It is common to think that Jesus gave us two new commandments, but in reality, these two greatest commandments were known and kept by the people of Israel since the times of Moses. We can read about them both in the following verses. #1 Love God. “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God is one Lord: And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.” (Deuteronomy 6:4,5) #2 Love your neighbor. “Thou shalt not go up and down as a talebearer among thy people: neither shalt thou stand against the blood of thy neighbour; I am the Lord. Thou shalt not hate thy brother in thine heart: thou shalt in any wise rebuke thy neighbour, and not suffer sin upon him. Thou shalt not avenge, nor bear any grudge against the children of thy people, but thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself: I am the Lord.” (Leviticus 19:16-18) As we just read, these two commandments were taught in conjunction with the ten commandments. It helps us remember on a day-to-day basis to love God by doing what He says and to love our neighbors as we would also want to be treated.
Since it was Jesus/Jehovah that gave Moses these commandments He also knew exactly what to tell people when asked about the greatest commandments in the law. Here is just one example of when Jesus mentions these two important commandments. It is written, “then one of them, which was a lawyer, asked him a question, tempting him, and saying, Master, which is the great commandment in the law? 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. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.” (Matthew 22:35-40) In conclusion, it is important to read both the old and new testaments of the Bible. This way we can know if things were part of the old covenant that continued into the new like the ten commandments and the two greatest laws also. This is why these laws were still taught in the early Christian church. God loves us so much as to teach us His important laws for mankind Amen.
Let us pray:
Oh Lord, I pray that people will remember how important the two greatest commandments really are. That is to love You will all our heart, soul, and mind, along with loving our neighbors as ourselves. If people simply learned what it means to love You and our neighbor, then they would be doing this on a day-to-day basis and not ignore these laws, as they often are disregarded. Too many pastors teach that believing in You is all that is needed to be saved. This is so wrong in so many areas. Do people not realize that faith is an action word? And that it is much different than our beliefs? Truly, the demons believe in You and tremble also. Therefore, Your true believers hear Your voice and also do as You say. This has stuck with me each day that I live. I know that I cannot say that I love You if I am not doing as You say. I would be dead in my faith if all I did was believe in You and did nothing else. So thank You for helping me learn the importance of working out my salvation with fear and trembling. I love You, Lord. You are my God and I worship You. Teach me and I will do as You say. Amen.
