Listen up, little ones
Listen for the words all and love.
Reading
Mark 12:28-34—The King Who Brings Us Near
Keys for kids
- Love for God comes from knowing who God is.
- Yet knowing is not enough.
- We must know Jesus himself, personally and savingly.
Questions
- What must we know about God?
- What are the first and second greatest commandments?
- How do we enter the kingdom of God?
Notes
(See Saturday for authors. Today’s notes are from a commentary on Mark by Steve Wilmshurst)
The key point to notice here is that our love for God springs from who this God is. … God is unique. … there is one God with almighty power in this universe, only one who holds sway, who is sovereign, who has created us, and to whom we must answer.
This God has made the first move. The Lord is ‘our God’, ‘your God’ (12:29, 30). … Israel was already God’s own people because he had called them to himself … and declared his unbreakable commitment to them. That grace came first; that was how he became ‘your God’…. In response to such a great and unique God … this is what our love for him must look like. It’s an extreme love, wholehearted, single-minded, full-strength. …
This teacher of the law seems to have all the right answers, even to knowing that these commands to love matter more than the sacrifices that God has told his people to perform (12:33). … But still Jesus will only say, ‘You are not far from the kingdom of God.’ He is still not in it. Why? It is because there is only one way in to the kingdom of God. The only way in to the kingdom is knowing Jesus himself. … Here is a warning to us. Getting in to the kingdom means far more than knowing the right answers. … ‘Not far’ is still on the outside. Are you near? Are you far? Or have you come inside?
Swedish Method questions
Praise
Psalm 24a, 88a
Prayer
- If you have come into the kingdom by His grace, rejoice!
- Pray for a specific application from yesterday's sermons.
- Pray for a member of our church, for your family, and for a non-Christian friend/family member.