I ended the previous posting with the question: How did professing Christendom fall from the exalted spiritual status where God had placed her? The problem stems from religious man’s habit of reading only what pleases him, stopping, closing the Bible and declaring that what he has found is “Bible truth.” However, the honest seeker of God’s Truth will read the entire passage, then diligently search the remaining Scriptures for other passages that speak to the same subject. He will then place each passage in its proper context, combine the passages into a whole and thereby determine God’s Truth. Like pieces of a puzzle, each relevant passage is A truth which must be combined with all other relevant truths to produce THE truth. Most errors relative to God’s Word can be traced to man’s reluctance to search out, study, believe and obey the “whole counsel of God” (Acts 20:27), which is in keeping with God’s study instructions found in Isaiah 28:9,10,13. Now back to Matthew 22:23-39.

By continuing to read the passage to its end, one notices that Jesus had one more thing to say about the greatest commandment. In verse 40 we find Him completing His teaching by saying, “Upon these commandments (the “Golden Rule”) hang the whole Law.” The Hebrew language is not only written from right to left, but the words are written below the line and seem to hang from it. This explains the wording in verse 40. An examination of Old Testament Scripture reveals that the passages were written without the use of visible lines. The Lord’s statement that the Law “hangs” from the “Great Commandment” means that the commandment is the foundation upon which the Law is built. Without the Law, one is left with only the foundation which, like a physical building, is useless without the added structure. In Matthew 7:21-27 Jesus warns us to be careful about how we approach His Word, noting that the strength of one’s spiritual foundation depends on whether one believes and obeys His Word. Note that one’s religiosity does not affect the matter. It all depends on belief in  and obedience to His Word. More on the Matthew 7 passage later. To be continued. L.J.