God is love, His ways are perfect. His perfection is reflected in the 10 commandments and without them we would be forever separated from all that is good.
In the old testament it seemed that perfection was just too much for us earthly beings to comprehend at heart and in deed. And is it any wonder...?...we are seriously flawed from our inherent (and inherited) sinful nature.
In the beginning God spoke creation into existence. So, "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." John 1:1 THEN "...the Word became human and made His home among us. He was full of unfailing love and faithfulness. And we have seen His glory, the glory of the Father's one and only Son." John 1:14 There we have it! Literally, "the Word," meaning Christ, the wisdom and power of God and first cause of all things; God's personal expression of Himself to men. Amen! and Hallelujah!
The old covenant we couldn't follow was made anew. The separation we had with God was bridged by our Lord Jesus; The Word was God, who is love, became flesh and through His death and resurrection His love is displayed in our hearts and minds by faith in Him. whooh! You can't make this stuff up! But it gets better...
....remember those 10 rules we had such a hard time with...the 10 commandments of God...the laws that govern our relationship with the Mighty Counselor?
Well they still stand for every person alive today, but you know what happened when Love became a human being? The Prince of Peace, our reigning Lord Yeshua gave us the perfect example with which to live by, a more excellent way:
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. 38 This is the first and great commandment.
39 And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.
40 On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets. Matt. 22
Did I catch that right? On those 2 commandments hang ALL the law? Well yes, It is absolutely 100% true. And that means following the 10 commandments is as easy as following the first two! Ok ok, so it may not always be easy but it sure makes it easier.
I can now take moral inventory every morning to put my mindset on that of love. Before I open my mouth I can consider to myself if it is a word of love I am about to speak. In everything I say and do I can take brief moments to align my life with love. And in doing so I can rest assured I am in compliance with the commands. Not by works but by faith.....faith in love. God=Love=Christ
We are constantly planting seeds in everything we say and do,
Are we planting seeds of love or those of discord?
Remember, we shall truly reap that which we sew.
Plant your feet in God's Word and sew the gift of love today.
Next we will talk more about the commandments and how they aren't harsh rules from a dictator who wishes to control us.
Love and Blessing to you! In Jesus name.
-Thomas
In the old testament it seemed that perfection was just too much for us earthly beings to comprehend at heart and in deed. And is it any wonder...?...we are seriously flawed from our inherent (and inherited) sinful nature.
In the beginning God spoke creation into existence. So, "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." John 1:1 THEN "...the Word became human and made His home among us. He was full of unfailing love and faithfulness. And we have seen His glory, the glory of the Father's one and only Son." John 1:14 There we have it! Literally, "the Word," meaning Christ, the wisdom and power of God and first cause of all things; God's personal expression of Himself to men. Amen! and Hallelujah!
The old covenant we couldn't follow was made anew. The separation we had with God was bridged by our Lord Jesus; The Word was God, who is love, became flesh and through His death and resurrection His love is displayed in our hearts and minds by faith in Him. whooh! You can't make this stuff up! But it gets better...
....remember those 10 rules we had such a hard time with...the 10 commandments of God...the laws that govern our relationship with the Mighty Counselor?
Well they still stand for every person alive today, but you know what happened when Love became a human being? The Prince of Peace, our reigning Lord Yeshua gave us the perfect example with which to live by, a more excellent way:
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. 38 This is the first and great commandment.
39 And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.
40 On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets. Matt. 22
Did I catch that right? On those 2 commandments hang ALL the law? Well yes, It is absolutely 100% true. And that means following the 10 commandments is as easy as following the first two! Ok ok, so it may not always be easy but it sure makes it easier.
I can now take moral inventory every morning to put my mindset on that of love. Before I open my mouth I can consider to myself if it is a word of love I am about to speak. In everything I say and do I can take brief moments to align my life with love. And in doing so I can rest assured I am in compliance with the commands. Not by works but by faith.....faith in love. God=Love=Christ
We are constantly planting seeds in everything we say and do,
Are we planting seeds of love or those of discord?
Remember, we shall truly reap that which we sew.
Plant your feet in God's Word and sew the gift of love today.
Next we will talk more about the commandments and how they aren't harsh rules from a dictator who wishes to control us.
Love and Blessing to you! In Jesus name.
-Thomas
1 Corinthians 13 (NLT)
Love Is the Greatest
If I could speak all the languages of earth and of angels, but didn’t love others, I would only be a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. 2 If I had the gift of prophecy, and if I understood all of God’s secret plans and possessed all knowledge, and if I had such faith that I could move mountains, but didn’t love others, I would be nothing. 3 If I gave everything I have to the poor and even sacrificed my body, I could boast about it; but if I didn’t love others, I would have gained nothing.
4 Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud 5 or rude. It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged. 6 It does not rejoice about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. 7 Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance.
8 Prophecy and speaking in unknown languages and special knowledge will become useless. But love will last forever! 9 Now our knowledge is partial and incomplete, and even the gift of prophecy reveals only part of the whole picture! 10 But when the time of perfection comes, these partial things will become useless.
11 When I was a child, I spoke and thought and reasoned as a child. But when I grew up, I put away childish things.12 Now we see things imperfectly, like puzzling reflections in a mirror, but then we will see everything with perfect clarity. All that I know now is partial and incomplete, but then I will know everything completely, just as God now knows me completely.
13 Three things will last forever—faith, hope, and love—and the greatest of these is love.
Love Is the Greatest
If I could speak all the languages of earth and of angels, but didn’t love others, I would only be a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. 2 If I had the gift of prophecy, and if I understood all of God’s secret plans and possessed all knowledge, and if I had such faith that I could move mountains, but didn’t love others, I would be nothing. 3 If I gave everything I have to the poor and even sacrificed my body, I could boast about it; but if I didn’t love others, I would have gained nothing.
4 Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud 5 or rude. It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged. 6 It does not rejoice about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. 7 Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance.
8 Prophecy and speaking in unknown languages and special knowledge will become useless. But love will last forever! 9 Now our knowledge is partial and incomplete, and even the gift of prophecy reveals only part of the whole picture! 10 But when the time of perfection comes, these partial things will become useless.
11 When I was a child, I spoke and thought and reasoned as a child. But when I grew up, I put away childish things.12 Now we see things imperfectly, like puzzling reflections in a mirror, but then we will see everything with perfect clarity. All that I know now is partial and incomplete, but then I will know everything completely, just as God now knows me completely.
13 Three things will last forever—faith, hope, and love—and the greatest of these is love.