part of that faith is to gather in regular community worship and prayer, to hear God’s Word preached, and to fellowship with other believers.
    Failure to do so, especially when that failure is characterized by pursuing things of the world rather than things of God on those days Christians have set aside to honor God, is the first crack that can allow the devil and the world a foothold in our hearts. When those cracks become deep enough, we come into danger with our faith.
    The moral then, is to watch out against such temptation, lest we convince ourselves that the very thing that is good for our souls is not that important. The goal is to reach Heaven, and we can be assured by doing so if we constantly strive to keep that command to love our God.
DLH
