Love and the Law

First-century Jews eagerly anticipated a Messiah who would overthrow the oppressive regime that held them under its abusive, pagan rule. In that regard, they weren’t wrong—Christ did come to break the chains that bound Israel. They simply had the wrong regime in mind. Instead of casting off Rome’s political and military authority, Christ attacked Israel’s apostate religion and it self-righteous rulers.

In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus delivered a devastating assault on Israel’s apostasy. Their religion, made up of human tradition mingled with Old Testament truth, was not at all representative of the purity and authority of God’s revealed Word. The Jews had managed to distort every precept of God, lowering His standards to accommodate their sanctimonious self-righteousness. Christ’s Sermon on the Mount repeatedly showed how true kingdom living far exceeded the form of apostate Jewish religion that existed at that time. In the course of a few hours, He comprehensively exposed their corruption.

For example, Jesus revealed how the command “You shall not murder” (Exodus 20:13) had been diminished in the hands of Israel’s religious leaders. He said,

“You have heard that the ancients were told, ‘You shall not commit murder’ and ‘Whoever commits murder shall be liable to the court.’ But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother shall be guilty before the court; and whoever says to his brother, ‘You good-for-nothing,’ shall be guilty before the supreme court; and whoever says, ‘You fool,’ shall be guilty enough to go into the fiery hell” (Matthew 5:21–22).

In the same way, He condemned their shallow understanding of the seventh commandment, “You shall not commit adultery” (Exodus 20:14; Matthew 5:27–28) and the third commandment (Exodus 20:7; Matthew 5:33–37). And He showed how they had corrupted the principle of “eye for eye, tooth for tooth” (Exodus 21:24), instead exhorting them, “But I say to you, do not resist an evil person; but whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also. If anyone wants to sue you and take you shirt, let him have your coat also” (Matthew 5:39–40).

Finally, He dealt with the vile corruption of the instructions to “love your neighbor as yourself.” That would have been a familiar commandment to His listeners, as it was spelled out explicitly in Leviticus 19:17–18: “You shall not hate your fellow countryman in your heart; you may surely reprove your neighbor, but shall not incur sin because of him. You shall not take vengeance, nor bear any grudge against the sons of your people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself.” Jesus addressed their twisted perspective on “loving your neighbor” and, in doing so, provided for us an informative and helpful look at this all-important feature of love. The Lord said:

You have heard that it was said, “You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.” But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven; for He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? If you greet only you brothers, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same? Therefore you are to be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect. (Matthew 5:43–48)

As we know, the second great commandment—after “love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind” (Matthew 22:37)—is “love your neighbor as yourself” (v. 39). In fact, the Ten Commandments can be divided into two sections: one section having to do with love toward God, and the other having to do with love toward our neighbor. Essentially, those two key commandments sum up all of God’s law. Jesus made that very point, saying, “On these two commandments depend the whole Law and the Prophets” (v. 40).

The Apostle Paul echoed the idea that this simple directive gathers up everything else we’ve been commanded regarding how we relate to one another: “He who loves his neighbor has fulfilled the law. For this, ‘You shall not commit adultery, you shall not murder, you shall not steal, you shall not covet,’ and if there is any other commandment, it is summed up in this saying, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself’” (Romans 13:8–9). Given Scripture’s abundant exhortations on the matter, to understand the importance of loving our neighbor is to recognize the high priority God placed on how we conduct our relationships.

And in the Sermon on the Mount, the Lord Himself speaks to the very heart of this commandment. He pushes past the corrupt traditions and the Scripture twisting of Israel’s religious elite, digging down to the foundational truth about how God expects His people to interact with both their neighbors and their enemies.

This truth from the mouth of our Lord is as difficult for us today as it was for the original audience. In the days ahead, we will probe the depths of Christ’s powerful teaching and how it applies to each of our lives.