The word Torah means “instruction.” We usually refer to Torah as the Law. But its foundation is God’s love for His chosen people Israel. So we should refer to it as the law of love. God is love, and all that we see surrounding the Jewish people and surrounding the faith of Judaism springs from God’s love for them as a people. This is an extremely important point that we as Christians must finally come to understand.

In Deuteronomy Moses conveys,

“Has any people heard the voice of God speaking from the midst of the fire, as you have heard it, and survived? Or has a god tried to go to take for himself a nation from within another nation by trials, by signs and wonders and by war and by a mighty hand and by an outstretched arm and by great terrors, as the LORD your God did for you in Egypt before your eyes? To you it was shown that you might know that the LORD, He is God; there is no other besides Him. Out of the heavens He let you hear His voice to discipline you; and on earth He let you see His great fire, and you heard His words from the midst of the fire. Because He loved your fathers, therefore He chose their descendants after them. And He personally brought you from Egypt by His great power.” (Deuteronomy 4:33–37)[1]

This Scripture is really key for us because it is the nexus of God’s law coming to His people. God steps down onto Mount Sinai with thunder, lightning, and fire. He shows Himself to Israel and creates them into a people. They had not been a people unto God before this time—their fathers had, but they had not. So God makes this covenant with them, and He is very clear about why He does this: “Because He loved your fathers, therefore He chose their descendants after them” (Deuteronomy 4:37). So the very concept of the Law being given was an expression of God announcing to Israel, “I love you.” God reminds them that He loved their fathers, and now He is choosing them and expressing this same love to them.

“For you are a holy people to the LORD your God; the LORD your God has chosen you to be a people for His own possession out of all the peoples who are on the face of the earth. The LORD did not set His love on you nor choose you because you were more in number than any of the peoples, for you were the fewest of all peoples, but because the Lord loved you and kept the oath which He swore to your forefathers.” (Deuteronomy 7:6–8)

Judaism is about the law of love. It is a faith based on a relationship of love that began right there at Sinai. God loved Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. And now God loves their descendants the Jewish people.

Since God loves Israel so deeply, He is bringing them into a relationship with Himself. So underlying the instruction of Torah is God’s great love for Israel. God is determined to bless the Jewish people: their offspring, their flocks and herds, and all that concerns them (Deuteronomy 7:12–13). God goes on verse after verse about His lovingkindness and all the blessings that He is determined to bring upon Israel because of His great love for them. God loves the Jewish people and that will never change.

Listen to this entire message: GIG24 Love the Jewish Roots of Our Faith

[1] All Scripture references are from the New American Standard Bible 1995 (NASB1995).