Deuteronomy 6:4-9 “Hear Love”

In the bible we have many commands from God. We just in the last two weeks went through the famous Ten Commandments that Moses got directly from God while up on Mount Sinai. Interestingly enough, the Ten Commandments are not the commands that are repeated most in the Bible. The commandment from God that is repeated most is actually “Do not fear.” That one is repeated 365 times. The second most repeated command from God is this one that we have today from Deuteronomy. This commandment is to hear or listen. It is followed with the command that appears the third most times, which is to love.

In Hebrew, the command to listen is not passive at all. It is very active. It means literally to open your ear holes, pay attention, and respond. The term “Shema” as we have the Hebrew command is referred to historically as the “Great Shema.” It has been spoken and used in worship for more than 5,000 years. It begins the shabbat services in synagogues every Friday night still. It is not just listening to God, but great listening to God in your lives! It is a word that you must hear and respond to.

This idea of listening to God’s Word raises the age-old issue of exactly how it is that we can hear the Word of God?! How have I heard the Word of God in my life? Did I get text messages? Emails? Phone calls? Registered mail? Certified letter? Why doesn’t God use modern forms of communication? I think about this all of the time: why doesn’t God just text everyone’s cellphone all at once with a simple message “I love YOU, signed Jesus.” Wouldn’t that make everyone in the world happy followers? Okay, God is not into texting. Why not use AM radio then?

Here is my theory on this. I have studied linguistics and have learned many languages in my day. Linguistic interference between native speakers is as high as 93%. That is to say, when I speak in your tongue, chances are that you may hear and hold onto just 7% of what I am telling you. Which means, if you hear the same sermon 14 times, you may get the full sermon. Is it not great that you can come here and listen to me talk, then go home online and bring up the same sermon thirteen more times! You will have to do it that way, because I am not going to tell you the same sermon fourteen times. What we are doing right now here today is super inefficient. Why would God, who is perfect and all powerful, waste God’s time telling us the same thing over and over again.

When we do finally hear something, listening fully, we will be able to only recall about 2% of it an hour later. In order for something to stay put in our heads, we have to hear it about 80 times. I have said that before in a sermon, but I am saying it again and up to seventy-eight more times. Ha ha.

So, I think the last three words in Hebrew tell us how it is that we are to hear God’s Word as God speaks it to us. First, we are to hear with all of our heart. The word may not land in our ears first. It could come first to our heart. God will just put it directly there. Then, we will hear with our soul and intellect. The Hebrew word here “nephesh” means both. Lastly we will hear it our strength, meaning in our very flesh and by our action serving God. Ideally, if you are loving God with all your heart, soul and strength, then you are hearing God with all your heart, soul and strength.

Well, let us therefore talk about this commandment to love. How does that work? Can we actually be commanded to love? That almost sounds abusive. “I command you to love me!” See, that just does not work for us in our understanding of love being a feeling. One cannot command another to feel anything. Either you feel it or you do not.

The Hebrew word for “Love” is “ahab.” And, believe it or not linguists know exactly where that Hebrew word stems from. It is the combination of the words “brother and father” in Hebrew. So, the command of God to us is that we count God as a father and a brother. Another way to see this is that we are being commanded to be “children of God.” We are being commanded to be the family of God. Whereas we may have many strong feelings associated with this concept, we are really only being asked to be in a close relationship with the Almighty.

I am going to reclaim some of the greatness of the legacy of being a Congregationalist serving a Congregational Church in Waimea: The Most Reverend Jonathon Edwards, one of the truly great Congregational theologians of early America (1703-1758) saw Christianity not as a system of truth onto which one maps one’s existence but as fountain of love into which one is swept up. (By the way, you can get Jonathan Edwards’ writings on Kindle for free!)

Congregationalist missionaries that came to these islands and founded this church have always answered the basic theological question of what is right and what is wrong with “How can we show how much we love God in this?” Some people have said that Congregationalism is simply a form of church governance in which the congregation is empowered by democratic process and the Holy Spirit. NO, Congregationalism is loving God and loving others first and foremost. The missionaries that came here over 200 years ago came because they wanted to show their love for God, and God’s love for the people here. Maybe that needs to be our continuing mission today?

This was also the Great Commandment of Jesus Christ. It was given on the night of His betrayal. “We shall love God, and then also love our neighbors as ourselves.” In our own lives when we are confronted with difficult questions of morality and legality, we must answer in such a way that God’s love shines forth into the world. If I love God with all my heart, soul, and strength; how could I do anything else?

This last week I was driving back from Lihue in the afternoon and noticed that the car in front of me was braking but that its brake lights were not coming on. Instinctively I backed off to leave more space between me and the other vehicle. I really had to concentrate, not having the visual cue of red flashing lights to make my foot cover the brake pedal of the church van. I thought to myself that the driver would be hit from behind eventually by someone if I did not alert him or her.

I followed that car until it turned off in Eleele. I followed it through a neighborhood and right up into its driveway. A woman got out of the driver’s seat and looked my way. I did not get out of the van but stuck my head out the window: “Hey, I was following you all the way from Lihue and I thought you ought to know that your brake lights are not working” I yelled.

“Which one?” she asked.

“Both of them, all of them,” I replied.

Then, of course I told her that it was probably a burned out fuse on her fuse power module. A 20 amp fuse. I carry extra fuses in the van, and I was tempted to get out and just replace the fuse and test the circuit for her. Well, I also have the electric meter in the van that can do that. But then I thought better of it because I had frozen food from Costco in the car, and it would probably freak her out to have a stranger that followed her suddenly fixing her car in her driveway.

“I just wanted to make sure you do not get hit from behind because your brake lights are not firing. Have a nice day!” I backed out and drove home. She replied with a nice mahalo.

When the rest of our scripture for today says that we are to recite these words that we love God first, that we are to talk about them, put them on our hands and our foreheads and doorposts, that means that we are to live out the love that we have for God.

I know that in Judaism that they take this very literally; however, the Congregationalists takes it liberally as a metaphor as to how to live out God’s love in the world. How do I jump into that fountain of God’s love in the daily circumstances of my life?

Christians are always faced with this dichotomy: It is the Romans 13 “obey authority” or the Great Commandment to “love” paths that stand before us. Do I call the police about a homeless person or do I give him food and shelter? Do I quote the law when I see someone using drugs or do I help that person to free themselves from substance abuse? Do I hate the foreigner or invite him into my home?

When we are faced with these questions of life, remember that you are Christian. God gave you the capacity to love God and to love others. That is the commandment. I invite you to hear this with your heart, your soul, and your strength this morning. The Great Commandment to us is to hear and to love. Take the Word of God into you and show that love back out to the world in all that you do and say.

Amen.