Joshua does provide guidance on what is most important to God. In Joshua's teachings - which teachings were successfully captured and recorded in the first four books of what men label the "New Testament" - he provides the Creator's will for mankind. In Joshua's teachings, he emphasizes some concepts that he considered more important than other concepts. This article will lay out those teachings.
Their are two primary concepts that Joshua teaches are above all others "truth" and "love". From the most fundamental perspective on human understanding and knowledge, we can understand or know nothing without "truth". Truth is what is real and factual in any realm. Mathematics has truth such as 1 + 1 = 2. Physics has truth such as the force of gravity is real and can be calculated based on the mass of the object. Chemistry has truth such as water is the universal solvent. Language has truth, such as unless human agree on a definitional, phonetical and grammatical structure, language would be unintelligible. Biology has truth, such as without water and oxygen, organic-based life on earth could not exist. Metaphysical truth exists, such as the concept of numbers is metaphysical in nature. For example, the number 1 exists only in the minds of human beings. Or the ability of human's to reason is metaphysical in nature...nothing physical can account for that ability. Millions of such truths can be articulated.
Joshua of Nazareth says, "I am the truth".
That is a significant statement to say the least! Obviously he does not mean he is he source of truth for all human endeavors or realms of knowledge. Rather, he says he is the source of "truth" in the realm of human existence and God's existence. If a person wants to...
...then Joshua is the Source of truth for those things.
Let us take a look at some of his sayings where he addresses the concept of truth.
A comprehensive claim with far reaching implications. Stated another way, he in essence says, 'I am the way Home to your Father; I am all the truth that matters to your life and soul; and I am the One who gives Life...no one will go to the Father without first facing my judgment'.
What more could he say?
Let all those who make up a 'jesus christ' to fit their beliefs - the agnostics and atheists; the religious like muslims, jews, buddhists, hindus and sadly most christians - let them understand that they are deceived or liars and thus are a really BIG part of the problem.
Joshua is who HE says he is, not what YOU want him to be.
We are either a part of the problem or a part of the solution. Joshua put it this way, "You are either for me or against me...you are either working with me or working against me." Just what is it that causes people to be against Joshua and the love and rightness he teaches? "And this is the condemnation people put upon themselves, that the people of the earth love the darkness rather than the light because their works are evil". Those with ears to hear, let them hear!
Please note, he plainly says that "everyone who is of the truth hears my voice". The logic is simple. If you are NOT of the truth - if you don't care about truth except when it benefits you, or you have been deluded to believe that there 'is no spiritual or metaphysical truth' - then you will not hear the voice of the only one who can help free you. You can quote the bible and the scriptures all day long...if you have not made the one who calls himself "the truth" your only standard for spiritual truth, then you are not of the truth! And if you are of the truth, then you will hear the truth's voice and you will repeat his truths to others. It is truly that simple.... don't deceive yourself and thus be part of the great delusion that is now taking place through christian or bible religion throughout the world.
If we continue in whose word? Paul's? Moses? Peters? Isaiah's? Billy Grahams? Preacher Popular? Minister Marvelous? Scholar Somebody? Pastor Perfect? And the deluded say, 'oh, but when Joshua said, "MY WORD" what he REALLY meant was 'the bible'... So, if we continue in 'the bible', then are we not disciples of 'the bible' or disciples of the authors of the many books in the bible? Who are you going to believe, the One who defeated death and whose words alone with last forever and whose words alone will judge each of us on the last day? Or Paul? See 'A Stranger's Voice They Will Not Follow'. If you want to listen to Paul (or anyone else) and continue in his teachings, then you will not know The Truth nor will you be set free.
Joshua says that his Father's "word is truth". Furthermore, Joshua says, "the words I speak are not my own, but the words of the One who sent me". Therefore, Joshua's words are the words of the Creator, and only HIS WORD shall not pass away even while heaven and earth do! Therefore, why would you hold your life accountable to anyone else's word?
How does one "practice truth"? By speaking it and doing it! Or stated another way, allowing reason to guide your understanding even when it leads you where you do not want to go. It is that simple. Remember, Joshua is the truth and the words he spoke were his Father's words and thus were truth. Therefore, in order to "practice the truth", one would have to repeat the truth's teachings to others and live our lives by those truths. If any person cares about what is true regarding human beings or human relationships, they will go to the Light of the world when they hear his words/truths... they WILL listen to the One who says "I am the truth" and they WILL try their best to do what he says. It is that simple.
And what is the greatest truth the Light teaches?
Love.
Not the 'love' promoted by the world - sexual or romantic interest between a man and a woman - but rather the love the Creator has for all people and the love He expects His created beings to express towards one another - valuing each other thus wanting to be together and behave selflessly due to compassion. Let's take a look at some of the Light's teachings in that regard.
God expressed his love by giving His Son to us...by sending His Messenger - the Rescuer - to us to give us the truth and understanding we need to be set free from pride and fear and selfishness and the sin that flows from those root sins. Our Father sent Joshua even knowing what we would do to Joshua... that we would hate the truth of the Light and seek to destroy the Light. He sent us His Son and His Son, being like the Father he loves, laid down his physical life for us to pay the ransom to our captor so that all who see their need for him will come to him in order to be set free...free from the darkness of ignorance and fear...free from the coldness of lovelessness...free from the confusion and error of religion..free from a mind subservient to emotion instead of to reason.
Don't you want to be free dear reader?
God looks to save and help people and we all have a choice. If we reject the truth of the Light of the world, we condemn ourselves and choose a life in the captivity of pride or fear or selfishness.
Joshua answers a Jewish religious leader/lawyers question about which is the greatest commandment in their religious law. Joshua confirms that in their law, LOVE is the most important quality/ characteristic/behavior that God wants. Notice how Joshua plainly says that the two greatest commands in the Jewish religious law are literally the 'heart' of all the truth in the Jew's law and prophets...all those thousands of words and sayings in the Jewish scripture are unnecessary to know what God wants since the greatest two commandments sum up and represent all the other true stuff that is in there. Please note, dear reader, that Joshua's teachings are not constrained by the Jewish law, for he is the Son of Man-kind, not the 'son of the jews'...Joshua is the Creator's model for mankind.
Joshua teaches that love has a few important aspects or facets to it. The highest form of love is what we have already defined. It is valuing others and wanting to be with them and behave selflessly motivated by compassion. This love has both an inward and outward aspects to it - the compassion is inward and of the heart and the selfless behavior is the outward manifestation of the inward. Stated another way, God's definition of love is to care about someone enough to give up things you want or you think you need in order to help them.
But what about God, who doesn't need anything from us? No, He doesn't need anything from us, but He does want something from us...He wants us to love Him back! How do you "love God" dear reader? Or better yet, how can you know you love God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength? Please listen to Joshua for the answer...
Of course, if we don't even care enough to learn what he says, then we cannot reasonably claim that we love him. If we take seriously learning what God says - and Joshua is the only sure source to know God and what He wants - then we are in a position to love him back.
How much time do YOU spend trying to know and understand what Joshua of Nazareth says? Take the quiz!
Are you listening dear reader? If you have not made a sincere and serious effort to learn the teachings of Joshua of Nazareth, you do not love him, and if you don't love him, you don't love God. And no, listening to others tell you what they think he says or means would not qualify for making a sincere and serious effort to know him and his teachings. If we do love him, then we will be eager to both learn what he says/teaches, and eager to do what he says. And what are his core and key teachings? Knowing what is true, loving others, and doing what is right according to HIM, not according to 'the bible' or what WE want or what so-and-so says.
Remember we saw that when asked by a Jewish religious legal person, Joshua confirmed that the greatest light given through the Jewish scripture was to love God with all that is in you, and to love your neighbor as yourself. However, the Light of mankind came, and he provided a greater Light than that which was recorded in the Jewish scriptures. What greater light did the Light teach about love? He said...
The Jewish law says, "love your neighbors (but "neighbor" is qualified as "the sons of your people" in other words to love other Jewish tribe members - see Lev. 19:18) but to hate and take vengeance on your enemies" (see Num. 31:1-18). The Light came and corrected that error, imperfection and insufficiency. Not only did he teach it, but he lived it out when he said to those men who were killing him and mocking him, "Father, forgive them because they don't really understand what they are doing". That, dear reader, is love beyond normal human capacity. To deny that fact is to be deceived and trapped by self-pride. The Light of the world commands that we love all people, both our neighbors as well as those people who choose to make themselves our enemies, for this is what mankind desperately needs.
Furthermore, the Light gave one teaching he characterized as a command. This command was new...it was light that had not yet been given. Joshua gave many instructions, teachings and directives, but only one did he call a non-negotiable command, and it is this...
To love our neighbors means to be kind to them...to have compassion for them...to treat them selflessly, the way we want to be treated - but by its very definition, our neighbors are not our family...they are people that live near us not with us. This new command is intended to be the glue for a new Family...a new way to live our lives... a new group of people who are not related by blood or law that will be the example to those who may not live by love...a contrast between two ways of living that all can see.
This is the peaceful revolution. You are either for it or against it...you are either working to bring it to pass or you are working for other lesser things and thus working against it by virtue of apathy, neglect, non-faith or coldness of heart.
What are YOU going to do about these simple yet life-transforming truths? Why not put them into practice and join the peaceful revolution?