Unveiling Divine Love: Jesus’ Joy and the Command to Love God and Neighbor (Luke 10:21-28)
Jesus’ Joy in Revealing the Father (Luke 10:21-24):
“At that very time, He rejoiced greatly in the Holy Spirit
and said, ‘I praise You, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have
hidden these things from the wise and intelligent and have revealed them to
infants. Yes, Father, for this way was well-pleasing in Your sight.’” (Luke
10:21, LSB)
Here, we witness a glimpse of the inner life of Jesus. He
rejoices in the Father, the Lord of heaven and earth, for revealing His truths
not to the wise and learned but to “infants”—those who approach God with a
simple, humble heart. This revelation points to the nature of the Father,
Yahweh, who desires that all come to know Him not through worldly wisdom but
through childlike faith.
Jesus continues, saying, “All things have been handed over
to Me by My Father, and no one knows who the Son is except the Father, and who
the Father is except the Son, and anyone to whom the Son wills to reveal Him.”
(Luke 10:22, LSB). The profound truth here is that Jesus, the Son, is the
unique revealer of the Father. It is through Jesus’ ministry and message that
we come to understand who the Father is.
The essence of this revelation is God’s love. In John 14:9,
Jesus says, “He who has seen Me has seen the Father.” Jesus’ life and teachings
reveal a God who is loving, gracious, and just. Therefore, when we turn to the
next part of the passage, we see that the commandment to love is not arbitrary;
it is rooted in the very nature of God.
The Commandment to Love God and Neighbor (Luke 10:25-28):
Here, Jesus connects the lawyer’s knowledge of the Law to
the deeper reality of God’s revelation. The command to love is the natural
response to knowing God, for “God is love” (1 John 4:8). The joy Jesus
expressed earlier in revealing the Father is the joy of introducing people into
a relationship of love with God. And from that relationship flows the command
to love others as oneself.
The revelation of God that Jesus rejoices in is not merely
about knowledge but about entering into a relationship of love. To know the
Father, as Jesus reveals Him, is to encounter a God who loves us and calls us
to love Him in return. This is why the greatest commandment is to love Yahweh,
our God, with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength. And this love extends to
our neighbor, reflecting God’s love for the world around us.
As Jesus Himself summarized the Law and the prophets, “In
everything, therefore, treat people the same way you want them to treat you,
for this is the Law and the Prophets” (Matthew 7:12, LSB). The revelation of
God in Christ and the commandment of love are inseparable. The more we know God
through Jesus, the more we are drawn into the love that He embodies and
commands.
Conclusion:
Brothers and sisters, Jesus rejoices in revealing the Father
to us so that we may know Him, love Him, and live out that love in our daily
lives. Our love for God and our neighbor is not something we can fulfill by
sheer willpower; it is the overflow of our relationship with the God who first
loved us.
Let us, therefore, approach God with the humility of little
children, receiving His revelation in Christ. And let that revelation move us
to love Yahweh with our whole being and to extend His love to our neighbors. In
doing so, we will embody the greatest commandments and find the life that Jesus
promises.
Amen.
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#ChristianLiving #BiblicalLove #GreatestCommandment #ChristReveals
#LoveInAction #HolySpiritJoy #ChristianFaith #ScriptureReflections
#LoveAndFaith
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