God's Requirements

2 Chronicles 13:10-11 (AMP)
11 Every morning and every evening they offer the burnt offerings and the fragrant incense to the Lord; and the [a]showbread is set on the clean table [of pure gold], and the golden lampstand with its lamps is ready to light every evening; for we keep the charge of the Lord our God [that is, the obligation we have to Him], but you have abandoned (turned away from) Him.

I did my usual reading procedure and flipped to 2 Chronicles 13.  I read about one of the battles between Israel and Judah in which Israel had taken to Idols and Idol worship instead of worshiping the Lord.  King Abijah says in the text that Judah had stayed faithful to God, continuing to burn incense and other offerings to the Lord, keeping what he called “the charge of the Lord our God.”  In the Amplified, the translation adds that it meant the obligation we have to God.  In the NIV translation, instead of using the word “charge,” it uses the word “requirements.”  Back then, burnt offerings, incense, and sacrifices were made to God to show obedience.  But, that’s not the case today.  So I started thinking, “What are our requirements under the new covenant?”  Jesus was asked the question of “what is the greatest commandment” given to us.   Which of the commands is greatest?  God’s first requirement is to love him.

Love God

Mark 12:30 (AMP)
29 Jesus answered, “The first and most important one is: ‘Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God is one Lord; 30 and you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul (life), and with all your mind (thought, understanding), and with all your strength.’

Jesus’ answer refers to Deuteronomy 6:5 where Moses tells the Israelites the same thing.  Jesus says this commandment is the greatest.  I’ve heard both of theses passages many times throughout all the years I’ve attended church and never thought about the “why” behind the directive?

Romans 5:8 (AMP)
8 But God clearly shows and proves His own love for us, by the fact that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

A very important thing to remember is that we love God because He loves us.  He loves us so much that he sent his son to die for us as the ultimate sacrifice for our sins.  At times, I go through life trying to obey commands because I’m afraid of Hell.  I remember the swift and just wrath of God of the Old Testament and even some of the wrath of the New Testament in Acts, but never stop to think that I should love God simply because He loves me.  According to this verse, God loved me even though I sin.  The Old Testament describes God as a jealous God.  He gets angry.  We grieve him with our sin and he loves us anyway.

1 Chronicles 16:34 (AMP)
O give thanks to the Lord, for He is good;  For His loving-kindness endures forever.

God’s love also lasts forever.  Stated in the verse above, we should be thankful because of that fact.

Love Others


Mark 12:33-34 (AMP)
33 and to love Him with all the heart and with all the understanding and with all the strength, and to [unselfishly] love one’s neighbor as oneself, is much more than all burnt offerings and sacrifices.”

Matthew 22:37-40
37 And Jesus replied to him, “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ 38 This is the first and greatest commandment. 39 The second is like it, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself [that is, unselfishly seek the best or higher good for others].’ 40 The whole Law and the [writings of the] Prophets depend on these two commandments.”

These two accounts made me really think.  In Mark12:33-34, the teacher of the law that posed the question to Jesus gave an answer that Jesus accepted as correct.  It makes me think of the first passage I used.  It speaks of burnt offerings and sacrifice as requirements of God.  But here, it is said that loving your neighbor as yourself is more than burnt offerings and sacrifices.  It is mind blowing to think that what Abijah said was keeping God’s requirements for all of Judah is less than our command to love our neighbor.  In the next passage, at the end Jesus said that it summed up the law and the prophets, being the books in the Old Testament.  That is also amazing.  All of the Jews were governed by this law and Jesus was telling them that this simple command sums up their law.  The Amplified translation shows that our type of love should be one that unselfishly seeks the best and higher good of others.  The addition of the word “Unselfishly” makes me think that we are to do this over the wants of our own.   That’s a tall order, but I would think that if I loved someone in that way, I wouldn’t sin against them.  If I love God that way, I wouldn’t sin against him either.  Later in the Bible, Paul gave instruction on how to love.

1 cor 16:14
14 Let everything you do be done in love [motivated and inspired by God’s love for us].

Ephesians 5:2
2 and walk continually in love [that is, value one another—practice empathy and compassion, unselfishly seeking the best for others], just as Christ also loved you and gave Himself up for us, an offering and sacrifice to God [slain for you, so that it became] a sweet fragrance.

These passages say to walk continually unselfishly seeking the best for others just as above.  It adds Jesus’ love for us.  Jesus’ example of love is an extreme one to aspire to follow.  I don’t know that I would be down to be crucified for someone.  The same theme is often mentioned throughout the Bible.  The order for husbands to love their wives as Christ loves the church.  To have the compassion, wisdom and gentleness of Jesus and use it for the good of another person would be a difficult task.

1 John 2:9-10
9 The one who says he is in the Light [in consistent fellowship with Christ] and yet [a]habitually hates (works against) his brother [in Christ] is in the darkness until now. 10 The one who [b]loves and unselfishly seeks the best for his [believing] brother lives in the Light, and in him there is no occasion for stumbling or offense [he does not hurt the cause of Christ or lead others to sin].

The people that will say they are “good Christians” and hate or work against a brother, he is in darkness.  The comparison between the ones who hates and doesn’t hate in context makes me think that the darkness is outside of or away from God.

Love was clearly important to Jesus and the Apostles.  Two of the passages I used said “in Christ” or “Believing” to the command.  However, when asked of Jesus “who is my neighbor,” Jesus told the parable of the Good Samaritan in which the “hero” of the story that helped the man on the road was the least likely player in the tale; therefore suggesting that our neighbor could be anyone.