He said that the only commandment that he would add to the 10 is , Thou shalt love one another as you love me. It5 is the simplest yet hardest commandment. He did not say that you must love a Christian God or a Christian person. He said I am the way the truth and the light. He did not mean that you had to be a Christian. He said if you only live my way will you enter the kingdom of heaven.
2006-12-27 14:15:04 · 17 answers · asked by Gorgeoustxwoman2013 7 in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
Why do you ask questions such as this when you are not a believer? In Matthew 22:37 we read, You must love thy Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. The second is this, you must love your neighbor as yourself. What Jesus was saying that on these two commandment the whole law(ten commandment) hangs, and the prophets. Meaning, that if you keep these two new commandments, then you will not want to break any of the other ten. If you love all people, you sure wouldn't want to kill, steal, or lie about them or cheat with or on them. If you love God you want to keep his commandments. I do hope that you are really interested in knowing God. Good Luck.
2006-12-27 14:37:24 · answer #1 · answered by GraycieLee 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Correction and meaning,
John 13:34 I am giving YOU a new commandment, that YOU love one another; just as I have loved YOU, that YOU also love one another.
Shortly before giving the “new commandment,” Jesus humbly washed the feet of his apostles. His action on that occasion shows Christians that they should serve their fellow believers lovingly, even by performing humble tasks in their behalf. (John 13:1-16) But that was not all there was to the “new commandment.” That commandment on love was “new” in that it went further than the law given to the Israelites through Moses, under which Jesus and his disciples were at that time. That law specified: “You must love your fellow [or neighbor] as yourself.” (Lev. 19:18; Matt. 22:39) It called for neighbor love, but not for self-sacrificing love that would go even to the point of giving one’s life for a fellow human.
John 14:6 Jesus said to him: “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.
Only through Jesus, “the way,” can we approach God in prayer and have an approved relationship with Him. (John 15:16) Jesus is “the truth” in that the prophecies and shadows contained in the Hebrew Scriptures became a reality in him. (John 1:17; Col. 2:16, 17) Indeed, the primary intent of true prophecy is to illuminate his central role in the outworking of God’s purpose. (Rev. 19:10) Further, Jesus is “the life.” To gain the blessing of everlasting life, all must exercise faith in his ransom sacrifice.—John 3:16, 36; Heb. 2:9.
Read and meditate on the Bible a little more.
2006-12-27 22:46:51 · answer #2 · answered by papavero 6 · 2⤊ 1⤋
Jesus said that all the law was bound up in the commandments to love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul and mind, and to love your neighbor as you love yourself. One the eve of His passion He gave the "new" commandment" you spoke of. But don't zero in on one passage of scripture and assume the rest to be superfluous. Christ also told us to love our enemies. As for the not being a Christian bit, He did say that if you love Him you will keep His commandments. If you don't know of Christ you can't be expected to make a conscious affirmation of Him, but He can reach you on the spiritual level. However, to whom much has been given, much is expected. Also, He actually said, "I am the way, the truth and the life," not light.
2006-12-27 22:28:01 · answer #3 · answered by celebduath 4 · 3⤊ 0⤋
Actually, you have the quote wrong. What Jesus said was "I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father, except by Me." Only through Jesus could anyone come to redemption from sin.
And He did say He was God:
"I and My Father are one..."
"He that has seen Me has seen the Father..."
In His trial He was questioned if He had claimed to be the son of God - he said "I am, and you will see me sitting on the right hand of power and coming in the clouds of heaven." Sounds to me like He said He was God.
Jeebus is my Rectum: for a myth, nothing provable, why is He mentioned by the Roman historian Josephus? Why would His disciples be willing to die excrutiatingly painful deaths for believing in Him? (Would anyone be willing to be crucified for believing Puss In Boots actally lived?) Why would Thomas travel all the way to India to start a church there? No, there is evidence. And proof.
Alby: Nowhere in the bible does it say to conform to the point of destroying individuality. Nowhere does it record Jesus saying "Act ONLY like this, dress ONLY like this, think ONLY like this." Consider the woman from Samaria - He told her it doesn't matter where people worship God, as long as they truly worshipped (the Pharisees said God could only be worshipped in the Temple, the Samaritans worshipped God on a mountain). Sounds like He is advocating individuallity to me.
2006-12-27 23:02:08 · answer #4 · answered by d_f_cornish 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋
First, He never said He was adding anything. He said that loving one another as we love Him is the ONLY commandment He will give us. Every law found in the Mosaic law that implies love toward our "neighbor" is this "new" commandment. "New", because it omits every law dealing with sacrifice, the death penalty, laws of purification...namely, any law that dealt with worshipping "God" with means that one can do, and not do sincerely. This brings me to my second point. "New", because Jesus was now making sure we understood that our very thoughts are going to be judged, so if we think on our neighbor's wife with lust in our heart, we've already commited adultery with her. Finally, if you will notice, especially in John 17, that Jesus, during His ministry, made it a point to teach about His Father, and the will of His Father. NOW....if "Christians" were/are called "Christians" because they follow Christ, or are "Christ-like", and Christ is the Son of the Father YeHoVaH, then which "god" are we to love? Allah is not the father of Jesus, so therefore, he was not taught by Jesus, nor loved by Jesus. Now, as to loving "Christians" only...Jesus also taught that Christians should love their "enemies" as well. That would be those considered "pagan", like the Samaritans that the Jews so despised.
2006-12-27 23:19:37 · answer #5 · answered by lilmsmooody 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋
I believe that was why he reached out to the other races (Gentiles, etc). Previously, the favored tribe was Israel and there would be no other exceptions. Now, Jesus is saying that there will no longer be a favored status for the Jews. That makes all of us equal in God's eyes.
Technically, that is.
2006-12-27 22:32:30 · answer #6 · answered by optimistic_pessimist1985 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Your question is not clear. Can you maybe re-phrase it. Jesus said:
Matthew 22: 40: “Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?” 37 He said to him: “‘You must love Jehovah your God with your whole heart and with your whole soul and with your whole mind.’ 38 This is the greatest and first commandment. 39 The second, like it, is this, ‘You must love your neighbor as yourself.’ 40 On these two commandments the whole Law hangs, and the Prophets.”
Mark 12: 28-34 : " Now one of the scribes that had come up and heard them disputing, knowing that he had answered them in a fine way, asked him: “Which commandment is first of all?” 29 Jesus answered: “The first is, ‘Hear, O Israel, Jehovah our God is one Jehovah, 30 and you must love Jehovah your God with your whole heart and with your whole soul and with your whole mind and with your whole strength.’ 31 The second is this, ‘You must love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.” 32 The scribe said to him: “Teacher, you well said in line with truth, ‘He is One, and there is no other than He’; 33 and this loving him with one’s whole heart and with one’s whole understanding and with one’s whole strength and this loving one’s neighbor as oneself is worth far more than all the whole burnt offerings and sacrifices.” 34 At this Jesus, discerning he had answered intelligently, said to him: “You are not far from the kingdom of God.” But nobody had the courage anymore to question him."
2006-12-27 22:27:20 · answer #7 · answered by wannaknow 5 · 0⤊ 1⤋
you are right, JESUS did not say that you have to be a Christian. when we were created by GOD, we were given free will. free will to do what we want regardless of how wrong it is. it is our choice to believe. GOD knows what we are going to do. he does not set out a map for our life, he just knows how your life is going to go. JESUS' last and most important commandment was 'Love one another as i have loved you.' that means 'thou without sin cast the first stone' and 'judge not, lest ye be judged.' understand? :)
2006-12-27 22:21:50 · answer #8 · answered by Christ Follower 3 · 2⤊ 0⤋
One could argue that "love one another as I have loved you," is just a variation on Leviticus 19, "love your neighbor as yourself." But I totally agree with you.. The whole law is summed up by "treat others the way youd like to be treated." "If you love me , youll keep my commands " (John 13-15)....Jesus being the way means to walk in him, abide in him, and we do this by loving...
A favorite part of that last super discourse in John that you reference is when Judas (not Iscariot) says "Lord how will you manifest yourself to us and not to the world." and Jesus answers, seeminly ingoring his question, "if you love me, youll keep my commandment, and the Father will love you, and We will come and make our home with you."
What seems like Jesus dodging the question is in fact a precise answer.. "if you want God to manifest himself to you, then LOVE people"...its only in loving others that we gain a sense of God's presence...
"Let us love one another, for love is of God, and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. Yet he who does not love does not know God for God IS love." (1 John 4)
"Know love, Know God. No love, no God."
2006-12-27 22:24:37 · answer #9 · answered by Heidegger 11 30 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Jesus also said:
Jhn 8:24 I said therefore unto you, that ye shall die in your sins: for if ye believe not that I am [he], ye shall die in your sins.
Notice the " he" is in parentheses, that means it was added by the translators. Jesus actually said " unless youbelieve that "I Am"
He was taking on the name that God used of Himself when Moses aked Him what His name was. And those in His immediate audience knew EXACTLY what He was saying.
Jhn 8:58 Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I am.
Jhn 8:59 Then took they up stones to cast at him
2006-12-27 22:29:09 · answer #10 · answered by revulayshun 6 · 1⤊ 1⤋