Phil Gons

Bible & Tech

How Do Love for God and Love for Others Relate? The Two Greatest Commands as One?

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The Bible is full of commands to love God and love others. Jesus called these the two greatest commands.

“Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?” 37 Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ 38 This is the first and greatest commandment. 39 And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ 40 All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”

Matthew 22:36–40
Matthew 22:37–38: The Greatest Commandment

So, one answer to the first question posed in the title of this post is that they occupy the #1 and #2 spots in a prioritized list of the most important commands in the Old Testament. While that’s true, there’s more to discover about the relationship between loving God and loving neighbor.

But before we suggest other answers, let’s look at how the two greatest commands relate to the Ten Commandments or the Decalog.

Table of Contents

The Ten Commandments

The Ten Commandments (referred to as such only in Exod 34:28; Deut 4:13; 10:4) are recorded in Exodus 20:1–17 and Deuteronomy 5:6–21. They were written—twice—on the front and back (Exod 32:15) of two tablets of stone (Exod 31:18; 32:15; 34:1, 4, 29; Deut 4:13; 5:22; 9:10, 11, 15, 17; 10:1, 3; 1 Kings 8:9; 2 Chr 5:10) by the finger of God (Exod 31:18; Deut 9:10).

Opinions vary on (a) how to divide them into ten (e.g., merge 1 and 2, divide 10), (b) how to group them (e.g., 1–4 and 5–10 or 1–5 and 6–10), and (c) how they were recorded on the two stone tablets (e.g., half on each, all on both). I won’t get into those details here, since they’re not relevant to the topic of this post. David Baker’s “Ten Commandments, Two Tablets: The Shape of the Decalogue” (Themelios 30, no. 3) covers the issues well, and I commend it to you.

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The New Testament Ethic of Love

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What is the New Testament all about? If I were to ask this question to my three-year-old son during our family Bible time, he’d answer, “God,” followed by “Jesus.” He’s usually right! And he wouldn’t be wrong in this case, either. There are many good candidates for the central idea of the New Testament. God, Jesus, the Spirit, the gospel, the kingdom, the church, fulfillment, salvation, grace, faith, and love all come to mind. A true theme statement for the New Testament, however, would include many of these concepts.

But what if we narrow our scope to the ethic of the New Testament? An ethic is a set of moral principles. That’s much easier to capture in a single word. No better candidate exists than love.

1 John 4:19 Verse Art from Faithlife

Table of Contents

The Primacy of Love

Several texts position love at the center of the New Testament’s ethic.

John 13

Jesus gives his disciples a new command: we must love one another as Jesus has loved us. As Jesus was known by love, so, too, must we be. Love is the defining characteristic of followers of Jesus.

A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. 35 By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.

John 13:34–35

1 Corinthians 13

Paul ranks love as the greatest of the triad of faith, hope, and love in the famous love chapter.

And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.

1 Corinthians 13:13

1 Corinthians 16:14

Paul also identifies love as the governing virtue for all of life.

Do everything in love.

1 Corinthians 16:14

Romans 13 and Galatians 5

In Romans and Galatians Paul sees the command to love others as summing up and fulfilling everything the Mosaic Law required.

Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for whoever loves others has fulfilled the law. 9 The commandments, “You shall not commit adultery,” “You shall not murder,” “You shall not steal,” “You shall not covet,” and whatever other command there may be, are summed up in this one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” 10 Love does no harm to a neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.

Romans 13:8–10

You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh; rather, serve one another humbly in love. 14 For the entire law is fulfilled in keeping this one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” 15 If you bite and devour each other, watch out or you will be destroyed by each other.

Galatians 5:13–15

Fruit of the Spirit

Paul also lists love as the first evidence of the Spirit’s presence.

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. 24 Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. 25 Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. 26 Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other.

Galatians 5:22–26 (Cf. Romans 5:5)

Colossians 3

Paul calls Christians to put on love “over all” (ἐπὶ πᾶσιν) the other virtues.

Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. 13 Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. 14 And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.

Colossians 3:12–14

1 Peter 4

Peter places love at the top of the list of Christian duties.

The end of all things is near. Therefore be alert and of sober mind so that you may pray. 8 Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins. 9 Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling. 10 Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms. 11 If anyone speaks, they should do so as one who speaks the very words of God. If anyone serves, they should do so with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. To him be the glory and the power for ever and ever. Amen.

1 Peter 4:7–11

So, love for others clearly plays a special role in the church’s ethic. It’s the primary visible marker of the true people of God and evidence of the presence of the Spirit. It’s the summation and culmination of the law. It’s our highest duty to one another. It’s the new way of life for God’s people.1

The Meaning of Love

But what does love look like? How do we know if we have it, if we’re doing it?

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  1. See also Rom 14:19; cf. 14:15; 1 Cor 12:31; 14:1; 1 Th 5:15. [↩]

Why Did God Harden Pharaoh’s Heart? A Case for Divine Ultimacy

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Every Sunday school child knows the story of Israel’s Exodus from Egypt. It contains all the elements that make a good flannelgraph or picture-book story—or even a Hollywood movie. It’s one of the most powerful and dramatic stories in the Bible. But it’s much more than a children’s story. It’s central in the Bible’s storyline, and it’s rich with deep theology and plays a vital role in our understanding of several important doctrines.

In this post I’d like to look at the relevance of the Exodus story for our understanding of God’s sovereignty, particularly as it relates to his work of hardening the hearts of sinners.

The Egyptians Drowning in the Red Sea by Antonio Tempesta

Table of Contents

Was Pharaoh’s Hardening Merely Punishment for His Self-Hardening?

Some interpreters argue that God’s hardening was solely a response to Pharaoh’s prior free self-hardening. According to this view, the ultimate reason God hardened Pharaoh’s heart was that Pharaoh first hardened his own heart. God’s hardening was reactive and judicial. Pharaoh repeatedly hardened his heart. God responded with further hardening. If Pharaoh had chosen otherwise—and he could have—then God wouldn’t have hardened his heart.

This view seems to have some basis in the text. Layton Talbert makes a good argument for it in Not by Chance: Learning to Trust a Sovereign God, 86–94.

Those who defend it often use some form of these three arguments:

  1. Exodus 3:19 governs the narrative and presents Pharaoh as acting first and God as acting in response.
  2. The general flow of the narrative presents Pharaoh’s self-hardening mainly at the beginning and God’s hardening mainly at the end.
  3. God’s justice requires that his hardening be responsive to Pharaoh’s self-hardening.

Let’s look briefly at each.

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Did John Use Bad Grammar to Teach the Holy Spirit’s Personality?

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Prooftexting the Personality of the Holy Spirit: An Analysis of the Masculine Demonstrative Pronouns in John 14:26, 15:26, and 16:13–14

Does the Bible present the Holy Spirit as a person, distinct from the Father and the Son? Yes. Did John use the masculine demonstrative pronoun ἐκεῖνος (instead of the neuter ἐκεῖνο) in John 14:26, 15:26, and 16:13–14 to make that point?

An impressive list of people answers yes. But Andy Naselli and I argue they’re wrong in “Prooftexting the Personality of the Holy Spirit: An Analysis of the Masculine Demonstrative Pronouns in John 14:26, 15:26, and 16:13–14,” Detroit Baptist Seminary Journal 16 (2011): 65–89.

Here’s the outline:

  1. Introduction
  2. The Argument
  3. Adherents of the Argument
  4. A Counterargument
  5. Adherents of the Counterargument
  6. Objections to the Counterargument
  7. Conclusion

Here’s our introduction:

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One God in Three Persons: Unity of Essence, Distinction of Persons, Implications for Life

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One God in Three Persons: Unity of Essence, Distinction of Persons, Implications for Life

I am excited to point out a new book from Crossway that tackles some of the issues facing the doctrine of the Trinity today: One God in Three Persons: Unity of Essence, Distinction of Persons, Implications for Life. I had the privilege of contributing a chapter with my good friend Andy Naselli. Our chapter, “An Examination of Three Recent Philosophical Arguments against Hierarchy in the Immanent Trinity,” evaluates some of the philosophical arguments against the notion of hierarchy in the immanent Trinity and finds them unpersuasive.

Here’s the book’s description:

How do the three persons of the Trinity relate to each other? Evangelicals continue to debate this complex concept—especially its implications for our understanding of men and women’s roles in both the home and the church. Offering a comprehensive exposition of the complementarian perspective, this book combines the insights of fifteen prominent evangelical scholars1 who examine the issue from exegetical, theological, historical, and pastoral perspectives. The contributors to this volume have written one of the most substantive treatises to date, defending the eternal submission of the Son and Spirit to the Father with a wide array of persuasive evidences.

Bruce Ware and John Starke edited the volume, and eleven others—Wayne Grudem, Jim Hamilton, Scott Oliphint, Michael Haykin, Jeffrey Robinson, Robert Letham, Michael Ovey, Andy Naselli, Chris Cowan, Kyle Claunch, and I—contributed chapters.

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  1. I count only thirteen. I’m not sure who numbers fourteen and fifteen are. And “prominent evangelical scholars” is probably an overstatement, especially since it would seem to include me. [↩]

Rob Bell and Andrew Wilson Discuss Homosexuality and the Bible

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Rob Bell

Or perhaps I should have titled that “Rob Bell Discusses Homosexuality and Andrew Wilson Discusses the Bible,” because there was a disturbing lack of Bible in Rob Bell’s answers and arguments. Instead, Rob argued along these lines (and I’m paraphrasing):

  • People don’t like Christianity. Therefore, we should change the parts they don’t like.
  • The modern world affirms homosexuality. Therefore, we should too.
  • Monogamous homosexuals aren’t hurting anyone. Therefore, they’re not sinful.
  • Monogamy is better than promiscuity because the latter is dangerous and destructive.
  • Because homosexuals want to share their lives with each other, they should be able to.

I wasn’t familiar with Andrew Wilson prior to watching this video, but I appreciate the way he interacted with Rob. He was direct, logical, kind, persistent, and uncompromising.

Watch it for yourself.

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Warfield, Vos, and Van Til: Is God One Person?

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Shield of the Trinity

Orthodox trinitarianism typically refers to God in terms of three persons or subsistences (personas, subsistentia, or ὑποστάσιες) and one essence or substance (essentia, substantia, or οὐσία). But is there a sense in which God is one person? To put it another way, is God’s oneness personal?

Here’s how three Princeton theologians addressed this topic.

B. B. Warfield (1851–1921)

The elements in the doctrine of God which above all others needed emphasis in Old Testament times were naturally His unity and His personality. The great thing to be taught the ancient people of God was that the God of all the earth is one person. Over against the varying idolatries about them, this was the truth of truths for which Israel was primarily to stand; and not until this great truth was ineffaceably stamped upon their souls could the personal distinctions in the Triune-God be safely made known to them.

Benjamin Breckinridge Warfield, “The Spirit of God in the Old Testament,” chapter 3 of Biblical Doctrines, vol. 2 of The Works of Benjamin B. Warfield (New York: Oxford University Press, 1932), 127 (emphasis added).

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Free Download of R. C. Sproul’s The Truth of the Cross

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The Truth of the Cross

R. C. Sproul’s The Truth of the Cross is available as a free download through April 30, 2013 from Ligonier Ministries and Reformation Trust. The best option is to grab the Logos version. It’s also available for Kindle and as an EPUB.

Here are the ten topics he covers:

  1. The Necessity of an Atonement
  2. The Just God
  3. Debtors, Enemies, and Criminals
  4. Ransomed from Above
  5. The Saving Substitute
  6. Made Like His Brethren
  7. The Suffering Servant
  8. The Blessing and the Curse
  9. A Secure Faith
  10. Questions and Answers

Download your copy now:

  1. Logos
  2. Kindle
  3. EPUB

Learn more at the Ligonier blog.