Love is the fulfilling of the law. (Romans 13:10).

This one text has had an immeasurable influence on my theology. It is the pickax that has led me to a thousand gems of truth.

When asked, "Master, which is the great commandment in the law?" Jesus responded, "Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets." (Matthew 22:36-40)

Supreme love to God composes the first four commandments and impartial love to our fellow men composes the latter six. Love becomes the expression of righteousness. Conformity to the law is the standard in the judgment (James 2:12). This is why Jesus employs the imagery of the loving sheep and the selfish goats in his illustration of the Judgment with the righteous and the wicked (Mat. 25:31-46).