WHO IS GOD?

Who is the God we must love? Is He the devil? Is He an earthly animal, person or thing? Is He the lifeless idol in many altars and churches, chiseled by man out of stone or wood or metal? The answer to the questions is, of course, No.

                  ¹³ …our great God and Savior [is] Y’shua the Messiah. TITUS 2

Y’shua ("Jesus Christ" to the world) we must love with all our hearts and with all our souls and with all our minds and with all our strength. There is no other God.

⁶ [Y’shua] who, being in very nature God… PHILIPPIANS 2

¹⁵ …is the image [visible likeness] of the invisible God, the first-born over all creation. ¹⁶ For by Him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether throne or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by Him and for Him. ¹⁷ [He exists] before all things [were created], and in [union with] Him all things hold together. ¹⁸ And He is the Head of the Body, the Church; He is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything He might have the supremacy. ¹⁹ For God was pleased to have all His fullness dwell in Him, and through Him to reconcile to Himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through His blood, shed on the cross. COLOSSIANS 1

In Y’shua was found two characteristics exclusive to God:

Omniscient (All-Knowing)

³⁰ His disciples said to Him, “You are all-knowing. You do not even have to hear our questions to answer them.” JOHN 16 

Omnipotent (All-Powerful, Almighty).—He restored the health of lepers at a time when leprosy was yet incurable. He healed all kinds of diseases and infirmities. And while no one in history has given sight to a man born without eyes, He did (John 9:32).

¹⁶ When evening came, many who were demon-possessed were brought to Him, and He drove out the spirits with a word and healed all the sick. ¹⁷ This was to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah: He took up our infirmities and carried our diseases. MATTHEW 8

³¹ The people were amazed when they saw the mute speaking, the crippled made well, the lame walking and the blind seeing. And they praised the God of Israel. MATTHEW 15

Y’shua was life-giving. He brought the dead back to life (eg. Lazarus in John 11:44, the daughter of Jairus in Mark 5:41, and the son of a widow in Nain in Luke 7:15).

Y’shua fed no less than 5,000 with five loaves of bread and 4,000 with seven. 

³⁷ They all ate and were satisfied. Afterwards the disciples picked up seven basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over. ³⁸ The number of those who ate was four thousand, besides women and children. MATTHEW 15

The prophet Moses had to part the waters of the Red Sea (Exodus 14:5-31) and the prophet Elijah, the Jordan River (2 Kings 2:9), to get to their destinations. Y’shua simply walked over the waters to get to His (Matthew 14:25).

Y’shua demonstrated power of command over the five components of creation: the four elements of water, earth, wind and fire (as in Mark 4:39); the plants (as in Matthew 21:18-19); the animals; the humankind; and the celestial beings—both the angels (as in Matthew 4:11) and the demons (as in Luke 4:36).

¹⁰ The Messiah is the Head over every power and authority. COLOSSIANS 2

Y’shua was the source of all authority and power. It was by His authority that appointed some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be teachers (Ephesians 4:11). 

To the apostle Peter He gave the power to walk over the waters (Matthew 14:29). To His disciples—then and today—He has given:   

 

§  The power to exercise His powers

¹² I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in Me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father. JOHN 14

¹³ I can do everything through Him who gives me strength. PHILIPPIANS 4

§  The power to overcome Lucifer and his demons, and to bind them

¹⁹ I have given you authority to overcome all the power of the enemy. LUKE 10

¹⁹ I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven: whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven. MATTHEW 16

§  The power to undo wicked works

⁸ Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out demons. MATTHEWS 10

¹⁷ And these signs will accompany those who believe: In My name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues; ¹⁸ they will pick up snakes with their hands; and when they drink deadly poison, it will not hurt them at all; they will place their hands on the sick, and they will get well. MARK 16

§  The power to forgive sin (except blasphemy of the Spirit and deliberate sin)

²³ If you forgive anyone his sins, they are forgiven; if you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven. JOHN 20

§  The power to make prayers come true

¹⁹ Again, I tell you that if two of you on earth agree about anything you ask for, it will be done for you by My Father in heaven. ²⁰ For where two or three come together in My name, there I am with them. MATTHEW 18

By His omniscience and omnipotence, no doubt Y’shua was “God with us” (Matthew 1:23).

THE FULLNESS OF GOD LIVES IN BODILY FORM IN Y’SHUA (Colossians 2:9).

The invisible God took the form of Son of Man to become a visible God to the humankind. He became the personification of two natures: human (pregnancy by Mary) and divine (what was conceived was of the Holy Spirit).

³⁰ The angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God. ³¹ You will be with child and give birth to a son…” ³⁴ “How will this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?” ³⁵ The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overthrow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God.” LUKE 1

²⁰ An angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit… ²² All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: ²³ The virgin will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel—which means ‘God with us.’” MATTHEW 1

Because Y'shua had dual nature, when we study each of His pronouncements, it must be determined who spoke: Was it the God in Him or the man in Him? We must do it to avoid confusion and arriving at the wrong conclusion that He was only human, not God. The hint is, when the Gospel refers to the speaker as Son of Man, the reference is usually to His humanity; and when it refers to the speaker as Son of God, the reference is usually to His God-being. 

When Y’shua prayed (and He prayed a lot while on earth), it was the man in Him who prayed. It was not a case of God praying to Himself.

When He cried out in a loud voice, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?” (Matthew 27:46), it was the man in Him who cried out.

When He said “The Father is greater than I” (John 14:28), it was the man in Him who spoke. The words should not be interpreted as if a lesser or inferior God was talking of a greater God. For there is no such being as a greater God or a lesser God. There is only one God (Deuteronomy 6:4, John 5:44, 1 Corinthians 8:4, 5).

In Matthew 12:32 He said, “Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven. But anyone who speaks a word against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come.” That should be read as “Anyone who speaks a word against My humanity will be forgiven. But anyone who speaks a word against My divinity will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come.”

In Mark 13:32 He said of the end time, “No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.” In this pronouncement Son was a reference to His humanity.   

Open your Bible to Luke 5:17-26, to the healing of the paralytic. God knew the man’s sins were causing the paralysis. The man had to be cleansed of his sins in order to be healed. So God said to him, “Your sins are forgiven.” The Pharisees and Torah-teachers did not see God. They saw Y’shua speaking and thought He was blaspheming for, as they correctly asserted, “Only God can forgive sins!” (Luke 5:21). But no blasphemy was made. The paralytic got healed; a self-evident proof was given that his sins were forgiven. Because the sins were forgiven and only God could forgive sin, an indisputable proof was given to believers and unbelievers alike that the God in Y’shua had spoken.    

¹⁰ Don’t you believe that I am in the Father and that the Father is in Me? The words I say to you are not just My own. Rather, it is the Father, living in Me, who is doing His work. ¹¹ Believe Me when I say “I am in the Father and the Father is in Me;” or at least believe on the evidence of the miracles themselves. JOHN 14

be careful of taking Y’shua’s words literally. He was fond of speaking in parables.

                ²⁵ I have been speaking figuratively. JOHN 16

When He spoke of “My Father in heaven” (Matthew 12:50), it was the Son of Man who spoke. The Son of God cannot possibly have a Father. Hebrews 7:3 is explicit: The Son of God was without father or mother, without genealogy, without beginning of days or end of life.

That being the case, it should be clear in our minds that God did not sire a Son. As we've said, there is only one God. The Father and the Son are one.

Why the veiled communication? Because the message of restoration has been exclusively reserved to those who have the heart for it (Matthew 13:11).

              ³ [The Gospel] is veiled to those who are perishing [those who persist in walking the realm of death]. 2 CORINTHIANS 4

The fact is, not even all of those who have the heart for it can understand God’s communications. Understanding comes only to persons whom God gifted with insight. As in the case of Simon Peter:

              ¹⁵ “But what about you?” [The Lord] asked. “Who do you say I am?” ¹⁶ Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.” ¹⁷ Y’shua replied, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by man, but by My Father in heaven.” MATTHEW 16

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"SHALOM" IS A MIGHTY BLESSING!

Shalom is Hebrew Aramaic word for peace and commonly used as a greeting or salutation. The Muslims pronounce it salam.

⁵ When you enter a house, first say, “[Shalom] to this house[hold].” ⁶ If a man of [shalom] is there, your [greeting] will rest on him; if not, it will return to you. LUKE 10

Shalom is more than a greeting. It is more of a prayer for wholeness or completeness. In Strong’s Hebrew Dictionary, No. 7965, shalom means:

safe, i.e. (fig.) well, happy, friendly; also (abstr.) welfare, i.e. health, prosperity, peace:--X do, familiar, X fare, favour, + friend, X greet, (good) health, (X perfect, such as be at) peace (-able, -ably), prosper (-ity, ous), rest, safe (-ly), salute, welfare, (X all is, be) well, X wholly.

The Muslims pronounce it salam. When they say As-salam alaikum! to you, they are extending a warm welcome to you and a sincere prayer for God's blessings to pour upon you. They say it with a bow and a gesture of the right palm touching the belly button (symbolic of earth), the mouth (symbolic of man, you) and the forehead (symbolic of heaven, God). In effect they are saying to you, “Your lowly servants on earth pray for the goodwill of heaven to be showered upon you!”

In our language As-salam alaikum! literally means “May the shalom of God be with you!” The common practice is to answer it with Alaikum as-salam! You bow and make a reverse gesture of your right palm touching your forehead, mouth and belly button—which are symbolic of your acceptance of their humility, welcome and prayer. Alaikum as-salam! means “May the shalom of God be also with you!”

In the Catholic mass, the priest greets everybody with “May the peace of the Lord be with you!” Actually what is meant to be said is, “May the shalom of God be with you!”

When God grants you shalom, you receive good health, soundness, fullness, well-being, prosperity, protection, safety, orderly life, harmony, serenity, tranquility (freedom from disturbance or discord), rest, joy, happiness, God’s love and favor. It comes with healing, creativity and success, too. Given this understanding, we appreciate why God came to earth and took the form of Son of Man:

²⁷ Shalom I leave you, My shalom I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid. JOHN 14

⁶ For to us a Child is born… and He will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Shalom. ⁷ Of the increase of His government and shalom there will be no end. ISAIAH 9

The Prince of Shalom (“Sar shalom”) as Y’shua is called perfectly describes His ministry and personality.

Shalom is a mighty blessing. Next time you pray, pray for shalom. And next time you meet a neighbor, bless him by wishing him “Shalom!” Proverbs 18:21 tells us there is life and death in the power of the tongue. Therefore, as you wish him shalom, you are speaking into  his life all the wonderful things that shalom means.

WHAT IS LOVE?

If LOVE is the nature of man, how come our world today is not LOVE-personified?  

That’s because the world has opted to set aside God. It has pursued a path separate from Him and has opted not to grow into a fruitful tree. We are becoming the wasted seed in the Parable of the Sower (Matthew 13:1-9, 18-23).  

¹⁰ There is not a righteous man on earth who does what is right and never sins. ECCLESIASTES 7

We have adapted to a world system that promotes erroneous love. And what is erroneous love?

§  It is fond of saying I love you with the selfish I preceding love.

§  It is equated with companionship, with physical attraction, or worse, with “sexual oneness” the like of fornication, adultery, incest and homosexuality. Many see "love" as a four-letter word.

§  It prostitutes “love” and marries for money.

§  It discriminates whom to love.

§  It makes a trophy of the people it “loves” that they end up being idolized, caged and unhappy.

§  It sees “love” as an investment (as when politicians marry celebrities to add to their popularity, or when parents prepare their children to take care of them in their old age).  

§  It disregards God, which is ironical for “Love comes from God” (1 John 4:7). Where God is absent, love is absent.  

Does all this sound familiar to you? Of course, it does! We are its fruits.

³³ Make a tree good and its fruit will be good. Make a tree bad and its fruit will be bad. MATTHEW 12

Erroneous love puts in us a gnawing emptiness that has to be satisfied, a void that has to be filled. It makes us restless. Those of the so-called superior class, those seated on positions of great power and authority, those pedigreed in education, those who have reached the pinnacle of success in their careers, and those surrounded with material comforts—even they are restless, bored of what the world has to offer. They too are burdened and tire so easily in what they do.  

Have you ever talked to someone who is well-educated but unhappy? rich but sad? talented but depressed? beautiful but rejected? What makes people this way? According to the Book of Solomon, "Life without God (LOVE) no matter how seemingly valuable, leads to emptiness…”

No matter how hard we try to fill our emptiness with worldly appointments and trimmings, at the end of the day it begs to be resolved. Our hearts thirst for divine love… our minds thirst for divine love… our souls thirst for divine love… our strengths thirst for divine love…

¹⁷ The poor and the needy search for water, but there is none; their tongues are parched with thirst. But I the Lord will answer them; I, the God of Isra’el, will not forsake them. ISAIAH 41

It is for the thirsty that God incarnated. 

³⁷ If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink. Whoever believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him. JOHN 7

¹⁷ Whoever wishes, let him take the free gift of the water of life. REVELATION 22

¹³ Whosoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life. JOHN 4

²⁸ Come to Me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. ²⁹ Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. ³⁰ For My yoke is easy and My burden is light. MATTHEW 11

Divine Love (“LOVE”) is the opposite of erroneous love. Let us understand it from our Creator’s point of view: 

LOVE is all-inclusive. It welcomes everyone to its circle, associates with people of low position, and does not discriminate whom to love. Our FB friend Candy Yuzon-yee said, "God loves you unconditionally, no matter what you are and who you are."

<sup>45 (God) causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. MATTHEW 5

16 In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your father in heaven. MATTHEW 5
1</sup> My dear brothers and sisters, how can you claim to have faith in our glorious Lord Y’shua the Messiah if you favor some people over others? ³ If you give special attention and a good seat to the rich person, but you say to the poor one, “You can stand over there, or else sit on the floor”—well, ⁴ doesn’t this discrimination show that your judgments are guided by evil motives? JAMES 2 nlt

⁴⁰ … I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of Mine, you did for Me. ⁴⁵ I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for Me. MATTHEW 25

LOVE is oozing with generosity and uncontaminated with selfishness. 

⁵ God gives generously to all without finding fault. JAMES 1 

²⁷ Do not withhold good from those who deserve it, when it is in your power to act. ²⁸ Do not say to your neighbor “Come back later; I will give it tomorrow”—when you now have it with you. PROVERBS 3

⁴² When someone asks you for something, give it to him; when someone wants to borrow something, lend it to him. MATTHEW 5 tev

²⁰ Lend without charging interest. You may charge a foreigner interest, but not a brother Israelite [a fellow Christian]. DEUTERONOMY 23 

Giving can cause discomfort or inconvenience to the giver, that’s true, but look at the divine example in this touching story of Keavin Hayden:

After Adam sinned, God taught him about the destructiveness of sin by having him take the life of an innocent lamb. Adam had never witnessed death. Yet it was presented to him as the only way to forgiveness. So he took the life of that innocent little creature that had always looked at his master with eyes of love and trust. As Adam stood there in shock from the horror of the scene, the stain of crimson on his hand, he looked up and in agony cried out to God, “Is this what must happen to me because of my sin?” But God’s answer came back with tender love that could melt the heart of the most hardened sinner: “No, My son, that is what must happen to Me because of your sin.” (Truth That Matters, p. 21) 

LOVE reaches out to the needy, whatever the cost.

We may not be aware of it but to sin is to buy selfish, momentary pleasure. In exchange for the pleasure, we pawn to Lucifer everything we got and let him do with them whatever it is that pleases him. It is a pledge that no man can redeem by himself. The penalty for unredeemed pledges is Second Death (Romans 6:23).

We got ourselves into a predicament, so God came to help.

God left His comfort zone to free us from the bondage. He allowed the evil empire and its human agents the satisfaction of shaming Him and tormenting Him to death as a ransom to pay off our debts and release us from the pledge.

²² The whole world is a prisoner of sin. GALATIANS 3

⁸ The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil’s work. 1 JOHN 3

¹³ The Messiah… took the curse for our wrongdoing upon Himself. GALATIANS 3 tlb

¹ It is for freedom that the Messiah has set us free. GALATIANS 5

⁷ In Him we have redemption through His Blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace. EPHESIANS 1 

LOVE does not hesitate or retreat in the face of death or extreme suffering when necessary.

¹⁶ This is how we know what love is: Y’shua the Messiah laid down His life for us. 1 JOHN 3

⁹ Here is how God showed His love among us: God sent His only Son into the world, so that through Him we might have life. ¹⁰ Here is what love is: …He sent His Son to be the kapparah [atonement, expiation, propitiation] for our sins. 1 JOHN 4 cjb

The Son of Man suffered cruel torment, including the humiliation of being nailed to the cross and dying on it—a punishment reserved only for the worst criminals of the time. His appearance was so disfigured beyond that of any man, and His form marred beyond human likeness (Isaiah 52:14).

Nothing speaks more clearly of God's LOVE than the cross. The Son of Man died so that all of us might live (Hebrews 2:9).

² The Righteous One… is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only ours but also for the sins of the whole world. 1 JOHN 2

¹⁸ The Messiah died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God. 1 PETER 3

LOVE prevails over temptation. It is neither provoked by rudeness nor by meanness, nor by intimidation, nor by rejection, nor by hurt, nor by anger, nor by spitefulness, nor by revengefulness. LOVE is slow to anger and a thick wallet of second chances. Our temptation is to find fault, protest, condemn or react harshly against anyone who delivers discomfort, inconvenience or suffering to us—to reciprocate tooth for tooth. But that is not how LOVE works. The Son of Man meekly received the blows. He always transformed negative situations into positive. At the cross His dying words were a prayer: “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing” (Luke 23:34).

¹⁰ This is love: not that we have loved God, but that He loved us… ¹⁹ God loved us first. 1 JOHN 4

LOVE is gracious. It responds to ungodly deeds with godly deeds. It keeps on empathizing and forgiving even if the beneficiary is unworthy of empathy and forgiveness. God’s heart beats with compassion and mercy even for those who do not love Him.

⁶ The Messiah died for the ungodly… ⁸ God demonstrates His own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, the Messiah died for us… ¹⁰ When we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to Him through the death of His Son. ROMANS 5 

³ We were by [our sinful] nature objects of [God’s] wrath. ⁴ But because of His great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, ⁵ made us alive with the Messiah even when we were dead in transgressions —it is by grace you have been saved. EPHESIANS 2 
⁴⁵ Your Father in heaven causes His sun to shine on the evil and on the good. He sends His rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. MATTHEW 5 

During Y’shua’s time, the Jews did not associate with the Samaritans (John 4:9). But while teaching “Love your neighbor”, someone wisecracked, “Who is my neighbor?” He answered by giving the parable of a Samaritan who helped a Jew in need. Read Luke 10:29-37 to understand better.

Now, somebody might have rubbed us the wrong way. He might have mistreated us... irritated us... failed us... grieved us... and he might have done it not only once… but that does not give us a valid excuse to stop loving him. He remains our neighbor and a valued creation of God. Remember, the Son of Man shed His precious blood and died for him too. 

⁴⁴ I tell you, love your enemies; and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. MATTHEW 5

LOVE is edifying. To edify is to build up our neighbors in the Lord. The process is like putting up a skyscraper; it’s not easy. As we all know, skyscrapers do not sprout overnight. We have to plan our moves and accomplish them one step at a time. We start from the bottom, put up solid foundations, and inch our way up.

           ¹ We who are strong ought to bear with the failings of the weak and not to please ourselves. ² Each of us should please his neighbor for his good, to build him up. ROMANS 15

Building up our neighbor in the Lord requires personal sacrifices on our part, a large chunk of which has to do with humbling ourselves. “A proud Christian is a contradiction,” said Billy Graham. 

                ⁴ Love is… never boastful or proud. 1 CORINTHIANS 13 tlb 

                ⁹ Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil and cling to what is good. ¹⁰ Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Honor one another above yourselves. ¹¹ Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. ¹² Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. ¹³ Share with God’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality. ¹⁴ Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. ¹⁵ Rejoice with those who rejoice and mourn with those who mourn. ¹⁶ Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position. Do not be conceited. ¹⁷ Do not repay evil with evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everybody. ¹⁸ If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. ROMANS 12

In summary, Scripture says of LOVE:

⁴ Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. ⁵ It is not rude, it is not self-seeking. It is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. ⁶ Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. ⁷ It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. 1 CORINTHIANS 13

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GOD AFTER RIGHTEOUSNESS, NOT GOOD WORKS

You may not see Him doing it but as we do something… as we contemplate on doing something… as we open our mouths to say something… God is beside us looking at our hearts. “God is looking for a heart of worship, a heart of servitude,” says Our Daily Bread. “At the heart of worship should be worship from the heart.”

⁷ The Lord doesn’t see things the way you see them. People judge by outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart. 1 SAMUEL 16 nlt

³ The Lord tests the heart. PROVERBS 17 

² …Motives are weighed by the Lord. PROVERBS 16

What matters to God is not what we do but why we do it. It’s not what we say but why we say it. It’s not the act He’s after, but our intention or motive for the act (Proverbs 21:2, 20:27). And what motive is pleasing to God?

¹⁴ Most of all, let love guide your life. COLOSSIANS 3 tlb

¹⁴ Do everything in love. 1 CORINTHIANS 16

LOVE distinguishes righteousness from goodness. What is the difference between the two? Righteousness is good thought, good work or good word propelled by love. Goodness is good thought, good work or good word NOT propelled by love.

Throughout the Scripture, God calls for righteousness—not really for goodness. Righteousness is what makes a child of God, what sets him apart from the rest of humanity.

³⁴ Awake to righteousness. 1 CORINTHIANS 15 nkjv

⁶ Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. MATTHEW 5

¹¹ [Be] filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Y’shua the Messiah—to the glory and praise of God. PHILIPPIANS 1

¹² Plant the good seeds of righteousness, and you will harvest a crop of love. HOSEA 10 nlt

Lucifer is capable of doing goodness but not righteousness. When he does something good, his motive cannot be LOVE. For there is neither love of God nor love of man in him. He lost it even before the creation of man. The motive behind his good works is selfishness. Our good works if not propelled by LOVE may be no different to the good works of Lucifer.

¹⁰ In this the children of God are manifest and the children of the devil: Whosoever doeth not righteousness is not of God, neither is he that loveth not his brother. 1 JOHN 3 kjv

It has been made known what fate awaits those who do good works but not for LOVE.

²² Many will say to Me on that day, “Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?” ²³ Then I will tell them plainly, “I never knew you. Away from Me, you evildoers!” MATTHEW 7

The papal bull Cantate Domino claims that only Roman Catholics would enter the kingdom of God. The Iglesia ni Kristo claims that only its church members would. Sad to say, corporate affiliation will not carry anyone to the kingdom; only righteousness will.  

⁸ [The Lord] will judge the world in righteousness. PSALM 9

¹¹ God is a righteous judge. PSALM 7

The popular belief is that doing good works and refraining from doing evil are enough to get us to the kingdom. Sad to say, that is a satanic teaching. To those who live by this understanding, the Lord would say:

⁴² I know you. I know that you do not have love of God in your hearts. JOHN 5

When we fall in love, we learn the things that please our loved one and do them. We court his or her pleasure and company, and do it with joy and gladness, even with long-suffering if needed. If this is how we profess love for a fellow mortal, how should we profess love for the Immortal One?

⁵ The Lord loves righteousness. PSALM 33

⁷ For the Lord is righteous. PSALM 11

Good works not motivated by LOVE make God unhappy; it does not please Him. King Amaziah did what he thought was pleasing in God’s sight but God was not pleased. Why?

² He did what was right from Adonai’s perspective, but not wholeheartedly. 2 CHRONICLES 25 cjb

A person may be gifted by the Spirit of God, but if its use is not motivated by LOVE, then such use is not appreciated in heaven. It was this point that St. Paul wanted to emphasize when he wrote:

¹ If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. ² If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have faith that can move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. ³ If I give all I possess to the poor and surrender my body to the flames, but have not love, I gain nothing. 1 CORINTHIANS 13

Listen to the advice of King David to his son:

⁹ And you, my son Solomon, acknowledge the God of your father, and serve Him with wholehearted devotion, for the Lord searches every heart and understands every motive behind the thoughts. 1 CHRONICLES 28 

LOVE should be preeminent in our every deed. In the Gospel of the Hebrews, Y’shua said to His disciples, “And never be joyful except when you look on your brother with LOVE."

¹³ Go and learn what this means: I desire mercy [LOVE], not sacrifice. MATTHEW 9

The teacher of the Law in Mark 12:28 remarked:

³² Well said, teacher. You are right in saying that God is one and there is no other but Him. ³³ To love Him with all your heart, with all your understanding and with all your strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself is more important than all the burnt offerings and sacrifices. ³⁴ When Y’shua saw that he answered wisely, He said to him, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.” MARK 12

Lucifer removed the LOVE Commandment from the Ten-C. Why? Because if we are without it, the purpose for which we are created is defeated. The LOVE Commandment is the sun around which all the other commandments revolve. It tells us to do everything in LOVE. The other commandments tell us how.

⁴⁰ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments [love of God and love of neighbor]. MATTHEW 22

³¹ There is no other commandment greater than these. MARK 12

⁹ The commandments Do not commit adultery, Do not murder, Do not steal, Do not covet, and whatever other commandment there may be are summed up in this one rule: Love your neighbor as yourself. ¹⁰ Love is the fulfillment of the Law. ROMANS 13 

Observance of the commandments must be motivated by LOVE. Having said that, none of these motives is acceptable to God:

§  To observe for the sake of obeying. Such observance is mechanical and lifeless.

§  To observe so as not to fall under the judgment and wrath of God. Such observance is motivated by fear. It is debased, a behavior fit only for animals.

§  To observe in order to be blessed with healing or prosperity or some other favor. Such observance is motivated by materialism and selfishness, which is most ungodly.

§  To observe so as to yield to peer or social pressure.

A Messianic group attends Sabbath services and does tithing because their lady employer requires them to. Stop tithing and from attending church if your motive in doing them is not love of God. Why? Because any act or sacrifice that is not meant for God is meant for somebody else. It does not please God. There is no spiritual gain whatsoever for you.

Tithing and attending church fellowships are called for religious acts. But religiosity with love of God missing in it is not righteousness at all but rather insipid and worthless do-nothing in God’s sight.

We check the fuel of our car before driving. We check our wallet before leaving the house. We must also make a habit of checking our motive before we do or say anything.

²³ Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life. PROVERBS 4 nlt

Also check the righteousness of every one who poses as a God-worshiper, especially as a man of God. Many Christian churches and individuals have been duped because they did not check the posers for their righteousness. If LOVE is not the focal point of the poser’s words and actions, if there is inconsistency between them, then he is a pretender. Beware, for he is a wolf in sheep’s clothing.

¹ Do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God. 1 JOHN 4

¹⁶ By [their] fruits you shall recognize [them]. MATTHEW 7

³⁰ He who is not with Me is against Me. MATTHEW 12

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