December 27, 2020
Matthew 22:34-40 But when the Pharisees heard that He had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered together. 35 Then one of them, a lawyer, asked Him a question, testing Him, and saying, 36 “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?”37 Jesus said to him, “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’38 This is the first and great commandment. 39 And the second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’40 On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.”
Mark 12:28 Then one of the scribes came, and having heard them reasoning together, perceiving that He had answered them well, asked Him, “Which is thefirst commandment of all?”29 Jesus answered him, “The first of all the commandments is: ‘Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. 30 And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ This is the first commandment. 31 And the second, like it, is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.”
Exodus 19:10-11 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Go to the people and consecrate them today and tomorrow, and let them wash their clothes. 11 And let them be ready for the third day. For on the third day the Lord will come down upon Mount Sinai in the sight of all the people.
Exodus 19:16-17 Then it came to pass on the third day, in the morning, that there were thunderings and lightnings, and a thick cloud on the mountain; and the sound of the trumpet was very loud, so that all the people who were in the camp trembled. 17 And Moses brought the people out of the camp to meet with God, and they stood at the foot of the mountain.
Exodus 20:1-17 And God spoke all these words, saying:
2 “I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.
3 “You shall have no other gods before Me.
4 “You shall not make for yourself a carved image—any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth; 5 you shall not bow down to them nor serve them. For I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children to the third and fourth generations of those who hate Me, 6 but showing mercy to thousands, to those who love Me and keep My commandments.
7 “You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord will not hold him guiltless who takes His name in vain.
8 “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. 9 Six days you shall labor and do all your work, 10 but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord your God. In it you shall do no work: you, nor your son, nor your daughter, nor your male servant, nor your female servant, nor your cattle, nor your stranger who is within your gates. 11 For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and hallowed it.
12 “Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long upon the land which the Lord your God is giving you.
13 “You shall not murder.
14 “You shall not commit adultery.
15 “You shall not steal.
16 “You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.
17 “You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, nor his male servant, nor his female servant, nor his ox, nor his donkey, nor anything that is your neighbor’s.”
God made it clear to them that He was the one who brought them out of Egypt. Out of darkness into the light. He didn’t want anyone else before Him. An idol is what you make it. Many things can be made an idol in your life. Every time we come to church; it is to meet with God. He is a jealous God! He will tolerate no rivals! Worship is a big deal in the heart and mind of God. When you put other things before Him, He does not like it! This is serious business. Take your daily time and bow down to God. Thank Him for the air your breathe and for giving you life! You never have to go to hell! We have enough to worship Him for every day for the rest of our life! The worst day in the kingdom of God is better than the best day in the world! We have a lot to be thankful for!
The first 4 commandments have to do with your relationship with God. The rest have to do with your relationship with others.
We have the capacity to love God like He love us, and to love others like He loves them! All we need to do is grow and develop in that love. We shouldn’t have to be told to love and forgive! We should WANT to! God put His love in us to shine that same love on other people! There is no situation or person who is out of reach from God’s love! Love is always the best way, because love never fails!
1- Phileo – friendly love
2- Storge – parental love
3- Eros – intimate/erotic love
4- Agape - God’s love – originates in heaven
The first three types of love are a human love. It is selfish. They don’t appear selfish until they don’t get their way. Agape is love in action. It does not tell you it loves you. It shows you through action!
What would our world look like if it operated under this agape type of love? What about your home? Your church? Everyone who has been born again has the capacity to love like this, you only have to develop it.
Deuteronomy 6:1-5 “Now this is the commandment, and these are the statutes and judgments which the Lord your God has commanded to teach you, that you may observe them in the land which you are crossing over to possess, 2 that you may fear the Lord your God, to keep all His statutes and His commandments which I command you, you and your son and your grandson, all the days of your life, and that your days may be prolonged. 3 Therefore hear, O Israel, and be careful to observe it, that it may be well with you, and that you may multiply greatly as the Lord God of your fathers has promised you— ‘a land flowing with milk and honey.’4 “Hear, O Israel:The Lord our God, the Lord is one! 5 You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength.
How longyou live Is determined howyou live. In the 10 commandments you see the very nature of God. He has never and will never mistreat a human being. God promised His people the promise land of Canaan.
Egypt – never enough
Wilderness – just enough
Promise land – more than enough
God wanted to bring the people into abundance! If you have love settled and reinforced in your life, Deuteronomy 28 will be automatic! If you will get this one thing right, everything else will fall into place. If your prayer time is lacking, you do not love God with all your, heart, soul, and mind. Your whole life is about who and what you love! Make it about the almighty God!
Sunday PM
Part 2
Jeremiah 17:9-10“The heart is deceitful above all things,
And desperately wicked;
Who can know it?
10 I, the Lord, search the heart,
test the mind,
Even to give every man according to his ways,
According to the fruit of his doings.
When it comes to your heart, God judges on your actions, not words. Your heart will lie to you! Any person left to themselves will self-destruct. That is the heart. God wants to take us into the promise land. But He won’t if He knows it will destroy you. Prosperity will not destroy you if your heart is with God! The whole book of Deuteronomy is about loving Him with all our heart, mind, soul, and strength. If this is solid and God is kept at the top of priorities, the promise land won’t destroy you!
Deuteronomy 8:1-2 “Every commandment which I command you today you must be careful to observe, that you may live and multiply, and go in and possess the land of which the Lord swore to your fathers. 2 And you shall remember that the Lord your God led you all the way these forty years in the wilderness, to humble you and test you, to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep His commandments or not.
When we refuse to allow God to process us, we have to stay in the wilderness longer. God needed the people to establish their love for God so that the promised land would not destroy them. Deuteronomy says to love God over and over! He was calling out to them for 40 years! He knew what was in their hearts! He tried to purge the rebellion, unbelief, carnality, and murmuring!
Deuteronomy 8:3 So He humbled you, allowed you to hunger, and fed you with manna which you did not know nor did your fathers know, that He might make you know that man shall not live by bread alone; but man lives by every word that proceeds from the mouth of the Lord.
This must forever burn in our hearts. We cannot live without the daily bread of His word.
Psalm 1:1 Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly.
Who are you listening to? Who are you watching? What are you feeding your soul? Who’s voice do you value above all others? If you want to be blessed, it is your choice! Choose God and blessing will be served!