Loving our neighbour as one’s self Matt 22:39-40 & Mark 12:30-31

Love signifies a concrete responsibility to seek the greatest good of one’s neighbour no matter their race, age, gender and religious believes. This command, echo the words of Moses in Leviticus 19:18, 34. To love one’s neighbour as one’s self is a fundamental principle for God’s law today, as it was in the Torah of the Old Testament.

Both Jesus and Paul teaches that loving the neighbour is a fundamental rule for how people are to treat one another (Rom 13:9; Gal 5:14), while James call this a ‘royal law’ (James 2:8). In Matthew 5:43, Jesus cites a misrepresentation of this rule in order to restore the rule to its rightful place.

Note that Jesus is correcting this misrepresentation of the OT, because, in the OT there was this misconception of the people that all who did evil were haters of God. To them they understood everyone who embodied evil was understood as enemies of God (eg Ps 5:4-5), so it was natural for them to hate according them God’s enemy. But Jesus says no, because, hate is not of God, instead love your enemy and pray for them. Therefore, since we must love our enemies, it only makes sense to love all mankind because all are created in the image and likeness of God.

God call Christ and the Holy Spirit saying ‘come and let us make man in our image and likeness’ (Gen 1:26-28) He did not say come let’s make any particular race, but let make man.

To truly obey this command of love, we must look deeply into ourselves and ask the question ‘do I love myself as a creation of God’? When we look at the mirror what or who do we see? Do we see a beautiful and wonderful person created in the image of God, because everything in Him is good and loveable. And to be made like Christ Himself is even more an amazing mystery, no wonder we are told ‘Christ in us the hope of glory’ (Col 1:27).

Listen my brothers and sisters if a man’s life is filled with greed, greed dominated his life, if a man’s life is filled with hate, then hate control his life but if one’s life is filled with love, love is experienced and seen in all he does. For we cannot offer what we don’t have, and what we exhibit outside in terms of our deeds, is a true representation of who we are from the inside.

So, until we love ourselves, we cannot truly love others. However, loving God or our neighbours must begin with us loving ourselves, by appreciating God’s wonderful gift to humanity, the gift of Christ who is love.

Jesus said ‘love as I have love’, meaning we should not love as an obligation or a programme but we should love as a way of life style. If we make love a life style, we would find it so easy to love all humanity. Love drives away hatred and wickedness.

In the whole bible, we see God’s power of love manifested through Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit, enabling humans to manifest the same love to each other. The other side of the coin of love is forgiveness!! Think about it.

Loving God with all our being is an internal passion of the soul (loving God is invisible) which is only express in our loving of the neighbour. So, there is sense in which loving one’s neighbour is the visible aspect of the goal of the whole word of God.

Loving one’s neighbours as one’s self, enter twine with our love for God because anybody we see is a neighbour and a representation of God in the image of Christ. These demonstrate Christ illustration that these love commandment are inseparable, therefore, we should not ignore them, for these sum-up all what God is looking for, in us. If we love our neighbour as we love ourselves, then we will not hurt them or plot any wicked and evil act against them. Remember that if you hit yourself it will be painful, that is the same pain your neighbour will feel if you hurt them… ‘In everything, then do to others as you would have them do to you…’ Mat 7:12

Here are seven ways to help us love one’s neighbour as one’s self

1. We should see our neighbour: By seeing them, it means we should look beyond the obvious (ie the outer shell, see Christ in them). But if we are blinded by our own bitterness or anger, then we will miss not see them. The more reason we should always pray for the Holy Spirit to help us deal with our anger/bitterness. Each time we see anyone, we should pray for the eyes to see as the Creator sees them.

2. We’ll ask to be forgiving and offer forgiveness: Hate is a stronghold within a person (this can get into a person through many forms e.g. it can be in-steal by those whom one surrounds themselves with). Strongholds keep one heart from sympathising or showing empathy towards others. We must pray so that we can destroy such evil spirit from our heart.

3. We’ll pray: we will love our neighbours by praying for them, even if it’s through clenched teeth or fist. We need to ask God to give us a sincere heart to pray especially for those we least want to pray for. (Mat 5:44)

4. We’ll rejoice or mourn: We are to bear the burden of the pain and anguish of our neighbours because we know that Christ is the ultimate burden-bearer; so we bear then as unto Christ. And we should shout for joy in sequence with their cries of thanksgiving and praise to God.

5. We’ll learn and be teachable: we should allow our neighbours to challenge our heart without taking offense or becoming bitter. We should be teachable by accepting constructive criticism as the pathway that draws us closer to God

6. We’ll ask hard question about ourselves: ask questions like, why do we think the way we do, are our thoughts or behaviours right with God? How would we feel if we are treated in the same way as we treat others? And when we encounter others, how would Christ want us to speak and act towards them, in a way that God can be glorified.

7. We should restrain from judgmental attitude: please refuse to house or host a judgmental spirit in our hearts. We should love all men but also understand that, love does not always feel uncertain, but often challenges and call out something greater, so that people can experience the fullness of Christ.

In conclusion; I am sure we concurred with Jesus that the important of obeying these two commandments of Love, surpasses the important of performing other religious duties.

These commandments remind us that our lives and that of others should have sanctity & dignity, because, all of us are made in the image of God i.e. love is embedded within each one of us.

When we nurture bitterness within, we will only give bitterness to others because, a man can only offer what he or she has. It is so natural that is why we should not harbour any form of malice or wicked seed, instead, we should learn and discover the great love of God in the person of His Son Jesus Christ, whose love is within us through the person of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit enable us as God’s children the dignity to love all human-being.

Friends, knowing God’s love and loving others will enable us to blossom, therefore, love bought us with a prize so we must love ourselves so that we can intern love others. Love drives away fears and it conquers hatred.

Amen