Arguing About Morality

Understanding Mark 12:28–34

People today often disagree about what’s right and wrong. But Jesus gave us a simple yet profound approach: love God with all your heart and love your neighbor as yourself. This lesson can be broken down into three parts: realizing we all have a problem, identifying the kind of life we should live, and figuring out how to get there.

1. The problem we all have

Just like a teacher of the law in Mark’s story, we all struggle with wanting to be free, yet needing rules to guide us. Sometimes it feels like rules are both helpful and burdensome, like what Jen experiences in “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.” But Jesus shows us that the answer isn’t about the rules themselves, it’s about finding true freedom and acceptance with His help.

2. The life we all need

Jesus turns our understanding of religion on its head by saying that love is at the heart of all commands and laws. Instead of obeying rules to gain rewards or feel superior, we should follow them out of love for God and respect for ourselves. If we do things out of fear or pride, we can end up misusing religion. It’s crucial to develop a real relationship with God, filled with love, and let that guide our actions.

3. The journey we must all take in order to get there

Creating this love-based relationship isn’t something we can achieve by ticking off religious checkboxes or making sacrifices. Instead, it involves admitting we can’t perfectly follow God’s laws and asking for forgiveness. Understanding God’s grace, which goes beyond both liberal and conservative ideas, is a lifelong journey. Jesus’ self-sacrifice on the cross is how we can start forming a relationship with God and aim for humble obedience, even if we aren’t perfect.