All the Law and the Prophets...

"Then they said to Him, 'What shall we do, that we may work the works of God?' Jesus answered and said to them, 'This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent.'"(John 6:28-29) The Random House Dictionary ( (c) 2009) defines "believe in"as follows:

"to have faith in the reliability, honesty, benevolence, etc., of."

Thus, to believe in Him (Jesus) whom He (the Father) sent is to have faith in the reliability, honesty, and benevolence of Jesus. And plugging that definition into the passage from John, we derive that "the work of God is to have faith in the reliability, honesty and benevolence of Jesus."

If I have faith that Jesus is reliable (dependable in achievement, accuracy, honesty), honest (honorable in principles, intentions, and actions; upright and fair) and benevolent (characterized by or expressing goodwill or kindly feelings), my actions as one of His soldiers should reflect that faith. In other words, I should obey His commandments. Why would I NOT obey the commandments of someone who is reliable, honest, and benevolent? Jesus told the disciples that obedience is evidence of our love (the reverent affection due from God's creatures to God) for Him. (John 14:15) I do not love Him, conversely, if I do not obey His commandments. And carrying the argument one step further, disobedience is tantamount to having no faith in Him.

"In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins." (I John 4:10) God's love is so much more magnificent than we can even imagine. "God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." (Romans 5:8, emphasis added) How many of your enemies are you willing to lay down your life for? Do we not owe Christ, our Commander-In-Chief, our allegiance and our love; even our very lives? Paul wrote to the Roman church, "...present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service." (Romans 12:1, emphasis added)

Most of us will never be asked to lay down our lives for Christ in a literal sense, although in the current world's political climate, that is more of a risk, even in America, than it has been for some time. On the other hand, presenting our bodies a living sacrifice simply means keeping God's commandments. John wrote in chapter 5, verse 3 of his first epistle, "...this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments. And His commandments are not burdensome."

"Jesus said... '"You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.^d]">" This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it: "You shall love your neighbor as yourself." On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.'" (Matthew 22:37-40, emphasis added) These are not burdensome commandments, and these two encompass "all the Law and the Prophets."

So, seargent, what do you need to do to "work the works of God?" It is as simple as "love the Lord your God, and love your neighbor as yourself." The enemy of our souls is sly and crafty. His strategy, though, is simple. If he can get us to stop loving God and stop loving our neighbors, he believes he can win. Fortunately, he has already been defeated, but there is a caveat. If Satan can deceive us into serving ourselves, instead of serving God and our neighbors, he can take more of God's people down with him. Remember our mission: Set the Captives Free.

Are you ready for the battle? Put on your armor, and let's go! Hooooo-aaaaaah!