It's amazing to me how those who go on about following the law, those who are legalistic, totally ignore the chief and primary commandments in which all other commandments are fulfilled: "Love the Lord your God with all of your heart, with all of your soul, with all of your mind, and with all of your strength," and "Love your neighbor as yourself." Likewise, Jesus Christ's other, explicit commands are also ignored, "Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who persecute you, and pray for those who abuse you," and "Love one another like I loved you." If one were to do these, all other commands would be fulfilled in the process. You literally do not need to know any other commands or moral codes other than these things. As Rabbi Gamaliel once said, "the rest is commentary." If someone is going to be a legalist, then why wouldn't they harp on keeping these actual commands which Jesus taught which themselves fulfill all the Torah and the Prophets? It's clear that Jesus Himself called the first two the Greatest of all the commandments in the Torah, and it's equally clear that He directly commanded the latter two from His own lips.
But no, let's focus on which day should be the Sabbath. Let's focus on which ritual needs to be done when. Let's focus on how long a man's hair is, or whether or not women should teach or lead. Because it's far more important to God what men or women do in the privacy of their own bedrooms and with whom than to actually obey the commands God Incarnate Himself said were the most important ones.
"Dear ones, we should love one another because every single person who loves is born of God and knows God. The person not loving hasn't known God, because God is love." And, "Dear ones, if God loved us in this way, we also are obligated to love one another. No one had gazed on God at any time. If we should love one another, God makes His home within us and His love is having been brought to completion within us. With this we know that we are making our home within Him and He within us, because He gave to us out of His Spirit." And also "God is love, and the person making his home within love makes his home within God and God makes his home within him."
If you're going to be legalistic about something, be legalistic about what actually matters to God. Not how much you tithe or when, not how often you go to church, not whether you're wearing the right clothes or using the right Christianese, but be legalistic about mercy, charity, kindness, and most importantly loving one another. How can you say you love God whom you can see yet hate your brother whom you can't? I guarantee you God is not going to care which Bible translation you use, what particular view you hold on the end times, or any other ridiculous thing such as these. If you're going to demand folks follow God's law, then actually follow the law God said was important, Love the Lord your God, love one another as Jesus Christ loved you, love your neighbor, and love your enemies. And while you're at it, throw in "Forgive and you will be forgiven," and "Don't judge so that you won't be judged." Or did you think these were more like "guidelines" than actual teachings or rules? Or how about, "If anyone doesn't deny himself, pick up his cross and follow Me, he cannot be My disciple."
If you're going to harp on the rules, or "God's Law," understand what that Law actually is, and what those rules actually are. Otherwise, you don't actually know Him, and are lying to yourself, to others, and to Him.
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