Sabbath School Summary

By Elder Dr Masimba Mavaza

Love and Justice: The Two Greatest Commandments

Lesson 12

Memory Text:
“If someone says, ‘I love God,’ and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen, how can he love God whom he has not seen?” (1 John 4:20, NKJV).

Introduction
Though we have confidence that God will make all things right in the end, it still matters what we, as Christians, do in the here and now. Though there may be many injustices and evils that God will not now eradicate (because of the parameters of the cosmic conflict), this doesn’t mean that we can’t be used to help alleviate whatever suffering and evil we come across, at least to whatever degree possible. In fact, we are obligated, as Christians, to do just that.
As we have seen, love and justice go together; they are inseparable. God loves justice. Accordingly, if we love God, we will love justice, as well.
Likewise, if we love God, we will love one another. Part of loving one another is sharing a concern for the well-being of those around us. When others are afflicted by poverty, oppression, or any kind of injustice, we should be concerned. When others are oppressed, we should not turn a blind eye. Instead, we should ask ourselves what we can do, individually and corporately, to advance God’s love and justice in a way that reflects to our broken world our Lord’s perfect character of righteousness and love.

SABBATH:
Our mission on earth is to be merciful & love one another. There are many injustices here to be indifferent. Be sure to help every afflicted soul. It is true that God will make all things right in the end but this doesn’t mean we can’t help alleviate suffering & evil to some extent now. We all have a solemn duty to share a concern for others’ wellbeing. We shouldn’t turn a blind eye to those in poverty/oppression. What can you do?

The Two Greatest Commandments

SUNDAY:
Individually & corporately as a church community, we must feel the burden to help those who are in need. The two greatest commandments from Jesus underline God’s love & justice; 1. Love for God, 2. Love for others (Matt. 22:34-40). God desires that we set our affections on things above. Christ made known to the rich young ruler that when we’re not attached to earthly things, we have hope for salvation (Matt. 19:16-23, DA, p. 520). Earthly things shall perish.

The Two Greatest Sins

MONDAY:
Idolatry is the opposite of love for God. Mistreatment of God’s people is the opposite of love for others. These are the two greatest sins. Love for God above all (Deut. 6:5) & love for others (1 John 4:20, 21) is the mark to reach (Ps. 135:13-19, Zech. 7:9-12). God’s love & justice are inseparable. If we love God, we’ll love His people. We must follow in the footsteps of Jesus.

God Loves Justice

TUESDAY:
Justice has been put aside by many earthly rulers. In both the OT & NT, we see a clarion call for justice. God loves justice. He asks the rulers; “How long will you judge unjustly…?” (Ps. 82). One day, He’ll judge celestial rulers (the “gods”) behind corrupt earthly rulers. God charges all rulers to defend the poor, fatherless, afflicted, & needy. The call for justice is central to the message of OT prophets & Jesus (John 13:35, 1 John 4:8-16). Walk justly (Micah 6:8).

Called to Establish Justice

WEDNESDAY:
Isaiah & Jeremiah are all OT prophets who made a clarion call for God to bring judgment; establish justice. God wants us to cherish mercy & be our brother’s keeper (Isa. 1:17, 10:1, 2, 3, Jer. 22:13, 15, 16). It’s His desire that we defend the fatherless, help the needy, & attend to the widows. God will bring righteous judgment against oppressors of the poor & needy. In the NT, we see injustice from the Scribes & Pharisees (Matt. 23:23-30, see Luke 11:42).

Who Is My Neighbor?

THURSDAY:
Our neighbor is anyone who’s in need. A neighbor might be near or far, a friend or a stranger, a family or foe, a believer or nonbeliever. Anyone afflicted by the devil needs our help. The parable of the Good Samaritan depicts how love wins over rivalry & evil (Luke 10:25-37, 4:16-21, Isa. 61:1, 2). Jesus didn’t just talk about justice; He came to bring it (Ps. 9:8, 9, 146:7-9). He’s the Good Samaritan we’re to copy.

Further Thought

FRIDAY:
The religious leaders acted to justify themselves before men but God knew their heart. Christ rebuked their hypocrisy & the spies dared not answer Him before the multitude because He spoke the truth. They’d neglect a God’s child to suffer but care for mute animals because of the loss to the owner. They practised a false religion; one that goes against God (Isa. 13:12). Was it better for them to slay Jesus on the Sabbath or for Jesus to heal on the Sabbath?

—Ellen G. White, “The Sabbath,” pp. 281–289, in The Desire of Ages.

Keywords

OT- Old Testament

NT- New Testament

DA- The Desire of Ages

Discussion Questions

📌 Why and how is it true that “Every false religion teaches its adherents to be careless of human needs”? How can we act intentionally so as to avoid such carelessness in our church communities and beyond?

📌 Who is my neighbor? Who is your neighbor? In what practical ways should following Christ make us more like the Samaritan who crossed the boundaries of his day to act out love?

📌 If God loves justice and mercy, how should we act in accordance with what matters most to God? How can we be more focused on what Jesus called “the weightier matters of the law”?

📌 When we think and talk about judgment, how often do we emphasize that a primary way Jesus discusses judgment is in terms of whether, and to what extent, we actively love others, particularly the oppressed and downtrodden? Reflect on this in light of Matthew 25:31–46.