Law, Love and Life
He asked the question to test Christ. He didn’t love Christ. The most important question what must I do to inherit eternal life? This life is short. Death is proof that we are sinners. Heb 9:27. As we look around the world it seems many aren’t concerned about this question.
We tell people the Gospel and they don’t wanna hear it. They get angry. Mat 7:13. When we bring up the gospel and a common end that is destruction they don’t wanna hear that.
Be sure to ask ourselves that we are trusting in Christ fully for salvation.
To answer the question Jesus points to His Word.. He doesn’t say what do the elders say? What does the tradition say? He says What is written in the law? What is your reading [of it?]” — interpretation. Jesus holds everyone accountable to the Word.
Loving God and loving neighbor is in the law of God. Deut 6:4-5. This is the sum of true religion. Mat 22:40 on these two hang all the law and the prophets. Rom 13:10, Gal 5:14. Gods law is love. Love is an action and an attitude. An action built on an attitude. This man didn’t keep this law. He was trying to justify himself boasting that he keeps the law but he doesn’t love his neighbor or God. Jesus exposes this. The man asks who is my neighbor meaning he was picking who he would love.
We need to see how we fall short here. We cannot love like this without being saved. Our culture teaches us we must love ourselves. That’s the problem. We love ourselves. What we so often love is love is a feeling, self satisfaction.
Do we love? The Biblical love? How God defines love? If you love me you will keep my commandments.
Let the Bible, the whole Bible, and nothing but the Bible, be the rule of our faith and practice. Holding this principle, we travel upon the king’s highway.
The road may sometimes seem narrow, and our faith may be severely tried, but we shall not be allowed greatly to err. Departing from this principle we enter on a pathless wilderness. There is no telling what we may be led to believe or do. Forever let us bear this in mind. Here let us cast anchor. Here let us abide.
~ J.C. Ryle
Luke 10:25-28 (NKJV) 25 And behold, a certain lawyer stood up and tested Him, saying, “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” 26 He said to him, “What is written in the law? What is your reading [of it?]” 27 So he answered and said, “‘You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind,’ and ‘your neighbor as yourself.’ ” 28 And He said to him, “You have answered rightly; do this and you will live.”
Matthew 7:13-14 (NKJV) 13 “Enter by the narrow gate; for wide [is] the gate and broad [is] the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. 14 “Because narrow [is] the gate and difficult [is] the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.