This second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself. Matthew 22:39 HCSB
When the Pharisees tried to trick Jesus by asking which of the Ten Commandments was the greatest, Jesus responded that we were to love the Lord with all our hearts, with all our souls, and with all our minds. This covers the commandments that speak of how we are to relate to the Lord.
In our Scripture passage, he goes on to tell them that they are to love their neighbor as they love themselves. This covers the commandments that speak of how we are to relate to others.
In 1 Samuel we see an example of this kind of love between David and Jonathan. Jonathan and David both loved the Lord. We are told in 1 Samuel 20:17 that he loved him as he loved his own soul. They loved each other as each loved himself.
Now your neighbor refers to pretty much anyone you may know or be acquainted with. So, why would Jesus instruct us to love others as we love ourselves?
I think the answer to this is pretty simple. This is because we tend to love ourselves a great deal. Now of course there are exceptions to this. Some seem to dislike themselves a great deal. But for the most part, humans love themselves.
We cut ourselves a little more slack when we mess up. We are not so quick to become angry at ourselves when we make a simple mistake. We take good care of ourselves. We usually have our best interests at heart.
The question is do we love others as we love ourselves? Do we extend the same kindness? Are we able to forgive others when they wrong us? Do we look out for the best interests of others?
David and Jonathan shared a covenant-type love for each other. In 1 Samuel 20:23, Jonathan said to David, the LORD will be a witness between you and me forever. He means the Lord will be a witness and a judge should either of them break this covenant.
They looked out for each other. They had each other’s back. Even though David would be king instead of Jonathan, Jonathan did not exhibit jealousy. He showed nothing but honor and respect for David as God’s anointed king.
The hard part is Jesus even expects us to love our enemies. In Luke 6:35 we are told to love our enemies and pray for and do good to those who persecute us. I will admit I sometimes find this hard to do. It requires a lot of prayer.
If we love the Lord with all our hearts, we may find it easier to love our neighbors as we love ourselves. When we love the Lord with all we have, we may find it easier to even love our enemies.
The key to this is love. Love the Lord first. Put Him above all others even those you love a great deal. He must come first. If you love Him that much you want to obey Him, even if it means loving your enemies.
In a world full of evil and hatred, be the shining light of love. Trust in Jesus and love Him with all your heart. When loving others is hard to do, pray for his strength. He will help you. Be obedient to His commands.
Jesus said in John 14:15 if you love me keep my commandments. He tells us in our verse for today to love others as we love ourselves. He doesn’t say only love the lovable people. Even if they are unlovable, we are to love them.
What about people who are just plain evil? Well, I’m glad you asked. We should do what we can to share the gospel with them to give them hope. If they reject this, we must move on. We should pray for them. We should pray that we have planted a seed, and someone will come along and water it. We can love them from a safe distance.
When you find someone to be downright unlovable, pray for them. Jesus will change your heart and He will seek vengeance at the proper time if he deems it necessary.
Trust in God, love Him, and put Him first. Allow Him to help you when it comes to loving others.
Have a great day!