Galatians 5:14 - Cliff Notes by Jesus?

"For the whole law in one word has been fulfilled, in this: 'You will love the neighbor of you as yourself.'"

-Breaking news, Judaizers!  Heads up, would-be legalizers!  Rather than getting caught up in circumcision and all the myriad requirements of the Mosaic law, Paul here drops a bombshell.  What he gives us is the inspired, authorized cliff notes of the entire law (and endorsed by Jesus, no less!).  No need to read the whole thing, in other words (much less try to keep every last one of them)(altho reading it is still a good idea!) - the entirety of the law is summed up in just one word (or six, to be exact).  One phrase.  All you need to do in order to fulfill the whole kit-n-kaboodle is just this one thing: Love. Your. Neighbor. (Paul says the same thing to the Romans - Romans 13.9).  This is Leviticus 19.18, the second "Great Command", given separately from the more prominent first "Great Command" of Deuteronomy 6.5, but given earlier, in fact, and somehow it became associated with its older sibling even before Jesus mentioned them in the same breath (Matthew 22.37-40, cf Luke 10.27).  

-It is certainly natural to ask, who is my neighbor, both for those rationalizers who are looking for an excuse not to love, and even more so for sincere people of faith who would love nothing better than to please the Lord by somehow fulfilling the entirety of His commands.  The definition of who I should consider to be my neighbor is clearly not confined to my immediate circle of intimates, or merely to those belong to whatever cultural or social circle with which I most closely identify.  It extends to both aliens (Leviticus 19.34) as well as to people I can't stand or even hate - to anyone who has a need, in fact (Luke 10.36-37).  The point being that love, showing mercy to anyone who has need of it, even to strangers, is how we most completely fulfill God’s purpose for us as His divine image bearers.  We are most like Him when we love.  We are best doing what He wants when we love - Him, AND others.  But for now, Paul is most concerned that this 2nd Great Command to love our neighbor gets applied within the body of Christ, between those of us who profess to follow the One Who first loved us and Who called us brothers and Who does gather us together to be a family, to be unified as one.  Loving one another is the best and first and foremost way to fulfill the law, to show the world that we really are the people of the Book...