If you're like me, Deuteronomy is not the first place that comes to mind when thinking where to find spiritual inspiration. But in chapter six, we find commands and corresponding promises that have fueled the Jewish faith for centuries since Moses wrote it. And theses words have great value for Christians as well, for in the twenty-five verses of his chapter, we find a virtual gold mine of inspiration supporting our faith in Jesus Christ.

The Sadducees were teachers and when Jesus came on the scene using the Law as a basis for his ministry, they were very interested in how he would answer difficult questions. They probably wanted to trip him up with difficult issues dealing with marriage from the perspective of death and divorce. After the Lord answered the question, he shot back saying they were in error not informed of Scripture or the power of God. So then they responded with an equally impossible question: pick the most important of the ten commandments.

From outside the box Jesus replied to the trick question of the Sadducees by introducing using Moses' words found in Deuteronomy 6:4-5 when he spoke of the Commandments. The most important commandment is, "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your mind and with all your strength." But then he added another thing Moses said in Leviticus 19:18. "Love your neighbor as yourself."

The Sadducees might have approached Jesus to trick him, but they left with a profound respect for his wisdom. There are a lot of people who believe compliance to the letter of the law is the thing with which God is most concerned. While that is obviously important, Jesus taught that loving God and our fellow man is far more important.

The Bible says that when we our life pleases God, all else will go well for us. May we find the joy of doing what is right and good in the Lord's sight. And the way to do that is to spend time in God's word which then leads us to spend more time in his presence with prayer.

1. Pray Through the Word - 365 devotionals on the subject of prayer by James R. Green (Dt 8;Mk 13)
2. Scripture comes from the Holy Bible, New International Version; (c)1978 by New York International Bible Society

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