In the Gospel of Matthew, in the middle of the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus says: Think not that I am come to make void the law or the prophets; I am not come to make void, but to fulfil (Matthew 5:17). In the same sense, Love is the fulfilling of the Law.

In Chapter 13 of the letter to the Romans, Paul starts by talking about our duty to abide by the rules of our society. (The same as Jesus’ principle of ‘render unto Caesar what is Caesar’s’.) In his list of examples, all the duties are stated as things or actions we owe; and therefore, he concludes with the admonition: Don’t live in debt. Then, as if that thought sparked a connection he hadn’t considered before, he pivots: Romans 13:8 Owe no one anything, unless to love one another: for he that loves another has fulfilled the law.

In the gospel of Mark, chapter 9, we find a man whose son was possessed by a demon; and the demon kept trying to kill the man’s son. So, the man goes looking for Jesus. But instead, he finds nine of his disciples. He asks them for help, and they fail.

In many ways, Elisha’s ministry is a foreshadowing of Jesus’ ministry. They both came on the scene after their Elijah prepared the way, and they both came to declare that the LORD saves.

Of the Old Testament prophets that came after Moses, two stand out because their message was accompanied by signs and wonders: Elijah and Elisha. The name Elijah means Jehovah is God. And that is what Elijah was sent to declare to the nation of Israel, the northern kingdom, in the time of King Ahab. At that time, the people, in spite of having the long tradition of their fathers, the stories of Abraham, Moses, Joshua… in spite of knowing what was right because they had been given the Law, they had chosen to abandon all that and followed their kings wholesale into sin.

The question, “What would Jesus do?” is not the same as the question “What did Jesus do?” This is an important distinction because, as followers of Christ, we are not called to be His admirers but rather His imitators.

Matthew 28: 16-20 But the eleven disciples went into Galilee to the mountain which Jesus had appointed them. And when they saw him, they did homage to him: but some doubted. And Jesus coming up spoke to them, saying, All power has been given me in heaven and upon earth. Go [therefore] and make disciples of all the nations, baptising them to the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit; teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have enjoined you. And behold, *I* am with you all the days, until the completion of the age.

Yes, followers are disciples; but more importantly we are called to be disciplers.

Luke 9:57-60 (NASB) As they were going on the road, someone said to Him, “I will follow You wherever You go.” And Jesus said to him, “The foxes have holes and the birds of the sky have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head.” And He said to another, “Follow Me.” But he said, “Lord, permit me first to go and bury my father.” But He said to him, “Allow the dead to bury their own dead; but as for you, go and proclaim everywhere the kingdom of God.”

Have you ever pondered the difference in Jesus’ response to these two people? Does the tenor of the second one give you pause?

John 1:18 No one has seen God at any time; the only-begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, *he* hath declared [him].

If, to you, seeing is believing, this statement from John can be frustrating. But it is actually comforting: No one has seen God. No other human being can come to you and tell you that they have “the inside track” into God’s Truth. No, we are all on the same boat.

John 1:14-17 And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us (and we have contemplated his glory, a glory as of an only-begotten with a father), full of grace and truth; (John bears witness of him, and he has cried, saying, This was he of whom I said, He that comes after me is preferred before me, for he was before me;) for of his fulness we all have received, and grace upon grace. For the law was given by Moses: grace and truth subsists through Jesus Christ.