The Eleventh Commandment Part 1

Law literally 10 words by God is known the 10 Commandments defined behavior on a higher plane. Believers follow and 11 today how Jesus summed up the 10 Commandments from the church in Chicago this morning with Dr. Erwin Sir clear teaching helps us make it across the finish line astronauts or as we near the end of the series, give us a preview of what you're calling the 11th commandment. Well, you know, David is amazing that Jesus, as he is speaking to the disciple, says new commandment I give you, and that is that you love one another, even as I have loved you what a commandment that is and that's what were going to be talking about today.

But before we go to the pulpit of Moody church and expound on the wonderful words of Jesus. I want to say that we are so thankful for the many of you who support the ministry of running to win because of you.

This ministry is heard in over 20 countries of the world and so we thank you.

What you consider becoming an endurance partner endurance partners are those who stand with us regularly with their prayers and their gifts. Here's what you can do. Go to RTW offer.com that's RTW offer.com. Click on the endurance partner tab or you can contact our offices at 1-888-218-9337 that's 1-888-218-9337 and now let us open our minds and hearts as we consider the blessed words of Jesus about love come through a series of messages on the 10 Commandments 10.

Thou shalt not slough shall not commit adultery, thou shalt not steal, and on and on. The list goes there something within us that doesn't like the thou shalt not's.

In fact, if you want someone to step on your lawn you know if this is your great goal in life put up a sign do not step on the long because as people walk by. Even people who hadn't even thought of stepping on your lot will now see that here's an opportunity to do something that had escaped their attention earlier something within us that we don't like the wall. Yet God says thou shalt not, thou shalt not, thou shalt not, and of course as we stop to think of it every single commandment, though it stated negatively really has a positive aspect.

Thou shalt not steal means positively. Thou shall respect thy neighbor's property. Thou shall not bear false witness, means thou shalt speak the truth, but undergirding all of the Commandments is the basic hearts of the Bible and that is love. Back in the 1960s when situation ethics was popular, Joseph Fletcher wrote a book entitled situation ethics. He said that it was okay to commit adultery lies still kill whatever you have to do just do it lovingly do it because you have a loving goal in mind. Do it because you're going to help somebody. He taught but actually that definition of love is totally contrary to the New Testament because in the Bible.

Love is defined as keeping the law. For example, in Romans 13 pulses. Love is the fulfillment of the law. For this thou shall not commit adultery, thou shall not steal in any list other commandments and says if there is any other commandment, it is briefly comprehended in this saying, namely, thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself, and we read in the epistles of John and third John. It says that he that says who he loves him that his love loves Christ to keep his commandments. So in the Bible, love and law are not in conflict.

They are actually a unity. You show your love by your obedience. That's what the New Testament teaches now as we talk about love. I want us to turn to the 12th chapter of Mark Mark chapter 12 because we would like to defined today, three objects of love that we as believers ought to have in the first is found in the Gospel of Mark chapter 12 is love toward God love toward God. Mark chapter 12 Jesus is giving a sermon, of all things on the resurrection when suddenly a scribe interrupts him because he's impressed with Christ. It says in verse 28. One of the scribes came and heard them arguing and recognize that Christ answered well and said to him what commandment is the foremost of all. And Jesus said it is this hero Israel, the Lord our God is one Lord, and you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength was stopped there for a moment. Jesus actually picks up the book of Deuteronomy member in the 26 chapter. I believe it is of Deuteronomy that you actually have this quote hero Israel, the Lord our God is one Lord, and thou shalt love the Lord thy God, that is the first and the greatest commandment. The greatest commandment is not thou shalt not commit adultery, thou shalt not steal.

The first and the greatest commandment is that thou shalt love the Lord thy God as I read Christ's response to the scribe can't help but realize that Christ is saying we should love God with intensity. Notice how he just multiplies here all of the faculties that we might have. Thou shall love the Lord thy God with all my heart.

Biblically, the heart is really the center of man, from which his attitudes and thoughts and everything flows love him with all your heart, with all your soul, the very probably a reference to the emotion with all your mind and that is with your thought processes and love him with your might. Everything that you have. I read that text and I say we ought to love God with passion with zeal there to be something within us that responds when it comes to love for God. We ought to guard our love toward him because he is special than he ought to consume all that we heart with passion. As David said as the deer pants towards the water broke and you sometimes been thirsty just as that deer can is just longing for the water so he says my soul pants after the old God. Where can I go to get enough of God we should love with intensity but also we should love with exclusiveness. Notice what the text says you shall love the Lord your God, and here's some words that you can underline with all your heart, all your mind and with all your mind and all your strength. All all all all time. God says that our love toward him should be so exclusive that there is no competition. There is no rivalry.

There is no sense in which we have a divided spirit. No rival worship within us exclusively.

We love God we love God. Now there's some Christians who hate God because of circumstances, usually because of the tragedies is allowed in life. Maybe their upbringing or whatever. Fortunately there only few of those, but there are some I speak to those today who do not hate God I speak to those who verbally love God, I speak to myself I doing love God with intensity and with passion or do we insult him because of our neglect of him and collect God, the silent, hidden insult, having hybrid.

This text of Scripture and I I'm just overwhelmed. I mean if you love somebody with all your mind and your heart and your soul and your strength. You're constantly thinking about them. You are planning with them, you will have your focus of attention directed toward them. You are consumed by them. And Jesus said, that is the first commandment.

It is to be people who are God intoxicated people are consumed with the love of God and the Bible says in first John chapter 4 verse eight he that doesn't love God doesn't know God, for God is love.

Don't hurry over that text what it is saying is that if we don't love God, we really do not know God and human things must be known in order to be loved. For example, we tell a couple that went together they maybe go together for two weeks and we say do you know each other well enough to be married and we may question it. If they know each other for two weeks we say to couples do you know each other well enough because human things must be known in order to be loved.

But notice this God must be love to in order to be known, the text says if you don't love God you don't know him, to love God with intensity and passion. Why is this the greatest commandment.

It's the greatest commandment because if you love God the way Jesus mentions here you would take care of the first four commandments would you thou shalt have no other gods before me. The text says most certainly a person who love God with such passion wouldn't have a rival worship. The Bible says thou shall not make any graven image or bow down to it. That certainly is disrespect for God to that infinite and perfect spirit in whom all things have their source.

Support Anand and then it says thou shall not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain.

No one could to treat God with such likeness.

If he loved him with such intensity and then it says remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. That would be an easy command to keep if only we love God instead of insulting him by our neglect. That's the first responsibility, the first object of love is love toward God.

But then, secondly I want you to notice that Jesus combines Deuteronomy with Leviticus. It says in Leviticus 1918, that thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. And so that's the second object of love verse 31.

The second is this you shall love your neighbor as yourself.

There is no other commandment greater than these said Jesus. Now you see what God is saying is that once we love him with intensity. It will be very easy for us to love our neighbors and our friends.

One day Jesus will encounter the young lawyer and the lawyers like to be sharpened. Many of them I'm sure are. But the text says that a lawyer came to Jesus and this young man wanted to sort of a sharp and his wits on the razor of intellect. He wanted to's to just a rival Christ with a question and answer. So he said to Jesus, what shall I do that I may inherit eternal life.

Asking the question about that all the philosophers and theologians are concerned about Jesus instead of saying to them now. Have you ever heard of the four spiritual laws does something different. He says now you know the law.

What do you read, and the young man close this text of Scripture the Shema from the book of Deuteronomy and says thou shall love the Lord thy God with all my heart, with all thy mind and with all thy strength and Jesus said that's right, he says do it and you live Jesus was saying if you fulfill that commandment. You'll be saved to because obviously if you're perfect you don't have to worry about coming into judgment and then the Bible says the young lawyer tried to justify himself, and said that because he added the words and your neighbor as yourself. He said and who is my neighbor.

He thought that maybe if he could define that word neighbor to refer to his friends. Maybe he'd make it. But Jesus told an interesting stories that one day as a man going from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he fell among thieves and they stripped him of his raiment, and they robbed them, and they left him half dead end. Then Jesus said that one day as the man was lying there that afternoon a Levite came Levite was somebody who was working in the temple and does so, the Levite sees this wounded man in he passes by on the other side because he's got to hurry to Jerusalem to preach a sermon on love to all the people so the Levite bypasses the man and then a certain priest comes by and the priest looks upon this man and he doesn't want to be bothered either because priests are busy counseling people and they've got schedules to keep and people are waiting for them. So the priest passes by on the other side and he leaves.

Then Jesus said, a certain Samaritan came and he chose the Samaritan because he was a halfbreed despised by the Jews and Jesus said Samaritan came in and he had mercy on the man and he took the wounded stranger and put them onto his own donkey and took him to an end. Then he said to the people you keep him here until he is well and if you spend anything moral pay it and he left some money and then he left on his journey and Jesus turned to the young lawyer and said and who do you think was a neighbor to the person that fell among thieves. This young man so despised Samaritans. He wouldn't even allow the word Samaritan to come out of his lips.

That's how much anger and animosity.

He had so he simply said well the one who showed mercy on him. That's interesting to see Jesus answers there.

The question of who is my neighbor, the answer is my neighbor is anyone that needs my help.

Back to my neighbor is. It isn't just someone who says shares the street with me. It is somebody that I can help. That is my neighbor and the first and the greatest commandment is thou shall love the Lord thy God with all thy heart with all my mind and with all thy soul, and thy neighbor as thyself with the same kind of care and respect and concern that I have for myself I have to share that with those that are in need and people that I can help not just simply financially in any other way. That's what the commandment means so your neighbor is anyone that you can help. Jesus said, and when should I love my neighbor that was also answered by the parable that Jesus gave the answer is I should love whenever I see a need countless opportunities come before us every single day and this sometimes we do not reach out our hands because we do not want to be concerned with people who are a nuisance and a bother to us when we have our own schedules to keep you know, it's one thing to prepare a message.

Intellectually, it's another thing to prepare your heart as I was thinking about this last night I was agonizing in the presence of God, thinking of all the times that I bypassed opportunities to help people simply because I thought my schedule is more important than their need. The text of Scripture says that the greatest commandment is that you shall love those who have needs and love with imagination because sometimes people don't throw out distress signals. It's just that they are there and you know that they have a need and it's your responsibility and my responsibility to love them as we do ourselves. Now we talked about love toward God, thou shall love the Lord thy God with all my heart and with all thy soul. Love towards your neighbor to love your neighbor as yourself. Now there's 1/3 group of people that we should love and for that turn to the 13th chapter of John's Gospel, John chapter 13 I want you to notice that Jesus here is in the upper room and he is sharing some interesting words with the disciples before he dies. Judas is just left and then Jesus says that he's going to give them a new commandment. Some people who saw the topic of my sermon in the bulletin and 11th commandment asked, with perhaps just a touch of sarcasm.

Whether or not the pastor of Moody Church was qualified to add one to the 10 well actually I'm not doing that. It's our Lord. That did it.

Notice what he says in verse 34 and new commandment I give you, you shall love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another.

Now when Jesus was in Mark chapter 12 that was not a new commandment because the commandment that you shall love your love the Lord your God with all your heart and your role, all your soul comes from the book of Deuteronomy and the fact that you should love your neighbor as yourself comes from Leviticus chapter 19 verse 18 and so Jesus took two passages of Scripture from the Old Testament and he simply combine them together and said these on these hang the law and the prophets. These are the great commandment that my friend is a reminder that indeed loving God and loving others does summarize the entire law. If only we could do that Jesus himself demonstrated his love for us and of course his love for God, was unquestioned. Running to win exists to be a blessing to others to share the good news of the gospel and to have an impact in people's lives.

Would you consider becoming a part of this ministry would you investigate the possibility of becoming an endurance partner. Those are the people who stand with us regularly with their prayers and their gifts I have in my hand a note from a woman by the name of Joyce who says that these Bible teaching surround me with encouragement and timely lifelines of hope is my family seems to be dissolving into today's wicked culture of hate suicide and anger will that's why we exist to throw out lifelines to people. Thanks in advance for helping us. By the way, if you'd like to consider becoming an endurance partner.

Here's what you can do. Go to RTW offeror.com that's RTW offeror.com or if you prefer, call us at 1-888-218-9337. Let me give you that contact information again RTW offeror.com. Click on the endurance partner button or call us at 1-888-218-9337 thanks in advance for helping us to make a difference. It's time again for another chance for you to ask a question you may have about the Bible or the Christian life. Having a troubled past can be a millstone around one's neck Nancy from Ohio writes I've listen to your sermons on breaking the cycle I was raised by a father who was an inwardly troubled person in his scarred emotions spilled over into our family life. I was not one of the favorites in the family and his actions towards me were very, mentally and physically abusive. My self-esteem was below ground level and my inner scars were deep in many my mother was a true Christian and it was probably because of her that my life was saved and somehow I managed to make it to adulthood. I'm glad she never stopped loving me. My brother claims that even though God forgives our every failure he is keeping track of the mall and when we get to heaven.

Our past sins will still have to be accounted for on judgment day. If that's the case, I know all stand someday before my God, hanging my head in shame because my sins were so many astronauts are what do you think Nancy, thank you so much for writing. I hope that you are listening and I hope that you benefit from what I have to say.

When we receive Jesus Christ as our Savior, as you have done. Our sins are legally forgiven, past, present and future is put away. In fact, the Bible says that God doesn't regard them anymore. He doesn't throw them in our face anymore your brother, however, still does have a point because the Bible says in second Corinthians chapter 5 verse 10 that we shall all appear before the judgment seat of Christ and give an account for the deeds done in the body, whether good or bad. So how do we reconcile that there is a way that God is going to evaluate our lives since our conversion in order to know how to reward us and there is no doubt that some people's rewards because of faithfulness is going to be much greater than other people who were unfaithful, no question about it. If we do see our sins in any way.

It will be represented to us as forgiven because God is not going to throw them in her face. Will we be embarrassed. Well, the Bible does say that some will have shame at his coming, but keep in mind that throughout all of eternity together. We as God's people will sing his praises and will sing his grace. Tell your brother that he himself has to be very careful because the more honest we are, the more we realize how great our sin is and if we do poorly at the judgment seat of Jesus Christ. All of us will, but thank God for his mercy. Paul also says in second Corinthians that in that day. All people shall have praise of God. You'll have praise of God. Nancy and I will have praise of God. All because of God's undeserved mercy don't live in fear, but live rather for Jesus Christ with joy, knowing that your sins are forgiven, they are washed away your life is important in the judgment seat will not determine whether you go to heaven or hell is a judgment to determine how much God can reward you. I hope this helps. God bless you. Thank you Nancy for sharing your heart with us. Thank you Dr. lutes are for sharing yours.

If you'd like to hear your question answered. Go to our website@rtwofferor.com and click on ask Pastor lutes or or call us at 1-888-218-9337 that's 1-888-218-9337 you can write to us running to win 1635 N. LaSalle Boulevard Chicago, IL 60614. Life is hard when our labors are not fueled by the love of God. That's why Jesus gave his great commandment to love God with all our hearts and our neighbors as ourselves. This fulfills the law and pleases our creator.

Obeying this commandment means obeying all 10 of the ones God wrote on tablets of stone to give to Moses so long ago. Next time I'm running to win when Luther takes a final look at the 11th commandment, noting that neither one of us lives up to its true meaning.

This is Alister running to win is sponsored by the Moody church