Jesus' Commandments

 Some have said that Jesus had no new teachings.  Several times in the Gospels, Jesus discusses what the Greatest Commandment is.  When asked, he quotes from Deuteronomy and Leviticus (perhaps giving rise to that assertion of having nothing new).  I have had the odd conversation over what the Bible’s main point is.  While different ones may convict, challenge or disgust each of us, I’d suggest it is disingenuous to not start with Jesus’ answer to the Greatest Commandment.  And Jesus did have one new one (at least), which I save for the end.

Scouring the Gospels, this is what I have come up with as Jesus' Twelve Commandments.  I have tried to stay away from ones specific to a given person, such as “go wash and show yourself to the priest”; and avoid obvious (?) exaggerations such as “If your right eye causes you to sin, pluck it out”; and no suggestions or advice, like “do not worry” or “watch out for false prophets”.  These are not listed in order of how important I believe them to be, except the last one, I do believe is the most important. 

Let me know if I missed one. 

1. Love the Lord your God with all your heart, mind, soul and strength.  And Love your neighbor as yourself.  On these two rest all the Law and the Prophets.  MATT 22 

2. So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.  Matt 7 (Sermon on the Mount)

3. But to you who are listening I say: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. LUKE 6:27-28

4. Be Perfect as your Heavenly Father is Perfect.  MATT 5 (Sermon on the Mount)

5. Be Merciful as your Heavenly Father is Merciful.  LUKE 6 (Sermon on the Plains)

6. Take up your Cross and follow me. MARK 8:38

7. Judge not, lest ye be judged. MATT 7

8. Make disciples of all nations.  MATT 28

9. “Do not give dogs what is sacred; do not throw your pearls to pigs. If you do, they may trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you to pieces.  MATT 7:6

10. You ought to wash one another's’ feet.  JOHN 13

11. For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins. MATT 6

12. A new commandment I give you: Love one another as I have loved you.  John 13:34

It is the new commandment (#12) that is the hardest of all, except “be perfect”, which may be the same thing.  This is well beyond “love your neighbor as yourself” or even “love your enemies”.  He goes on to say, “Greater love has no one than he who lays down his life for his friends.”  For my own edification, practically speaking, #10 is how we lay down our life in small acts every day.  We don’t need to literally wash each other’s feet the way they needed to then, with all the dirt, mud and sheep s*** that covered streets and feet in those days.  But there is a myriad of ways we can pour out ourselves in humble offering to those around us.  And none of these are possible to do consistently without the help of the Holy Spirit. Asking for and relying on His guidance is essential to following Christ.

Waiting

 As I write this, it is Holy Saturday, the Easter Vigil.  I wonder, what must Jesus’ disciples have been feeling after he died?  Not just the Twelve, all his followers: the women (who funded his movement), the Pharisees like Nicademas and Joseph of Arimathea, and Lazarus and Bartimeus and Zaccheus and the others he healed and raised and forgave.  Acts 1 says there were 120 disciples in the Upper Room (where they ate the Last Supper) just before Pentecost.  How many were there the day before he rose?  Many of the twelve were, but not all.  I suspect that it was not just “Doubting Thomas” who was absent on Easter Sunday.  Matthew has details in his Gospel that the others miss, implying he was not in that Upper Room, but out in the city.  Likely, Mary Magdalene and the others who were at the Cross and would go to his grave Easter morning were there in between, maybe many of the others too. 

It has always been easy for me to overlook this in-between time because I know the ending.  But all they knew was that Jesus was dead.  Peter, in particular, must have been devastated, having been the leader of the Twelve and the most insistent to Jesus that he would never desert him.  But they must have been reluctant to abandon all hope as they were still there on Easter.  

The Gospels show that Peter and the others did not know who Jesus was, probably until Pentecost. Oh, they knew they had found the Messiah.  They just didn’t know what that meant.  Before going to raise Lazarus, they ask if it is wise to go to Jerusalem when the priests were just trying to kill Jesus.  Thomas says something so brave and misguided: “Let us go, so that we may die with him.”  At the Last Supper, they were arguing which of them would sit at Jesus’ left and right.  I suspect that Peter was probably secretly thrilled when Judas betrayed Jesus, thinking, “Now, at last, the fight comes!  I am ready to die with you, my Lord!”  And he picked up his sword (a long dagger, in the Greek) and cut off poor Malchus’ ear.  It is only Peter who is mentioned committing violence, but I suspect the others were ready to follow, even if they only had two daggers for the twelve of them (Luke 22:38).

However, Jesus stopped Peter in his tracks.  “Peter, put up your sword.”  I am not here for this. Did you not hear what I said at Supper?  “A new commandment I give to you: that you love one another—just as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples—if you have love for one another (John 13:34-35).”  No, Peter was not listening.  His bewilderment was just beginning.  He followed the mob and snuck into the High Priest’s courtyard to hear what would happen.  And there, Jesus’ terrible prophecy about him came true.  Three times denied.  When the cock crowed the second time, Jesus looked intently at him and Peter broke down, realizing what he had done (Luke 23:61).  Peter and the others imagined themselves fighting and defeating the Romans and sitting at King Jesus’ side, or at worst, dying in the attempt, glorious and heroic.  But surrendering without a fight and nailed to a cross like common criminals?  Surely the Messiah was meant for a different fate!

Just before his ascension, they asked yet again if Jesus would finally establish his kingdom.  That is, will you now lead a revolution and destroy the Romans?  No, Peter.  That is not why I came.  You really do not know me yet.  It was only after receiving the Holy Spirit at Pentecost that Peter gives his first sermon.  And he nails it.  (No pun intended.)

But that time in between, did they know He would rise?  With Him dead, it had to dawn on them that they did not know who or what the Messiah was.  That realization must have been devastating.  Was there any hope at all?  Lazarus was there, a living reminder of the hope we all have.  Did they remember Jesus’ promise?  The darkness that Saturday, not knowing if the new day would ever dawn, must have felt like an eternity.  When you know how long the trial will last, when you know the reason why, you can endure most anything.  But there is a Peace that is even better than understanding these things, a Peace that comes only from trusting in Him.  His Kingdom come, His Will be done.  

So I ask myself, do I know Jesus?  Do I truly understand why He came?  What He did on that Cross, why He did it, and what it means?  Do I trust in Him, in His Plan for my life?  Be perfect as our Heavenly Father is perfect, He commanded in the Sermon on the Mount.  Be merciful, as our Heavenly Father is merciful, He commanded in the Sermon on the Plains.  Love one another as I have loved you, He commanded at the Last Supper.  

Today Jesus’ kingdom is one of paradox: it is and is yet to come at the same time.  We are waiting too, in between, like Peter, Lazarus and Mary were.  Jesus promised he would come again, and that when He returns, He will come and establish his Kingdom.  In a few years, we will be exactly 2000 years to the day since he was crucified, died and rose, but for God “a day is like a thousand years”.  Are you hoping for His return?  Or, like Peter and Thomas and the rest, do you not quite believe it is possible?  How long will the wait be?  The dawn is coming, but it is darkest just before the dawn.