THE GREATEST COMMANDMENTS ACCORDING TO JESUS CHRIST

Antinomians say that faith renders the Christian free from obligation to obey the Ten Commandments, and is in itself sufficient for salvation.  According to them,  Jesus taught that loving God and our neighbor replaces our duty to obey The Ten Commandments.

This is the scripture that they use to support their heresy:

"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."  Matt 22:35-40

Jesus didn't replace The Ten Commandments with those two precepts of love.  With them, He established The Ten Commandments as The Royal Law of God by which all men will be judged.  Friends, it is impossible to love God, or our neighbour, without obeying The Ten Commandments!

Here, John tells us HOW to love God:

"For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous."  I Jn 5:3

In his answer to the lawyer, Jesus quoted directly from Deut 6:5-6 where it tells us HOW MUCH we are to love God.  We read:

"And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.  And these words [The Ten Commandments], which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart ..."

Jesus is teaching us to obey The Ten Commandments with all our hearts ...  That is HOW MUCH we are to love God!

Now, let us consider the second precept of love "Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself".

These commandments also show us our duty to God.  They pertain to our relationships with other people:  Honor your father and mother.  Thou shalt not kill. Thou shalt not commit adultery.  Thou shalt not steal. Thou shalt not bear false witness. Thou shalt not covet ...anything that is thy neighbours.

Again, it is impossible to love our neighbor and disobey those commandments.  In his answer to the lawyer, Jesus establishes The Ten Commandments by quoting from this
Old Testament Scripture:

"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. Lev 19:17-18

Jesus is teaching us to correct the brother who is disobeying The Ten Commandments -- That is the scriptural example of "loving thy neighbour as thyself."

Harold and Donna Kupp

   "And the dragon was wroth with the woman,
     and went to make war with the remnant of her seed,
            WHICH KEEP THE COMMANDMENTS OF GOD,
     AND HAVE THE TESTIMONY OF JESUS CHRIST."
     Rev 12:17 (KJV)