The Law of Christ

I sometimes struggle to read certain portions of scripture.  The latter part of Exodus, Leviticus, and parts of Numbers and Deuteronomy I find challenging.  I have difficulty reading these passages in part because my context is so far removed from the original readers’ context.  Some of it I simply find tedious and monotonous.  But I read on, knowing that there are treasures to be found if I look close enough. 

The Ten Commandments found in Exodus 20 and Deuteronomy 5 are probably what comes to most of our minds when we think about the Mosaic Law.  The first portion of these words are concerned with our relationship with God.  The latter portion have to do with our relationship with other people.  Together they form the foundation for the entire Old Testament Law. 

In Matthew’s gospel, when Jesus was asked which commandment was greatest, he responded by quoting Deuteronomy 6:5 and Leviticus 19:18, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.  This is the greatest and first commandment.  And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.  On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.”  These two commandments should be the foundation of our Christian ethic.  To understand and live out God’s will, we also need to pray, study, reflect, and worship, but if these two commands form the bedrock of our actions, we’ll never go too far astray.  - Shay