(Matthew 22:37-40), “Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.
(Romans 13:9-10), “For this, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not kill, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, Thou shalt not covet; and if there be any other commandment, it is briefly comprehended in this saying, namely, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.” Love worketh no ill to his neighbour: therefore love is the fulfilling of the law.”
(Galatians 5:14), “For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this; Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.”
We have been studying the Ten Commandments from (Exodus 20:1-17), but it is important for us to realize that no study of God’s commands are complete without looking at this New Testament Command. This New Testament command gives us the key to understanding and obeying the previous Ten Commandments. In each of the passages of scripture above we see that “love” fulfills all the Old Testament law. With this in mind, I want us to look at what has been called “the eleventh commandment”, “the commandment of love.”
- THE MANDATE OF LOVING GOD AND OTHERS
(Galatians 5:14), “For all the law if fulfilled in one word, even in this; Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.” There are two different objects of our love in view here: God and others. The Lord Jesus said that all the law and prophets hang on loving God and loving our neighbors. The Apostle Paul said loving our neighbor as ourselves fulfills the law. Notice how our love for God and our neighbor fulfills the law. It fulfills the first four commandments because if we love God the way we should we will not have any other gods before the Lord, we will not make any graven images, we will not take the name of the Lord our God in vain, and we will keep the Sabbath day holy. In loving our neighbor as ourselves, we fulfill the last six commandments, because if we love our neighbor as ourselves we will honor our father and mother, we will not kill (murder), we will not commit adultery, we will not steal, and we will not bear false witness (lie). If we love God the way we are supposed to; and if we love others the way we are supposed to; the keeping the Ten Commandments will not be a problem.
- THE MEANING OF LOVING GOD AND OTHERS
(Mark 12:29-30), “The first of all the commandments is…thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy hear, and with all thy t soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength…” The heart refers to the will and in order for you to love God, it requires an act of your will, a decision. God becomes the focus of your thoughts, the number one priority of life, and the object of your attention. Soul in this passage refers to the emotions. Knowing God and loving God will stir within us an emotional love. Mind in this passage is the intellect or what you think about. Strength is serving love which speaks of our service and obedience to God. We are to love God with our heart (will), with our soul (emotions), with our mind (what we think about), and with our strength (obeying and serving Him). The second commandment is like the first in that it is of the same nature and character. When you rightly love God, you will rightly love people. To love your neighbor as yourself means to love all people with your whole heart. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets. Christianity is not complicated. You simply love God and men with your entire being. If you love God, you’ll do what He commands, and if you love men, you’ll meet their needs. If you love God with all your being and love everyone as you love yourself, you don’t need any more rules; “ For this, Thou shalt not commit adultery, thou shalt not kill, thou shalt not steal, thou shalt not bear false witness, thou shalt not covet; and if there be any other commandment, it is briefly comprehended in this saying, namely, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. Love worketh no ill to its neighbor; therefore, love is the fulfilling of the law.” All the other commandments are simply an extension or practical application of these two commandments. Everything reduces itself to: loving God and your neighbor.
Pastor Allen Jackson