My Commandments, Part 1 Series

Our passage today is from John 14:21:

“He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him.”

There is a popular song, with the lyrics, “Open our eyes Lord, we want to see Jesus.”

Verse 21 gives us a great promise which results in Jesus being manifested to us. But this verse isn’t mentioned much. It is frequently glossed over because of its conditions - having and keeping His commandments. Rather than appear legalistic in any form, many gloss over it, and move on.

Although this verse sounds like a works’ based formula, it is more of an alignment formula. If we are not keeping God’s commands, or aiming to please God, then why would we expect to see Jesus. If we are living to please ourselves, don’t expect Jesus to appear with a smile. Jesus said, “seek and you shall find”. If we seek to serve Him and please Him out of love, He will manifest himself to us.

The first condition in this verse is having His commandments. This sounds simple, but since this subject is rarely taught, there are many opinions. When asked, some will say the phrase, “My commandments” refers to the Ten Commandments. Modern Judaizers say it refers to the entire law of Moses. Some say it only refers to the non-ceremonial portion of the law of Moses. Others say it refers to the Greatest Commandment given in Matthew 22; to love God with all your being, and to love our neighbor as ourselves. None of these responses are accurate.

Before we can keep His commandments, we have to have them. Before we can define what Jesus’s commandments are, we need to know what they are not. This sermon is a three week series. This week’s sermon will focus on what Jesus’s commandments are not. I’ll begin by teaching on the opinions mentioned.

The Ten Commandments and the Law

The Ten Commandments can’t be separated from the law of Moses. They are the foundation for the law. Romans chapters 6 and 7 teach that we are not under law. Here are three of the verses:

“Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace?“ Rom 6:15

“Therefore, my brethren, you also have become dead to the law through

the body of Christ, that you may be married to another—to Him who was

raised from the dead, . . “ Rom 7:4

“But now we have been delivered from the law, having died to what

we were held by, . .” Rom 7:6

I’ve heard some say that Romans 6 and 7 refer to the Pharisaical laws, not the law of Moses. They lie, and we know that because Romans 7 gives us an example of what law is being is being referred to. It says;

"I wouldn’t have known sin, except through the law. For I wouldn’t have

known coveting, unless the law had said, “You shall not covet.” Romans 7:7

“You shall not covet” is the tenth of the Ten Commandments. Romans 7 places the Ten Commandments within in the law of Moses, and says we have been set free of it. The Ten Commandments are the foundation of the law. They can’t be separated.

The Law

I’ve had legalists go so far as to tell me Paul was wrong, thereby nullifying much of the New Testament. They also reject the rest of the apostles who agreed with Paul. In Acts 15, the apostles wrestled with the question of whether or not Gentile Christians needed to keep the law. They concluded the following in Acts 15:

“The apostles, the elders, and the brethren, to the brethren who are of the Gentiles in Antioch, Syria, and Cilicia: Greetings.

“Since we have heard that some who went out from us have troubled you with words, unsettling your souls, saying, “You must be circumcised and keep the law” - to whom we gave no such commandment - it seemed good to us, being assembled with one accord, to send chosen men to you with our beloved Barnabas and Paul, men who have risked their lives for the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. We have therefore sent Judas and Silas, who will also report the same things by word of mouth. For it seemed good to the Holy Spirit, and to us, to lay upon you no greater burden than these necessary things: that you abstain . .

• from things offered to idols,

• from blood,

• from things strangled, and

• from sexual immorality.

“If you keep yourselves from these, you will do well. Farewell.” Acts 15:23-29

In response to the Pharisees saying all Christians must obey the law, the apostles came to the decision that these four things must be abstained from. And we shouldn’t miss that “it seemed good to the Holy Spirit. Those who claim Paul and apostles were wrong are also saying the Holy Spirit was wrong.