What is love?

Short Study

Most all agree that we are to love Yahweh with all our heart and love our fellow man. Most all agree that it is to be out of sincerity and focus on Him, not on ourselves. The point of disagreement seems to be to ‘what actions or beliefs truly show forth our love to Him?’

Yahweh, in His infinite wisdom surely knew that this issue would arise. If He only gave 2 commandments:

Deuteronomy 6:5- “Love Yahweh with all your heart, all your soul and all your might”

and

Leviticus 19:18- “Love Your neighbor as yourself”.

If there is any question at all as to HOW we are to love Yahweh and HOW we are to love our neighbor, then His law (teaching) will settle any differences. This is why it is written:

2 Tim 3:16- All scripture is given by inspiration of Yahweh, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness.

In this passage, the Holy Scriptures (at the time this was written, there was no “new testament”) carried 7 characteristics: 

  1. They made one wise unto salvation
  2. They were given by inspiration of Yahweh
  3. All scripture is profitable for doctrine
  4. All scripture is profitable for reproof
  5. All scripture is profitable for correction
  6. All scripture is profitable for instruction in righteousness
  7. Knowledge of scripture causes one to be perfected and equipped/furnished for applying good works

How true it is where Yahushua said that the law is summed up in 2 commandments! I believe this verse to be true when it says “All scripture”. There are some who say “certain scriptures” no longer apply today in favor of some spiritual substitute for what Yahweh intended as righteousness.

However, one cannot break any commandment in the physical without breaking it spiritually as well. For instance, you cannot commit adultery physically without doing so spiritually. Even so, you cannot break the Sabbath physically without doing so spiritually.

While it is true that the Holy Spirit will lead us into what is right and what is wrong and that His law is supposed to be written in our hearts and minds, it is also true that the Holy Spirit must agree with what is already written. This truth is manifested in this scripture:

Isaiah 8:20- To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them.

This scripture indeed applies also to the Apostle Paul, even though many would like to “twist his words to their own destruction” to quote Peter/Kepha. It isn’t the obedient who are going into the path of destruction but the disobedient.

The truth is that there is not a commandment written that does not tell us how to love Yahweh or love our neighbor.

This is the true meaning of Yahushua’s great words. Anyone who says that any commandment to the common man does not apply as Yahweh wrote it is not heeding the Spirit of Yahweh but is instead creating their own standard. 

Yahushua knew this (and we should also) that man shall not live by bread alone but by “Every word” that proceeds out of the mouth of Yahweh, no matter where it is written. (Matthew 4:4) In believing this, one need not apologize. In Matthew 4, Yahushua surely did not apologize to satan.