Surfing the Inner N8

This morning I was reading Leviticus and discovered something pretty interesting.

When Jesus was asked what was the most important commandment, He actually gave two: love God and love people (see Matthew 22:37-40).  He cited Leviticus 19:18, which says to “love your neighbor as yourself.”

Looking at that phrase in its context provides some insight.  Leviticus 19:18 in its entirety says: “Do not seek revenge or bear a grudge against one of your people, but love your neighbor as yourself. I am the LORD.”

Since we’re coming out of a three-week series on forgiveness at CrossWay, this really jumped out at me.

Sometimes we tend to categorize biblical truths as Old Testament or New Testament, as though they’re not consistent with each other.  The whole concept of forgiving others because God forgives us seems very New Testament.  But it’s right there in Leviticus in the Old Testament!  We’re not to carry grudges or seek revenge.  If we do, we’re not loving our neighbors.  And we’re to practice this kind of love because Jesus Christ is the Lord.

It’s stuff like this that reminds me why I love the Bible… and even more than that, why I love the God of the Bible.