“Do This, And You Will Live.”

“And behold, a lawyer stood up to put him to the test, saying, “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” He said to him, “What is written in the Law? How do you read it?” And he answered, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself.”  (Luke 10:25-28 ESV)

Luke Chapter 10 is one of the most profound chapters in all of the Bible; just go back and read this chapter, I’m sure you will agree with me. In our verses that we are focusing on today, we see that a lawyer approaches Jesus with a question designed to “test” Jesus. It was designed to trick Jesus; to cause Him to say something against the Books of Moses and Prophets so the Jewish leaders could bring Jesus up on charges of blasphemy, of speaking against the Holy Word of God.

In modern English, when we hear the word “lawyer,” we think of someone who has earned a Juris Doctor (JD) degree and passed a state Bar exam. Someone who thoroughly understands our civil law system. But in the first-century Jewish culture and as used in the Gospels, a lawyer “was someone who was an expert in Jewish Law (theology) specializing in interpreting the Old Testament and applying the teachings of established rabbis.” So, this lawyer that approached Jesus wasn’t asking an honest question but was trying to twist the words of Jesus to discredit Him, before the crowds.

His question was a question that I’d venture to say almost all people want an answer to: “What shall I do to inherit eternal life?” This question is asked by every religion that has ever existed. In the Old Testament, worshipers of Baal offered human sacrifices and committed heinous acts of sin to gain the favor of their pagan gods. In the time of Jesus, under the influence of Greek and Roman cultures, people worshiped the god Pan and the goddess Diana, and many others, again so that they would be looked upon favorably by them, so that their followers could “inherit eternal life”. Even today, every known religion has a way for its followers to earn eternal life. That’s the major difference between true Christianity and every other religion in the World. “Religion” is man trying to do enough good things to earn eternal life. “True Christianity” is understanding that there is nothing I can do to obligate God to grant me eternal life.

True Christianity is understanding that I have sinned against a holy, righteous God, and I deserve to be separated from Him for all of eternity. But God, keeping with His character, doesn’t want me to be separated from Him, but wants everyone to come to Him through Jesus, His Son. God has extended eternal life to us as a gift, the gift of His Son, who knew no sin, dying on the cross to pay the penalty of our sins. “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.” You see, the object of the faith of the Old Covenant and the New Covenant believers has always been the promised Messiah, the Lord Jesus.

Look at the answer the Lawyer gave to Jesus' question, “What is written in the Law?”  This lawyer’s answer was the Jewish Shema, the recitation of the Jewish prayer from Deuteronomy 6:4-9, “Hear O Israel, the Lord your God! The Lord is one. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and soul and with all your might.”

Jews were required to say this prayer in the morning when they rose, at night when they went to bed, and as they came into or left their homes; when they spoke to their children, they were to always remember that they were to listen to God and to love Him with all their heart, soul, and might. You see, believers have always been justified by faith, not works of righteousness. The object of the Old Covenant believer's faith was that God would provide the promised Messiah (Jesus); the object of New Covenant believers' faith is that God has provided the promised Messiah (Jesus), who takes away the sins of the world. Jesus' answer was very simple: If you love, believe, and trust in God and God’s plan of salvation, you will live. If you continue to try to impress God by your own good deeds, you will die in your sins.

So, if you honestly ask the question, “What must I do to inherit eternal life?” The answer is still simple. “Believe in the Lord Jesus and you will be saved,…” “And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.” Now you have the answer that everyone wants to know; what will you do with it? Will you accept the gift of eternal life offered by Jesus, or will you, like the lawyer, continue to “test” Jesus and His words?

The choice is yours, my friend, but Jesus was very clear with His answer.

  "Living in Grace is not about what I can do, but about what Jesus has already done!"