FBCD_FaithEssentials_June_FlipBook

Todd Gaddis

responded with the following commands from Deuteronomy and Leviticus: “YOU SHALL LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD WITH ALL YOUR HEART, AND WITH ALL YOUR STRENGTH, AND WITH ALL YOUR MIND; AND YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF” (Luke 10:27). Jesus affirmed the lawyer’s answer, which may sound surprising, since it seems to suggest salvation by works. Yet, nothing could be further from the truth. “Jesus is not commending a new system of legalism somewhat different from the old, but pointing to the end of all legalism.” 1 The lawyer wanted to gain access to heaven by keeping a set of regulations. The Lord turns this system upside down by telling him that eternal life is not a matter of rules but rather of love. Because God is love, He’s the obvious source of all true love. The ultimate demonstration of such love came when He sent His only Son Jesus to die for our sins. The “greatest commandment,” as one Gospel writer put it, compels us to reciprocate. Note carefully that the first portion of Jesus' challenge emphasizes the importance of the vertical connection between people and God . We’ll never have right relationships with others if we don’t first establish one with God. Loving people begins with loving God. A farmer visiting London for the first time wandered into an art gallery. Seeing a painting of Jesus on the Cross, he stood transfixed. Oblivious to those around him, he cried out, “Bless the Lord! Oh how I love Him, how I love Him.” As people began to take notice, a stranger walked up and said, “I love Him too.” Then another grabbed his hand and tremblingly spoke, “And I love Him too.” A third came, then a fourth, and still another until before long a band of bold believers stood together before the artwork—strangers brought together in Christ, prompted by a simple man who wasn’t afraid to express his love. 2

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