One of the scribes came near and heard them disputing with one another, and seeing that he answered them well, he asked him, ‘Which commandment is the first of all?’ Jesus answered, ‘The first is, “Hear, O Israel: the Lord our God, the Lord is one; 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 neighbour as yourself.” There is no other commandment greater than these.’ Then the scribe said to him, ‘You are right, Teacher; you have truly said that “he is one, and besides him there is no other”; and “to love him with all the heart, and with all the understanding, and with all the strength”, and “to love one’s neighbour as oneself”,—this is much more important 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.’ After that no one dared to ask him any question.
I love to think that we stand in that long line of saints through the ages – called and chosen by God to be God’s hands and feet to the world of our day. Not perfect by any means – not even extraordinary most of the time – but saints none the less – trying our best to follow in the footsteps of Christ as best we can – loving the Lord our God with all our heart, soul, mind and strength – and our neighbour as ourselves. Or as the well-known American preacher, Barbara Brown Taylor says, “to love as you are loved, to throw your arms around the world, and to shine like the sun.”