To Obey God is to Love God; To sin is to Hate God

[StevenMerten]

John 15:22
"If I had not come to them and spoken to them, they would not be guilty of sin; now, however, their sin cannot be excused. To hate me is to hate my Father. Had I not performed such works among them as no one has ever done before, they would not be guilty of sin; but as it is, they have seen, and they go on hating me and my Father."

John 14:15
If you love me, you will keep my commandments.

1 John 5:3
For the love of God is this, that we keep his commandments. And his commandments are not burdensome,​

God put the tree of knowledge into the Garden of Eden where man lived. God commanded man not to eat from this tree or he will certainly die. God gave man the power of choice to choose whether or not he will obey the command of God. Some people think that this is God being cruel to man. Some people simply deny the Word of God by rationalizing that it would be to hateful for our loving God to put an avenue of sin, death and damnation within man's reach. These people simply do not understand the tremendous opportunity bestowed to man, when God places the tree of knowledge into the Garden of Eden. The positive opportunity, which God placed within man's grasp, to love God through obedience, greatly outweighs the negative risks to man, from sinning.

Is it possible to be kind to your fellow man if you do not possess the capability to choose not to be kind to your fellow man? Can a person be a giving person if they do not have the option to choose not to give? A man can only obey in a situation where he has the option to disobey (sin). You can only choose to be kind provided you have the option to choose not to be kind. You cannot love unless you have the option to choose not to love, which is to sin. To obey God is to love God, to sin is to hate God.

God did not try to tempt Adam by giving Adam the power of choice. The only way we can love God is through the power of free will choice. With the option to choose between obedience or sin, man now has the capability to love God. God gave Adam the tremendous opportunity to offer love, from his heart, to God. Upon man receiving free will toward the Commandments of God, now, not only does God love man, but man can fulfill his purpose in life and love God in return.

Of the four times scripture presents Jesus with the question, "What must I do to inherit eternal life?", three times Jesus answers obey the commandments and twice he tells us to love. Jesus tells us that to obey Him and the Father is to love Jesus and the Father. Jesus tells us that to sin is to hate Him and the Father. In Leviticus 19 and Deuteronomy 5, God Sums up His Ten Commandments with, Jesus' and the Father's, Two Great Commandments, which are to, 'Love God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength', and, to 'love your neighbor as yourself'. To Love Jesus and The Father is to obey Jesus and the Father. To sin is to Hate Jesus and the Father.

Leviticus 19:1 Various Rules of Conduct.
The LORD said to Moses, "Speak to the whole Israelite community and tell them:
Be holy, for I, The LORD, your God, am holy. Revere your mother and father, and keep my sabbaths. I, the LORD, am your God.
"Do not turn aside to idols, nor make molten gods for yourselves. I, the LORD, am your God.
"When you sacrifice your peace offering to the LORD, if you wish it to be acceptable, it must be eaten on the very day of your sacrifice or on the following day. Whatever is left over until the third day shall be burned up in the fire. If any of it is eaten on the third day, the sacrifice will be unacceptable as refuse; whoever eats of it then shall pay the penalty for having profaned what is sacred to the LORD. Such a one shall be cut off from his people.
"When you reap the harvest of your land, you shall not be so thorough that you reap the field to its very edge, nor shall you glean the stray ears of grain. Likewise, you shall not pick your vineyard bare, not gather up the grapes that have fallen. These things you shall leave for the poor and the alien. I, the LORD, am your God.
"You shall not steal. You shall not lie or speak falsely to one another. You shall not swear falsely by my name thus profaning the name of your God. I am the LORD.
"You shall not defraud or rob your neighbor. You shall not withhold overnight the wages of your day laborer. You shall not curse the deaf, or put a stumbling block in front of the blind, but you shall fear your God. I am the LORD.
"You shall not act dishonestly in rendering judgment. Show neither partiality to the weak nor deference to the mighty, but judge your fellow men justly. You shall not go about spreading slander among your kinsmen; nor shall you stand by idly when your neighbor's life is at stake. I am the LORD.
"You shall not bear hatred for your brother in your heart. Though you may have to reprove your fellow man, do not incur sin because of him. Take no revenge and cherish no grudge against your fellow countrymen. You shall love your neighbor as yourself. I am the LORD."

Deuteronomy 5:6
'I, the LORD, am your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, that place of slavery. You shall not have other gods besides me. You shall not carve idols for yourselves in the shape of anything in the sky above or on the earth below or in the waters beneath the earth; you shall not bow down before them or worship them. For I, the LORD, your God, am a jealous God, inflicting punishments for their fathers' wickedness on the children of those who hate me, down to the third and fourth generation but bestowing mercy, down to the thousandth generation, on the children of those who love me and keep my commandments. 'You shall not take the name of the LORD, your God, in vain. For the LORD will not leave unpunished him who takes his name in vain. 'Take care to keep holy the sabbath day as the LORD, your God, commanded you. Six days you may labor and do all your work; but the seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD, your God. No work may be done then, whether by you, or your son or daughter, or your male or female slave, or your ox or ass or any of your beasts, or the alien who lives with you. Your male and female slave should rest as you do. For remember that you too were once slaves in Egypt, and the LORD, your God, brought you from there with his strong hand and outstretched arm. That is why the LORD, your God, has commanded you to observe the sabbath day. 'Honor your father and your mother, as the LORD, your God, has commanded you,that you may have a long life and prosperity in the land which the LORD, your God, is giving you. 'You shall not kill. 'You shall not commit adultery. 'You shall not steal. 'You shall not bear dishonest witness against your neighbor. 'You shall not covet your neighbor's wife. 'You shall not desire your neighbor's house or field, nor his male or female slave, nor his ox or ass, nor anything that belongs to him.' "These words, and nothing more, the LORD spoke with a loud voice to your entire assembly on the mountain from the midst of the fire and the dense cloud. He wrote them upon two tablets of stone and gave them to me(DEU 5:23)....//....(DEU 6:1)"These then are the commandments, the statutes and decrees which the LORD, your God, has ordered that you be taught to observe in the land into which you are crossing for conquest, so that you and your son and your grandson may fear the LORD, your God, and keep, throughout the days of your lives, all his statutes and commandments which I enjoin on you, and thus have long life. Hear then, Israel, and be careful to observe them, that you may grow and prosper the more, in keeping with the promise of the LORD, the God of your fathers, to give you a land flowing with milk and honey. "Hear, O Israel! The LORD is our God, the LORD alone! Therefore, you shall love the LORD, your God, with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength. Take to heart these words which I enjoin on you today. Drill them into your children. Speak of them at home and abroad, whether you are busy or at rest. Bind them at your wrist as a sign and let them be as a pendant on your forehead. Write them on the doorposts of your houses and on your gates.

Luke 10:25
On one occasion a lawyer stood up to pose him this problem: "Teacher, what must I do to inherit everlasting life?" Jesus answered him: "What is written in the law? How do you read it?" He replied:
"You shall love the Lord your God
with all your heart,
with all your soul,
with all your strength,
and with all your mind;
and your neighbor as yourself."
Jesus said, "You have answered correctly. Do this and you shall live."

Deuteronomy 5
For I, the LORD, your God, am a jealous God, inflicting punishments for their fathers' wickedness on the children of those who hate me, down to the third and fourth generation but bestowing mercy, down to the thousandth generation, on the children of those who love me and keep my commandments.

Matthew 19:16
"Teacher, what good must I do to possess everlasting life?" He answered, "Why do you question me about what is good? There is One who is good. If you wish to enter into life, keep the commandments." "Which ones?" he asked. Jesus replied "You shall not kill"; 'You shall not commit adultery'; 'You shall not steal'; 'You shall not bear false witness'; 'Honor your father and mother'; and 'Love your neighbor as yourself.'"​

 

[Tolworth John]

Matthew 19:16
"Teacher, what good must I do to possess everlasting life?" He answered, "Why do you question me about what is good? There is One who is good. If you wish to enter into life, keep the commandments." "Which ones?" he asked. Jesus replied "You shall not kill"; 'You shall not commit adultery'; 'You shall not steal'; 'You shall not bear false witness'; 'Honor your father and mother'; and 'Love your neighbor as yourself.'"

Interesting that you are so fixed on earning salvation that you ignore what Jesus also said in v21, 'Come follow me.'

 

[StevenMerten]

Interesting that you are so fixed on earning salvation that you ignore what Jesus also said in v21, 'Come follow me.'

Hello John,
Do we agree that Jesus is, 'very fixed' (the term you use), on His Teachings that He will judge us into heaven through His Blood, or into hell, based on our conduct? Those who Love God through obedience to God are harvested by Jesus into heaven and those Jesus Judges as the unrepentant wicked, who hate God through disobedience, are cast into hell by Jesus.

Do we agree that Jesus is 'very fixed' on His teaching that to love Him and the Father is to Obey Him and the Father?

I am only repeating the Teachings of my Lord, God and Savior, Jesus Christ with the intensity that He puts on His Teachings.

Matthew 16:27
The Son of Man will come with his angels. When He does, he will repay each man according to his conduct.

John 5:27
"The Father has given over to him power to pass judgment because he is Son of Man; no need for you to be surprised at this, for an hour is coming in which all those in their tombs shall hear his voice and come forth. Those who have done right shall rise to live; the evildoers shall rise to be damned."

Matthew 13:36
The harvest is the end of the age, and the harvesters are angels. Just as weeds are collected and burned (up) with fire, so will it be at the end of the age. The Son of Man will send his angels, and they will collect out of his kingdom all who cause others to sin and all evildoers. They will throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth. Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Whoever has ears ought to hear."

Matthew 25:31
"And he will separate them one from another, as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will place the sheep on his right and the goats on his left. Then the king will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father. Inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, a stranger and you welcomed me, naked and you clothed me, ill and you cared for me, in prison and you visited me.'...
...Then he will say to those on his left, 'Depart from me, you accursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink, a stranger and you gave me no welcome, naked and you gave me no clothing, ill and in prison, and you did not care for me.'...

...'Amen, I say to you, what you did not do for one of these least ones, you did not do for me.' And these will go off to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life."

Revelation 22:12
"Remember, I am coming soon! I bring with me the reward that will be given to each man as his conduct deserves. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End! Happy are they who wash their robes so as to have free access to the tree of life and enter the city through its gates Outside are the dogs and sorcerers, the fornicators and murderers, the idol-worshipers and all who love falsehood."​

Matthew 7:21
"None of those who cry out, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of God but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven. When that day comes, many will plead with me, 'Lord, Lord,' have we not prophesied in your name? have we not exorcized demons by its power? Did we not do many miracles in your name as well? Then I will declare to them solemnly, I never knew you. Out of my sight, you evildoers!"

"Anyone who hears my words and puts them into practice is like the wise man who built his house on rock. When the rainy season set in, the torrents came and the winds blew and buffeted his house, It did not collapse; it had been solidly set on rock. Anyone who hears my words but does not put them into practice is like the foolish man who built his house on sandy ground. The rains fell, the torrents came, the winds blew and lashed against his house. It collapsed under all this and was completely ruined."

Matthew 24:9
And then many will be led into sin; they will betray and hate one another. Many false prophets will arise and deceive many; and because of the increase of evildoing, the love of many will grow cold. But the one who perseveres to the end will be saved.

Romans 2:6 (St. Paul is Speaking)
. . . when he will repay every man for what he has done: eternal life to those who strive for glory, honor, and immortality by patiently doing right; wrath and fury to those who selfishly disobey the truth and obey wickedness. Yes, affliction and anguish will come upon every man who has done evil, the Jew first then the Greek. But there will be glory, honor, and peace for everyone who has done good, likewise the Jew first, then the Greek.

1 Corinthians 7:19 (St. Paul is speaking.)
Circumcision counts for nothing, and its lack makes no difference either. What matters is keeping God's commandments.​

 

[Tolworth John]

I am only repeating the Teachings of my Lord, God and Savior, Jesus Christ

No you are repeating those teachings that you think are important.

Your first post majored on earning salvation and your second on Jesus judging.

The first is false as we do not earn salvation, the second will happen, but how does posting about judgement help or encourage Christians.

 

[StevenMerten]

No you are repeating those teachings that you think are important.

Your first post majored on earning salvation and your second on Jesus judging.

The first is false as we do not earn salvation, the second will happen, but how does posting about judgement help or encourage Christians.

Hello John,
How do you equate Jesus telling us that He is going to judge us into heaven through His Blood, or condemn us to hell, based on our conduct, is Jesus teaching us that we earn our salvation?

 

[Tolworth John]

Hello John,
How do you equate Jesus telling us that He is going to judge us into heaven through His Blood, or condemn us to hell, based on our conduct, is Jesus teaching us that we earn our salvation?

We are saved because of our faith/trust/belief in Jesus.
We are not saved by what we do, we will be judged and that judgement will award rewards.

 

[StevenMerten]

We are saved because of our faith/trust/belief in Jesus.
We are not saved by what we do, we will be judged and that judgement will award rewards.

Hello John,
You, me and Jesus all agree that the only way to heaven is through the Blood of Jesus.

Jesus tells us that many evildoer Christians will call out to Jesus as 'Lord, Lord' on Judgement Day. Jesus tells us that these evildoer Christians, will have faith strong enough to preform, many miracles, exorcisms and prophesy, by the Power of Jesus Name, yet Jesus says He is going to burn these evildoer Christians in hell.

Jesus says we have to put His Teachings into practice during life and that He will Judge us into heaven through His Blood or condemned to hell, according to our conduct.

Matthew 7:21
"None of those who cry out, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of God but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven. When that day comes, many will plead with me, 'Lord, Lord,' have we not prophesied in your name? have we not exorcized demons by its power? Did we not do many miracles in your name as well? Then I will declare to them solemnly, I never knew you. Out of my sight, you evildoers!"

"Anyone who hears my words and puts them into practice is like the wise man who built his house on rock. When the rainy season set in, the torrents came and the winds blew and buffeted his house, It did not collapse; it had been solidly set on rock. Anyone who hears my words but does not put them into practice is like the foolish man who built his house on sandy ground. The rains fell, the torrents came, the winds blew and lashed against his house. It collapsed under all this and was completely ruined."

Matthew 16:27
The Son of Man will come with his angels. When He does, he will repay each man according to his conduct.

John 5:27
"The Father has given over to him power to pass judgment because he is Son of Man; no need for you to be surprised at this, for an hour is coming in which all those in their tombs shall hear his voice and come forth. Those who have done right shall rise to live; the evildoers shall rise to be damned."​

 

[Hazelelponi]

Hello John,
You, me and Jesus all agree that the only way to heaven is through the Blood of Jesus.

Matthew 7:21
"None of those who cry out, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of God but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven. When that day comes, many will plead with me, 'Lord, Lord,' have we not prophesied in your name? have we not exorcized demons by its power? Did we not do many miracles in your name as well? Then I will declare to them solemnly, I never knew you. Out of my sight, you evildoers!"​

I just want to point out that literally changing the meaning of the words in the Bible is a sin..

It is not written 'none' it is written "not everyone who says to me Lord, Lord...."

there is a clear difference in meaning between none and not all..this verse has very deep meaning and must be held in tact to its original meaning.

Are you a Jehovah's Witness?

Only someone with a desire to obfuscate who Jesus is would change the translation like this..

 

[StevenMerten]

I just want to point out that literally changing the meaning of the words in the Bible is a sin..

It is not written 'none' it is written "not everyone who says to me Lord, Lord...."

there is a clear difference in meaning between none and not all..this verse has very deep meaning and must be held in tact to its original meaning.

Are you a Jehovah's Witness?

Only someone with a desire to obfuscate who Jesus is would change the translation like this..

Matthew 7:21 (New American Bible 1970)
"None of those who cry out, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of God but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven.

Matthew 7:21 (New American Bible, Revised Edition (NABRE) 2011)
“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven.​

Hello Hazelelponi,
I looked it up. The New American Bible, 1970 edition, which I quoted, is different from the New American Bible Revised Edition 2011.

The Concept, that Jesus is teaching in Matthew 7, is that we have to act on Jesus' teachings, through our conduct, rather than simply giving Him lip service that Jesus is Lord. The person who hears Jesus' teachings, to feed and care for the poor, but does not love his neighbor by feeding and caring for the poor, is the one who builds his house on sand, and he will be washed away in the flood, meaning he will go to hell. It is those who act on Jesus' teachings, rather than those who simply give Jesus lip service 'Jesus is Lord', who are the fruitful trees, whom Jesus will bring through His Blood and into heaven. This is what Jesus' is teaching in Matthew 7.

Luke 6:43
A good tree does not bear rotten fruit, nor does a rotten tree bear good fruit. “Why do you call me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ but not do what I command? I will show you what someone is like who comes to me, listens to my words, and acts on them. That one is like a person building a house, who dug deeply and laid the foundation on rock; when the flood came, the river burst against that house but could not shake it because it had been well built. But the one who listens and does not act is like a person who built a house on the ground without a foundation. When the river burst against it, it collapsed at once and was completely destroyed.”

Luke 6:43
“A good tree does not bear rotten fruit, nor does a rotten tree bear good fruit. For every tree is known by its own fruit. For people do not pick figs from thornbushes, nor do they gather grapes from brambles. A good person out of the store of goodness in his heart produces good, but an evil person out of a store of evil produces evil; for from the fullness of the heart the mouth speaks.

“Why do you call me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ but not do what I command? I will show you what someone is like who comes to me, listens to my words, and acts on them. That one is like a person building a house, who dug deeply and laid the foundation on rock; when the flood came, the river burst against that house but could not shake it because it had been well built. But the one who listens and does not act is like a person who built a house on the ground without a foundation. When the river burst against it, it collapsed at once and was completely destroyed.”

Luke 3:8
He said to the crowds who came out to be baptized by him, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? Produce good fruits as evidence of your repentance; and do not begin to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father,’ for I tell you, God can raise up children to Abraham from these stones. Even now the ax lies at the root of the trees. Therefore every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.”

Isaiah 29:13
The Lord said:
Since this people draws near with words only
and honors me with their lips alone,
though their hearts are far from me,
And fear of me has become
mere precept of human teaching,

Luke 13:6 Parable of the Barren Fruit Tree
And he told them this parable: “There once was a person who had a fig tree planted in his orchard, and when he came in search of fruit on it but found none, he said to the gardener, ‘For three years now I have come in search of fruit on this fig tree but have found none. [So] cut it down. Why should it exhaust the soil?’ He said to him in reply, ‘Sir, leave it for this year also, and I shall cultivate the ground around it and fertilize it; it may bear fruit in the future. If not you can cut it down.’”

Matthew 13:3 Parable of the Sower
“A sower went out to sow. And as he sowed, some seed fell on the path, and birds came and ate it up. Some fell on rocky ground, where it had little soil. It sprang up at once because the soil was not deep, and when the sun rose it was scorched, and it withered for lack of roots. Some seed fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked it. But some seed fell on rich soil, and produced fruit, a hundred or sixty or thirtyfold. Whoever has ears ought to hear.”​

 

[Tolworth John]

Jesus tells us that many evildoer Christians will call out to Jesus as 'Lord, Lord' on Judgement Day.

As matt 7:21 say right at the end the terrifing words,' I never knew you.'
They were not known by Jesus and were not Christian.

 

[StevenMerten]

As matt 7:21 say right at the end the terrifing words,' I never knew you.'
They were not known by Jesus and were not Christian.

Hello John,
Your statement is judgmental. Simply because a baptized Christian is an evildoer, who Jesus says He is going to Judge into hell because of their sins, does not mean that they are not a Christian.

There are many Christians out there who believe that they can repulse Jesus' teachings to obey Jesus if they wish to go to heaven through Jesus' Blood. These Christians think that, due to the fact that they have faith in Jesus great enough to exorcise demons by the Power of Chris's name, and faith great enough to preform great miracles by the Power of Christ's name, and faith great enough to announce prophesy, that Jesus is automatically going to bring them to heaven, regardless of their unrepentant sins. Jesus is telling these Christians that they are wrong. Jesus says that He is going to Judge us according to our conduct.

Matthew 7:21
“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven. ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name? Did we not drive out demons in your name? Did we not do mighty deeds in your name?’ Then I will declare to them solemnly, ‘I never knew you. Depart from me, you evildoers.’

“Everyone who listens to these words of mine and acts on them will be like a wise man who built his house on rock. The rain fell, the floods came, and the winds blew and buffeted the house. But it did not collapse; it had been set solidly on rock. And everyone who listens to these words of mine but does not act on them will be like a fool who built his house on sand. The rain fell, the floods came, and the winds blew and buffeted the house. And it collapsed and was completely ruined.”

Matthew 16:27
The Son of Man will come with his angels. When He does, he will repay each man according to his conduct.

John 5:27
"The Father has given over to him power to pass judgment because he is Son of Man; no need for you to be surprised at this, for an hour is coming in which all those in their tombs shall hear his voice and come forth. Those who have done right shall rise to live; the evildoers shall rise to be damned."​

 

[Tolworth John]

Your statement is judgmental

The judgement is Jesus's.
Read who is speaking in Matt 7.