Living in Love - 30 March

So where did Jesus get His idea that these two commandments even existed?

You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. Deut 6:5 (ESV)

Who are you to love?

How are you to love Him?

What does that mean – how will it look in your life?

“You shall not hate your brother in your heart, but you shall reason frankly with your neighbor, lest you incur sin because of him. 18  You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against the sons of your own people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the Lord. Lev 19:17-18 (ESV)

Who are you to love?

How are you to love them?

Why are you to love them?

Next, we’ll look at the Law – we call it the 10 Commandments.

1.    “You shall have no other gods before me.

2.    4  “You shall not make for yourself a carved image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. 5  You shall not bow down to them or serve them, for I the Lord your God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and the fourth generation of those who hate me, 6 but showing steadfast love to thousands of those who love me and keep my commandments.

3.    7  “You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord will not hold him guiltless who takes his name in vain.

4.    8  “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. 9  Six days you shall labor, and do all your work, 10 but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, you, or your son, or your daughter, your male servant, or your female servant, or your livestock, or the sojourner who is within your gates. 11 For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.

5.    12  “Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long in the land that the Lord your God is giving you.

6.    13  “You shall not murder.

7.    14  “You shall not commit adultery.

8.    15  “You shall not steal.

9.    16  “You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.

10.    17  “You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male servant, or his female servant, or his ox, or his donkey, or anything that is your neighbor’s.” Ex 20:3-17 (ESV)

Which commands deal with our relationship to God? Make a list.

Make a second list of all the other commands. 

What is the central theme of each list? How does that relate to our study?

What did Jesus say was the most important command?

What did Jesus say was the second most important command?

Love is what sets Christianity apart from all other religions. The Pharisees saw the Law as a checklist to earn righteousness. Jesus said that the Law was  a guide to show us how to love God and love people. The result of loving God is loving people. Loving people shows that you love God. We must balance the two .

Are you living your life out of love for God? Is it showing in your love for people?

Perhaps you’re reading this study and you’ve not become a Christian – you’ve not accepted the free gift that God offers to all of us. Salvation is free. There is nothing you can do to earn it – you can’t be too bad or too good for God, because we are all sinners! If you have not placed your trust in Jesus Christ and asked Him to forgive you of your sins, do it now. Don’t be afraid or embarrassed. He already knows what you’ve done wrong. He already knows what you struggle with. But He went to the cross for you – just you – and He died so you could live eternally!

There’s not a special prayer that will make you a Christian. All you have to do is admit that you sin and ask Jesus to come into your heart. Ask Him to help you turn away from your sins and cleanse you. Thank Him for dying on the cross for you and for offering you the free gift of salvation.

When you become a Christian, will things magically get better? Nope. You’ll still be stuck with the same problems you had before you came to Christ. But there will be a big difference! You will have the confidence in knowing that you have a relationship with the Holy and Mighty God of the universe. You will have Someone to talk to (that’s what prayer is). You’ll have other people who struggle just like you that will pray for you. You will know that you are free because of God’s amazing grace.

Do you want more information? Ask the pastor, ask me, or ask someone at the church!

What’s the next step? GO TELL! Tell someone that you’ve received God’s free gift! Testify to His amazing grace. Then talk to the pastor. He can answer any questions you have and set you up for baptism.

If you’ve just accepted Jesus’ free gift, welcome to the FAMILY!