IN THE WORDS OF JESUS–Part 1491

ON LOVE; PART MCXXX

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GoodWill IS Love in Action

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FIRST IS THE GREAT COMMANDMENTS: “The first of all the commandments is, Hear, O Israel; The Lord our God is one Lord: And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment. And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these” (Mark 12:29-31).

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WHAT THEN IS LOVE? In a general sense love is benevolence, good will; that disposition of heart which inclines men to think favorably of their fellow men, and to do them good. In a theological sense, it includes supreme love to God, and universal good will to men. While this IS from an older definition of Charity, which IS rendered in the King James Bible from the same Greek word agape which IS generally rendered as Love, we should amend our own definition here to include the idea that in the reality of Love a man will accord to ALL men ALL things that he would accord to himself and to say that Love IS our thoughts and attitude of the equality of ALL men regardless of their outward nature or appearance…that ALL ARE equally children of Our One God

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PLUS THE EVER IMPORTANT AND HIGH IDEAL TAUGHT TO US BY THE CHRIST: “Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them” (Matthew 7:12).

We ended the last essay with some additional thoughts on the Apostle Paul’s list from the twelfth chapter of his Epistle to the Romans and how that these ideas ARE tied to the expression of agape which he further expounds upon in the our selection which IS the thirteenth chapter. We noted how that several of the key words ARE misunderstood and that the Jews ARE taught to Love by the words of the law but, just as the Christians, they have misinterpreted the words of the Lord to their own convenience. This later thought IS exemplified in the Parable of the Good Samaritan which shows us that those who ARE the religious among the Jews ARE the ones that have misinterpreted and misunderstood the tenets of Love.

It IS the priest and the Levite that walk on by the injured man but NOT ALL of the religious DO NOT understand the Truth of Love which we see in the answer of “a certain lawyer” in this exchange with the Master; we read: “And, behold, a certain lawyer stood up, and tempted him, saying, Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life? He said unto him, What is written in the law? how readest thou? And he answering said, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbour as thyself. And he said unto him, Thou hast answered right: this do, and thou shalt live” (Luke 10:25-28).

We should note a few things here. First the idea of the lawyer in this day was: Not legal practitioners, but interpreters and doctors of the Mosaic law ⁴ as Vincent shows us but there IS likely more here. When the law was given it was the guiding light for the Jews but as time goes on, through the period of Judges and Kings plus the influence of the Babylonians, the Assyrians and then the Romans, the law took a less spiritual tone in its practical application which IS exasperated by the interpretations of the Pharisees and the other rulers of the Jews. Understanding this we should see the lawyer as one who KNOWS the current and common applications of the law as well as the intent from the hand of Moses.

Second, this “certain lawyer” IS viewed askance by Luke and by Matthew, that IS that his motives ARE impugned here without apparent reason. Luke tells us that this “certain lawyer” tempted Jesus with his question asking “what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” though there IS NO sign of this in the Master’s response. Luke then tells us that the question of “And who is my neighbour?” IS asked so that this “certain lawyer” could “justify himself” but this too DOES NOT elicit an in kind response from the Master as Jesus offers the Parable of the Good Samaritan which destroys the understanding of neighbour that IS held by the Jews.

John Gill in his commentary on this question tells us: by his neighbour he meant only an Israelite; one of the same nation and religion with him. So the Jews commonly interpret the word neighbour, either of one that is related to them in nature, that is, near akin to them in blood; or that professes the same religion as they do, and whom they call a neighbour in the law ⁸. It IS unfortunate that in the muddling of the Old and the New the Christian has taken this same idea and neither Truly see the Master’s point in this parable.

Our point however IS that Luke here IS apparently judging the motives of this “certain lawyer” which IS contrary to Jesus’ message and Matthew DOES so as well; Matthew tells us: “Then one of them, which was a lawyer, asked him a question, tempting him, and saying, Master, which is the great commandment in the law?” (Matthew 22:35). We assume that these two versions ARE of the same event seen differently by the writers as we note that Matthew has the same judgement against this “certain lawyer“. Now this idea of impugning and judging IS based in the way that the question IS understood in doctrines which John Gill explains as: tempting him, and saying: he put a difficult and knotty question to him, and thereby making a trial of his knowledge and understanding of the law; and laying a snare for him, to entrap him if he could, and expose him to the people, as a very ignorant man ⁸.

Mr. Gill offers a similar indictment in his commentary on the words from Luke saying: and tempted him; or tried him whether he understood the law, or whether he would say any thing contrary to it, and see if he could gain any advantage against him, and expose him, and get credit and applause to himself ⁸. Our point here IS that the question asked in both gospels IS arranged and interpreted as that this “certain lawyer” was acting contrary to Christ. There IS NO evidence that his IS so and if we look at the questions as sincere requests for the Master’s enlightenment on the subject, we can come away with a better view of the Truth.

Finally in the version of this offered by Luke we should see and understand that this idea of Love IS NOT hidden from the Jews; this “certain lawyer” shows us that this IS the ‘accepted way’ “to inherit eternal life” according to Jewish law. In Matthew’s version Jesus himself gives this same answer to the question “which is the great commandment in the law?” (Matthew 22:36) which again shows us that these seemingly hidden parts of the law have great importance. In Mark’s Gospel we find these same ideas presented from yet another perspective; Mark DOES NOT impugn the “certain lawyer” and calls this man a scribe. We read this encounter as:

“And one of the scribes came, and having heard them reasoning together, and perceiving that he had answered them well, asked him, Which is the first commandment of all? And Jesus answered him, The first of all the commandments is, Hear, O Israel; The Lord our God is one Lord: And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment. And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these. And the scribe said unto him, Well, Master, thou hast said the truth: for there is one God; and there is none other but he: And to love him with all the heart, and with all the understanding, and with all the soul, and with all the strength, and to love his neighbour as himself, is more than all whole burnt offerings and sacrifices. And when Jesus saw that he answered discreetly, he said unto him, Thou art not far from the kingdom of God. And no man after that durst ask him any question”  (Mark 12:28-34).

Our point here should be clear; this scribe KNOWS that the Truth of the law as given by Moses and clarified by the prophets IS Love and if this scribe and this “certain lawyer” KNOW these things of the law then the problem must be in the idea that the Master shows us as he repeats the words of the Prophet Hosea who says for the Lord “For I desired mercy, and not sacrifice; and the knowledge of God more than burnt offerings” (Hosea 6:6). Jesus charges the Pharisees twice for their lack of vision; first when He eats with “with publicans and sinners“, with them that ARE NOT among the religious to be sure, he says “They that be whole need not a physician, but they that are sick. But go ye and learn what that meaneth, I will have mercy, and not sacrifice: for I am not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance” (Matthew 9:11, 12-13).

This question reflects directly upon the words of the prophet, words that may be KNOWN in the mind but NOT practiced in the heart. The Master’s second reference to this IS again against the Pharisees who ARE questioning Jesus view of the sabbath; here we read that He clarifies the law for them and says “if ye had known what this meaneth, I will have mercy, and not sacrifice, ye would not have condemned the guiltless” (Matthew 12:7). Here there IS NO sin in the picking the corn and eating on the sabbath on the part of the disciples and there IS NO mercy shown by the Pharisees and, if we can see this idea of mercy in terms of one’s expression of Love, we can better understand the underlying ideas.

We should try to see that there ARE those in Jesus’ day that DO KNOW the finer points of the law concerning Love and the Great Commandments as well as the mollifying ideas of the prophets which take the harshness out of the archaic law which was given to a barbarous and superstitious people. We should see as well that while some DO KNOW the better Way of Love, there ARE few who act upon that knowledge and this same IS True in the Christian era where the words ARE ever clear but ignored in favor of the convenient interpretations of doctrines. We should note here also that as the idea of the neighbour was made unclear in Jewish doctrines, it IS equally unclear in the Christian doctrines despite the relative clarity of the Parable of the Good Samaritan.

Here again in the Christian era many men DO understand the words of the Master’s Commandments on Love but few take them to heart and live by them. Bible commentary and teaching DOES properly show the answer to that same question “And who is my neighbour?” but the working out of this in the world IS yet aligned with Jewish view of old. Still today most seemingly regard as the neighbour ONLY the fellow Christian, and perhaps the Jew, as well as those defined by the common understanding of the word. The Truer idea of the neighbor IS buried down the list of defining terms where we will find ideas like: One of the human race; any one that needs our help, or to whom we have an opportunity of doing good ¹.

It IS in one’s realization that ALL men ARE covered in the Greek word plesion just as everyman was covered in the Hebrew word rea` that the greater Truths can be found, and it IS both the secular and the doctrinal view that prevents such realization. While the commentaries and written teachings may properly portray the neighbour according to the ideas from Jesus’ parable, the actual doctrinal view IS yet aligned to the doctrinal Jewish view of the past. We must understand here however that the right view of this idea IS central to everyman’s ability to understand Love and to see the reality of the trifecta where His commandments include the Great Commandments which ARE an essential part of keeping His words. Repeating again our trifecta:

• “If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free“ (John 8:31-32).
• “Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven” (Matthew 7:21).
• “He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him. Judas saith unto him, not Iscariot, Lord, how is it that thou wilt manifest thyself unto us, and not unto the world? Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him. He that loveth me not keepeth not my sayings: and the word which ye hear is not mine, but the Father’s which sent me” (John 14:21-24).

Understanding the idea of one’s neighbor as everyman DOES NOT solve the human problem however as there IS an equally distressing lack of understanding of the spiritual concept of Love, of agape. For centuries this concept of agape has been misaligned with the emotional and mental attachment and attraction to others and to the things of this world for which the Greek word phileo and its derivatives would suffice. An example of what doctrine consider as the definition of agape tells us that:

“The essence of agape love is goodwill, benevolence, and willful delight in the object of love. Unlike our English word love, agape is not used in the New Testament to refer to romantic or sexual love. Nor does it refer to close friendship or brotherly love, for which the Greek word philia is used. Agape love involves faithfulness, commitment, and an act of the will. It is distinguished from the other types of love by its lofty moral nature and strong character. Agape love is beautifully described in 1 Corinthians 13. Outside of the New Testament, the word agape is used in a variety of contexts, but in the New Testament it takes on a distinct meaning. Agape is used to describe the love that is of and from God, whose very nature is love itself: “God is love” (1 John 4:8). God does not merely love; He is love itself. Everything God does flows from His love. Agape is also used to describe our love for God (Luke 10:27), a servant’s faithful respect to his master (Matthew 6:24), and a man’s attachment to things (John 3:19)” (https://www.gotquestions.org/agape-love.html).

ALL of this IS nice but incomplete and it DOES NOT show how that the very idea of Love IS misunderstood when the idea of agape IS applied to it. While agape IS a very complex idea, it IS amply defined in the New Testament and we can garner much of the same understanding from the Old Testament. Men however DO NOT seem to want to understand the reality of agape as it most certainly diminishes one’s own view of himself. The first definition of agape IS found in the Great Commandments which ARE again at the top of our essay. In the first we should see the sense of Unity that agape portrays as it shows us that such Love for God requires one’s total absorption which IS first of ALL a spiritual endeavor and, second, that such Unity results in that state of perfection where one’s expression IS agape.

And this brings us then to the second of the Great Commandments which IS that expression of Love to ALL men and in which, together with the Golden Rule, shows us the True intent of the idea of the Greek word plesion. We should NOT forget here the spiritual Truth, one of the most ignored by the doctrines of men, that we have in Jesus’ words from our trifecta. The Master tells us that “If a man love me, he will keep my words” and then, perhaps for a more full understanding, He says “He that loveth me not keepeth not my sayings“. There IS NO doubt left in the New Testament as to the importance of the Great Commandments yet these have been pushed aside in favor of the convenience of doctrine since the beginning. Paul Shows us the reality of the second in our selection from Romans which we repeat here again:

“Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers. For there is no power but of God: the powers that be are ordained of God. Whosoever therefore resisteth the power, resisteth the ordinance of God: and they that resist shall receive to themselves damnation. For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to the evil. Wilt thou then not be afraid of the power? do that which is good, and thou shalt have praise of the same: For he is the minister of God to thee for good. But if thou do that which is evil, be afraid; for he beareth not the sword in vain: for he is the minister of God, a revenger to execute wrath upon him that doeth evil. Wherefore ye must needs be subject, not only for wrath, but also for conscience sake. For for this cause pay ye tribute also: for they are God’s ministers, attending continually upon this very thing. Render therefore to all their dues: tribute to whom tribute is due; custom to whom custom; fear to whom fear; honour to whom honour. Owe no man any thing, but to love one another: for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law. 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. And that, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep: for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed. The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light. Let us walk honestly, as in the day; not in rioting and drunkenness, not in chambering and wantonness, not in strife and envying. But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh, to fulfil the lusts thereof” (Romans 13:1:14).

Paul tells us that “love is the fulfilling of the law” but this IS NOT the ONLY context through which the apostle shows us this Truth. Paul also gives us this same idea in relation to his words on the “fruit of the Spirit” as he says “For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this; Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this; Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself” (Galatians 5:22, 14). And it IS this Truth that the Apostle James expands upon; he tells us that “If ye fulfil the royal law according to the scripture, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself, ye do well“. Here the idea of “the royal law” should be seen as the law of the king and here, the King would be the Lord; this IS rendered by some as “the king’s law” while Vincent tells us that: It is the royal law; the king of all laws ⁴ .

Vincent also comments on the idea of fulfil saying that this: is stronger than the more common word τηρεῖν, observe or keep ⁴ , and in this we should be able to see deeper into the apostle’s intent. In closing we should note that this word rendered as fulfil IS from the Greek word teleo which IS a derivative of telos which IS also the root word of teleios which we KNOW as perfect.

We will continue with our thoughts in the next post.

Aspect of  God	Potency	Aspect of Man	In Relation to the Great Invocation	In relation to the Christ
GOD, The Father	Will or Power	Spirit or Life	Center where the Will of God IS KNOWN	Life
Son, The Christ	Love and Wisdom	Soul or Christ Within	Heart of God	Truth
Holy Spirit	Light or Activity	Life Within	Mind of God	Way

Note on the Quote of the Day

Let the peace of God rule in your hearts