Perhaps the most misunderstood Biblical passage concerning Satan’s Law-nailed-to-the-cross deception is Romans 13:10 where the Apostle Paul the church that “love is the fulfilling of the Law.” The knee-jerk reaction to reading that passage is that all one need do is love God and man, that such love does away with the need for god’s Law. Is this true? Does love nullify the Law? This is like saying that because one is a citizen of the United States and loves the nation and its people, that one need not obey the nation’s system of law which limits some behaviors and requires others. To believe that the same principal does not apply to the church is spiritual deception performed by the god of deception–Satan. The extent of his deceptional powers was stated by Jesus Christ in Revelation 12:9: “Satan has deceived the whole world.” The One who uttered those words is the same One who said that God’s Word is truth Truth (Jn. 17:17). Therefore let us go there search the mind of the Almighty for His Truth on the love-Law matter.

“If you love Me, keep My commandments” (John 14:15). Here Jesus is referring to the 10 Commandments which summarize the entire Genesis-to-Revelation Law. One will note in verse 8 that Philip had asked Him to “… show us the Father.” The Lord’s answer made it clear that when Philip had seen Him he had seen the Father. He went on to say that the ONLY way man can prove his love for both members of the Godhead by obeying Their commandments. Another of the Lord’s commands concerning the Law is found in 1 John 5:3: “For this is the love of God–that we keep His commandments.” In 2 John 1:6 we are told that “this is the love of God, that we walk after His commandments.” Anyone with a mind open to the Lord can see that He equates loving Him and obeying His Law. As the following will show, the love-Law rule also works the opposite way. This Truth comes as a shock to those who claim to be Christians but do not know what is required in order to wear that title.

During the John 14 discourse Jesus told His disciples (then and now), “If you keep My commandments you will remain in My love” (Jn. 15:10). Notice that Jesus tied His love for man to man’s keeping of His  commandments. This is one of those eternity-determining “IF” situations I have written and spoken about in the past. There is no reason to misunderstand the obedience-love equation. Recall that God said that not one jot or tittle can be changed in His Law (Mat. 5:18). He also said that nothing could be added to nor taken away from it. Question: What if a man does not obey the Ten Commandments? Answer: Jesus will not love him. These words, spoken by the Son of God, are Truth.  In this same love-the-Lord=keep-the-Law scenario, let us turn to Psalm 5:5 where God makes it clear that He meant exactly what He said in John 15:10. Here David is making a statement concerning His God (the Word Who came to earth as Jesus of Nazareth. See Who Was the God of the Old Testament): “The foolish will not stand in Your sight (at judgment). YOU HATE ALL WORKERS OF INIQUITY.” “Iniquity” is defined as LAWLESSNESS–failure to obey the Law. The word “hate” (“hatest”–KJV) is “sane” which means to hate, to be hated, to be unloved, to be an adversary, to be a foe.

In 1 John 3:4 the Lord tells us that, “To transgress (break) the Law is sin; for sin is the transgression of the Law.” Then in James 2:10 He tells us that “whosoever (including church people) keeps the entire Law, but breaks one of the commandments is guilty of BREAKING THE ENTIRE LAW.” This, according to 1 Jn. 3:4, makes one a Law-breaker–a worker of iniquity. Those in professing Christendom routinely break commandment #4, making them workers of iniquity, whom God calls “the foolish” (Ps. 5:5). A fool (foolish person) says there is no God (Ps. 14:1). The foolish, God says, are corrupt people who do abominable works and are incapable of doing good works. In other words, their super-religiosity is viewed as abominable by the Lord because they do not obey His Law, making them foolish–equal in His sight to those who say there is no God. It is about these false Christians that Jesus said: “In vain do they WORSHIP ME ….” (Mat. 15:9). It is to these false worshipers that He will say on Judgment Day: “I never knew you. Depart from Me you who WORK INIQUITY ….” (Mat. 7:23).

In that “God is love,” (1 Jn. 4:16), to do away with the Law is to do away with love, which does away with God, who is love. To love God is to obey His Law (the Ten Commandments which summarize the entire Genesis to Revelation Law). The love-Law connection is one of the most basic tenants of Scriptural Truth. Without knowledge of, belief in and obedience to this Biblical doctrine one has no chance of being saved. To such Jesus will say, “I NEVER KNEW YOU.” L.J.