A New Commandment
Posted by: ba <ba@...>
http://www.forthright.net
Straight to the Cross
COLUMN: Outlines of Faith
A New Commandment
by Greg Tidwell
"Beloved, I am writing you no new commandment, but
an old commandment that you had from the
beginning. The old commandment is the word that
you have heard. At the same time, it is a new
commandment that I am writing to you, which is
true in him and in you, because the darkness is
passing away and the true light is already
shining" (1 John 2:7,8 ESV).
God's commandment to love is not surprising to
Christians. Love is the foundation of the gospel
message. "For God so loved the world, that he gave
his only Son, that whoever believes in him should
not perish but have eternal life" (John 3:16). To
know Jesus Christ is to know the clearest
expression of the love of God. "In this is love,
not that we have loved God but that he loved us
and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our
sins" (1 John 4:10). The commandment to love is
not new, but is the essential message of the "old,
old story."
The love presented in the gospel of Christ is more
than a feeling, it is a reality embodied in a
sacrifice of eternal significance. The power of
the gospel is not merely that God loves us
somewhat, but that God loves us profoundly. That
God loves us so much that Jesus died for our sins.
To anyone believing the gospel message, the
commandment to love is not new, but foundational.
It is a basic understanding required to even
become a Christian.
In contrast with Christians, the unregenerated
world finds the commandment to love to be a new
concept. Apart from an understanding of the
Christian message, the commandment to love is
peculiar and surprising. The world would never
have brought forth a message of sacrificial love
with the gospel's depth and power. In this sense,
the command to love is forever new.
Jesus teaches this new understanding, using His
life and love as an example for us to follow: "A
new commandment I give to you, that you love one
another: just as I have loved you, you also are to
love one another. By this all people will know
that you are my disciples, if you have love for
one another" (John 13:34,35). Faith in Jesus
Christ is inseparable from the experience of God's
love. It is impossible for someone so enlightened
to continue to walk in darkness. Knowing the love
of Christ, we understand how we are to reach out
to others in love.
A profession of faith in Christ is not the same as
the reality of saving faith. It is possible to
know about Christ without ever experiencing his
salvation. The experience of salvation, however,
changes a person's life and outlook completely.
Receiving the love of Christ, we are given power
to be God's people, ordered and guided by that
love.
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