“This is My commandment- that you love one another as I have loved you.” - Jesus (John 15:12)

Jesus said that.

It was not a recommendation, a suggestion, nor did Jesus offer this up as good practical advice.

It was a commandment. And it was a defining one at that. It was a directive that had the ‘earmark’ or evidence that would identify anyone who was a true follower of Jesus. “By this…will all know that you are My disciples…” (John 13:35)

And He did not command us to just ‘love one another’. On the contrary- Jesus made the point to explain exactly how…we were to love others: - AS. HE. LOVED. US.  (Rom. 5:8)

There really is not much ‘wiggle room’ left there in that command that allows for us to interpret it in a way that makes it more convenient for us to not fulfill and carry out either.

Oh, and in case it had slipped your mind, Jesus also reminds us that “IF…IF…IF…we truly love Him, then we will DO what He says.” (as in 'keep His commandments' -John 14:15). Remember…”Not everyone who says, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven but those who DO the will of My Father in heaven.” (Matt. 7:21)

I would imagine that is why Paul wrote and admonished us to ‘find out what is pleasing to the Lord’ … and to not be unwise (foolish) but to understand what the will of the Lord is.” (Eph. 5:11,17)

And it’s not enough to simply know and understand what…the will of the Lord is. We are expected to ‘do it’. (John 2:5; Heb. 5:9; Luke 6:48). May I just tell you now that this is not an option for us either? (Acts 3:22-23) I know some will feel a need to cluster with others and reassure one another that they are still ‘saved’ even if…they don’t do a very good job at keeping this command of loving others as Christ loved us. And we tell ourselves as long as we are willing to try every day to do a better job at it, then all will be well with our soul. That is when the fancy quotes and thick commentaries come out to assure us there is absolutely nothing any of us can ‘do’ to keep or earn or maintain our ‘salvation’. At least this is what we are constantly reminding ourselves.

Yet Jesus told those people in Matt. 7 to ‘depart’ from Him, despite all the ‘great things’ they had done in His name; and do you know why He turned them away? Because they had continued to practice sin.(22-23)

And just to keep this clear and simple: Sin is breaking the commandments of God. (1 John 3:4)

When we talk about God’s ‘law’, we are talking about His commandments that Jesus summed up rather nicely for a lawyer there in Matt. 22:34-40 explaining that all of God’s law could be summed up in loving God with all our hearts and loving our neighbor as ourself. Of course, as we have already established at the beginning here…the way we were to love our neighbor was in the same manner in which He loved us. (There is a reason for my repetition here)

So there you have it. And do you know what so many have failed to recognize or connect the dots on? This law that was never done away with, according to Jesus (Matt. 5:17), was meant to be adhered to if we wanted to inherit eternal life.

I know…I know…that just kind of smacks us in the face of being so far removed from what you hear in most pulpits today; but all I can do is point you back to your Bible and let you look it up and read for yourself. Jesus made that clear…”Do this (keep the law) and you will live.” (Luke 10:25-28) You might also jot down Rom. 2:13 & 3:31 as a footnote next to that passage as well.

Changing lanes here now….

I’m guessing that at some point in your life you have experienced something similar to this where after you signed on to join a new company or business or maybe joined some sports team or any organization to speak of, and early on, you listened to a director or CEO or coach begin to explain to you the goals of the company/organization. Sometimes those goals may have sounded vague and unclear; and other times they were quite detailed and concise, laid out in a way that everyone could easily understand what the goal and vision was for everyone.

If the organization in which you were learning about their goals was reputable and successful, chances are the goals they laid out for you were attainable. And better yet, a ‘plan’ was given on how they expected you to achieve these goals for the betterment of the ‘team’.

So imagine if you will, signing on with some outfit that lays down some extremely lofty goals, and immediately you sense warning signals as you quickly conclude these goals are impossible to attain. Then, to drive the nail into the heart of any hope you had on being a part of this organization, no plan is given on how those goals can be reached. You might come to the conclusion you have found yourself up that proverbial creek with no oars in your boat.

Jesus might not have fit in with the mainstream establishment of today given His approach of recruiting followers sounded a bit radical, if not irrational. I mean…listen to the lofty target He laid down with statements He made to the people; and these goals were also later supported by those early followers who recorded His words for us to read generations later.

“You are going to be perfect as your Father in heaven is perfect.” (Matt. 5:48)

“You are going to love others as I have loved you.” (John 15:12)

“Go and sin no more or something worse will happen to you.” (John 5:14)

“If you fail to repent, you will perish.” (Luke 13:3,5)

“And should you choose to sign on and follow Me, you will be asked to take up a cross, deny yourself, as in lay down your life and you cannot put mother or father or family or anything else for that matter, above or ahead of My plan and My leading in your life. (Luke 9:23; 14:25-33)

And should you be true to this calling and abide in Him, then you will walk like He walked and no longer continue to sin. (1 John 2:6; 3:6)

Oh….and this ‘old school thinking’ about not murdering anyone or committing the act of adultery…let me inform any and all now that if you even so much call someone a fool or lust after someone in your heart then you have already failed and sinned. (Matt. 5:21-28)

No wonder ‘many of His disciples turned and no longer walked with Him’. (John 6:66) Who could possibly live like that?

This was when Jesus turned to those remaining twelve and asked them: “Do you want to go away also?” Peter steps up to the plate with a great response, asking Jesus “Where Lord? Where are we going to go since You are the one who has the words of eternal life?” (John 6:67-68)

What Peter didn’t say here, but is probably still thinking, as were his counterparts and even most of us today are wondering…”How Lord? How could we ever do these things you mention. How can we ever fulfill this goal of being like you and loving others as you do and walking like you walked?”

Friends…this is where the ‘great divide of deception’ entered in and convinced the multitudes that all this was nothing more than poetic or figurative language. You know, ‘lofty goals’ to aspire to but realize they are impossible to reach. We can’t ever be like Jesus or walk like Him. (1 John 2:6). We can’t really become a ‘new creation’ (2 Cor. 5:17) or literally be ‘conformed to His likeness and image’. (Rom. 8:29)

And yet…Did God really say all that? (Gen. 3:1)

Yes, yes He did; repeatedly. But most will reject it and turn from it. An entire generation of His people wandered and rotted in the wilderness because they refused to believe God was capable of fulfilling His word in them. (Num. 13-14). Why Paul even cites this rebellious generation as an example and warning to us so that we won’t follow in their steps. (1 Cor. 10:4-11) And still, it is no different today. Other gospels have filtered in introducing ‘another Jesus’ and providing ‘another spirit’ to lead people astray just as the serpent deceived Eve. (2 Cor. 11:2-4)

And we have unfortunately, mastered the art of walking in a ‘form of godliness’ but failed to tap in to the power of God that would enable us to fulfill His will in our lives. (2 Tim. 3:1-7)…always learning but never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.

Welcome to the great ‘falling away’ from the faith that Paul warned would characterize the times leading up to His return. (2 Thess. 2:3)