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Love thy neighbor as thyself

PROFESSIONS OF FAITH

We live in a divided society. We see it on the news every day and shake our heads in disbelief at the words being hurled between and among individuals. Unfortunately, this anger between various groups in society is becoming the norm.

What is to be done? The answer: On an individual basis, we as a nation need to stop, take a breath, and examine our hearts based on what the Bible teaches.

In the Bible, Jesus tells us the two greatest commandments are to: (1) “love God with all your heart, soul and mind” and (2) “love your neighbor as yourself” (Matt 22: 36-40). Romans 12: 14, 19, and 20 tells us to “bless not curse,” “take no revenge,” and “feed our enemy.” It appears God would like us to love one another rather than hurl insults.

In Luke 10:29, a Torah lawyer asked a good question, “Who is my neighbor?” Perhaps it is time for all of us to ask our self this same question. By definition, our neighbors are people who are near to us. This does not mean just those people who live next door to us, but also those who stand next to us at Walmart or the Country Club.

We are commanded by Jesus to love our neighbor no matter their race, religion, political party, socio-economic status, or how much you really don’t like them in general. Anything less is a sin against God.

Yep, it is really hard sometimes. But, we must strive to love as Jesus loves us. Jesus loves you despite your insults and rebellion against him. He loves Christians that “back slide” and sin against him. He even loves those who do not want to accept his gift of salvation. Now THAT is LOVE and I am thankful for his love for me.

Imagine what the world would be like if we loved our neighbor as Jesus loved us.

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