The 2nd is like unto it...

Luke 10:

25 And behold, a lawyer stood up to put him (Jesus) to the test, saying, “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” 26 He (Jesus) said to him, “What is written in the Law? How do you read it?”

27 And he (the lawyer) answered, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength

and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself.”

You have likely heard this passage often. Maybe even memorized it. However, it is worth pointing out this is not exactly how it was originally presented in the OT.

Deut 6:4 “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. 5 You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might.

6 And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. 7 You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. 8 You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. 9 You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.

Notice what is missing? I added the context of verses 6 - 9 so it's more obvious. What is not mentioned in this OT passage? There is no mention of loving your neighbor in the immediate context, the chapter, or even the entire book.

In all three gospel accounts loving our neighbor is *added as if they are quoted together. In Luke, the lawyer talking with Christ adds it and Christ agrees. Did this lawyer get it wrong? No, Christ agreed that this commandment is the second greatest. In fact, in the other two accounts Christ lists them together himself. 

But all these accounts also say the second is like, though not equal to the first. If you look around more in the OT there is definite mention of loving our neighbor but not neatly together and in the immediate context with the greatest commandment as we see it in the gospel accounts. In fact, it is mentioned in Leviticus,  an entirely different book.

My point? The second is *only the second. It is like the first, but not equal to it. It comes after, for a reason i.e. the second will not and can not happen as God intends unless the first happens... first.

Why do I raise this? Often we hear an equal emphasis on the second or it is brought up without ever mentioning the 1st as if it isn't tied to and dependent on it (Christ clearly ties these together in the order he does for good reason. Loving God 1st is vital. It must come 1st!). As a result, we can lose sight of the first; of the necessity of it being first. And when we do we can turn this into a performance-based activity, as if we must love our neighbor to be loved and accepted by God... as we - in our rebellious state - are inclined to do with every other commandment of God.

Why do we do this? Because we are prone to do it. In our fallen and rebellious state, we tend to turn every commandment into a way we can be our own god, savior, deliverer, and provider i.e. we seek to be independent of God, operating in our own power. So it is when we come to God's commandments also. We treat them as some kind of hoop we must jump through to make ourselves acceptable to God and our fellow man. We are prone to use any and all of God's commandments to earn God's acceptance (and each other) - and sadly think we can - instead of obedience being the fruit and expression of God's acceptance of us in Christ. We are naturally inclined to read scripture through a performance-based lens, even as his redeemed children and more so if we are not his. This is our natural orientation since the rebellion in Eden, which we should always be on our guard against. It is also an affront to Christ and the very gospel of grace that God has provided for us in Him.

So if loving our neighbor is second, not 1st, how is it like the first? 

It is an expression of love. Both are about love, but love in its proper order. As scripture clearly states, we love God because he first loved us. The second is tied to the 1st by flowing out of it. We are not the source of love, God is. This is received love that is vertical and comes from above. That is why the first command is the first - and must always be the 1st - and the second is the second and only like the first. The 2nd is the horizontal love that flows out of us to our fellow man due to our connection vertically with God himself, the only source of love, life, and all things. To him alone be all the glory for he alone deserves it - is worth it.

Related discussions:

Love is power

Empowered by what?

It all depends on God and you.

____________________________________________________________________

*If the 2nd commandment is not in the original context, why would Christ add it? I think the point Christ is making is loving our neighbor is evidence that we truly love God as the greatest commandment tells us to. It is the natural outflow of loving him with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength. And because God is a relationship as Father, Son, and Spirit, so are we. 

**Even though it is the 2nd, Christ ties it to the 1st for a good reason. It is the natural outflow of and progression from the 1st. As Christ said, in these two commandments all the others are summed up. In fact in the letter of 1st John it is evidence we are engaged in the 1st and the fruit of it i.e. If the 2nd is not happening it is because the 1st is not either. The 2nd cannot occur as God intends unless it flows out of the 1st.

How can all the commandments be summed up in these two?  Everything God calls (commands) us to be and do involves our love of God and our love for man and, in this order.

How do we best impact the world for God's glory?

How do you or I best impact the world for God's glory?

By shining God forth by our deeds and words in a way most suitable to our abilities, gifts, talents, resources, time, and experience. No matter who you are or what you do - be that a truck driver, a sales person, a surgeon, a mother, homemaker, and spouse, a cashier, a nurse or an author etc. - do all to the glory of God. 

The good news is we are not rewarded based on our gifts but our ¹faithfulness. In this sense, we are all equal and on a level playing field. Bringing God honor has nothing to do with our gifts or "station" in life but our heart i.e. why we act. The more we use whatever gifts God has given us, for His glory, the greater our reward. The widow's mite would be a perfect example. 

In so doing, we must also recognize we will encounter resistance - thorns, and thistles - in our efforts, no matter what we do. Even if you are doing what you love and are called to do there are still mistakes, failures, offenses, hurt, accidents, loss, damage etc. 

A difficult path does not mean it's the wrong path. We are not supposed to quit because we encounter difficulties, it simply means we are broken and live in a broken world. 

Christ said, "in this world, you will have trouble (tribulation)..." It is inevitable. There is no "if" or "when" we will encounter challenges, only what kind and how we will handle them. 

Persisting in using whatever God has given you in the face of great opposition actually brings Him greater honor and glory. It shows you value him and desire to honor Him more than the comfort you set aside to pursue him - i.e. your desire to show him forth out of love for him is greater than any discomfort or pain you may encounter doing so. This is the essence of taking up our cross and denying ourselves. 

So whatever you set your hand to do, do it with persistence, faith, and for his honor. And when you're done he will tell you "well done good and faithful servant..." enter into your rest and reward - rest implies there was struggle in  accomplishing your task. Not just any task but a good and right one.

There is no complete avoidance of pain in this life. That comes later. For now, we have the opportunity to "fill up" the sufferings of Christ and let them prepare us to take part in heavenly glory, when we are face to face with God himself and basking in His never ending glory. 

For a further discussion on what it means to be broken click here

For a discussion on the nature of our reward click here. 

For a further discussion on being in God's will click here

_______________________________

¹The truck driver who seeks to honor God in all he says and does will be honored by God and told "well done good and faithful servant" - while the author who sells many bestsellers that lead people away from God will not.

Righteousness vs shame

Righteousness is a dirty word for many these days. In the minds of some, it suggests someone who is self-righteous or hypocritical. This is justifiably unappealing to anyone. 

The Bible offers a very different definition, however. 

Righteousness means to be and feel presentable, acceptable i.e. right. I pass inspection and have been approved and found acceptable and even pleasing in the eyes of someone I wish or seek to please. 

We want to be presentable to someone we value and even more so with someone whose opinion we value most; someone who is ¹highly valuable themselves that we highly regard or value. The more important they are to us and others the more significant their approval.

We desire to be well-pleasing - approved, accepted, praised, and impressive in the eyes of another. 

Shame is feeling just the opposite - it is feeling insignificant, rejected, unapproved, and unacceptable.

Prior to the rebellion in Eden, there was no shame, i.e. No sense of being unacceptable or unpresentable; of not feeling or being right. We were totally comfortable being uncovered with nothing hidden - not just physically, but in every way. (Hiding indicates guilt and shame. Before the rebellion in the garden, there was neither). We felt no need to hide or cover anything, particularly failure since there had been none.

And ⁵the man and his wife were both naked and were not ashamed.  Genesis 2:25 ESV

Why does shame matter? 

Ever since that initial rebellion in Eden we have been under the burden of a deeply buried sense of shame from our failure. This sense of shame (failure) has a very powerful hold and control over us. So much so that Adam and Eve felt compelled to hide - to cover themselves in an attempt to hide their failure and its resulting shame. 

Since the original rebellion of Adam, we are now filled with shame because of alienation from (and absence of) our Creator - the true and rightful source of our significance and value. 

We severed our connection with God (and our sense of His acceptance and approval) by turning away from Him and refusing to follow His direction not to eat from the tree He forbid.

As a result, we had to be removed from Eden - i.e. paradise, home, so we could no longer eat of the tree of life while ²in this state of rebellion. This would have allowed us to live indefinitely in our rebellion, which is contrary to who we truly are - creatures designed to be in harmony with their Creator and willingly participating and experiencing life with and in God. 

Ever since our rebellion we have also longed to be restored and return to Eden; to be welcomed again; to be complete again; to have peace and contentment again; to be continually filled with love and joy without interruption again - as we were then and are still designed to be now. 

We long to be "home" i.e. in a place where we feel we belong and are safe. A place where we are held and cherished.

But we want this on our terms, not the terms we were designed to live under. We have rebelled and continue to rebel against God. We now refuse to trust Him and seek Him to fill this longing for "home."  We seek "home" everywhere and in anything other than God.

Our rebellion may not be conscious on our part but every time we look to anything other than God for our sense of value, it is an act of rebellion, i.e. distrust of God. We put our trust in anything but God - who alone can give us our true sense of value (glory) - and look everywhere else except to Him for life - i.e. for meaning, significance, purpose, identity, fulfillment, glory etc. This is now our default response on how we handle life (unless God gets hold of our hearts). It is a response of rebellious distrust of God.

We may not feel or be fully aware of the depth of our shame, but we are often keenly aware of a need for approval or praise - or when we are disapproved of or rejected i.e. shamed. At the heart of our need for approval and praise is a sense of shame and a desire to avoid it at all costs. 

We always carry with us a sense of rejection (and a fear that our shame can't be fixed if our failures are ever exposed), a sense of restlessness, of being out of the environment we were meant to be in, of being "away from home." 

Our need to constantly be affirmed (and prove) we are significant, important, and loved - i.e. worthy of these - is because we don't feel we are but should be. ³We are in a constant state of shame, no matter how deeply buried it may be or how unconscious we are of it. 

We may feel good about ourselves in our best times, but as soon as we mess up - or are simply accused of messing up, the shame - ever lurking under the surface - rushes to the top and rears its ugly head. 

Our failures are devastating because we depend on our successes to feel significant, accepted, and loved - i.e. good about ourselves - instead of looking to God for these things.

Once we get a hold of the fact that we are significant, accepted, and fully loved in Christ, these failures and the fear of them have far less sway over us. The more we believe (abide) in God's love, the less our shame or fears control us. 

In Christ, we are free from the need to be approved by others - or even ourselves. As we more fully grasp that we are ⁴approved by the most significant person of all - the very Creator and Sustainer of life and all things - we are increasingly freed from trying to win the approval of others. If He is for us, then who (including ourselves) can be against us?

God constantly seeks to reveal to us how much we depend on something other than him for life. This occurs most often in our pain and struggles. He seeks to strip away our idols and draw us closer to Him (which usually feels more like death, not a means to life at the time). He is always calling us closer because he knows in him alone is true and eternal life i.e. to draw us closer is not only for his greater glory but our highest good - our best interest. 

As we mature we come to see – by God's love and Spirit - how much we look to everything but Him for “life.” 

The maturing process is increasingly turning away from those things we derive our worth (and identity) from and more to Him. God is constantly seeking to help us see that finding life - i.e. a sense of value, meaning, and significance - is only in Him and not the other things we look to and have grown to count and depend on. 

The only question that remains is will you return to him? Christ has done all that is necessary for you to be perfectly accepted and fully embraced by His Father. It is up to us now to receive (believe) this (His) offer. To not, is to continue on our current path and reject His offer and Him.

For a discussion on the meaning of life, click here. 

For a discussion on pleasing God, click here

For a discussion on good and bad self-confidence, click here. 

_______________________________

¹And who is greater, more significant, more valuable and worthy of our respect, honor, and worship then the Creator and Sustainer of love, life, and all things? No one and nothing! For from him through him and to him or all things!

²To continue living in a state of rebellion unchecked by death would result in only increasing destruction by us. 

³I am speaking of humanity in general when in a state of separation from God. We can be and are freed of these things the more we understand, receive and partake of the love of God.

⁴And not only are we approved by the Creator of all things - the most significant person in the universe - but this same person provided for us what was necessary for that approval. This in great part is why He is so significant.

⁵God's description of us just before we rebelled.

How are love and life connected

Is there a connection between life and love? If so, what is it? To help us gain a better understanding, let's define our terms.

Love - 

is recognizing someone elses value, worth, significance, and treating them accordingly. This isn't about what we get out of someone or something or only about how we feel about them but how we show them we feel. As DC Talk - the former Christian band - says, love is a verb. 

You could characterize this in several ways; cherishing someone, treating them with honor, dignity, importance; as worthwhile; willingly giving up something you value - be that time or other resources - to show someone you value them more than what you gave up. 

Love at the highest level is always sacrificial - giving up something - but doesn't necessarily feel sacrificial because we love (value) the one we are giving it up for i.e. showing love to. As John said, 

"For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments. And his commandments are not burdensome." 

Though true love is sacrificial it is ultimately something we are glad to do, just as Christ was glad to love us sacrificially even though it was painful. The greater the pain the greater indication of our valuing that which we made a sacrifice for.

How a loving parent cares for their child would be a classic example. We parents pour thousands of hours and dollars into raising our children yet we wouldn't have it any other way. Though it requires a ton of effort and is hard at times, it is a sacrifice we gladly make because we love our kids. 

In this same way, our heavenly Father loves us. He gave up something of infinite value - His Son - so He could have us and share His life with us.

Life - 

is knowing and experiencing our worth, value, significance, etc. When we do, we "come alive" because we feel most valued and significant... in a word, we feel ¹loved. 

Giving life to someone is to acknowledge their worth, value, and significance through our words or deeds. To do this for others brings life to them.

How we do this can be expressed in many ways. Giving them something valuable - such as our time, attention, resources, efforts - to serve them. Telling them how important they are to us, how much we value and appreciate them and backing it with actions.

So you could say love and life are the flip sides of the same coin of value. Love is giving value and life is receiving it. Valuing is what they have in common; either giving it or receiving it.

But where do these notions of life and love come from? 

God is the source of life because he is the most significant i.e. valuable of all beings or things. And therefore He is most worthy of our love and praise i.e. of being recognized and treated as most valuable, most worth being admired, praised, cherished, worshipped, honored, exalted (glorified). 

When God calls us to honor or glorify him, he is saying value me, love me above all other things or persons. Why? Because he is more valuable than all other things or persons since everything else that is, comes from, is sustained by, and points back to Him. He alone is the Alpha and Omega. 

"How great are God's riches! How deep are his wisdom and knowledge! Who can explain his decisions? Who can understand his ways? As the scripture says: “Who knows the mind of the Lord? Who is able to give him advice? Who has ever given him anything, so that he had to pay it back?” For all things were created by him, and all things exist through him and for him. To God be the glory for ever! Amen." - Romans 11:33‭-‬36 GNB

Because this is who God is - the source (Alpha), the means, and the end (Omega) of all things - to value him as such is to experience our greatest sense of value, for we are like him i.e. in His image and made to share in and experience his glory, majesty, beauty, worth, significance, etc.

We enjoy him because He made us like himself so we could. Like Him, we can give and receive honor and value in and through him; so we can feel, experience, and bathe in His significance, worth, glory, etc. 

For us to feel His worth, we too must experience our own significance in doing so. Our sense of significance comes from partaking of and participating in His. 

In this way, we are like God. God's sense of significance comes in Him valuing Himself within the community of Father, Son, and Spirit. 

We were made like him so we too could participate in the community of love in the same way He does.

For related topics see the following:

Is God on an ego trip?

Love is power 

Why are relationships important?

What is the fountain and foundation of relationship? 

Why do we long for relationship? 

What is the love, life, Spirit and essence of God

 God is non-stop love with or without us. 

_________________________________

¹The only reason we can feel loved-valued is that we are like God who is a community of love among and within the Father, Son, and Spirit. He is thereby the most lovely and valuable of all beings. This triune God created us like Himself so we could partake of and delight in Him.