THE LAW OF GOD’S LOVE
If we all loved God with all of our hearts and loved our neighbors as ourselves, we would live in a perfect world! This is the law of love.
One of the most strategic pieces of spiritual real estate temporarily controlled by the enemy is the idea that Law and love are opposing forces. Since love is the greatest gift, and God Himself is love, and since love endures forever, no one would dare be opposed to love, right? Therefore, whatever opposes love must be evil and done away with.
Unfortunately, this is how the Law is perceived by many people. This understanding is completely erroneous. The moral Law is divided into two “tables.” The first four are vertical, and teach us how to love God. The next six are horizontal, and teach us how to love our fellow-man. Here is how Jesus summarized the Ten Commandments:
“Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?” Jesus replied: ‘“Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.” Matthew 22:36–40
Here, Jesus Christ uses the words Law and love in the same breath! Rather than being mutually exclusive, Law and love are mutually affinitive. The Law shows me how to express my love for God and for my neighbor in a tangible way. See for yourself:
Owe nothing to anyone except to love one another; for he who loves his neighbor has fulfilled {the} Law. For this, “You shall not commit adultery, you shall not murder, you shall not steal, you shall not covet,” and if there is any other commandment, it is summed up in this saying, “you shall love your neighbor as yourself.” Love does no wrong to a neighbor; love therefore is the fulfillment of {the} Law. Romans 13:8–10
Thanks to the moral Law, love can actually be weighed and measured against an objective standard. Without the guidelines of the Law, love would be abstract and relative. In 1 Cor. 13, we see the effects of love, whereas the moral Law defines it.
In His infinite wisdom, God tells us that “love is the fulfillment of the Law” (Rom. 13:10). If I truly love my neighbor, according to Romans 13, I will honor his marriage covenant, and mine, by not lusting after his wife, I will forgive him when he wrongs me, rather than committing murder, I will honor his property by not stealing it, I will tell him the truth (and what truth is) when I speak to him, and I will rejoice in the blessings God has given him, rather than coveting his goods. Isn’t that the kind of neighborhood in which you want to live? Can you even begin to imagine what would happen to our world if we all “kept the Law” according to this standard?
As long as moral truth is considered relative, there is no chance for people to see their need of salvation. What would happen if the bricklayer abandoned the use of the square, the level, and the plumb? What if he decided that what is straight to you is not necessarily straight to him? His buildings would lack structural integrity, and would soon collapse as a result. Do you see why the devil hates the Law and wants to destroy it?
One of the greatest reasons for believing that the Bible is the Word of God is its definition of love. What would happen to our world is everyone obeyed the law of love as defined by Romans 13? You will not find anything like this in any other religion, philosophy, or system of thought. This is exclusive to Christianity. The Bible says, God is love!
Until next time (God willing),
Phil
Have you seen our website? www.voice-wilderness.org
Recent Comments