Live Pure Lives

                                                                Sunday School Lesson                                            

Lesson: Haggai 2:10-19                                                                                                 
Golden Text: “Is the seed yet in the barn? yea, as yet the vine, and the fig tree, and the pomegranate, and the olive tree, hath not brought forth: from this day will I bless you” (Haggai 2:19).

I.  INTRODUCTION.  Living a pure life is a command from God that He will help us keep if we are willing.  In our previous lessons from Haggai, the children of Israel had become very materialistic and were not obeying the Lord by rebuilding His house.  Once they decided to obey and began to rebuild the temple, the Lord also began to bless them and give them what they lacked.  God’s greatest desire for His children is not success or happiness, but that we be like Him, holy and pure in all we do (see I Peter 1:15-16).
II. DEFILED PEOPLE (Haggai 2:10-14).  Last week’s lesson ended with Haggai 2:9 as God promised His people that the temple they were now starting to rebuild would have greater glory than the first one built by Solomon.  He also promised that it would be a place of peace.  The Lord made this promise to encourage those to build who thought the second temple would not measure up to the first.
A. Questions for the priests (Haggai 2:10-11). 
1. (vs. 10).  Our first verse says “In the four and twentieth day of the ninth month, in the second year of Darius, came the word of the Lord by Haggai the prophet, saying.”  This was Haggai’s third message (see Haggai 1:3-11; 2:1-9) to the remnant of Jews who had returned from Captivity to rebuild the temple.  This third message was given “In the four and twentieth day of the ninth month, in the second year of Darius.”  This was about two months after the second message (see Haggai 2:1).  The “ninth month” was “Chisleu” on the Hebrew calendar.  This would correspond to our November-December. 
2. (vs. 11).  Haggai continued to say in this verse “Thus saith the Lord of hosts; Ask now the priests concerning the law, saying.”  Haggai was directed to ask the priests some questions because the issues God was about to present in His message through the porphet had to do with the Mosaic Law.  The questions Haggai was about to ask involved the differences between holy and unholy things, and clean and unclean things (see Leviticus chapter 11).  The priests were experts in this area.
B. The effects of contact (Haggai 2:12-13).
1. (vs. 12).  The first question in this verse was “If one bear holy flesh in the skirt of his garment, and with his skirt do touch bread, or pottage, or wine, or oil, or any meat, shall it be holy? And the priests answered and said, No.”  This first question illustrates that holiness, or for the Jews, ceremonial purity cannot be transferred from one person to another.  The phrase “If one bear holy flesh in the skirt of his garment” presents an example of a man carrying “holy flesh” or meat to be used as a sacrifice, which made it sanctified or holy.  The word “holy” like sanctification means to set apart for God’s use.  The exact meaning of the term “skirt” like many ancient items of clothing is unknown, but most Bible translations used the term “fold.”  However, the New American Standard Bible (NASB) says that the word “skirt” literally means “wing,” a reference to the arm.  This may be the best translation since the man in the illustration is carrying the holy meat or sacrifice.  The question continued “and with his skirt do touch bread, or pottage, or wine, or oil, or any meat, shall it be holy.”  In other words, if the man’s skirt where he is carrying the holy meat touches other items like bread, stew, wine, olive oil, or any other meat, will these items become holy also?  The priests answered no.  That was the correct answer.  Holiness cannot rub off onto other things or persons.  A husband or wife can be holy, but that holiness will not rub off on the one who is not holy or even the children.  Each person has to become holy before God in his or her own right (see I Peter 1:15-16: I Peter 2:9).  By application, this illustration means that no person can be saved simply because someone else in the family is saved.  Each of us has to make our own decision whether or not to receive Jesus as Lord and Saviour.  Each individual determines his or her own eternal destination based on the decision they make regarding the Saviour, Jesus Christ.
2. (vs. 13).  Haggai asks a second question in this verse. “Then said Haggai, If one that is unclean by a dead body touch any of these, shall it be unclean? And the priests answered and said, it shall be unclean.”  The second question illustrated that for the Israelites ceremonial impurity or defilement could be transferred from one person to another. This question to the priests was “If one that is unclean by a dead body touch any of these, shall it be unclean?”  In other words, if a person who is “unclean” or defiled by touching a dead body (see Leviticus 22:4-6) touches the same items mentioned in the previous verse, would those items also be unclean or defiled?  The priests again answered correctly: “it shall be unclean.”  Those who touch unclean things will become unclean also (see Numbers 19:16, 22).  For sure, holiness cannot rub off on other people but just as sure, holiness can be affected by un-holiness.  The law gives a list of things that were unclean for the people of Israel, who were a holy people (see Exodus 19:5-6).  These unclean things were said to make any person who comes in contact with them unclean, or defiled (see Leviticus 11:24-26).  Note:  These two questions and the correct answers given by the priests speak of our sanctification or purity.  In Scripture the word “sanctify” means to set apart for God’s use.  When applied to this lesson, sanctification, or cleanliness of life is not and cannot be transferred from one person to another.  However, defilement can be transferred from one to another.  For those not familiar with Old Testament ritual and ceremonies dealing with defilement or contamination, a modern illustration may be helpful.  Let's say that a very healthy person walked into a room full of sick people, would his health heal everyone in the room? No, it wouldn't! It’s more likely that the healthy person would get sick too.  On the other hand, could one sick person walk into a room of healthy people and suddenly become well?  Of course not!  In fact the healthy people might get sick.  Simply put, just keeping company with a Christian won’t make you clean.  But for sure, if you hang around trash you’ll get dirty.  Beware of the company you keep (see I Samuel 8:4-9; II Corinthians 6:14-17)!  The old saying is true, "if you lie down with dogs you'll gt up with fleas."  C. The application for Judah (Haggai 2:14).  This verse says “Then answered Haggai, and said, So is this people, and so is this nation before me, saith the Lord; and so is every work of their hands; and that which they offer there is unclean.”  Here the Lord was reminding His people of their behavior before they decided to obey Him and continue the work on the temple.  The word “So” used three times identifies the Israelites with the two illustrations previously given.  They had been religious in “every work of their hands” and in the offerings they gave toward the temple, but their hearts were not right with God because they had stopped the work on the temple.  All their offerings and sacrifices may have been holy, but that didn’t make the one giving the offerings holy.  In fact, since the people were disobedient, all their offerings and sacrifices meant nothing.  Their disobedient hearts defiled them making their service to God and their worship unclean.  The people’s sin caused their sacrifices to be ineffectual, and their good works and offerings couldn’t make them clean.  Simply put, sin is contagious, righteousness is not (see I Samuel 15:22; Hosea 6:6).  Note:  The people working on the temple couldn’t impart any holiness to it, but they could defile it by their sins.  Not only was it important that they do God’s work by completing the temple, but it was also important that they do His work with hearts that were pure and devoted to Him.
III. BLESSED EFFORTS (Haggai 2:15-19)    
A. A need to consider (Haggai 2:15).  This verse says “And now, I pray you, consider from this day and upward, from before a stone was laid upon a stone in the temple of the Lord.”   The phrase “I pray you, consider from this day and upward” means that Haggai was urging the people to give some thought to what he was about to say to them from that day forward.  They were to think about the time “before a stone was laid upon a stone in the temple of the Lord.”  In other words, they were to think back and consider how things were at the beginning of the rebuilding process before any stones had been laid.
B. The “before” effects (Haggai 2:16-17).  
1. (vs. 16).  In this verse, the people are told what they needed to consider and think about.  It says “Since those days were, when one came to an heap of twenty measures, there were but ten: when one came to the pressfat for to draw out fifty vessels out of the press, there were but twenty.”  The Lord reminded them of what things were like before they continued working on the temple.  The phrase, “Since those days were” refers to the day they stopped the rebuilding of the temple up to the present time when they resumed the construction.  The people were in a bad situation as a result of their disobedience to God’s will, which was rebuilding the temple.  The situation was so bad that “when one came to an heap of twenty measures, there were but ten.”  This means that the harvests never measured up to what they hoped for.  They planted enough grain to reap a “heap” or stack of twenty measures, but instead they only got ten.  They only reaped 50 % of what they planned for which caused great poverty.  In addition “when one came to the pressfat for to draw out fifty vessels out of the press, there were but twenty.”  The “pressfat” was a large tub in which juice is pressed from grapes in order to make wine (see Judges 6:11; Nehemiah 13:15; Isaiah 5:2; Matthew 21:33).  When anyone came to the winepress to get fifty vessels full of juice to make the wine, they only got twenty vessels, a reduction of 60%.  This caused great disappointment to say the least.  Both grain and wine were a large part of Israel’s economy and the Jews’ diet: so when both of these articles were reduced by such large amounts, the people suffered tremendously.  Talk about a Great Depression: they had one!
2. (vs. 17).  In this verse God continued to say “I smote you with blasting and with mildew and with hail in all the labours of your hands; yet ye turned not to me, saith the Lord.”  The Lord not only brought economic disaster but He also said “I smote you with blasting and with mildew and with hail in all the labours of your hands.”  The term “blasting” refers to the withering of plants caused by a hot, dry wind (see Amos 4:9).  This word is often translated as “blight” (see Haggai 2:17 in the NIV) which is a reference to diseases that attack grain.  The term “mildew” refers to a fungus that attacked the crops in Israel during damp weather.  Of course, “hail” refers to lumps or pellets of ice.  God said that He brought these conditions upon “all the labours of your hands” meaning everything that they worked to produce didn't produce as expected.  God was displeased that they put themselves before Him, so they suffered greatly.  After all these things happened to His people, God went on to say “yet ye turned not to me.”  The Lord wanted His people to realize that these things didn’t happen to them as a result of natural causes, but by His control of those causes.  He was trying to get their attention to refocus on what He wanted them to do: obey and rebuild His house.  Note:  Our God is the same “yesterday, today and forever” (see Hebrews 13:8) so we should understand that what was happening to Israel because of their hardness of heart could also happen to us.  We see the same kind of hardness of heart in people today.  It just may be that the fires, floods, ice storms, droughts, tornadoes and many other things that we are experiencing are happening because we continue to ignore God.
C. The “after” effects (Haggai 2:18-19).
1. (vs. 18).  In this verse Haggai says “Consider now from this day and upward, from the four and twentieth day of the ninth month, even from the day that the foundation of the Lord's temple was laid, consider it.”  The phrase “Consider now from this day and upward” refers to the time that they restarted working on the temple going forward.  The people were to think about the change in direction their lives were taking as a result of obeying God and continuing the work on God’s house.  They were to think about how things had improved for them beginning with the very day the message was given which was “the four and twentieth day of the ninth month, even from the day that the foundation of the Lord's temple was laid.”  This was the 24th day of the Hebrew month of “Chisleu” (see the commentary on verse 1).  It was also the day that the people re-laid the temple foundation.  The original foundation was laid under Ezra after the first group or captives returned to Judah in 538 B.C. (see Ezra 3:8-10).  That means it had been at least 16 years since they stopped the work on the temple.  Therefore the foundation needed repairs as well.  Now that the people were obeying God and rebuilding His house, they would experience blessing as we shall see in the next verse.
2. (vs. 19).  In order to get the people to really think about going from disaster to blessing, in this verse the Lord asked “Is the seed yet in the barn? yea, as yet the vine, and the fig tree, and the pomegranate, and the olive tree, hath not brought forth: from this day will I bless you.”  The question “Is the seed yet in the barn?” required a “no” answer, because up to this point the people had only seen a decrease in what they reaped from their crops.  God also said “yea, as yet the vine, and the fig tree, and the pomegranate, and the olive tree, hath not brought forth.”  In addition to the crops being limited, God also said “yea” or yes even the vines, the fig trees, the pomegranate trees and the olive trees had not produced what they expected.  The point the Lord was making to His people was that the difficult economic disasters they suffered all happened during the time they were disobedient to His will.  But now that they had committed to obey the Lord and finish the temple, things would be different.  Instead of more disasters, they would receive God’s blessings. 
               
V. Conclusion.  Our lesson for this week is very clear: If we are not willing to live pure and obedient lives as God directs, we can’t expect His blessings on our lives.  We may even experience God’s discipline.  He may limit our successes and/or send other difficulties.  Every aspect of our lives must be in subjection to His will, and we have the Holy Ghost to guide us.  The Lord wants to lead us in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake (see Psalms 23), so we must trust Him and obey Him in order to see His mighty hand act positively on our behalf (see James 4:10).

 







 

Trust God's Promises

                                                               Sunday School Lesson

                                            

Lesson: ;Haggai 1:12; 2:1-9
                                                                                                 
Golden Text: “The glory of this latter house shall be greater than of the former, saith the Lord of hosts: and in this place will I give peace, saith the Lord of hosts” (Haggai 2:9).

I.  INTRODUCTION.  In last week’s lesson we saw how God was deliberately causing problems for the Israelites who had returned from Captivity.  They were allowed to return home to rebuild the temple, but after laying the foundation and facing opposition from their neighbors they stopped working.  Of course this displeased the Lord and as a result of their disobedience in completing the temple, they had no economic success.  In this week’s lesson, Haggai continues to give God’s message to the people through their leaders.  However, this time instead of rebuking them for disobedience, he encouraged God’s people to finish the temple.  They now understood that God was causing all their problems in order to draw them back to Him.

II. ANOTHER MESSAGE (Haggai 1:12; 2:1-2).  Haggai 1:13-15 is not a part of this week’s text, but should be mentioned in order to get a better understand of this week’s lesson.  God’s message of rebuke given to the people through Haggai in the previous lesson had produced the desired results.  Both the leaders and the people considered their behavior of disobedience and joined hands together to build the temple (see Haggai 1:13-14).  We are told that they began to rebuild the temple “In the four and twentieth day of the sixth month, in the second year of Darius the king” (see Haggai 1:15) which would have been 24 days after Haggai gave his first message to the people (see Haggai 1:1).

A. Obedience to the first message (Haggai 1:12).  This verse says “Then Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, and Joshua the son of Josedech, the high priest, with all the remnant of the people, obeyed the voice of the Lord their God, and the words of Haggai the prophet, as the Lord their God had sent him, and the people did fear before the Lord.”  As mentioned in the previous lesson, “Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, and Joshua the son of Josedech” were the civil and religious leaders in Judah after the return from Captivity.  “Zerubbabel” was the governor of Judah (see Haggai 1:1) and “Joshua” was the high priest, being a descendent of “Josedech” who was the high priest when the Captivity took place.  These two leaders along with “all the remnant of the people, obeyed the voice of the Lord their God, and the words of Haggai the prophet.”  This simply means that everyone who had returned to Judah obeyed what the Lord said through Haggai, that it was time to build God’s house.  The phrase “as the Lord their God had sent him” reveals that the people fully accepted Haggai as God’s prophet who spoke for Him.  Their obedience was also seen in the fact that “the people did fear before the Lord.”  The people’s obedience and fear for the Lord showed an attitude of awe and reverence toward Him.  The Lord then assured the people that He was with them (see Haggai 1:13) and this encouraged them to get to work (see Haggai 1:14).  Note:  God’s people could’ve continued to rebel and refuse to obey God’s Word as we sometimes do.  They could’ve said this was just the opinion of the prophet and not worth the time or effort to go along with what he said.  But to their credit, they “obeyed the voice of the Lord their God, and the words of Haggai the prophet.”  Whenever the Word is presented to us it’s wise to deliberately bring ourselves under its authority.  We don’t have to worry that we will be misled or deceived because the Holy Spirit will guide us as we listen (see John 9:13).

B. The beginning of the second message (Haggai 2:1-2).
1. (vs. 1).  This verse says “In the seventh month, in the one and twentieth day of the month, came the word of the Lord by the prophet Haggai, saying.”  This second message from God through Haggai came almost a month after the people restarted the building project. The “seventh month” was “Tishri” which corresponds to our September-October.  The “one and twentieth day” was the 21^st and was the last day of the Feast of Tabernacles (see Leviticus 23:39-44).  We are not told if this feast was observed at this time or not.  Not all of Jewish religious life had been re-established at this point in time.
2. (vs. 2).  The second message began here as God said to Haggai “Speak now to Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and to Joshua the son of Josedech, the high priest, and to the residue of the people, saying.”  The prophet was directed to speak to “Zerubbabel,…governor of Judah and to Joshua… the high priest, and to the residue of the people.”  The term “residue” means remnant and refers to all the Jewish people who had returned from the Captivity.iii
III. ANOTHER CHALLENGE (Haggai 2:3-5) 
A. A disappointing comparison (Haggai 2:3).  This verse says “Who is left among you that saw this house in her first glory? and how do ye see it now? is it not in your eyes in comparison of it as nothing?”  Knowing the thoughts of the elderly Jews who had seen the glory and greatness of Solomon’s Temple, the Lord asked “Who is left among you that saw this house in her first glory?”  In other words God was asking how many people were still around who had seen the first temple, the one that Solomon built.  Solomon’s temple was destroyed by the Babylonians in 586 B.C.  It was now 520 B.C. about 66 years later, so there were probably some elderly Jews still living who remembered the temple “in her first glory.”  The second question God asked regarding the temple in its unfinished state was “and how do ye see it now?”  He wanted the people to take a good look at what was being built at that moment.  What did they think about what had been done so far?  The final question God asked was “is it not in your eyes in comparison of it as nothing?”  God was asking those who had seen the first temple in all of its glory to compare it with what had been done so far with the current temple.  If they did compare the two, they would conclude that this temple they were rebuilding was “as nothing” meaning it couldn’t compare in any way to the first one which was Solomon’s temple.
B. A strong encouragement (Haggai 2:4-5).  
1. (vs. 4).  In this verse Haggai said “Yet now be strong, O Zerubbabel, saith the Lord; and be strong, O Joshua, son of Josedech, the high priest; and be strong, all ye people of the land, saith the Lord, and work: for I am with you, saith the Lord of hosts.”  The words “Yet now” introduces the point God wanted to make through the comparison of the two temples.  In spite of what might be an inferior structure, the people were not to stop working.  The Lord encouraged the leaders “Zerubbabel, and Joshua” as well as “all ye people of the land” to “be strong.”  God encouraged His people by assuring them of His presence.  He said “for I am with you.” The presence of God made all the difference in the world.  When they were disobedient they couldn’t expect this kind of assurance.  But now they had corrected their priorities by putting God first, and therefore He would bless them with His presence.  God could urge them to “be strong” because “the Lord of hosts (or armies)” was with them.  This is a reference to God’s almighty power to accomplish His own pleasure.  As “the Lord of hosts (or armies)” God is surrounded by His armies of heavenly power and might indicating that the Lord is able to gather all His armies of angels, saints, and sinners to fulfill His purposes and help His people (see Psalms 46:7-11).  After encouraging the people to be strong three times, God also commanded them to “work” or to do it, meaning to complete the temple.  David had said a similar thing to Solomon before the building of the first temple (see I Chronicles 28:10, 20).  Even though it appeared that the new temple would be a lesser structure than the first one, the people would be doing what God wanted and that was the most important thing
2. (vs. 5).  To further give the remnant good reason to believe God’s Word regarding His presence, in this verse the Lord said “According to the word that I covenanted with you when ye came out of Egypt, so my spirit remaineth among you: fear ye not.”  God was saying that the people could trust His promise to be with them based on His commitment to the covenant He made with Israel when they came out of Egypt.  The covenant God referred to was made at Mt. Sinai when He claimed the nation of Israel as His people (see Exodus 6:7; 19:5-6; 29:45-46).  Even though as a nation God’s people repeatedly disobeyed Him, the covenant still held up and God could say “so my spirit remaineth among you.”  Since the Holy Spirit was present to give the people strength for the task of completing the temple, the Lord could also say to this remnant “fear ye not.”  They didn’t have to fear hostile neighbors who had hindered the work earlier (see Ezra 4:1-5, 17-24) nor the Persian Empire.  Likewise today, Christians need to trust God’s promise that He will never leave us or forsake us (see Hebrews 13:5).  Therefore, we don’t have to be afraid of anything or anyone (see Psalms 91:4-9; 118:6; Hebrews 13:6). 
IV. A PROMISE OF GLORY (Haggai 2:6-9)      
A. God will send glory (Haggai 2:6-7). 
1. (vs. 6).  This verse says “For thus saith the Lord of hosts; Yet once, it is a little while, and I will shake the heavens, and the earth, and the sea, and the dry land.”  God’s statement here was also given to encourage the people to complete the temple.  Again, Haggai makes it plain that this prophecy was from “the Lord of hosts” or the Lord of armies.  The phrase “Yet once, it is a little while” does not refer to an event that will happen soon in Haggai’s day.  It refers to an event that will take place, but the actual timing could be in the distant future.  However, the timing is always according to God’s eternal plan (See II Peter 3:8).  The Lord describes this event He is referring to in terms of an earthquake for He will “shake the heavens, and the earth, and the sea, and the dry land.”  In other words, the time is coming when God will shake up the heaven and earth, the sea and dry land, and all the nations of the world.  This is a reference to a yet future time of judgment to begin after the Great Tribulation (see Matthew 24:29-30; Mark 13:24-27; Luke 21:25-27).          
2. (vs. 7).  In this verse God again says “And I will shake all nations, and the desire of all nations shall come: and I will fill this house with glory, saith the Lord of hosts.”  The Lord reiterated His previous statement that He will “shake all nations.”  As we mentioned in the commentary on verse 6, this refers to a future event when the Lord returns in judgment following the Great Tribulation.  The phrase “and the desire of all nations shall come” is most likely a reference to the coming of the Messiah to set up His kingdom.  However, it can also refer to His first coming which could also be seen as a shaking of all nations (see Acts 17:1-6).  Again, as “the Lord of hosts” God also said that He will “fill this house with glory.”  This no doubt is a reference to Christ’s first coming.  His appearance in the temple at that time filled it with glory that the first temple never knew for God Himself was there in the flesh (see Luke 2:27; John 1:14).  Note:  These words from God were meant to encourage the Jews to continue the work of the temple by assuring them that the Lord, who is the God of nations, would in a short period of time (but in His own time) show His infinite power and bring about the overturning of world powers in preparation for the setting up of the Messiah’s millennial kingdom.  
B. God will send greater glory (Haggai 2:8-9).
1. (vs. 8).  In this verse Haggai continued to say “The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, saith the Lord of hosts.”  God was saying that even if the people didn’t have the wealth needed to build a grand temple like Solomon’s, He did.  The Lord had all the silver and gold required, so the people didn’t need to be discouraged about that.  Note:  God wanted the temple built and He had all the resources necessary even silver and gold.  But what God needed was willing hands.  God has chosen to do His work through people.  He provides the resources, but willing hands must do the work.  Every believer needs to ask themselves this question: Are my hands available for God’s work in this world?      
2. (vs. 9).  In our final verse God went on to say through Haggai “The glory of this latter house shall be greater than of the former, saith the Lord of hosts: and in this place will I give peace, saith the Lord of hosts.”  Again speaking as “the Lord of hosts” who has the power and might to accomplish His purposes and keep His promises, God first said “The glory of this latter house shall be greater than of the former.”  This second temple is often referred to as Zerubbabel’s temple because he was one of the leaders in the rebuilding project.  This was the same Temple that went through major remodeling under King Herod.  This temple truly did receive greater glory than Solomon’s temple because Jesus visited it many times.  This never happened to the first temple.  The phrase “and in this place will I give peace” is another reference to the greater glory of the second temple because it experienced the presence of the “Prince of Peace” (see Isaiah 9:6).  Note:  It’s important to note that Zerubbabel’s temple, remodeled by Herod was destroyed by the Romans in 70 A.D., so Haggai’s prophecy about this second temple will ultimately be fulfilled by the future millennial temple.  For the Jews, rebuilding the temple was a spiritual work that would end with God’s future plan of the millennium.    
                         
V. Conclusion.  In this week’s lesson God promised His people that He would be with them as they continued to rebuild the temple.  They had no reason to be afraid.  God has promised never to leave us nor forsake us (see Hebrews 13:5).  Knowing this will empower us to do His will and lead to a successful spiritual life.  In the Person of the Holy Spirit, God will be with us forever.  We don’t need to fear outward circumstances or inner doubts because we can trust God’s promises.

 







 

Obey The Lord

                                                                     Sunday School Lesson                                         

Lesson: Haggai 1:1-11
                                                                                                 
Golden Text: “Then came the word of the Lord by Haggai the prophet, saying, Is it time for you, O ye, to dwell in your cieled houses, and this house lie waste?” (Haggai 1:3-4).
INTRODUCTION.  No task is ever completed that is never started.  However for some people the biggest problem is not starting a job but finishing what they start.  The Jews who returned to Judah after the Babylonian Captivity needed encouragement about perseverance.  When King Cyrus of Persia issued his edict permitting the Jews to return to their home land (see Ezra 1:1-4), over 42,000 responded (see Ezra 2:64-65).  They laid the foundation for the temple (see Ezra 3:1-13), but opposition from surrounding peoples quickly arose and the people stopped the rebuilding effort (see Ezra 4:1-24).  The first group of returnees arrived in Israel in 538 B.C., but because of the opposition from their enemies, the work was halted for about 16 years until Haggai delivered God’s message to rebuild the temple.  In this week’s lesson, the people didn’t think that the time had come to continue to rebuild God’s house.  However, through His prophet, God’s word to rebuild went forth.  It was most important that God’s people obey His command to rebuild the temple.
II. GOD REBUKES HIS PEOPLE FOR DISOBEDIENCE (Haggai 1:1-6)
A. The historical setting (Haggai 1:1).  Our first verse says “In the second year of Darius the king, in the sixth month, in the first day of the month, came the word of the Lord by Haggai the prophet unto Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and to Joshua the son of Josedech, the high priest, saying.”  Haggai was very careful to give the exact time when he received “the word of the Lord” meaning God’s message to His people.  Haggai writes that he received this message from God “In the second year of Darius the king, in the sixth month, in the first day of the month.”  This would have been the Hebrew month of Elul which corresponds roughly to our months of August-September.  The “first day” of each Jewish month was the day of the new moon and had special spiritual significance (see Numbers 10:10; 28:11-15).  Business was suspended like it was on the Sabbath (see Amos 8:5) and a special burnt offering was brought before the Lord.  As a result, this was an appropriate time for Haggai to give his message to those assembled in Jerusalem.  God’s prophecy to Haggai was directed to “Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and to Joshua the son of Josedech, the high priest.”  “Darius the king” refers to Darius I the Great, who reigned as king of Persia from 522 to 485 B.C.  He was also known as Darius Hystaspis or Darius, son of Hystaspias.  He continued Cyrus the Great’s policy of restoring the Jewish people to their homeland.  In his second year as king, the Jews continued work on the unfinished temple in Jerusalem and Darius assisted by sending a generous subsidy to help in restoring the temple (see Ezra 6:1-12).  “Zurubbabel” was the civil leader appointed governor of Judah by King Cyrus.  He was also a descendent of King Jehoiachin, the last in David’s line to be king of Judah (see I Chronicles 3:17-19).  “Joshua” was the religious leader and the son of “Josedech” who was the “high priest” when the Captivity took place (see I Chronicles 6:15).  These two Israelite leaders were especially mentioned because they would be needed to help persuade the people to continue to rebuild the temple. 
B. A false view of timing (Haggai 1:2).  Haggai continued his message in this verse saying “Thus speaketh the Lord of hosts, saying, This people say, The time is not come, the time that the Lord's house should be built.”  Although Haggai gave God’s message to Joshua and Zerubbabel, the civil and religious leaders, it was directed to all the people.  It’s interesting that the Israelites were not called God’s people as they normally were, but God referred to them as “This people” indicating His displeasure with them.  They were of the mind that “The time is not come, the time that the Lord's house should be built.”  But why was it not the time?  No one told them to stop building the temple.  Their attitude about completing the temple revealed their spiritual condition.  After all, the temple was crucial to Jewish life and worship.  Yes, the previous Persian ruler, Artaxerxes had stopped the construction during his reign, but there was no hindrance at this time (see Ezra 4:21-24) and therefore they had no excuse. 
C. A question about their timing (Haggai 1:3-4).
1. (vs. 3).  This verse says “Then came the word of the Lord by Haggai the prophet, saying.”   This statement is made in order to stress the importance of the divine origin of the question that God was about to ask in the next verse.  Again, God’s message was given to “Haggai the prophet.”  We know very little about him apart from what is said about him in the book of Haggai.  We do know that he and Zachariah prophesied during the same time (see Ezra 5:1).  A study of the book of Haggai reveals that the prophet had a two-fold ministry.  He was to rebuke and encourage.  The people were rebuked for not continuing the work on the temple, and they were encouraged to begin to build it again.
2. (vs. 4).  The question that the Lord directed to the leaders and the people through Haggai was “Is it time for you, O ye, to dwell in your cieled houses, and this house lie waste?  The people were saying that it was not time to build the Lord’s house (see vs. 2), but God responded with a question to them: “Is it time for you, O ye, to dwell in your cieled houses, and this house lie waste?”  This question says something about the life-style of the people.  They were living luxuriously in “ceiled” or paneled houses.  The wealthier Jews spared no expense in decorating their homes, but they didn’t have any time to build God’s house.  The prophet wasn’t speaking against the nice homes the people lived in.  He condemned them for neglecting the house of God which was lying in “waste” or “in ruins” while they had plenty.  The condition of the temple couldn’t be blamed on the Captivity any longer.  It could have and should have been rebuilt.  Note:  When the Jews returned to Judah under Cyrus’ decree, he charged them to build God’s house (see Ezra 1:2-3).  He had even instructed those who remained in Babylon to contribute generously to this project (see Ezra 1:4).  Cyrus also returned 5400 gold and silver temple vessels that had been taken from the original temple (see Ezra 1:6-11).  In addition, some of those who returned contributed generously when they arrived (see Ezra 2:68-70).  So there was plenty available to be used in completing the temple.  We can only wonder what happened to much of this wealth after the temple construction was stopped.  Did they use it for their own homes?  Who knows?  It was supposed to be used for the temple construction and nothing else.  Priorities had changed and worship of the Lord no longer seemed important.
D. A challenge to rethink their timing (Haggai 1:5-6).
1. (vs. 5).  Haggai continued to say in this verse “Now therefore thus saith the Lord of hosts; Consider your ways.”  This was a call for God’s people to self-examine themselves.  In other words, they were to think about how they treated the Lord’s house was affecting their lives.  The next verse tells us what God expected His people to consider or think about.
2. (vs. 6).  In this verse the consequences of their “ways” were spelled out in detail as the prophet said “Ye have sown much, and bring in little; ye eat, but ye have not enough; ye drink, but ye are not filled with drink; ye clothe you, but there is none warm; and he that earneth wages earneth wages to put it into a bag with holes.”  Because the people had not given God first place in their lives, their labors were not fruitful.  This is what is meant by the statement “Ye have sown much, and bring in little.”  They had done everything necessary to ensure a good harvest, but their fields were not productive.  Moses had predicted that this would be the result if people neglected God (see Deuteronomy 28:15, 38-42).  In addition, the prophet said “ye eat, but ye have not enough; ye drink, but ye are not filled with drink; ye clothe you, but there is none warm.”  In other words, even the basic necessities of life were not being supplied.  The food, drink and clothing were not sufficient (see Leviticus 26:23-26; Hosea 4:10).  Not only were basic needs not being met, God also said “and he that earneth wages earneth wages to put it into a bag with holes.”  This means that the wage earner couldn’t accumulate anything through his work; it was as if he was putting his wages in a bag filled with holes.  This may have happened because the prices of goods a person bought were so high, but also they may have developed such expensive tastes that their wages didn’t stay with them long.  Note:  God has interesting ways of dealing with those who rob Him in order to enrich themselves.  He allows their self-centered desires to grow faster than their abilities can satisfy them.  He leaves an empty space in them that will remain until they return to Him.  God asks His children to put Him and His kingdom first (see Matthew 6:33).  Then He obligates Himself to provide for all our needs including the economic basics that so many worry about (see Luke 12:13-34).
III. GOD’S RESPONSE TO HIS PEOPLE’S ATTITUDE (Haggai 1:7-11)
A. God’s will declared (Haggai 1:7-8).
1. (vs. 7).  Again, the prophet in this verse says “Thus saith the Lord of hosts; Consider your ways.”  As he did in verse 5, Haggai repeated the exhortation “Consider your ways.”  This was another call to action.  The people again needed to think about their behavior towards God and His house.
2. (vs. 8).  Now God’s instructions to the people in this verse was to “Go up to the mountain, and bring wood, and build the house; and I will take pleasure in it, and I will be glorified, saith the Lord.”  After commanding the people to consider their ways, God told them what they needed to do in order to please Him, namely gathering materials and finishing the temple.  They were instructed to “Go up to the mountain, and bring wood, and build the house.”  Since no particular “mountain” is named, it seems proper to conclude that this refers to mountainous regions in general where timber grew in abundance.  Evidently, the mountains provided the best source of timber.  Note:  Although wood was a major ingredient needed for building the temple, this command didn’t exclude the gathering of other materials as well.  Some of the stones of the former temple could probably be reused, but additional stones would have to be hewed to finish the walls (see Ezra 5:8).  Whatever materials were needed, the call went out to gather them and build.  The last phrase in this verse gives God’s promise in response to the people’s obedience in building the temple.  God promised “and I will take pleasure in it, and I will be glorified, saith the Lord.”  The Lord would be pleased that His people had set aside their selfish desires and were giving Him the place He deserves.  However, God’s pleasure and His glorification depended upon their obedience to the commands He had given.  True worship doesn’t focus on the blessings that can be gained by the worshippers (although there are spiritual benefits), but it focuses on the glory that God receives.  To glorify God is to give Him the credit and honor He deserves because of who He is and the work He has done.
B. God’s chastening explained (Haggai 1:9).  In this verse God said “Ye looked for much, and, lo it came to little; and when ye brought it home, I did blow upon it. Why? saith the Lord of hosts. Because of mine house that is waste, and ye run every man unto his own house.”  At this time God wasn’t being glorified by His people nor was He pleased.Therefore, through Haggai God explained why things had gone so badly for them.The words “Ye looked for much” reveals the great expectations they had for their harvests.The phrase “and, lo it came to little” refers to the small amount of produce the crops brought forth which was a great disappointment to them.  But this was only half of their problem.God also said “when ye brought it (the harvest) home, I did blow upon it.”  It’s quite possible that when the people stored their crops, God sent storms to destroy their barns, thus destroying their harvest.The phrase, “Why? saith the Lord of hosts” indicates that God was about to tell His people why they were having all the troubles they faced.  The people may have assumed that their losses were the result of natural causes, but the Lord said it was “Because of mine house that is waste, and ye run every man unto his own house.”  The reason why the people were experiencing hardships and loss of their crops was because they had neglected God’s house and His work while they lived for themselves in luxury.But isn’t self-concern always the reason why we neglect God’s work?  I think so!
C. God’s actions detailed (Haggai 1:10-11).
1. (vs. 10).  This verse says “Therefore the heaven over you is stayed from dew, and the earth is stayed from her fruit.”  Still responding to what was happening to His people because they neglected His house, God said “Therefore the heaven over you is stayed from dew” meaning that God had even withheld the “dew” from heaven.  In addition, the earth is stayed from her fruit.”  This means that their land didn’t bring forth any harvest or crops.
2. (vs. 11).  In our final verse God continued to say “And I called for a drought upon the land, and upon the mountains, and upon the corn, and upon the new wine, and upon the oil, and upon that which the ground bringeth forth, and upon men, and upon cattle, and upon all the labour of the hands.”  God said that He caused “a drought” or lack of water on everything.  The word “corn” refers to all grains.  The words “new wine” refers to grapes used to make wine, and “oil” refers to olives from which olive oil was made.  Each of these items made up Israel’s major crops.  The people depended on these while neglecting the worship of God.  As a result, the Lord said that He sent the drought to destroy their livelihood and to bring them back to Him.  All of these catastrophes that Israel suffered were the price they paid for their disobedience. 
                         
IV. Conclusion.  Haggai’s challenge from the Lord was simple and direct.  It was time to put God first and rebuild the temple.  God doesn’t want us to build a temple, but He does want us to put Him first in our lives.  When we put Him first in our lives, we know that He will be glorified and that He will be there to give us the help and strength we need.  We should regularly check our priorities and rearrange them if necessary so that God really does have first place in our lives.

 







 

 

The Greatest Commandment

                                                                     Sunday School Lesson
                                            

Lesson: Leviticus 19:18; Deuteronomy 6:4-7; Mark 12:28-34;

                                                                                                 
Golden Text: “And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment. And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these” (Mark 12:30-31).
INTRODUCTION.  The scribes and Pharisees often tried to trap Jesus with difficult questions.  Some of their questions they couldn’t answer consistently themselves.  When one scribe approached Jesus with a sincere question, he didn’t show the same hostility that his fellow scribes demonstrated.  He appears to have treated Jesus with respect.  A scribe’s responsibility was to copy and know the Scriptures well.  As the Second Person of the God-head, Jesus fully understood the Scriptures because He inspired them and gave them to His servants (like Moses) who wrote them down.  When questioned by the scribe, Jesus gave a brief yet complete answer without hesitation.  Jesus went directly to the point of a text and let God’s Word speak for itself.  The Bible is authoritative.  This week’s lesson is one example of this.
II. THE SOCIAL MANDATE PRESCRIBED (Leviticus 19:18).   Leviticus 19:9-18 reveals God’s directions for how He expected Israel to relate to their neighbors.  He commanded Israel to care for the poor and the stranger during harvest (see Leviticus 19:9-10), and to refrain from stealing, lying, and swearing falsely (see Leviticus 19:11-12).  In addition, they were not to cheat workers out of their wages, take advantage of the handicapped, or show favoritism in governing (see Leviticus 19:13-15).  Neither were they to spread gossip or bring false charges against a neighbor (see Leviticus 19:16).  God also commanded His people not to harbor hatred for their neighbors, but to deal with them openly (see Leviticus 19:17).   Our lesson begins with verse 18.  We will divide that verse into 18a and 18b in this commentary.

 

A. A prohibition (see Leviticus 19:18a).  The first part of this verse says “Thou shalt not avenge, nor bear any grudge against the children of thy people.”  God intends for His people to have fellowship and live in harmony with our neighbors, even the more difficult ones.  In this verse, God gave two behaviors that His people are to avoid showing “against the children of thy people” which refers to any Israelite.  The first behavior is “Thou shalt not avenge.”  This simply means that God’s people should not seek to get revenge on anyone.  A key to godly relationships is relying on God to fight our battles for us (see Exodus 14:13-14; Deuteronomy 20:4).  Not only were God’s people not to seek revenge on others, they were also commanded not to “bear any grudge.”  In other words, we should not hold any grudges against anyone because in the long run, we are the only ones it affects.  Holding grudges will keep us from being at peace within ourselves.

B. A command (Leviticus 19:18b).  The second part of this verse says “but thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself: I am the Lord.”  Instead of wasting their time getting revenge or holding grudges, God commanded His people that “thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.”  To love someone as you love yourself assumes that everyone has a love within that causes them to do whatever is necessary to care for themselves.  God’s people are to have this same concern for the needs of their neighbors (see Matthew 7:12: Romans 13:8-10).  Note:  We normally consider neighbors as those who live near us, but to the ancient Israelite, a neighbor was one of the same family, tribe, or country.  However, God never intended for neighborly love to only be shown to Israelites.  He also included the “stranger” (see Leviticus 19:10) as someone whose needs should be supplied.  God also specifically commanded Israelites to love strangers as themselves (see Leviticus 19:34).  In Jesus’ parable of the Good Samaritan, He taught that a neighbor is any fellow human being (see Luke 10:25-37).
III. THE SPIRITUAL MANDATE PRESCRIBED (Deuteronomy 6:4-7).  This portion of our lesson takes place on the plains of Moab as Moses spoke to the new generation of Israelites as they prepared to enter the Promised Land.  He reviewed the covenant God had made with Israel at Horeb or Sinai (see Deuteronomy 5:1-5).  Moses repeated the Ten Commandments (see Deuteronomy 5:6-21) and also implied that God would have also spoken directly with the people, but because they feared Him, they asked that God only speak to Moses (see Deuteronomy 5:22-27).  Of course the Lord agreed to this, placing on Moses the responsibility of expounding the details of the Law to the people of Israel (see Deuteronomy 5:28-31).   In Deuteronomy chapter 6 from which this portion of our lesson comes, Moses began to give details of the Law that emphasized the individual’s personal relationship to God’s covenant.  The commandments, the statutes, and the judgments sum up those details (see Deuteronomy 6:1).  God called for national obedience to His law and the reward for that would be “that thy days may be prolonged” (see Deuteronomy 6:2).  Moses then said to the people, “Hear therefore, O Israel, and observe to do it” and if they were obedient to God’s law, everything would be well with them in the land (see Deuteronomy 6:3).  This is where the second portion of our lesson begins.   
A. Loving God’s Person (Deuteronomy 6:4-5). 
1. (vs. 4).  This portion of our lesson begins with Moses saying “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God is one Lord.”  Moses was about to review “the commandments, the statutes, and the judgments” (see Deuteronomy 6:1) of the Lord with Israel.  However, before doing this, He reintroduced them to the God who had given these commands.  He said “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God is one Lord.”  This statement in Judaism is called the “Shema” which is the Hebrew word for “hear.”  This statement is the core declaration of Jewish faith and practice.  It teaches the dual truths that God is the only true God and that He is the God of Israel. The phrase “The Lord our God is one Lord” indicates that this unique God had chosen to identify Himself with the nation of Israel.  He didn’t do it to ignore the rest of mankind, but because in His sovereignty He chose to manifest Himself to the world through Israel (see Exodus 19:5-6; I Kings 8:41-43; Psalms 67:1-2; Zechariah 8:20-23).
2. (vs. 5).  After reminding this new generation of who God was, in this verse Moses went on to say “And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.”  The word “love” here means more than mere affection.  It implies commitment, devotion and obedience.  God’s relationship with Israel was one of love and covenant loyalty (see Deuteronomy 7:7-10).  So He asked for their unconditional love in return.  Moses said that Israel was to “love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.”  The Hebrew word translated “heart” refers to the inner man, which includes his or her mind, emotions, will, and moral life.  “Soul” refers to one’s life or the whole person.  The term “might” is used in some contexts to refer to force or abundance.  But in this verse, it signifies the whole strength of a person.  Moses was declaring to God’s people that all of a person’s being is to be devoted to the Lord.  Every part of one’s life, whether it is the intellect, the emotions, or the will, is to be committed to worshipping and serving God.  Note:  God had given His people a multitude of laws and decrees.  Out of all of them, absolute love for God was of the utmost importance.  When this principle was followed, all the commandments would be held in proper perspective.                                     
B. Making God’s commands a part of one’s personal and family life (Deuteronomy 6:6-7).  
1.  (vs. 6).  In this verse Moses continued to say “And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart.”  The commandments that God had communicated to His people through Moses were not to be forgotten.  They were to be remembered and taken to heart.  God’s commandments were to be memorized, practiced out of fear meaning duty, and also be in the heart (see Deuteronomy 11:18).  Simply put, God’s commands were to be the focus of the way in which one conducted all the affairs of daily life (see Psalms 37:31; 40:8; 119:11).
2. (vs. 7).  Not only were the people to commit God’s word to memory, Moses also said “And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.”  Since this generation to whom Moses was speaking saw what happened to their parents in the wilderness because of disobedience, they had to be aware that the same thing could happen to a new generation that hadn’t been taught to honor God’s law.  Therefore, they were to “teach them (God’s commands) diligently unto thy children.”  The words “teach… diligently” renders a verb that literally means “to sharpen.”  In this verse it means to impress a truth or concept on someone through constant repetition and reinforcement.  Parents were commanded to teach God’s laws to their children “when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.”  However, this does not mean turning every activity into a formal teaching session.  It means using every natural activity in life as an opportunity to communicate devotion to God.  To do this, parents would have to make God’s law a major part of their own daily lives.  Children were to grow up thinking of God’s words as a normal part of life and loving Him as their parents did.  Note:  Teaching our children about God’s word is just as relevant today as it was in ancient Israel.  God wants us not only to love Him exclusively, but also to think about His commandments regularly.  He wants us to teach His Word to our children and conform our daily lives to what the Bible says.  Biblical education starts in the loving environment of a Christ-centered home.  The church is to build on the spiritual foundation laid by the parents for their children.  Parents can teach their children scriptural principles through object lessons, question and answer dialogue, and regular times of family reading from God’s Word.     
IV. THE DUAL MANDATE CONFIRMED (Mark 12:28-34).  The final portion of our lesson takes place during the last week of Jesus’ public ministry.  At that time, He faced intense questioning from hostile critics.  The Pharisees and Herodians tried to trap Him by asking whether it was lawful to pay tribute to Caesar (see Mark 12:13-14).  The Sadducees asked Him if people would marry in the resurrection (see Mark 12:18-23).  Jesus answered both questions in such a way that his critics were silenced (see Luke 20:26, 39-40).  However, a group of scribes and Pharisees who were not going to give up still had another question for Jesus (see Matthew 22:34) and one of the scribes came up to Jesus to ask that question.  This is where the final part of our lesson begins.
A. The scribe’s question (Mark 12:28).  This verse says “And one of the scribes came, and having heard them reasoning together, and perceiving that he had answered them well, asked him, Which is the first commandment of all?”  A “scribe” was an expert in the knowledge of the whole body of Jewish law, including God’s written Law and its Jewish interpretation and application.  They also served as copiers, editors, and teachers.  The phrase “having heard them reasoning together” refers to the question and answer session between Jesus and the Herodians and Pharisees.  Having heard the conversation, this scribe noted that Jesus had “answered them well” meaning that Jesus had given His questioners a good answer.  This led the scribe to ask his own question to Jesus which was “Which is the first commandment of all?” This question revealed how focused on legalism the rabbis and Jewish religious leaders were.  They carried on long debates about the commandments, often arguing over the weight a particular commandment carried: great or small, heavy or light.  The rabbis recognized 613 different commandments in the law.
B. Jesus’ response (Mark 12:29-31).
1. (vs. 29).  This verse says “And Jesus answered him, The first of all the commandments is, Hear, O Israel; The Lord our God is one Lord.”  Before stating the foremost or “greatest” commandment, Jesus quoted the Shema (see the note under Deuteronomy 6:4 above) from Deuteronomy 6:4-5.  As mentioned earlier, “Shema” is a Hebrew word that means “hear” and is the first word in the Deuteronomy 6:4-5 passage that Jesus was about to quote to the scribe.  It appears that Jesus was saying that the “first of all the commandments is, Hear, O Israel; The Lord our God is one Lord.”  However, He was only stating the beginning of the Shema.  Jesus would quote the “first of all the commandments” in the next verse.  Before Jesus quoted the first or greatest commandment, He quoted Moses’ declaration that “The Lord our God is one Lord.”  Just as Moses had done in the wilderness, when Jesus quoted this portion of the Shema, Israel was to be aware that their God was one Lord and was to be worshipped wholeheartedly.
2. (vs. 30).  In this verse, Jesus continued to say “And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment.”  Again Jesus was quoting from Deuteronomy 6:5 where it speaks of loving God with our heart, soul and might.  However, in this verse, Jesus added the phrase “with all thy mind” which was included in the Greek translation of the Old Testament, the Septuagint.  The phrase “with all thy heart” was not in the Septuagint, but was in the Hebrew translation, so Jesus combined both the Hebrew and the Greek translations.  But His words still mean that we are to love God with our entire being.  Therefore, Jesus stated that loving God with our whole heart, soul, mind and strength is “the first commandment.”  The fact that this was the “first commandment” means that it is the greatest of all the commandments.
3. (vs. 31).  Jesus responded further to the scribe’s question adding “And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these.”  Here Jesus also gave the second greatest commandment.  In Matthew’s account the phrase “And the second is like, namely this” reads “the second is like unto it” (see Matthew 22:39).  In other words Jesus’ two commandments were inseparable.  He said that the second greatest commandment was “Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.”  One cannot have a wholehearted love for God and not have a selfless concern for our neighbors.  Since we are all made in God’s image, our love for Him should carry over to love for mankind.  If we say that we love God and withhold love from our neighbor, we are nothing but liars (see I John 4:20-21).  In the last part of this verse Jesus concluded His answer with “There is none other commandment greater than these.”  In Matthew’s account, to stress just how important these two commandments were, Jesus also said that “On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets” (see Matthew 22:40).  “The law and the prophets” was the term the Jews used to identify all of their Scriptures.  So in essence, Christ was saying that these two commandments, love for God and neighbor sums up the teaching of all scripture (see Deuteronomy 10:12; Micah 6:8).
C. The scribe’s reaction (Mark 12:32-33).      
1. (vs. 32).  This verse says “And the scribe said unto him, Well, Master, thou hast said the truth: for there is one God; and there is none other but he.”  The phrase “Well, Master, thou hast said the truth” indicates that the scribe accepted Jesus’ answer with unqualified approval.  Jesus’ words had made a very deep impression on him.  The word “Well” can mean “fine” or “well said.”  It is an exclamation of approval.  The scribe called Jesus “Master” which means “Teacher.”  He recognized Jesus as equal to any rabbi or Jewish teacher.  As a trained lawyer, the scribe had weighed Jesus’ answer clause by clause.  He considered Jesus’ answer to have been well said.  The scribe also affirmed the truth of the Shema that Christ had quoted by reaffirming that “there is one God.”  He also showed that he understood the uniqueness of God by adding the phrase “and there is none other but he.”  The scribe acknowledged that Israel’s God is God alone.
2. (vs. 33).  In this verse the scribe continued to say “And to love him with all the heart, and with all the understanding, and with all the soul, and with all the strength, and to love his neighbour as himself, is more than all whole burnt offerings and sacrifices.”  After confirming that Israel’s God was the only God, here the scribe added something else to his discussion with Jesus.  He declared that the dual mandate to love God with all our being and to love our neighbor as we do ourselves “is more than all whole burnt offerings and sacrifices.”  In other words, the scribe confirmed that the double law of love is superior to offering sacrifices.  “Whole burnt offerings” were meat offerings to God that were completely burnt or consumed upon the altar (see Leviticus 6:22).  The terms “offerings” and “sacrifices” are often used interchangeably in the Old Testament.  The sacrificial system played a major role in the life of an Israelite.  But the scribe understood that the sacrificial system took second place when compared to these two great commandments.  The Scriptures teach that obedience to God’s commandments is indeed better than sacrifice (see I Samuel 15:22; Psalms 40:6-7; 51:16-17).  The scribe was right in his conclusion.
D. Jesus’ observation (Mark 12:34).  Our final verse says “And when Jesus saw that he answered discreetly, he said unto him, Thou art not far from the kingdom of God. And no man after that durst ask him any question.”  As the scribe was appraising Jesus’ words, Jesus was also appraising him.  This scribe had “answered discreetly” or wisely.  His openness and humility before God revealed a favorable acceptance of Christ’s teachings.  Recognizing that this scribe had a level of insight that was lacking in most of the religious leaders, Jesus said to him “Thou art not far from the kingdom of God.”  In other words, Jesus was saying that the scribe was close to the kingdom of God.  But let’s not forget that close only counts in horseshoes, hand grenades and slow dancing.  Either you’re in the kingdom or you’re not!  The phrase “kingdom of God” refers to God’s spiritual rule over those who have trusted Him through faith in Christ.  Note: To enter the kingdom, one must be born again (see John 3:3) through the work of the Holy Spirit (see John3:5-6) when one trusts Jesus as Saviour (see John 3:14-17).  No doubt, Jesus deliberately made this statement to the scribe to cause further wise thinking on his part.  The scribe had an intellectual knowledge of God’s truth (see Mark 12:32-33), but now he needed to make a faith commitment to what he understood to be the truth.  He needed to take one more step.  He needed to believe in Jesus as his God and Saviour (see Matthew 11:28-30; John 6:35).  Then this man would go from being “not far from the kingdom of God” to being inside God’s kingdom.  The last phrase of this verse says “And no man after that durst ask him any question.”  After this brief discussion with the scribe, none of the religious leaders dared, which is the meaning of “durst,” to ask Jesus any more questions.  Jesus had thoroughly silenced His opponents and even caused one scribe to agree with Him.    
                          
V. Conclusion.  Intelligent agreement with God’s commands is commendable; however it’s not sufficient for entrance into God’s kingdom.  Believers realize that faith which leads to eternal life is an issue of the heart, not merely of the mind.  Therefore, let us demonstrate our saving faith by loving our God and loving others.  This animated love will silence those people whose only desire is to participate in worthless debate and questions.