Founded on Love

Founded on Love
Jesus when asked,
“Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?” 
Jesus replied: “ ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’  
This is the first and greatest commandment.  
And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’  
All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.” Matthew 22:36-40
Napoleon Bonaparte speaking of Jesus said,
“I know men and I tell you, Jesus Christ is no mere man. Between him and every other person in the world there is no possible term of comparison. Alexander, Caesar, Charlemagne, and I have founded empires. But on what did we rest the creations of our genius? Upon force. Jesus Christ founded his empire upon love; and at this hour, millions would die for him.” Napoleon Bonaparte.
As believers in Christ Jesus we need to realize that we are helping build Christ’s empire. We need to realize that, that empire is built on “LOVE”. It therefore our job to love..
Billy Graham the great American evangelist put it this way.

"It is the Holy Spirits Job to Convict, 

God’s job to judge

 and my job to love," 

                   Billy Graham.

The apostle Paul defined Christian love as,

“Love is patient, love is kind. 

It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.  

It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, 

it keeps no record of wrongs. 

Love does not delight in evil 

but rejoices with the truth.  

It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. 

Love never fails....

And now these three remain: faith, hope and love.

 But the greatest of these is love.”  

                                 1 Corinthians 13:4-8a,13.

If you claim to be a follower of Christ Jesus you are obligated to Love as Jesus Loved, unconditionally. You are to love in the way the apostle Paul defined.
Thus the question becomes, are you loving those around you unconditionally?
Please think about it.

An Important Day

An important day.
         The Book of Exodus records,
“I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery. 
“You shall have no other gods before me. 
“You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below.  
You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me,  but showing love to a thousand  generations  of those who love me and keep my commandments. 
“You shall not misuse the name of the LORD your God, for the LORD will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name. 
“Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy.  
Six days you shall labor and do all your work,  but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your manservant or maidservant, nor your animals, nor the alien within your gates.  
For in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy. 
“Honour your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the LORD your God is giving you. 
“You shall not murder. 
“You shall not commit adultery. 
“You shall not steal. 
“You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor. 
“You shall not covet your neighbor’s house. You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his manservant or maidservant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.” 
Exodus 20:2-17
On the 6th to 7th day of the Jewish month of Sivan Jews all over the world celebrate the giving of the law. In the Jewish year 5778 which is this year 2017 that falls at sunset on May 30th .
God if you will on the 7th of Sivan put into writing what I believe He has written on the hearts and minds of all men. Laws that make for a civilized society.
In acknowledging the law we are also acknowledging the sovereignty of God, for I do not believe man on his own could have come up with such a comprehensive set of rules to govern society as a whole.
Abba Hillel Silver speaking during the dark days of world war two said,
“Faith in God is the strongest bulwark of a free society.  Human freedom began when men became conscious that over and above society and nature there is a God who created them...who fashioned them in His likeness, and that they are, therefore, possessed of intrinsic and independent significance and are endowed, as individuals, with original and irrevocable rights and authority.” Abba Hillel Silver
History shows us that when man turns away from God’s moral absolutes, when man refuses to accept the existence of God our society as a whole suffers.
Hitler and his henchmen are the best examples of this. They did not fear God. They followed their own sinister code of ethics. A code of ethics that led to the deaths of six million Jewish men women and children and an equal number of others in the death camps alone. In a war they started that claimed the lives of in excess of fifty-six million people.
Terrorist around the world today are doing the same. They have no fear of God or His laws. Thus tens of thousands are dying at their hands.
We as a society no matter who we are Jew, Christian, Muslim or those of other faiths. Need to take time this day to acknowledge the giving of God’s law to not only the Jews but to all mankind.
We need to acknowledge God for the writer of Ecclesiastes stated,
“Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter: Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole  duty  of man. 
For God will bring every deed into judgment, including every hidden thing, whether it is good or evil.” Ecclesiastes12:13,14
Please think about it.

Jesus and the Law

Jesus and the Law

“Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfil them.
I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished.  Anyone who breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.
For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven.”
                                                                                    Matthew 5:17-20.

Jesus did not come to abolish the laws God set out. He come to fulfil them.
The law shows us what it right and wrong. All civilized societies need a code of conduct. And Jesus makes it clear that, that code set down by God for all mankind will stay in place.
He never came to change it. However Jesus does reconcile us to the law. Should we fall short and break even the smallest part of the law, which all of us do from time to time, (it’s called sinning) all we have to do is confess that sin and Jesus will forgive our sins.
Jesus in this passage also calls us to be more righteous than the Pharisees. We should not just be doing God’s will outwardly.
What we do for God should not just be a facade. We should be making Jesus Lord of our heart and be pleasing to Him both inwardly as well as on the outside.
Our lives both publicly and privately should be in line with God’s will.
Our moral and ethical values should anything that the world has.
Our lives should be a testimony for Christ.
As Francis of Assisi said,
“Preach the Gospel at all times and when necessary use words.”
                                                                                 Francis of Assisi
Think about it.