On this 30th Sunday in ordinary time the gospel from Matthew reminds us of the greatest command summarized in two didactics by Jesus the Christ. Jesus reminds us of the need for love of God and our neighbor. Such a reminder summarizes the 10 commandments given to Moses on Mt. Sinai. Jesus reminds us of the simple, yet logical response in his answer. His response is not filled with a rigid legalistic approach to following God, but returns to the foundational Shema prayer (https://bibleproject.com/articles/what-is-the-shema/). The Pharisees were trying to entrap Jesus with such a question. The 613 Jewish rules in the Mitzvot are certainly important (https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/mitzvot). However, Jesus’s response to the Pharisees reminds us of the simplicity of how we should lead a good life. When we have a reciprocal relationship with a God that is love, how can we not love our neighbor, whoever that might be? Jesus as God’s Son fulfills this command for the salvation of all of us per the correlation to John’s gospel: “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life (Jn. 3:16).
Matthew 22:34-40
When the Pharisees heard that he had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered together, and one of them [a scholar of the law] tested him by asking, Teacher, which commandment in the law is the greatest?”He said to him, “You shall love the Lord, your God, with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the greatest and the first commandment. The second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. The whole law and the prophets depend on these two commandments.”
Some practical tips for putting this into practice are the following:
Plan for a Christ centered life: turn to the Lord in prayer each day. Acknowledge our weaknesses and ask for God’s grace to go out and be a Christ (anointed) son & daughter of our Lord in our relationship with others. Frequent participation in the Sacrament of Reconciliation and Sacrament of the Eucharist at the Divine Liturgy (mass) will enrich our Christ centered mission. Ask Jesus to help us take up our cross to come follow Him each and every day for this earthly journey we are on has a lot of mini crosses.
Create times for personal and family prayer time. How can we love the Lord our God if we don’t pray? St. Paul in his epistle to the Thessalonians reminds us to pray without ceasing and give God our thanks. (1 Thes. 5:17-18).
Become a servant. By having a life enriched by selfless service to others where we put the need of others before ourself will we be humbled and begin to reflect that perfect agape love that God gives us with His Son, Jesus.
The cover image from Salvation Mountain in the state of California reminds us of this mission to live out Jesus’s Great Command. We acknowledge our weakness and brokenness to sin and ask God to fill us with His love, His grace. For more information about Salvation Mountain, a vision created by Leonard Knight, visit https://www.visitcalifornia.com/experience/salvation-mountain-slab-city/.
StreetEvangelist 
