one of the nice things about being on a plane is that you have to stay calm and read the scriptures i'm not a flyer i don't like to fly but it's a good time to really study the scriptures and i thought what am i going to preach when i get back because we're sort of in between series here and i'll be returning to them shortly after next week but i could not get away from mark chapter 12 so the lord gave that to me on the plane and that's what we're considering today mark chapter 12 page 1009 we're looking at this i wrote i got back and i wrote a whole sermon new sermon on this um find this passage absolutely remarkable mark chapter 12 beginning at verse 28 is the text this morning as we consider coming prepare for coming to the table this is the word of the lord beginning at verse 28 and one of the scribes came up and heard them disputing with one another and seeing that he answered them well asked him which commandment is the most important of all jesus answered the most important is hero israel the lord our god the lord is one 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 the second is this you shall love your neighbor as yourself there is no other commandment greater than these and the scribe said to him you're right teacher you've truly said that he is one and there is none other besides him and to love him with all the heart and with all the understanding and with all the strength and to love one's neighbor as oneself is much more than all whole burnt offerings and sacrifices when jesus saw that he answered wisely he said to him you are not far from the kingdom of god and after that no one dared to ask him any more questions and there will end the reading of god's word this morning well in the gospels jesus is constantly surprising us he is surprising us in how he deals with people he's nothing like our modern approach of doing all that we can to bring people into the kingdom he doesn't fit any of our modern approach there's no sense of begging for it in fact he's doing actually opposite things that would make us uncomfortable in our day in how he deals with people he is of course a reader of hearts and that is very important because he knows exactly what is happening in every single heart that is considering the word of god and the kingdom of god and his message and here in mark chapter 12 jesus is exposing one of the most surprising and this is the great word i want us to think about for the thematic word of this particular section he is showing us and he's exposing one of the most surprising positions someone may be in i couldn't get away from that thought positionally he's doing it for a reason of course he wanted future generations to read this he wanted us to read this and to ask the question in what kind of position am i in relation to the kingdom of god that has to be the heart of this after that stunning statement at the end of this what kind of position am i in relation to the kingdom of god and have i entered the kingdom have i entered the kingdom our lord challenges us to think about that in this text as to where we are before Him positionally. The goal of which is that we would be certain that we have entered. You're either in or you're out. Well, as we come to the table this morning, I hope to help you with this great question with the goal that you would have confidence and that you would have assurance. That's why this is left in the way that it is. He is challenging us to think about these things, to think about things that people rarely think about. have I entered the kingdom have you entered the kingdom do we take that kind of question for granted well I want to consider closely with you this man's interest in Jesus that's really the first point I'm dealing with here his great interest and then his position and ultimately the revelation still of his blindness that we would be challenged in this way to think about our position so that we would have confidence in that concerning that very important question which is the purpose of this and that's where we are in this particular passage in mark 12 the scene that is before us the scene that we enter into it comes in the context of a great intellectual debate that happens among the religious leaders of the day over the resurrection and they are indeed trying to present ridiculous applications of the law working if you have 613 memorized they're picking 42 to go after jesus number 42 it's that kind of thing that they are doing in this section to catch jesus in a trap over a dispute concerning the resurrection sadducees and pharisees had different ideas about this and they would sit around and dispute this all day long well rabbi so-and-so says this and rabbi so-and-so says this what do you say jesus if we had time we'd get into that they are craftily trying to catch jesus in a trap what interests us here for our text this morning is this man this this scribe this studied man who's sitting there listening to all this he the text says perceived that when he was listening here and jesus answered the the the people the religious leaders on this particular question he perceived that jesus answered wisely he was impressed with jesus he was impressed with jesus he saw the wisdom of jesus he saw how jesus had skill in the scriptures he saw how jesus could undermine every foolish argument that came against him so he has a question for jesus but what's remarkable about him is that it's not an attack he's not interested in attacking jesus this guy's totally genuine you get the sense that he's a remarkable figure but you get the sense that jesus likes him he's respectful you almost get the sense of this mutual sort of thing here he is really taken by christ all around him are these people who are coming to assault him but he's kind of getting to be won over by jesus because he's so wise so after the dispute in all sincerity he comes up to jesus and he's asked jesus this question he says he says which is the first commandment of all what makes the exchange different is this sense of sincerity that comes out he would be considered one of the deep thinkers of our day he would be a model of somebody who we would say now there's a thoughtful man there's a deep thinker and he comes to jesus asking this question i would like to know since we're considering the law what is the summarizing principle of it all i don't think it's as if he didn't know the answer i think he wants to see how far jesus really knows things most people are many people are loosely connected to christianity and they have little interest in growing in this they have little interest in opening the scriptures they have little interest in understanding the more deep and profound things of the faith it just remains very surface not this guy not this guy jesus if if you were to boil down all the law what what is that what is the greatest commandment what is the first commandment that's not a side issue here's how you know it's somewhat genuine a lot of people try to pull the most ridiculous of things you know what do you think about head coverings that's not what he's doing what about the first commandment in a sense he he really does want to see how far jesus knows the scriptures understands the scriptures because he's learned it so jesus responds the first of all the commandments the foremost the the greatest of all commandments is hero israel the lord our god the lord is one and you shall love the lord your god with all your heart with all your soul with all your mind and with all your strength this is the first commandment and the second like it is this you shall love your neighbors yourself there is no commandment greater than these that's the summary now this was not unfamiliar to israel this was the great shema that jesus of course puts together here hero israel shema the hebrew word for here shema hero israel he takes deuteronomy 6 4 and he combines it with Leviticus 19. 18, you shall love your neighbor as yourself. I am the Lord. When you do that, all the 613 commandments you know, they'll fall in place. Now here's what makes this discussion remarkable. This man got to the heart of all true religion. That heart of it all is love. That's your chief purpose in life. It's to love God. Love Him with all that you are. There are many things that people try to undermine Christianity with. We've got all kinds of books out there where people try to find contradictions of the Bible. They try to find inconsistencies and things with which to undermine Christ himself. Further, we live in a day where people are generally uninterested in the most important issues of life. They don't study. They never read a book. They hate doctrine. They hate distinctions. They hate definitions. They hate discussions about theology, especially if it turns into a debate. People hate that stuff. Not him. He wants to find out, because he's so studied, whether Jesus is wise in also seeing what he sees. That the whole purpose of our existence is to love God with all of who we are. That's the heart of the matter. I really wish I came across a lot of people like this today, you know? Who spend their time reflecting and seriously thinking of the big questions of life. The most important questions of life. Who want to talk about the most important issues. It's really a remarkable figure. Notice the response. After Jesus answers him, the scribe says, Well said, teacher. If I could capture it, it would be like this. great job you got it you've spoken truth there's one god and there's no other but he and to love him now notice notice the depth this man really gets it to love him with all the heart to love him with notice he adds all all the understanding with all the soul with all the strength and to love one's neighbor as oneself that's more than all burnt offerings and sacrifices mind-blowing well said here here teacher excellent i mean there's real understanding here there is real understanding here this is truly amazing he's excited it's as if he's saying you you are absolutely right finally someone who gets it like i get it the true bond between god and man is love it's the highest duty it's the most wonderful of all blessings to actually love god there's nothing in life that is more valuable than that it's the purest act of devotion to have your whole being so directed to god that in everything you show forth love right from the heart everything of who we are not not just with the heart but with the soul even the seat of our emotions with all of our understanding and intellect our minds must be given to love God and all of our strength all of our abilities anything that we've been given anything in life that we have been given to be able to do all of that should be directed to love God in every circumstance in every possible way and our neighbor in every way to love our neighbor as we love ourselves now what would you expect from jesus listen this kind of theological astuteness in the church today is rare this is a good man on all accounts as we would see but at this point we get one of the most surprising statements from our Lord I think in the Bible that's a big claim there are lots of surprising statements but I find this one pretty remarkable Jesus answered him and said you're not far from entering the kingdom of God in the gospels i find jesus never said this to anyone else like this only once now if you were to look at the big picture gentiles were far off from the kingdom they had no concept of who the god of israel is israel was brought near if you're taking theological categories romans 2 brought near because they had the oracles of god they have the law jesus just said to this man you get the law well done that's rare i just flew to iowa you know southwest um airlines had i didn't know this i don't fly southwest i have unassigned seating and you know i hate getting on the back of the plane i think that's the worst thing is to be tucked in the back and so you know you're always trying i at least me i'm thinking how can i work myself white myself up the line somehow there's a temptation to cut because they don't really check the tags when you did you know that they don't really check well this would be like the plane door is closed and i'm in the front of the line i'm still stuck in iowa ask not where i want to be if you think about this this has got to be the worst position because i might have even paid for the upgrade to get at the front of the line or i might have lied but what if i didn't make it on the plane jesus is having everyone think about their position everyone your position with regard to entering the kingdom of god are you in or are you out and what is your position if you're in the front of the line very few people give thought to this very few people think about this in fact we're told not to judge such things Jesus does the superficial thought is the superficial way of looking as there's good people out there and then there's bad people who we know are lost they're the crowd in the back but this guy reads the bible this guy's decent this guy's moral in our day we you know We wouldn't judge a man like this. Jesus divides it right up. There are those, you might say, uninterested in the kingdom. They don't even get in the line to southwest. They're just in the back mulling around. They're group Z. And then you've got class A. Here's the best of the best. We should think about the different positions. jesus are in as he challenges take the uninterested jesus said of them when he bumped up against them in the in his ministry these are those whose heart is dull and their ears are hard of hearing the old wickliff translations fascinating on this their heart is infattened there's a reason why you can have fatty heart and those things this is what the jesus is talking us a sense here there are in general people who jesus ran into who just weren't interested in the kingdom that they were so dull that if you talk to them about the kingdom of god if you talk to people like this about repentance and faith there's just no interest it's just not there it's um they were interested in jesus we find in the gospels insofar as he wowed them or entertained them. They're fair-weather followers, like being a Padres fan. That's the uninterested. Then there's the interested. This class was represented, includes a great group called the Pharisees and the Scribes and the Sadducees, that they were all about matters of religion externally. Did you notice the remarkable thing this man said about the law and about love? I mean, this is where he makes him so remarkable. He says something here that was stunning. To love God with all the heart, with all the soul, with all the mind, with all the understanding is far better than all burnt offerings and sacrifices. That's not what the religious leaders thought. Oh, no. the religious leaders were class B. They thought they could live any way they wanted so long as they kept the externals of the law. But then they had the sacrifices, they thought. Very similar to Roman Catholic thinking. What do I mean? I can live, I can get drunk, I can go to a priest, absolve, te absolvo. You're done, you're good. It's just a religious class. outward externals of religion some say i'll go to church because i have to and i think god's pleased with me because of that that's my offering so maybe they show up on a sunday occasionally or maybe they're pretty good at coming or maybe they show up every easter and christmas whatever the case it's they think generally they're the interested they're they're close to god i'm not really out committing adultery i'm pretty good guy i'm not stealing this class of people is closer they're closer they're in line i guess because they're at least trying to use i just use this as sort of an illustration for they're trying to use religion maybe even think they can buy god's favor through the sacraments through the services jesus went after this group he said these are those who draw near to me with their mouths but their hearts their their hearts are not in this at all in vain they worship me you know remember what he said in vain they worship me teaching his commandments the doctrines of men trying to be right with god that way there's nothing on the inside. Now, there may be, well, some like these first two categories today. Uninterested who are here, or who play fast and loose. Then there may be the religious like that. But here's what gets me. Jesus throws into the mix the most surprising, in a most surprising way, a whole different class. a whole different class of person who's ahead of these two. This is what makes him remarkable. He understood that love is greater than sacrifice. What a thinker. The guy's a studier. He knows that the essence to be genuine in religion, if you're going to not be a hypocrite, then he knows that what you should do is love. Because he determined from scriptures, that's the heart of it all. That God demands my heart in worship. That love is required from the heart to love God and neighbor. It's far greater than actually doing the religious stuff for show. To please whoever. I understand God who requires total allegiance, totalitarian allegiance. He's remarkable. He gets it. Right on, Jesus. You just gave an amazing sermon. I love your preaching, Jesus. You just preached one great sermon on the resurrection. Wow! I mean, amazing. So much wisdom in that. At least he's taking it seriously. At least he spends time in the scriptures. I'd imagine this guy's a prayer warrior. I think he loved listening to sermons. I don't think he'd miss. If it's morning and evening on the Sabbath, there's no way. Those are the guys further down the line Who would dodge that? I'll be there. He at least sees through the sham of it all. That there should be love if you're going to do this. There should be love if you're going to do this. It better be real if you're going to do this. He's not interested in playing games. Let me ask, is this guy further than you? I think that's a really important question. Positionally? The uninterested, you can barely get to church. They just stay away altogether. The religious are involved only in so far as they have to be. This guy, thoughtful, studies, worships, understands deeply what true religion should be. And Jesus says of this man, you're right at the front, but you're not in. Have you noticed the glaring absence in this passage? There's no response to this. If this were you, if this were me, would that trouble you? Maybe it wouldn't concern you. You're not headed for a good place. I say this place is no better than being in the back. One pastor said the law is not given for us to applaud Jesus. Yes, we know what's required. The glaring omission is, God be merciful to me, a sinner. I haven't done that. He understands the law, but he doesn't see his own heart. I haven't done this. Jesus is not interested in us being intellectually interested, theologically interested. Those would be the best. We'll at least get it. We need to be born again by the Spirit. Our convictions need to pass over from just an influence in the heart so that it shatters us in our self-confidence and that our conversion and this can happen at any age you can be sitting in the church and you're 55 and have not been converted so that your conversion is like a train wreck you see your sin and it comes home to you and you repent and you say i need you lord do you have enough understanding that the great requirement of your life is, if you're going to be sincere about the Christian faith, is that you should love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength. The next logical question, how are you doing with that? And that's what makes the gospel of the kingdom that Jesus preached, beloved, so wonderful here's what he preached can you hear it the spirit of the lord is upon me because he anointed me to preach gospel good news to the poor he sent me to heal the brokenhearted to proclaim liberty to the captives, recovery of sight to the blind, and set at liberty those who are oppressed to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord. And they all stood there and marveled at the gracious words that He spoke. You see, there's one more category of person here. And I got really good news for you today. Have you ever been waiting to get on the plane and somehow you worked your way up to the front position? Have you ever heard the attendant say, now, for all those who need assistance, and you're a little irritated, here come the wheelchairs. And these people who all need help to get on the plane go before you. that captures it. I have failed. I have real sins in my life that have alienated me from God that I keep serving. It's called idolatry. It's time for me to repent. I've not listened to you. I may have a good understanding of the Christian faith. I may even know the catechism. But I played fast and loose with this. And today I come to you, Lord, asking for mercy. I recognize I've not loved you with all my heart, soul, mind, and strength. I come this day to you, O Christ, and I ask that you carry me into your kingdom. I don't care if you put me on the back of the plane. Listen, I'll be the attendant to the bathroom as long as I'm on that plane. I need you to carry me. I need you to rescue me. I need you to save me. And here's the good news. Never in the scriptures do we find anyone whom Jesus refused like that. Never. Not only that, he throws a robe around you and he brings you into the kingdom by grace. He has never refused. Anyone who comes to me that way, I will by no means cast out. You're not going to be left off the plane. This is how you know. The Christian doesn't almost enter the kingdom. The Christian knows what he once was and what he now is by grace and that he's entered. Then one of the criminals who were hanged blasphemed him, saying, If you are the Christ, save yourself and us. But the other answering rebuked him, saying, Do you not even fear God, seeing that you are under the same condemnation? Okay, that guy was class Z. This guy just enters. Then the man, what did he say? We indeed justly, for we receive the due reward of our deeds, but this man has done nothing wrong. Then Jesus said to him, then he said to Jesus, here it is, Lord, remember me when you come into your kingdom. Jesus said, Assuredly, I say to you, you've entered today. You've entered today. You're with me in paradise today. Alistair Begg's famous line who was preaching this one day said, The man in the middle told me to come. That man's first in line. And not only that, he took my place. And you today, whether you live or die, you can be with Jesus. That's the good news. He covers your sins. What have you done? Do you even see it? What are you ashamed about? He forgives it all. And Jesus says, you can enter this narrow gate by me. Jesus says to us today, come then, you who have entered. The table's set. Let's feast together. You can be sure that very soon we will eat and drink anew in my Father's kingdom. But I want you to know this is the new covenant in my blood. You are covered. All your sins are wiped away and forgiven. They are forgiven you. So come. Come. Taste and see that the Lord is good and believe in his gracious love for you. For those who believe, I can say with assurance to you today, you have entered the kingdom. Rejoice. The Lord is that good. Let's pray. Heavenly Father, thank you for your word to us today and thank you for your gospel. Bless us now as we come. Give us faith. Let us not play games. Let us realize, oh Lord, what we need. Thank you for the provision of your son. Thank you for righteousness that he stepped into our place to bring us into the kingdom. May we have faith that believes. Let us turn, oh Lord, and repent. Change our minds. move far beyond the position of this man as those carried into the kingdom by grace alone through faith alone in christ alone to the glory of god alone hear our prayer oh lord in jesus name amen