Jesus taught us that love fulfills all prophesy and it is the only way to the fullness of the Godhead. Out of His agape love for mankind Father sent Jesus to bodily suffer for our sins and allowing the gift of Holy Spirit to do what is not inherent in the flesh to do. We who were once sinners without hope are now brought near to the throne of grace to Him who will judge all of creation for their faith in Him. What in Leviticus was limited to the nation of Israel Jesus expanded to all the peoples of the world.
Leviticus 19:18 You shall not take vengeance, nor bear any grudge against the children of your people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the LORD.
For God loved the world that He created and He said that it was good. Everyone who accepts the sacrifice of Jesus and repents receives salvation and it can never be without the love of God and His grace.
All the Law could do is make us aware of sin.
2 Corinthians 3:3 clearly you are an epistle of Christ, ministered by us, written not with ink but by the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of flesh, that is, of the heart. 4 And we have such trust through Christ toward God. 5 Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think of anything as being from ourselves, but our sufficiency is from God, 6 who also made us sufficient as ministers of the new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.
The Law was the minister of death in that it had no power in itself for mankind to keep it. We were never created to be self sufficient.
Romans 3:19 Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God. 20 Therefore by the deeds of the law no flesh will be justified in His sight, for by the law is the knowledge of sin.
The law was replaced with God’s grace in the power of the Cross and the gifting of Holy Spirit given to those who choose to believe.
Colossians 2:14 14 having wiped out the handwriting of requirements that was against us, which was contrary to us. And He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross. 15 Having disarmed principalities and powers, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them in it.
Jesus satisfied all the Laws of the Old Testament and gave us grace. We have a new high priest of the the most high God in the order of Melchizedek the king of Salem in the city of peace.
The law had no power to keep it but the bringing in of Christ within did by which we can draw closer to God. GRACE. The birth, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ brought grace to the whole world. It is finished!
In the New Testament, Jesus is the ultimate example of integrity, remaining blameless and obedient in the face of suffering and "even death on a cross" (Philippians 2:8). Jesus' integrity served a tremendous purpose in God's eternal Kingdom: Those who believe in Him obtain forgiveness of sins and eternal life (1 John 3:5)
With faith in Christ as our firm foundation (Matthew 7:24-25), we pray and seek God's guidance in every circumstance. We strive to make choices that align with His Word. We value honesty, righteousness, self-control, patience and goodness and make a conscious effort to act according to these principles. First 5
It is not surprising that when we’re tangled by insecurity… we find comfort in labels. It gives us a feeling of control. Forgetting that whatever we label, we dismiss. (Including our own capacity for caring, giving, rebuilding, and spilling light.)
So, it takes courage, when I choose to remove a label; from someone else... or from myself.
They distance us. They marginalize. Whether it is something I don't understand or don't like or can't see.
It's so easy to fuel the fire of misunderstanding and intolerance and small-mindedness when I witness all of this (my world) through the lens of my own labels.
I do know that when we label, we tend to exclude, rather than include. Including our own worth and well-being. This I know: Sanctuary reminds me that I’m more than my “label”.
Sanctuary is not about where (as if it is only some magical place we retreat to). Sanctuary is about what happens. In other words, sanctuary is already within us. Which means that wherever we go, we can take sanctuary with us, which gives us the permission and courage to embrace abundant life and wholeheartedness, even in the middle of the storms, or the undone, or the complicated, or the prickly, or the unplanned. Sabbath Moments
Luke10:25-28
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.” The New King James Version
One trained in the law of Moses; is likely a Pharisee. They wanted to entrap Jesus in argumentation for the purpose of discrediting Him. He is conversing with a legal expert, Jesus appeals to the law. The lawyer’s answer parallels Jesus’ teaching in Matthew and Mark about the greatest commandments (Matthew 22:35–40 and Mark 12:28–31).
These commands reflect the heart of Jesus’ proclamation of the kingdom of God: love of God and love of neighbor. Faithlife Study Bible
The question posed by the lawyer is really a challenge, since the verse speaks of the testing of Jesus. To inherit something is to receive it. In other words, the man was asking, “What must I do to share in the reward at the resurrection of the righteous at the end?” The Old Testament basis of this question is the hope of resurrection in Daniel 12:2. Jesus countered the lawyer’s test by having him answer his own question. The NKJV Study Bible
If we speak of eternal life, and the way to it, in a careless manner, we take the name of God in vain. No one will ever love God and his neighbour with any measure of pure, spiritual love, who is not made a partaker of converting grace. But the proud heart of man strives hard against these convictions. Christ gave an instance of a poor Jew in distress, relieved by a good Samaritan. This poor man fell among thieves, who left him about to die of his wounds. He was slighted by those who should have been his friends, and was cared for by a stranger, a Samaritan, of the nation which the Jews most despised and detested, and would have no dealings with.
It is lamentable to observe how selfishness governs all ranks; how many excuses men will make to avoid trouble or expense in relieving others. But the true Christian has the law of love written in his heart. The Spirit of Christ dwells in him; Christ’s image is renewed in his soul. Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Matthew 22:34–40 But when the Pharisees heard that He had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered together. Then one of them, a lawyer, asked Him a question, testing Him, and saying…
Deuteronomy 6:5 You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength.
Mark 12:28–34 Then one of the scribes came, and having heard them reasoning together, perceiving that He had answered them well, asked Him, “Which is the first commandment of all?”Jesus answered him, “The first of all the commandments is: ‘Hear, O Israel, the LORD our God, the LORD is one…
Leviticus 18:5 You shall therefore keep My statutes and My judgments, which if a man does, he shall live by them: I am the LORD.
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