Introduction
In his “Great Commission,” Jesus taught, “go and make disciples of all nations…teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you” (Mt 28.19-20). I was taught in a Christian tradition known as Dispensationalism. My dispensational pastors and professors tended to focus on Paul and paid very little attention to the ethical teachings of Jesus. They focused on the grace of God in salvation to such an extent that any emphasis on the commands of Jesus would almost certainly have been viewed as “legalism.”
My pastors and teachers were very zealous about Jesus’ “Great
Commission” to go into all the world and make disciples (and rightly so). But
they seemed to ignore or downplay the rest of the Great Commission which says “teaching
them to obey all that I [Jesus] have commanded you.” I was taught that
Matthew, Mark and Luke really belonged to the Old Testament which applied to
Israel, not to the church. One of my dispensational pastors even told me that
“there is very little gospel in the Gospels.”
I was not persuaded. First, it didn’t seem very
consistent to emphasize the part of the Great Commission about making
disciples, but to ignore the part about teaching disciples to obey
Jesus.
Second, it didn’t seem very consistent to insist that the
Gospel of Matthew was written to Israel and not to the church—and yet at the
same time to insist that Matthew 28:19-20 was the top priority for the church.
Third, even my dispensational pastors and professors
recognized that the Gospel of John was written for the church and yet the
Gospel of John emphasizes the importance of obeying Jesus!
Fortunately, Dispensationalism has evolved since those
days. It would almost seem silly today to have to insist that obeying Jesus
should be a major goal of everyone who calls themselves Christian. In fact, I
would suggest that it is an oxymoron to call someone “Christian” who really does
not want to obey Jesus.
But exactly what does obeying Jesus entail? When Jesus
taught that we are to make disciples, teaching them to obey all
things he commanded, exactly what was it we were to obey?
To answer that question I copied and pasted the Gospels
to a Word document. Next, I deleted everything that was not related to the
ethical or moral teachings of Jesus. I then organized these teachings and wrote
them up in narrative form, citing chapter and verse at every point. The result
is contained in the essay below. It is not exhaustive but I think it is a good
30,000 foot overview of what Jesus’ expected of his followers.
Sin and repentance
Jesus was all about love and compassion, but it may come
as a surprise to some that he also had a lot to say about sin. Jesus taught
that sin does not consist of outward actions alone, but begins in the heart. He
said that out of the heart comes “evil thoughts, sexual immorality,
theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander,
arrogance, folly, and false testimony (Mk 7.20-23; cf. Mt 15.10-20).
Similarly, in Jesus’ famous “Sermon on the Mount” it was
not just those who murdered who were guilty—Murder began with hatred in the
heart. It was not just those who committed adultery who were guilty—Adultery
began with lust in the heart (Mt 5.21-30). Jesus taught that since the mouth
speaks what is in the heart, people one day would give account of every idle
word they have spoken, (Mt 12.33-37).
For Jesus, sin did not just exist in the hearts of those
who were greedy, envious, hateful or immoral, etc. Sin also existed in the
hearts of religious leaders who loved to draw attention to themselves in order
to make themselves look good, but didn’t practice what they preached. Among
other things, Jesus called them hypocrites, blind guides, vipers, and even sons
of hell (Mt 23.36; Lk 11.43-44)!
While Jesus insisted that we should let our “light shine
before men, that they may see [our] good deeds and praise [our] Father in
heaven” (Mt 5.16), he also taught that we should be careful never to do these
good deeds for the purpose of self-glorification. For example, when (not if) we
give to the poor we should never do so for the purpose of drawing attention to
ourselves (Mt 6.4). Jesus warned of severe punishment, for example, to those
who loved to flaunt their religious status but oppressed widows (Lk 20.45-47).
Jesus pointed out that, generally speaking, it was the
religious leaders, not tax collectors and sinners, who refused to repent at the
teaching of John (Mt 21.32).The religious leaders, however, were not the only
ones Jesus condemned. He characterized his entire generation as wicked,
adulterous, and sinful (Mk 8.38; Mt 12.39; 16.4; Lk 11.29). If he thought of
his relatively moral first century Jewish culture as wicked, we can only
imagine what he would say about modern western culture!
Jesus warned that sin was a serious issue that should not
to be taken lightly. He used the hyperbole of cutting off hands and feet, or
plucking out eyes to make the point that people should take drastic action to
avoid sin (Mt 5.27-30; 18.8-9). He warned that those he called “evil-doers” and
“wicked”—presumably those whose lifestyles are characterized by unrepentant
delight in sinfulness—would be cast out of his presence and consigned to a
place where there would be “weeping and gnashing of teeth” (Mt 7.21-23; Lk
13.24-30, 47-50).
It should not be surprising, therefore, to learn that the
very first words Matthew and Mark record of Jesus’ public ministry are a call
to repentance (Mt 4.17; Mk 1.15)! Jesus taught that unless we repent we will
perish (Lk 13.1-6) but he said that there is more rejoicing in heaven over one
sinner who repents than over ninety-nine who need no repentance (Lk 15.3-31). Obeying
Jesus, therefore, must begin with repentance.
Love the Lord your God
Jesus taught that the first and greatest commandment was
to love the Lord our God with all our heart, soul, strength and mind (Mt. 22.35-40;
Lk 10.27-28). As such this command should be considered the foundation of
Jesus’ ethical teaching. But in Jesus’ teaching there was a bit of a twist. Jesus
made claims for himself that could only be true of God and insisted that people
should value him, Jesus, above all else. For example, according to the Gospels,
Jesus claimed to be able to forgive sin and said he was lord over the
Sabbath—characteristics only true of God. According to the Gospel of John, Jesus
taught that “I and my Father are one.” Jesus’ enemies understood precisely what
he meant because they tried to stone him saying, “you a mere man, claim to be
God” (John 10:33). In the Ten Commandments God taught, “You shall have no other
gods before me,” so Jesus, viewing himself as “One with the Father,” commanded
that people value him (Jesus) above everything else.
For example, devotion to Jesus was to outweigh our love
of money. Jesus taught that ultimately, people cannot serve both God and money
(Lk 16.13). And as much as Jesus cared for the poor—and demanded that we do so
also—Jesus insisted that devotion to him should even outweigh our commitment to
help the poor (John 12.4-8).
Even more than that, however, Jesus taught that anyone
who loved their family—father, mother, sister, brother, wife, husband,
children—more than they loved him, was not worthy of him. Anyone who would not
take up their cross for him—a metaphor for being willing to die—was not worthy
of him (Mk, 8.34-37; Mt 10.27-39; 16.24-27; Lk 9.23-25; 12.48; 14.25-27).
In Matthew 8.22 someone said he wanted to follow Jesus
but that he had to bury his father first. Jesus told him to “let the dead bury
their own dead,” apparently meaning that allegiance to Jesus even trumped
important and necessary family obligations. Jesus warned that such allegiance
to him would bring division in families (Lk 12.51-53), and that some would even
be betrayed to death by family members (Mt 10.16-23). That being the case, he
warned people to count the cost before following him (Lk 14.28-30). Following
him could be deadly. On the other hand, he said that people should not be afraid of those who can kill the body but rather to fear the One
who has authority to throw them into hell (Lk 12.4-5).
This ultimate allegiance to Jesus, however, didn’t mean
that people should neglect family members. Jesus taught that people should honor
their parents (Mk 7.10; 10:18-20; Lk 18.20) as commanded by the Law of Moses,
and as Jesus himself did (Jn 19.26-27). He condemned those who contrived to
deprive their parents of financial help (Mk 7.9-13; Mt 15.3-9). He taught that
we should be faithful in marriage (Mt 5.31-32, 19.4-6; 19.8-9; Lk 16.18) and he
warned of dire consequences for those who caused children to stumble (Mt. 18.6;
Mk 9.42; Lk 17.2). Indeed, loving the Lord even above family often gives a
depth and permanence to familial love that doesn’t exist in many relationships.
An important expression of love for the Lord is worship. Jesus
taught to worship God and “serve him only” (Mt 4.10; Lk 4.8), which must be
interpreted in light of Jesus’ claim to deity. Jesus said this worship was to
be “in spirit and in truth” apparently meaning that worship should not just be
by empty rituals or rote but should be sincere, from the heart and according to
biblical truth.
Another expression of love for the Lord is prayer. Jesus
both taught (Mt 6.6-10; Mt 14.23; Mk 11.25) and exemplified prayer in his life
(Mk 14.32-39; Lk 5.16; Jn 17)—sometimes rising early in the morning or praying
all night (Mk 1.35; Luke 6.12). Jesus taught that God, like a loving father, wants
to answer prayer (Lk 11.5-26; Mt 7.7-11) so people should pray persistently (Mt
11.5-26), in faith with an attitude of expectancy (Mt 21.22). Jesus was clear,
however, that public prayer should never be for show or for the purpose of
bringing honor to oneself (Mt 6.5-8).
It is important to emphasize that loving Jesus is more
than just warm fuzzy feelings. Loving Jesus involves a heart attitude that
encompasses such words as devotion, dedication, commitment, and allegiance
(Paul would call this attitude “faith”). Such an attitude cannot help but
produce a change in one’s life. In fact, a life that produced fruit was one of
the characteristics of a genuine love for and allegiance to Jesus. Jesus said,
“If you love me, keep [or you will keep] my commandments” (Jn 14.15) and “Whoever
has my commands and keeps them is the one who loves me” (Jn 14.21)
and “Anyone
who loves me will obey my teaching” (14.23). In Jesus’ parable of the sower,
those who heard the word of God and fell away, or got choked out buy the cares
of this world, were not true followers of Jesus. The true followers of
Jesus were those who remained in Jesus and produced fruit (Mt 13.1-9; 18-23).
Bearing fruit involves, among other things, being good
“stewards” or managers of the abilities, talents, opportunities and resources
entrusted to us by God. The Lord expects us to use these wisely. Failure to do
so would result in being thrown into a place of darkness where there will be
weeping and gnashing of teeth (Mt 25.14-30; cf. Luke 18:11-27).
Bearing fruit was to be so
characteristic of Jesus’ followers (Lk 8.4-15, 21) that Jesus said those who
did not bear fruit would be cut down like a fig tree (Lk 13.6-9) and “thrown
into the fire” (Mt 7.15-20; John 15.1-17). If someone deeply loves and is
genuinely committed to Jesus, this cannot help but produce a change in our life
that increasingly bears the fruit of obedience to Jesus.
Jesus’ followers were to be
characterized by having a hunger and thirst for righteousness, by being
merciful or compassionate, being pure in heart, meek, and making peace (Mt
5.3-11).
No
one is perfect, of course, but sincere love for and genuine commitment to Jesus
cannot help but to produce fruit. That fruit may include numerous aspects of
loving our neighbors, as explained below.
Love your neighbor as yourself
Jesus said the second most important
command was to love our neighbor as we love ourselves (Mt 22.35-40; Lk
10.27-28). But who is our neighbor? Certainly our neighbor would include fellow
Christians. Jesus taught that we should love fellow believers as he has loved
us. In fact, Jesus said this love for fellow believers would be how people
would know we are his disciples (John 12.34). Just as Jesus laid down his life
for us, so we should be prepared to lay down our lives for others (John 15.12,
17).
But loving neighbors involves more than
just loving fellow believers. In Jesus’ parable of the Good Samaritan, Jesus
seemed to imply that our neighbor was the person we happened to come upon who
was in need and whom we were in a position to help. But even more than that,
Jesus’ command to love others was to include love even for our enemies.
This love, whether for believers,
neighbors or enemies, was not just affection or warm feelings, it involved
looking out for the well-being of others. In Luke 6, Jesus explains this love in
terms of concrete actions—“do good to those who hate you, bless
(speak well) of those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you,”
“turn the other check” to insults, give to those in need, lend
without expecting re-payment (Lk 6.27-36, Mt 5.38-43).
Loving others meant doing “to
others as you would have them do to you” (Lk 6.31). It meant
showing compassion to people. Jesus taught to “Be merciful (or compassionate)
just as your Father is merciful” (Lk 6.36 cf. Mt 5.7). In fact, Jesus’ ministry
embodied compassion (e.g. Mk 8.1-13; Mt 15.32-38; 11.4-5). His teaching,
feeding, healings and exorcisms were, among other things, expressions of
compassion (Mt 9.36, 14.14; 15.32; 20.34; Mk 6.34; 8.2).
Loving others also involved forgiving
those who have sinned against us. Jesus commanded that if our brothers or
sisters repent we must forgive them repeatedly (Lk 17.3) and that our refusal
to forgive would result not only in God’s refusal to forgive us (Mt 6.14), but
in eternal judgment as well (Mt 18.21-35).
On the other hand, Jesus was clear that
if the offender was a believer, we should confront them personally. If the
offender doesn’t listen, we should bring one or two others to help resolve the
dispute and if that didn’t work, we could take it before the church (Mt 18.18).
Jesus warned, however, that before we judge someone else for their sins we
should be sure we are not guilty of the same sins—remove the plank from our own
eye first. Jesus warned that the same standard we use in judging others will be
used against us (Mt 7.1-5; Lk 6.27; 41-42).
Central to loving our
neighbor was caring for the poor. Jesus taught that people should even sell their
possessions and give to the poor, thus building up treasure in heaven (Lk 12.32-34).
It seems probable that Jesus was using hyperbole here since he did not seem to require
everyone to sell everything they had (e.g. Mk 2.11; Mk 5.19; Mk 8.25-26; Luke
8.38-39; Lk 10.38; 19:1-10; Jn 19.27; cf. Acts 2.46; 18.26; 21.16). Jesus’
point was that helping the poor should be very high on the priority list of those
who claim to follow him.
In fact, Jesus taught that people who
did not care for those who were sick, hungry, thirsty, in prison or poorly
clothed were really not his disciples at all and would be sent into eternal
fire (Mt 25.31-46). Jesus taught, however, that
with God it was not the size of the gift that
counted, but the size of the sacrifice (Lk 21.3) and Jesus’ followers should be known for their generosity (Mt
5.42; Lk 6.38).
Jesus warned, therefore, to
“Be on guard against all kinds of greed” (Lk 12.14) and not to “store up
treasures on earth” because a person’s heart would be where their treasure was
(Mt 6.19-24). He strongly condemned self-indulgence (Mt 23.25) and said people
should stop worrying so much about the future or cares of this life but to focus
first on the kingdom of God (Lk 12.22-31; Mt 6.25-34).
Jesus was clear that his followers were
not to be overbearing tyrants who “lord it over others,” rather we are to serve
(Lk 22.24-27). In fact, Jesus said that whoever wanted to be great among you
must be serve others (Mt 20.26-27; 23.8-11; cf Mt 18.2-6). Jesus
actually got down on his knees and washed his disciples’ feet, saying he was
setting an example that they should go likewise and serve others (Jn 12.12-17,
cf. Luke 22.26). Servanthood necessarily involves meekness
(the opposite of being an overbearing loud-mouth), and humility (Lk 14.7-11; Mt
18.4; 23.12) which certainly characterized Jesus’ life and which he expected
from his followers.
On the other hand, while Jesus’ followers must generally be
characterized by humility and meekness, loving others does not necessarily
preclude the occasional possibility of direct confrontation or even harshness.
After all, the same Jesus who taught and embodied love, also called self-righteous
religious leaders hypocrites, blind guides, fools, white-washed
tombs, snakes, vipers, and sons of hell! He compared his whole generation
unfavorably to Sodom and Gomorrah and called them to repent (Mt 12.39-42; cf.
Mt 17.17). Loving others does not rule out righteous anger against sin.
Finally, loving others involves leading them to
repentance and drawing them to Jesus. Jesus’ called his followers to be fishers
of men, to let their light shine by their good works (Mt 5.16) and to make
disciples (Mk 1.17; Mt 4.19; Lk 5.10). He urged his followers to pray that God
would send more workers out into the harvest (Mt 9.37; Lk 10.2).
What are these laborers to do? In his “Great Commission”
Jesus says we are to make disciples, baptizing them (as
the initial expression of faith) and teaching them to obey everything he commanded
(Mt 28.18-20). Making disciples is not just about teaching the doctrines of the
Christian faith—as important as that is. Making disciples is about teaching
people to “obey everything” Jesus commanded. We are not really making disciples
unless we are teaching people to obey Jesus.
Obedience and grace
This discussion on obeying Jesus must be
placed in the context of what Jesus taught about grace. For example, in
Jesus’ parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector, the Pharisee prayed, “God
thank you that I am not like other men—robbers, evildoers, adulterers—or even
like this tax collector. I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.” The
tax collector, on the other hand did not appeal to any good works but threw
himself on God’s grace, beating his chest and pleading, “God have mercy on me,
a sinner.” Jesus said it was the tax collector who was “justified” not the
Pharisee. In other words, the man who humbly threw himself on God’s mercy and
grace was declared to be right with God, not the man who self-righteously
thought he was good enough to earn God’s favor.
Another example of grace is found in Luke
7.36-50 which tells the story of a women who came to a dinner attended by Jesus
and a group of religious leaders. The woman was crying, apparently over her sin
since this little story describes her as a sinner four times! She ignored the
religious leaders and went right to Jesus, kneeling down as she kissed Jesus’
feed, anointed them with ointment and wiped them with her hair. Jesus said to
the Pharisee who hosted the event that this woman’s “sins, which are many, are
forgiven—for she loved much.” He then turned to the woman and said that her
faith had saved her.
The story leads readers to understand that this woman’s
sorrowful repentance over her sin, coupled with her loving devotion to Jesus,
is the very definition of the kind of faith necessary to enter the kingdom
about which Jesus had so often preached. The woman was not saved because she
was such a good person or because she had done some wonderful good works. She
was saved by grace through her repentance and faith or loving devotion to
Jesus.
The stories of the prodigal son (Lk 15:11-32) and the
landowner who hired people in the marketplace (Mt 21.1-16) are also stories of
God’s grace. The point is that obedience to Jesus is never to be understood as
something we do to earn God’s favor or salvation. Obedience should never be
thought of as the means of gaining a right status with God. It is out of a
heart of faith, i.e. loving devotion/commitment/dedication/allegiance to Jesus,
empowered by the Holy Spirit that our obedience flows.
I am convinced that Jesus would agree completely with
what Paul wrote in Ephesians 2.8-10: “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is
not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.”
Jesus and
politics
Some Christian traditions have interpreted Jesus' commands to love and to turn the other cheek, etc., as if he were condemning all violence and war. One author went so far as to suggest that Jesus would even prohibit police officers from using violence in the course of carrying out their lawful duties.
It is important, therefore, to note that Jesus was addressing how his followers should personally love those with whom they come in contact. He was not directly addressing government policy. Judea had been ruled by kings and tyrants for a thousand years before Jesus’ time so the idea that Jesus’ servant-followers would vote in elections or “serve” as senators, governors or presidents was not even a remote hypothetical possibility when Jesus was teaching.
It is important, therefore, to note that Jesus was addressing how his followers should personally love those with whom they come in contact. He was not directly addressing government policy. Judea had been ruled by kings and tyrants for a thousand years before Jesus’ time so the idea that Jesus’ servant-followers would vote in elections or “serve” as senators, governors or presidents was not even a remote hypothetical possibility when Jesus was teaching.
We cannot interpret Jesus apart from his Jewish context and his own affirmation of Jewish scriptures (e.g. Matthew 5:17-18) and we must be careful about trying to apply all of Jesus' teachings directly to government policies. I see no reason to believe, for example, that Jesus would have disagreed with Hebrews 11:32-34 which applauds
godly Jewish leaders of faith, not for turning the other cheek but for
administering justice, routing foreign armies and conquering kingdoms! Jesus cites both Moses and David approvingly with no hint of disapproval
for being men of war. In addition, according to John 10.22, Jesus was in the Jerusalem Temple for the Feast of Dedication (Hanukkah) which celebrates the violent re-taking of the Temple from a Syrian ruler who had desecrated it and had committed atrocities against the Jews. If Jesus was in the Temple protesting the fact that these rebels had not "turned the other cheek" it seems
odd that the Gospel of John gives no indication whatsoever of Jesus' disapproval.
Similarly, Jesus' teachings on helping the poor cannot simply be applied directly to support government economic policies of socialism, communism or capitalism. Jesus was addressing personal behavior and was not directly addressing government policies. In other words, by way of application, Jesus was not addressing government re-distribution of wealth. He was not teaching that Christian police officers should literally turn the other cheek when they are assaulted while lawfully administering justice. Jesus was not saying that the President of the United States should have metaphorically turned the other check by offering the Empire State Building after the Twin Towers were destroyed. He never taught that governments should disband their armies and leave themselves defenseless (note that John the Baptist did not even require Roman soldiers to leave the military: Luke 3:14).
Similarly, Jesus' teachings on helping the poor cannot simply be applied directly to support government economic policies of socialism, communism or capitalism. Jesus was addressing personal behavior and was not directly addressing government policies. In other words, by way of application, Jesus was not addressing government re-distribution of wealth. He was not teaching that Christian police officers should literally turn the other cheek when they are assaulted while lawfully administering justice. Jesus was not saying that the President of the United States should have metaphorically turned the other check by offering the Empire State Building after the Twin Towers were destroyed. He never taught that governments should disband their armies and leave themselves defenseless (note that John the Baptist did not even require Roman soldiers to leave the military: Luke 3:14).
On the other hand, exactly how
government officials who are Christians should apply Jesus’ teachings on
personal behavior to government policies (e.g. on war, poverty, immigration or
other economic and social issues) is a matter of endless
debate among Christian voters.
Summary
Jesus condemned the sin of his generation and called people to repentance. Among other things, he preached against sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance, folly, false testimony, evil thoughts, lust, hatred, self-righteousness, self-indulgence, and hypocrisy. For Jesus, sin did not consist merely in outward actions but began in the heart.
Jesus
taught that the greatest commandment was to love God above all else—and he
claimed to be one with the Father. That being the case, he taught that people
should be more devoted to him than they are to their own families or even their
own life. Such devotion involves worship, prayer and obedience or bearing
fruit.
Jesus
taught that the second greatest commandment was to love our neighbors as we
love ourselves. This involves looking out for the well-being of others and
treating others as we would want to be treated. It involves serving others,
being generous, compassionate and forgiving. Jesus even commands loving our
enemies—doing good to them, praying for them and refusing to retaliate against
their insults.
Jesus
taught that we were to be fishers of men—making disciples which involves teaching
them to obey Jesus. Jesus taught that we are not justified before God by our
good works, but by God’s grace.
Finally,
Jesus’ teachings were primarily addressing how his followers should personally love
those with whom they come in contact. How those teachings should be applied to
government policies is a matter of debate among Christians—but that debate should
never keep us from loving God more than we love life, relying on his grace, and from loving neighbors
and even enemies as we love ourselves.
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