Father, Son, and Holy Spirit love you just the way you are now, and exactly as God the Father loves Jesus the Son of Man*, therefore we are to love ourselves and one another in just the same way.

John 13:34-35, “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”

John 15:9,12, “Just as the Father has loved Me, I have also loved you; … ¹² … love one another, just as I have loved you.”

John 17:22-23, “And the glory which You gave Me I have given them, that they may be one just as We are one: I in them, and You in Me; that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me.”

John 17:25-26, “O righteous Father! The world has not known You, but I have known You; and these have known that You sent Me. And I have declared to them Your name, and will declare it, that the love with which You loved Me may be in them, and I in them.”

Matthew 28:19-20, “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”

Following the finished work of Christ at the Cross, God’s love, that is, God the Father’s love for Jesus the Son of Man has been graciously and unconditionally offered to all people everywhere.

Therefore, it is not necessary for us to change anything in order to be loved, accepted, and pleasing to God.

We are already loved, accepted, and pleasing to God just as we are, all and only because of the finished work of Christ, and the Grace of God extended to all people based on Christ’s finished work.

There is nothing anyone can ever think, say, or do that can change what Christ has done for us or change what Father God has so graciously offered to us based on what Christ has done.

Jesus the Son of Man was judged, found guilty, condemned, and punished by God the Father for the disobedience of all humankind. And lest we misrepresent, dismiss, or disown the meaning and value of his sacrifice we are to avoid judging, accusing, and condemning ourselves and others for any reason.

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Purpose: The purpose of this website is to focus attention on the words of God in the Bible that proceeded directly “out of the mouth of God” Matthew 4:4, and that were heard and could be confirmed by two or three witnesses.* Matthew 18:16, Hebrews 2:3

Premise: The words of God in the Bible that came directly “out of the mouth of God” inform all the other words and doctrines in the Bible; i.e. they are the light and lens through which the entire Bible is to be read, studied and understood.

It is from this perspective that the topics in this website have been written.

Unless otherwise noted, all Scriptures in this website are from the NASB95 and NKJV Bibles.

The only words in the Bible that were spoken directly “out of the mouth of God”, and that were heard and could be confirmed by two or three witnesses*, are the words spoken by Jesus in his Incarnation and the words spoken by the Father from Heaven. It is these words that are displayed in the color red in this website.

The other words in the Bible were given to persons and prophets individually, e.g., Moses, Isaiah, Peter and Paul. According to Paul in 2 Timothy 3:16, “All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness;” And Peter stated in 2 Peter 3:15 that Paul’s letters were given, “according to the wisdom given him.” And again in 2 Peter 1:21 Peter stated, “for no prophecy was ever made by an act of human will, but men moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God.”

Therefore, all the words in the Bible are true and indispensable for sanctification John 17:17, and they are profitable for reproof, correction, and training, and are wisdom for living our temporal life. Proverbs 4:3-6; 4:20-22

However, only the words of Jesus “are spirit and are life”. As Jesus said about his own words in John 6:63, “…; the words that I have spoken to you are spirit and are life”. And in John 6:68, “Simon Peter answered Him, ‘Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life.’ ” That is, the words of Jesus are to be distinguished from the truth and wisdom of the writings of Moses, Paul and others, in that his words “are spirit and are life.” In addition to being wisdom for living life in this temporal world, his words are essential for enlivening and strengthening our eternal inner spirit person day by day. 2 Corinthians 4:16, Ephesians 3:16

It is hoped that by focusing attention on the words of God “out of the mouth of God” that we will be encouraged, even more than we already are to read, study, memorize, contemplate, meditate upon, and discuss the meaning and importance of his words.

As human beings we are to a great extent transformed by what we look at and listen to. Therefore, as we focus our attention on the words of Jesus, the Holy Spirit is able to progressively transform our inner man into the likeness of Christ.

And in 2 Corinthians 3:18, Paul writes, “But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord.”

As Jesus said in Mark 4:26-27, “The kingdom of God is like a man who casts seed upon the soil; and he goes to bed at night and gets up by day, and the seed sprouts and grows -how, he himself does not know.”

And as we are transformed into his likeness and press on to maturity in Christ, we can expect to grow in love for ourselves and others with the same love that the Father has for Jesus the Son of Man.

* A Word Confirmed by Two or Three Witnesses:
“What is this thing He is telling us” John 16:17, “Are you deliberating together about this, that I said” John 16:19, Matthew 18:16, 2 Corinthians 13:1, Hebrews 2:3

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The original second great commandment in the Law mentioned by Jesus in Matthew 22:37-40 was first given in Leviticus 19:18, “you shall love your neighbor as yourself;”

The new second commandment was given by Jesus in John 13:34, “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another.”

Then Jesus tells us exactly ‘how’ He loves us in John 15:9, “Just as the Father has loved Me, I have also loved you;” Therefore, Jesus loves us as the Father loves Him, and now we are to love one another as the Father loves Jesus the Son of Man*.

It is the Father’s love for the human nature of Jesus the Son of Man that has been graciously extended to all humanity. The Intra-Trinitarian love between God the Father and Jesus the Son of God is beyond human experience. It is the love between God the Father and Jesus the Son of Man that humanity can experience and express. (See the topic: Father Loves Jesus)

Therefore, ‘how’ we are to love one another was redefined with the coming of Jesus and His finished work culminating at the Cross, from being defined by the Mosaic Law to being defined by how the Father loves Jesus the Son of Man*.

As Jesus redefined other Old Testament Laws, we can imagine Him redefining this one by saying, “You have heard that it was said, you shall love your neighbor as yourself; but I say to you, you shall love your neighbor as the Father loves Me.”

With this in mind, we can replace the original second great commandment in the Law with the new commandment, and paraphrase what Jesus said in Matthew 22:37-40, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as the Father loves Me. On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets, and all of My commandments.”

Also, if we insert the new commandment into the Great Commission we can paraphrase Jesus in Matthew 28:19-20, “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, … , teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; that is, teaching them to love themselves and one another just as the Father loves Me the Son of Man; … .”

An inference to being loved by God just as the Father loves Jesus, is that God thinks and feels about us, and is as pleased with us, as the Father is with Jesus the Son of Man*.

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Jesus said in John 15:4, “Abide in Me, and I in you.”

When we love ourselves and one another just as the Father loves Jesus the Son of Man, then this love is an expression of Jesus abiding in us and us abiding in Jesus.

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It is not necessary for us to change anything in order to be loved, accepted, and pleasing to God.

We are already loved, accepted, and pleasing to God just as we are, all and only because of the finished work of Jesus the Son of Man on earth, and the Grace of God extended to all people based on His finished work.

There is nothing we could ever think, say, or do that could change what Christ has done for us, or could change what God has so graciously offered to us based on what Christ has done.

Our position in Christ is open to us and our place in heaven has been prepared. All we have to do now is believe in Jesus to reserve our position and place in God and in His Kingdom.

However, if we would like to improve the quality of our life here on earth, then we will need to change the way we think.

That is, we will need to change our mind about God, ourselves, and one another. And one way of doing this effectively, is to better understand how God loves us. That is, better understand how God perceives us, how He thinks and feels about us, and His attitude toward us.

Therefore, this topic presents an approach whereby we can work to renew our mind regarding God, ourselves, and others by looking closely at the words of Jesus.

John 8:31,32, “If you continue in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine; and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.”

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Matthew 4:4, “But He answered and said, It is written, ‘Man shall bot live on bread alone, but on every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God.’”

John 14:22, “Judas (not Iscariot) said to Him, “Lord, how is it that You will manifest Yourself to us, and not to the world?” ²³Jesus answered and said to him, “If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him. ²⁴He who does not love Me does not keep My words; and the word which you hear is not Mine but the Father’s who sent Me.”

John 15:7, “If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you.”

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This website views the Sermon on the Mount as teachings and examples of how we are to love one another from our heart, in the same way that the Father loves Jesus.

Following the Cross, loving God first and then loving others as the Father loves Jesus, fulfills everything in the Law, the Prophets, the Sermon on the Mount, and any other commands given by Jesus.

The following excerpts are taken from several online resources that discuss the Sermon on the Mount from different perspectives. These excerpts are not intended to support any of the positions taken by these resources. They are intended only to bring out what are thought to be interesting and well stated points regarding the Sermon.

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Experiencing the power of Gods love for Jesus the Son of Man for ourselves and expressing it to others may be the way Gods power works in life. That is, the Father’s love for Jesus the Son of Man may be the very essence of His power, in which case there is no greater power for forgiving, healing, and moving mountains than the Father’s love for Jesus the Son of Man.

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“If the reader is going to understand what he or she is reading, then the rules of communication must be diligently followed. These are the same rules that are followed in everyday conversation when understanding takes place. In other words, there is not a special or secret set of rules for understanding God’s Word.”

“Central to everything else in this process is the recognition that meaning is singular, not plural. For example, the popular response often heard, “there are many different interpretations of that,” is clearly false. There may be ten suggested interpretations, but at least nine of them are false.”

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“His words have been a sort of infinite wonder to the world, a kind of Divine heart and conscience to it. They are but few; we can read in an hour all of His thought that survives in the forms human art has created to clothe and immortalize the human spirit.

Had the words of any other great teacher perished; had the wisdom of Socrates, or the science of Aristotle, or the eloquence of Cicero, or the poetry of Aeschylus or Sophocles been lost, our world had still been little different from what it is today.

But had the words of Christ vanished into silence, passed into the halls of oblivion, or had they never been spoken, our world had been quite other than it is, and been far from as wise and good as it is now.

So great and infinite in value have been those teachings, in quantity smallest of fragments, in quality greatest and priceless of the treasures that have enriched the world.”

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“Now here we have the point of view from which we must try to interpret His teaching as a transcript or explication of His own consciousness. His speech is the incarnation of His spirit, the mirror of His thought. His person is reflected in His words; the worth of the one explains the worth of the other.”

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Last updated: September 15, 2022 at 12:41 pm ET USA