Deuteronomy 5:7-21 7Thou shalt have none other gods before me. 8Thou shalt not make thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the waters beneath the earth: 9Thou shalt not bow down thyself unto them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me, 10And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me and keep my commandments. 11Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain: for the LORD will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain. 12Keep the sabbath day to sanctify it, as the LORD thy God hath commanded thee. 13Six days thou shalt labour, and do all thy work: 14But the seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, nor thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thine ox, nor thine ass, nor any of thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates; that thy manservant and thy maidservant may rest as well as thou. 15And remember that thou wast a servant in the land of Egypt, and that the LORD thy God brought thee out thence through a mighty hand and by a stretched out arm: therefore the LORD thy God commanded thee to keep the sabbath day. 16Honour thy father and thy mother, as the LORD thy God hath commanded thee; that thy days may be prolonged, and that it may go well with thee, in the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee. 17Thou shalt not kill.
18Neither shalt thou commit adultery.
19Neither shalt thou steal.
20Neither shalt thou bear false witness against thy neighbour.
21Neither shalt thou desire thy neighbour's wife, neither shalt thou covet thy neighbour's house, his field, or his manservant, or his maidservant, his ox, or his ass, or any thing that is thy neighbour's. Those are obviously the Ten Commandments, they are the one thing that almost everyone knows about, whether they are Christian or otherwise. Most children are taught them in Sunday school, and from that time forwards, they never forget them. These commandments are important to us as Christians, they show us a general guideline on how we should live our lives, but there is another commandment that goes above all of those. This commandment is to love. Before I explain that in further detail, I would like to express what love is. Many people “fall in love” and believe that what they feel is love. Although they are right, it is love, those feelings may fade. Love is much more than sheer emotion, though it plays a big part. Love rests in actions towards others, those actions can be found in 1 Corinthians 13:4-8 4 Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up,
5 Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil;
6 Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth;
7 Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.
8 Charity never faileth: but whether there be prophecies, they shall fail; whether there be tongues, they shall cease; whether there be knowledge, it shall vanish away. Love rests in these actions, in being patient, and kind. Protective, and enduring. Love is the foundation of being a Christian. Jesus was known for his love, and the way he showed it towards others, as Christians we should be known for the same wonderful deed. When you love, and when you show love, you express these things towards others, no matter how they treat you. Now, about my previous statement about love being the greatest commandment. In Matthew 22:34-40 it says, 34 But when the Pharisees had heard that he had put the Sadducees to silence, they were gathered together.
35 Then one of them, which was a lawyer, asked him a question, tempting him, and saying,
36 Master, which is the great commandment in the law?
37 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. Loving God is our utmost priority. Along with loving God, we need to love our neighbor, as we love ourselves. We need to treat others the way we wish to be treated. You see, when we love, when we treat others with the things that are shown in 1 Corinthians 13:4-8 we also fulfill and obey the commandments. Our actions of love can fulfill the ten commandments God gave to us to live by. By loving God fully, and truly, we will fulfill the commandments shown in Deuteronomy 5:7-15, and by loving our neighbors, or the people around us, we will fulfill the rest of those commandments. Romans 13:8-12 says, 8 Owe no man any thing, but to love one another: for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law.
9 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.
10 Love worketh no ill to his neighbour: therefore love is the fulfilling of the law.
11 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.
12 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. When we love, we cannot commit adultery, we can’t kill, we will not steal, or lie, nor will we want what others have, we can’t do those things because those things have nothing to do with love, they are just the opposite, they are sin, they are hate. Even the thought of these things are like seeds of darkness, waiting to corrupt the pure light of God. It seems easy to love the people around you, because usually they are the ones who mean a lot to you, your family, friends, people you’ve grown up with. Though at times it can be difficult, for the most part, it’s simple. God said to love our neighbors, so that means, the people who are really close to us, the people we have dinner with, and talk to regularly…right? Yes and no. Yes they are your neighbors, but no, they aren’t your only neighbors. Look at Luke 10:29-37 29 But he, willing to justify himself, said unto Jesus, And who is my neighbour?
30 And Jesus answering said, A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, which stripped him of his raiment, and wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead.
31 And by chance there came down a certain priest that way: and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side.
32 And likewise a Levite, when he was at the place, came and looked on him, and passed by on the other side.
33 But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was: and when he saw him, he had compassion on him,
34 And went to him, and bound up his wounds, pouring in oil and wine, and set him on his own beast, and brought him to an inn, and took care of him.
35 And on the morrow when he departed, he took out two pence, and gave them to the host, and said unto him, Take care of him; and whatsoever thou spendest more, when I come again, I will repay thee.
36 Which now of these three, thinkest thou, was neighbour unto him that fell among the thieves?
37 And he said, He that shewed mercy on him. Then said Jesus unto him, Go, and do thou likewise. Your neighbors are all the people around you. All of them. Even the ones who to say the least, aren’t thrilled at the fact you’re a Christian. In 1 John 3:13, it tells us that we shouldn’t be shocked when the world hates us. People are going to hate you because your Christian, they will do everything they can to let you know just how deeply they hate you, they will degrade every possible point to your religion, but that shouldn’t matter to us. We are to love them still, no matter how they hurt, or ridicule us. Jesus knew this when he said, in Matthew 5:43-48, 43 Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy.
44 But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you;
45 That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust.
46 For if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye? do not even the publicans the same?
47 And if ye salute your brethren only, what do ye more than others? do not even the publicans so?
48 Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect. Other people, who aren’t Christians, can hate others, they have that “freedom” just remember that God doesn’t do that, and we are living our lives trying to be perfect like Him. Although we will never actually be perfect, we should try. We need to love those around us, whether they like us or not. We need to love by actions, and truth, by the things showed in 1 Corinthians 13:4-8, love isn’t about saying, it’s about doing. Loving sounds easy enough, but it can be difficult. When you truly love someone, you’re going to get hurt, and not just once. You’ll want to stop loving, but you can’t. You’ll endure all the pain they give you, you’ll suffer through it all, and at those times, you need to do what Jesus does with you. Be patient, be kind, endure it all, continue to protect, and pray, hope for the best, and remind yourself love doesn’t stop, it lasts forever. In closing, never forget Jesus was known for his love, the way he treated the lost, and his fellow man. What better way for us, as Christians to show His love, then by loving others? There is no better way, never forget love can change anyone’s life. 1 Corinthians 13:13 13 And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity.
18Neither shalt thou commit adultery.
19Neither shalt thou steal.
20Neither shalt thou bear false witness against thy neighbour.
21Neither shalt thou desire thy neighbour's wife, neither shalt thou covet thy neighbour's house, his field, or his manservant, or his maidservant, his ox, or his ass, or any thing that is thy neighbour's. Those are obviously the Ten Commandments, they are the one thing that almost everyone knows about, whether they are Christian or otherwise. Most children are taught them in Sunday school, and from that time forwards, they never forget them. These commandments are important to us as Christians, they show us a general guideline on how we should live our lives, but there is another commandment that goes above all of those. This commandment is to love. Before I explain that in further detail, I would like to express what love is. Many people “fall in love” and believe that what they feel is love. Although they are right, it is love, those feelings may fade. Love is much more than sheer emotion, though it plays a big part. Love rests in actions towards others, those actions can be found in 1 Corinthians 13:4-8 4 Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up,
5 Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil;
6 Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth;
7 Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.
8 Charity never faileth: but whether there be prophecies, they shall fail; whether there be tongues, they shall cease; whether there be knowledge, it shall vanish away. Love rests in these actions, in being patient, and kind. Protective, and enduring. Love is the foundation of being a Christian. Jesus was known for his love, and the way he showed it towards others, as Christians we should be known for the same wonderful deed. When you love, and when you show love, you express these things towards others, no matter how they treat you. Now, about my previous statement about love being the greatest commandment. In Matthew 22:34-40 it says, 34 But when the Pharisees had heard that he had put the Sadducees to silence, they were gathered together.
35 Then one of them, which was a lawyer, asked him a question, tempting him, and saying,
36 Master, which is the great commandment in the law?
37 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. Loving God is our utmost priority. Along with loving God, we need to love our neighbor, as we love ourselves. We need to treat others the way we wish to be treated. You see, when we love, when we treat others with the things that are shown in 1 Corinthians 13:4-8 we also fulfill and obey the commandments. Our actions of love can fulfill the ten commandments God gave to us to live by. By loving God fully, and truly, we will fulfill the commandments shown in Deuteronomy 5:7-15, and by loving our neighbors, or the people around us, we will fulfill the rest of those commandments. Romans 13:8-12 says, 8 Owe no man any thing, but to love one another: for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law.
9 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.
10 Love worketh no ill to his neighbour: therefore love is the fulfilling of the law.
11 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.
12 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. When we love, we cannot commit adultery, we can’t kill, we will not steal, or lie, nor will we want what others have, we can’t do those things because those things have nothing to do with love, they are just the opposite, they are sin, they are hate. Even the thought of these things are like seeds of darkness, waiting to corrupt the pure light of God. It seems easy to love the people around you, because usually they are the ones who mean a lot to you, your family, friends, people you’ve grown up with. Though at times it can be difficult, for the most part, it’s simple. God said to love our neighbors, so that means, the people who are really close to us, the people we have dinner with, and talk to regularly…right? Yes and no. Yes they are your neighbors, but no, they aren’t your only neighbors. Look at Luke 10:29-37 29 But he, willing to justify himself, said unto Jesus, And who is my neighbour?
30 And Jesus answering said, A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, which stripped him of his raiment, and wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead.
31 And by chance there came down a certain priest that way: and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side.
32 And likewise a Levite, when he was at the place, came and looked on him, and passed by on the other side.
33 But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was: and when he saw him, he had compassion on him,
34 And went to him, and bound up his wounds, pouring in oil and wine, and set him on his own beast, and brought him to an inn, and took care of him.
35 And on the morrow when he departed, he took out two pence, and gave them to the host, and said unto him, Take care of him; and whatsoever thou spendest more, when I come again, I will repay thee.
36 Which now of these three, thinkest thou, was neighbour unto him that fell among the thieves?
37 And he said, He that shewed mercy on him. Then said Jesus unto him, Go, and do thou likewise. Your neighbors are all the people around you. All of them. Even the ones who to say the least, aren’t thrilled at the fact you’re a Christian. In 1 John 3:13, it tells us that we shouldn’t be shocked when the world hates us. People are going to hate you because your Christian, they will do everything they can to let you know just how deeply they hate you, they will degrade every possible point to your religion, but that shouldn’t matter to us. We are to love them still, no matter how they hurt, or ridicule us. Jesus knew this when he said, in Matthew 5:43-48, 43 Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy.
44 But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you;
45 That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust.
46 For if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye? do not even the publicans the same?
47 And if ye salute your brethren only, what do ye more than others? do not even the publicans so?
48 Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect. Other people, who aren’t Christians, can hate others, they have that “freedom” just remember that God doesn’t do that, and we are living our lives trying to be perfect like Him. Although we will never actually be perfect, we should try. We need to love those around us, whether they like us or not. We need to love by actions, and truth, by the things showed in 1 Corinthians 13:4-8, love isn’t about saying, it’s about doing. Loving sounds easy enough, but it can be difficult. When you truly love someone, you’re going to get hurt, and not just once. You’ll want to stop loving, but you can’t. You’ll endure all the pain they give you, you’ll suffer through it all, and at those times, you need to do what Jesus does with you. Be patient, be kind, endure it all, continue to protect, and pray, hope for the best, and remind yourself love doesn’t stop, it lasts forever. In closing, never forget Jesus was known for his love, the way he treated the lost, and his fellow man. What better way for us, as Christians to show His love, then by loving others? There is no better way, never forget love can change anyone’s life. 1 Corinthians 13:13 13 And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity.
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