Only 2 Commandments – BT4:  The Old Testament has 613 commandments but the New has only has 2

 

 

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We’ve already seen this discussed in Logos Word of God – BT14, but here we will get into more detail. “Definitively/wholly have trusting-relying-faith in the Son” and “ongoingly unconditionally-loving one another as Christ gave us entole commandment” are the only 2 entole officially-decreed, universally-binding commandments of the Father and Son in the completely-different-in-kind New Covenant – the first to unsaved – see Logos Word of God – BT15, the second to saved (a) – see Logos Word of God – BT16.  <Notes> a) John 6:29, 13:34, 15:12, 1 John 3:23, 4:16, 5:1; 2 John 1:5; Galatians 5:6; Ephesians 1:15, 3:17, 6:23; Colossians 1:4; 1 Thessalonians 1:3, 3:6, 5:8; 2 Thessalonians 1:3; 1 Timothy 1:5, 14, 2:15, 4:12, 6:11; 2 Timothy 1:13, 2:22, 3:10; Titus 2:2, 3:15.

 

Some scholars see this obvious coupling of “trusting-relying-faith kai and/coupled unconditional-love” as further evidence that these 2 NT commandments were indeed part of early Christian katecheo catechism teaching (a) about the completely-different-in-kind New Covenant.  Read Love Revolution:  Rediscovering the Lost Command of Jesus by Gaylord Enns!  <Notes> a) katecheo: repetitive instruction of foundational truths: Luke 1:4; Galatians 6:6; 1 Corinthians 14:19; Acts 18:25 – see Teach One Another.

 

The NT only has 2 entole official, universally-binding commandments perfectly combined into ONE compound commandment: “Now THIS is His [God’s singular compound] entole commandment: that we definitively/wholly have trusting-relying-faith in the name/authority of His Son Jesus Christ and/coupled ongoingly unconditionally-love one another – just as He (Christ is the last referent) has already given us [singular] entole commandment” (a). <Notes> a) 1 John 3:23.

 

Jesus casually vacillates between the [singular]:  “This is My [singular] entole commandment that you unconditionally-love one another just-as I have unconditionally-loved you” (a) or “a completely-different-in-kind New (b) [singular] commandment I give to you – that you unconditionally-love one another, just-as I have unconditionally-loved you. By this [alone] all people will know that you are My disciples [rather than another teacher’s]” (c), and now the [plural]:   of “tereo carefully-watch/guard-to-maintain/keep My [plural] commandments” (d), and sometimes both [singular] and [plural] in the same sentence:  “these [plural] things I entellomai command (e) you: that you unconditionally-love one another (f).  <Notes> a) John 15:12, b) kainos or chadash in Hebrew OT: fresh, completely-different-in-kind, unprecedented, sharing nothing with its predecessors, unique, and superior, c) John 13:34-35, d) John 14:15, 21, 15:10, e) entellomai is the verb form of entole, so only refers to officially-decreed, universally-binding commands, f) John 15:17.

 

John also routinely vacillates between God’s single, compound commandment (a) and its [plural] components (b), depending on what the speaker is trying to emphasize.  In their mind, the [plural] is still [single]. We will see that only 2 commandments really can be viewed as 1, similarly to how ALL the OT Law commandments can be summed up as “love your neighbor as yourself” (c).  But we will find an even more integral connection between the only 2 NT commandments!  <Notes> a) 1 John 2:7-8, 3:22-24, 4:21; 2 John 1:5-6, b) 1 John 2:3-4, 3:22-24, 5:2-3; 2 John 1:6, c) Romans 13:9; Galatians 5:14, cf. Matthew 22:40.

 

Only 1 out of 5 “Great Commission” charges to the 11 apostles say anything about them being teachers for the Church, and in this Matthew 28:18-20 account (a) it absolutely doesn’t tell them to teach every disciple everything Jesus ever taught or that would eventually be written down, as I’ve heard so many preachers say.  Instead it says:  “routinely/habitually didasko teaching them (the disciples they are to make) to routinely/habitually tereo ‘carefully watch/guard to maintain/keep’ pas ‘all of a class/category of’ (b) things of what I have entellomai commanded (c) you.”  <Notes> a) also the only apostle to record so much of Christ’s teaching making it obvious that Matthew’s concern was that Jews would take Christ as a rabbi–teacher seriously, b) pas normally refers to “every of a kind/class/category/portion of” – here those entellomai commanded – and not “the whole/entirety of” that Jesus spoke, c) entellomai is the verb form of entole, so only refers to officially-decreed, universally-binding commands.

 

Again, a careful NT study of entole and entellomai reveals the Father and Son commanded only TWO commandments for the completely-different-in-kind New Covenant, combined into ONE in 1 John 3:23 of “having trusting-relying-faith in the Son and unconditionally-loving one another JUST-AS Jesus unconditionally-loved us.”  This is patterned after the old covenant-agreement with God’s people that came with 613 entole commandments, summed up into 2 in Matthew 22:40, and boiled down to 1 in Matthew 7:12; Romans 13:8, 10.

 

NT writers often integrally connect “trusting-relying-faith and/coupled unconditional-love” as key characteristics of the Holy Spirit (a) and thus of genuine Christians (b) as those who have the indwelling Holy Spirit.  Our trusting-relying-faith is also in God’s unconditional-love for us through Christ (c), rooted and grounded in/by/with Christ’s unconditional-love by Him continuing to dwell within us through our trusting-relying-faith (d), Christ’s unconditional-loving-favor-of-grace overflowing to us with [singular] trusting-relying-faith and/coupled [singular] unconditional-love that are in/by/with Him (e), a trusting-relying-faith and/coupled unconditional-love that are consequently the definitive aspects of Christian witness/evangelism (f). <Notes> a) Galatians 5:22 – scholars see “pistis trusting-relying-faith or faithfulness” as only one of the adjective-noun descriptions or facets of “the [singular] fruit of the Spirit being unconditional-love”, b) James 2:5; 1 Peter 1:8; 1 John 3:23, 4:16, 5:1; Revelation 2:19, c) Galatians 2:20, d) Ephesians 3:17, e) 1 Timothy 1:14, f) Ephesians 1:15; Colossians 1:4; 1 Thessalonians 3:6.

 

Paul proseuchomai conversationally-prays that Philemon’s “sharing/communication of his trusting-relying-faith and/coupled his unconditional-love toward/at Christ and His saints may become effectively powerfully-enabling by the means of the genuine, experiential, relational epignosis knowledge of every good thing that is in you eis ‘toward-and-reaching the goal/purpose of’ Christ” (a).  In other words, our horizontal relationship with each other is empowered by our vertical relationship with God!  Consequently, trusting-relying-faith and/coupled unconditional-love is “the example” to pursue for Christian workers (b), being Paul’s aim in life (c), the aim of his charge against false teachers (d), and the subject of Paul’s greetings (e), blessings (f), kneeling before God (g), and thanksgiving (h). <Notes> a) Philemon 1:5-6, b) 1 Timothy 4:12, 6:11; 2 Timothy 2:22, 3:10, c) 1 Timothy 4:12, 6:11; 2 Timothy 2:22, 3:10, d) 1 Timothy 1:5, e) Titus 3:15; Ephesians 6:23, f) Ephesians 6:23, g) Ephesians 3:17, h) 1 Thessalonians 1:3; 2 Thessalonians 1:3.

 

Trusting-relying-faith and/coupled unconditional-love is the actual content of the gospel logos message of God that Paul preached – couples them together 5 times:  “following the pattern of sound logos messages that you have heard from me – by [singular] trusting-relying-faith and/coupled [singular] unconditional-love that are in Christ Jesus” (a). <Notes> a) 2 Timothy 1:13; 1 Thessalonians 5:8; 1 Timothy 2:15, see also 1 Thessalonians 3:6; 1 Timothy 1:14.

 

Jesus couples them in Revelation 2:19, “I eido mentally ‘see’ to perceive/know the [plural] works of you – the [singular] unconditional-love and/coupled the [singular] trusting-relying-faith even (a) the [singular] service (b) and the [singular] hupomone patient-endurance.”  In parallel, “the serving” is “the unconditional-loving” of others and “the patient-endurance” of “The Trusting-Relying-Faith.”  The prominent use of the definite article “The” is clearly associating this as something Christians should specifically and definitely know, for Christ teaches abundantly on His only 2 commandments of “the patient-endurance of trusting-relying-faith” and “the serving of unconditional-love.”  <Notes> a) kai sometimes can mean “even as or indeed or also as” as likely here, b) diakonia: executing the commands of others, not giving them.

 

Clearly trusting-relying-faith and unconditional-love are “the kalos good works” (a) in mind we are called to do in the completely-different-in-kind New Covenant!  Kalos has a broad meaning:  “1) to make beautiful physically or morally, this is distinctly the ‘beauty‘ that comes from harmony or proportional symmetry and thus completeness, or 2) to make excellent in nature or character, thus well adapted for its use, and thus praiseworthy and noble.”  Certainly trusting-relying-faith and unconditional-love are kalos works!  <Notes> a) Matthew 5:16; John 10:32; Acts 9:36; Ephesians 2:10; 1 Timothy 2:10, 5:10, 25, 6:18; Titus 2:7, 14, 3:8, 14; Hebrews 10:24.

 

For sure, the single entole commandment given to Jesus by the Father to speak still is zoe genuine-life everlasting (a), but what was Jesus talking about?  When the Jews asked Jesus, “What must we poieo make-to-DO/WORK in order that we may be ergazomai DOing/WORKng the [plural] ergon DOings/WOrkings [saving, in context] of/belonging-to God?”  Jesus definitively answered them: “THIS is-defined-as the [singular] ergon DOing/WORK of/belonging-to God:  in order that you have trusting-relying-faith in Him [the Son] whom He (the Father) has sent” (b).  What a great use of the different forms of ergon, where we get our words ergo, ergonomics, ergometry, and ergotism.  Yes, there are Christians Works required for salvation – see Only 2 Commandments – BT1.  <Notes> a) John 12:49-50, b) John 6:29-30.

 

Later Jesus said: “Have trusting-relying-faith in Me that I am in the Father and the Father is in Me, or at least have trusting-relying-faith [in Me] on account of the [plural] ergon DOings/WORKS (context: miracles Christ performed) themselves” (c). Therefore, the “ergon DOing/WORK of trusting-relying-faith” or “obedience of/belonging-to faith” (d) in Christ is the essence of the gospel logos message (e).  Works are required for salvation – see Only 2 Commandments – BT1. <Notes> a) John 12:49-50, b) John 6:29-30, c) John 14:11, d) see Obedient Steps of Faith page, e) Mark 1:15; Acts 6:7, 15:7; Romans 1:5, 16, 10:16, 16:26; Ephesians 1:13; Philippians 1:27; Colossians 1:23; 1 Thessalonians 1:3, 3:2; 2 Thessalonians 1:11.

 

Trusting-relying-faith, or specifically the “obedience of/belonging-to faith,” absolutely is not obedience to commandments of the Law.  This is what NOW pleases and “worships God in [singular] Truth” (a), exactly because it takes “the patient-endurance of trusting-relying-faith” to find and guard a relationship with the Lord, just as Hebrews 11:6 says: “Without trusting-relying-faith it is impossible to please Him, for whoever would routinely/habitually proserchomai draw near/close-beside (b) to God must have trusting-relying-faith that He exists (c) and that He rewards those who routinely/habitually diligently-seek-out-to-FIND (d) Him.” Trusting-relying-faith shows God that we really believe that He is worth FINDING and having a relationship with!  See how close the Greek word for watching, listening, proseuchomai conversational-praying is – one letter difference from the Greek word proserchomai for “drawing near to.”

 

<Notes> a) John 4:23-24, b) proserchomai:  a Hebraism for “seeking an audience with, approaching, inquiring of, calling on to visit, or be heard by” God, thus closely akin in spelling and meaning to proseuche conversational-prayer and proskuneo worship, c) that He’s really there to fellowship with, d) ek + zeteo for the Hebrew darash: search out diligently in order to find, investigate, desire/crave, aim/strive after – another Hebraism throughout the OT for diligent worship in order to find God:  Proverbs 8:17; Isaiah 58:2; Jeremiah 29:13; Amos 5:4.  Jesus used this common OT phrase “You will seek Me” to rub it into the Pharisees and scribe that they will NOT find God this time and die in their sins for their rejection of Him:  John 6:26, 7:34 36, 8:21, 13:33, cf. Proverbs 1:28; Romans 10:20 citing Isaiah 65:1.

 

Reflection:

 

 

As Christian musicians, it’s imperative to know that the NT wasn’t written in English and that Greek words are much more specific in meaning.  There are ONLY 2 entole officially-decreed, universally binding commandments in the NT that Jesus preached faithfully as part of the gospel logos message to experience soteria salvation’s deliverance-restoration-to-wholeness and zoe genuine-life.  Period!  You can’t just look up the English word “command” because there are many other Greek words they have ambiguously translated as the same word when they don’t mean the same thing at all, which is VERY misleading – see Bible Info.  Can you see how so much false doctrine is created?  “Faith in Christ and/coupled Unconditional-love for one another” are so integrated in meaning throughout the NT they are inseparable and even viewed as one commandment.

 

These were faithfully taught as part of the Great Commission for water-baptism for salvation, but over time the religion of the Catholic Church added 100s of more commandments not only based on the teachings of Christ, some that were even peripheral, but shamefully many from the OT – see The Great Wall, “binding” them to the backs of people just like the Pharisees and scribes did with their Oral Torah.  Now the internet says there are 1000s of commandments!  I echo the apostle Paul’s words:  “Anathema!  This is a different gospel which is no gospel at all.  Again I say, Anathema!”

 

Now there is only “the obedience of faith” or “work of faith” and the “labor of unconditional-love” that is NOW “the Law of Christ.”  Not 1 of 613 OT commandment is still active – every single one has been katargeo: ‘thrown down to be inactive and useless,’ thus terminated, destroyed, voided, annulled, and finally we are released from” and teleo “fulfilled, accomplished, completed, finished, telos ended, violently put to death, and nailed to the cross” because Christ pleroo “filled-to-completion” them ALL.  Wake up Christians – it’s over!  The completely-different-in-kind, superior New Covenant is NOW in effect!

 

Prayer:

   

 

Praise Your Name Lord that NOW all of us can still find You Jesus when we seek You with all of our heart, and even when we don’t know what to say, we can speak in tongues and Your Spirit prays within for us, or we can even groan and Your Spirit will intercede for us.  Thank You for making Your completely-different-in-kind, superior NEW covenant so simple that even little children and the least among us can easily surrender to Your “custom-fit and light-to-carry” Yoke of learning – all we have to do is meno abide/stay-connected to You, the Vine of Christ, “in order to bear much fruit to the Father’s glory!”  See A 11-21-2021 Vision about Meno abiding.  And we do this through “patiently-enduring trusting-relying-faith” in proseuche conversational-prayer or proserchomai drawing-near/close-beside or proskuneo worship, which really is all the same.  Now as Your disciples have only 1 entole officially-decreed, universally-binding commandment to “serve others” – “unconditionally-loving them just as You did us.”  I just love how You K.I.S. (Keep It Simple) us!  Praise Your name!

 

 

 

 

 

Spiritual Education, New covenant has on 2 commandments coupled into 1 – Faith in Christ and Love for others, Jesus and John routinely vacillate between 1 & 2 commandments, Faith and Love are integrated into 1 commandment Faith working thru Love, 613 Old Testament commandments summed by 2 also boiled down to 1, Faith and Love often coupled in the New Testament, Faith and Love are the marks of Christian life service and evangelism, Faith and Love are the gospel, Faith and Love are the good works Christians are called to DO, the obedience of faith is what pleases God not 613 old testament commandments, conversational prayer draws near to God, Religion has added more to the simplicity of 2 commandments that are but 1