City Life Starter

The word:

“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 (NIV)

Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. Mathew 5:17 (NIV)

By Blesson Selvanesan

Many wrongly assume that Old Testament had a brutal and bloody God and New Testament is all about love. God of the Bible is an unchanging everlasting God. He and His words are the same and they will never change. There are many wrong teachings saying that Jesus abolished the Law and now we are ‘free’. What Jesus did was to target is the legalism of that day and shined His grace upon people. This in no way contradicts the God of the Old Testament. In fact, Jesus brought the standards even higher. He condensed the ten commandments to two and offered an explanation for doing so. He said that all the other commandments hang on these two, Love the Lord and Love your neighbor. True love is holy and respectful. Paul expanded on love by saying “Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hope, always perseveres. Love never fails. 1 Corinthians 13:4-8. The bar is higher now. Love does not mean that one can do anything and get away with it. His standards are not relative to culture, nationality or time. It transcends all.

Application: In the world, we live in, many of God ways are considered offensive. People want to do whatever they want and get away with it. They forget that there will be consequences and there will be a cost to pay. Present society wants others to celebrate things that are contrary to God’s ways. God is a God of holiness and justice in both the testaments. We have somehow lost reverence to God in our lives and churches. We have taken God very casually and have used His name in vain. God called us sons and daughters and made us his disciples. He wanted us to measure up. Often, we abuse this privilege to water Him down. He is not the genie in a box, He is the creator of the Universe. He is the King of kings and Lord of lords, every knee shall bow before Him someday. One should not forget that He is our creator and reigns over us. Not as a bully but as a father. It is easy to slander God. When we are tempted, take a look at the cross and the love He demonstrated for us there. God is a being with Godly attributes and we cannot pick and choose his characteristics based on our conveniences. Good is good, He is the ultimate form of goodness. He is righteous, He is the sun of righteousness. God through Jesus gave us a direct access to Him and it is a great privilege. Jesus, God incarnate came to fulfill the Law of the Old Testament to be a model for us. Let’s follow Him.

Prayer: Heavenly Father, thank you for being an unchanging God. Thank you for being a Holy, just and loving God. Help us to reflect you in our lives every day by being holy. Let us celebrate your sovereignty over all your creation as you have nothing but good intentions for us. In Jesus, Your Sons Name I pray. Amen.