Fulfilled

Matthew 5:17-18 (NIV)
¹⁷ "Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them.
¹⁸ I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished.

Jesus fulfilled the Law in two ways.  The first is in meeting the Law’s requirement for death for disobedience.  His death took the place of our death. 

 The second is His fulfilling the law in Spirit.  No longer are we to understand God from the external application of the Law, but the Holy Spirit is given that the Law’s intent is realized within each heart.  The purpose of the Law was accomplished when Jesus said “It is finished” on the cross.  That purpose was to allow us to approach God and to realize the vast gulf between us.  His sacrifice allows the Holy Spirit to come and dwell within us.   For those who believe, the gulf is eliminated.  He has drawn near.  Those who believe have the ultimate fulfillment.  That is what He accomplished.

Every Nation Under Heaven

Acts 2:2-6 (NIV)
² Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting.
³ They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them.
⁴ All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.
⁵ Now there were staying in Jerusalem God-fearing Jews from every nation under heaven.
⁶ When they heard this sound, a crowd came together in bewilderment, because each one heard them speaking in his own language.

Back when man was building the tower of Babel, God dispersed them and confused the one tongue, making it many.  They were not ready nor was the time right for them to act as one.  Man was full of himself then.  Sadly, this is the condition of many today. 

But on this day the Holy Spirit was given and these disciples were filled with that Spirit.  On that day confusion was reversed as each one of the crowd heard the joyous news in their own language.  The time was right for tongues to speak in one accord, of the one message that opens the door to heaven.  

Instead of a tower built by the hands and will of man for his own glory and way into heaven, God is building a temple of believers in which heaven comes to earth, abiding for a time in the hearts of men.  The day will come when it will be fully revealed.  

Again we wait until the time is fulfilled.  God’s timing is according to His purposes.  It is for every nation under heaven.   

Love

Matthew 22:36-40 (NIV)
³⁶ "Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?"
³⁷ Jesus replied: "'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.'
³⁸ This is the first and greatest commandment.
³⁹ And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.'
⁴⁰ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments."

Both of these commandments share the word love.  That is why God is doing all He has done.  Everything that the law tried to accomplish and the words that the prophets spoke pointed us to Jesus, the coming Christ, the embodiment of love.  They were all given to prepare the way for the coming of the Lord.  

He demonstrated His love for the Father in His obedience.  His heart was one with God.  He spoke His Father’s words, rather than His own thoughts, His own mind.  His Spirit and the Holy Spirit were One. 

The second commandment is demonstrated by His coming and sacrifice on our behalf. 

We are most like God when we love, for He is love.

Love explains everything and overcomes everything.

Love is an action, of being, the way of living true life.

Passing

1 John 2:15-17 (NIV)
¹⁵ Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.
¹⁶ For everything in the world--the cravings of sinful man, the lust of his eyes and the boasting of what he has and does--comes not from the Father but from the world.
¹⁷ The world and its desires pass away, but the man who does the will of God lives forever.

The world here is defined as man.  The world in this passage centers around man:  his cravings, lust, and boasting.  

Man passes away.  With that passing, all his passions and desires go with him.  What seems so important at the moment will be revealed as the wisp of smoke taken in a breeze that it is. 

The will of God will be revealed as the most important thing for it is the path to eternal life.  

Blessed is the man who finds this truth before his time of passing comes, for it does and will come.  It makes all the difference, whether we pass into oblivion or pass into life.  

Stumbling

1 Corinthians 1:22-25 (NIV)
²² Jews demand miraculous signs and Greeks look for wisdom,
²³ but we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles,
²⁴ but to those whom God has called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.
²⁵ For the foolishness of God is wiser than man's wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than man's strength.

Psalm 56:13 (NIV)
¹³ For you have delivered me from death and my feet from stumbling, that I may walk before God in the light of life.

Jesus is the stumbling block to anyone who walks contrary to God’s will.  To those who believe and follow Him, He is the strong arm of the Lord which opens the path and keeps us from stumbling on the way. 

There is a good stumbling, if one falls at the feet of Jesus.  If by that fall the path of the world and self is forsaken, then He will reach down with His loving hand to help His new brother or sister up.  We then walk, not alone, but with Him before God in the light of life.

If we do not find ourselves at the feet of Jesus, we may need to make sure we have not stumbled off the path.  Be like Mary, sister of Martha, and choose the right thing.  Come before Him and listen. 

Knowing

Luke 12:47-48 (NIV)
⁴⁷ "That servant who knows his master's will and does not get ready or does not do what his master wants will be beaten with many blows.
⁴⁸ But the one who does not know and does things deserving punishment will be beaten with few blows. From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked.

This verse speaks to the mercy of God and His love for all.  We can depend on Him to do the right thing, for He is the source of true and pure justice, truth, and love.  Our current limited understanding and ideas in no way change this fact.  That is why He alone is worthy of our praise.  

There seems to be two things at play here: knowing and doing.  Knowing and not doing is shown as worse than doing those same things without knowing. Sin was in the world before the law was given and the resulting judgment gave us a fallen world.  But when the law was given, the impact of sin increased through that knowledge.  We became much more accountable once the will of God became written in stone.  Once exposed and given an understanding of that knowledge, we then have the privilege and burden of choosing to obey.  

In Jesus, the will and Word of God moved from stone to flesh.  The Spirit of God united with mankind and was made available for all.  The revelation of God was completed in the person of Jesus.  He is the Way, the Truth, and the Life.  What has been given is that all things are through, by, and for Him.  By no other name will we be saved.  That is enough for salvation.  The rest of the details have not been given and we are warned not to judge one another.  To the degree we know the will of God and accordingly act, judgment will be rendered, and by the One Who is uniquely and best suited to do so.  We should be thankful and take comfort that our fate will be decided by the perfect One.  

He has provided the way for us to come boldly before Him. That is the one thing worth knowing above all else.

A Ready Heart

Matthew 13:10-13 (MSG)
¹⁰ The disciples came up and asked, "Why do you tell stories?"
¹¹ He replied, "You've been given insight into God's kingdom. You know how it works. Not everybody has this gift, this insight; it hasn't been given to them.
¹² Whenever someone has a ready heart for this, the insights and understandings flow freely. But if there is no readiness, any trace of receptivity soon disappears.
¹³ That's why I tell stories: to create readiness, to nudge the people toward receptive insight. In their present state they can stare till doomsday and not see it, listen till they're blue in the face and not get it.

The stories, or parables, are told to reveal a spiritual truth in the language of the natural.  A heart not ready to hear things of the Spirit will be put off by any words that speak of the world outside of creation.  But these parables can draw one and make a heart curious to move in that direction.  Such a heart can then begin to see and hear something quite different than what they once scorned as so much foolishness.  

The key is a ready heart.  A ready heart opens the door to salvation and wisdom, for these things flow from God to the heart that seeks Him.  He stands at the door and knocks.  Opening the door floods the inner being with His light as He enters.  When He does, His words suddenly make sense.  The world begins to make sense.  The light comes on.  It starts with the heart.