Love your Neighbour as Yourself

And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love. – 1 Corinthians 13:13 (NIV)

Love is the hallmark of a Christian. Our Lord Jesus commands us to love another so that the world will know that we are His disciples. This is perhaps one of the greatest, if not the greatest test of our love for God. With our sinful nature, we are not capable of fulfilling this commandment. Some of us do not even love ourselves or our family members to begin with. Why should we love someone else who is unrelated to us? But God has given us a new nature. He has come to dwell within us with His Holy Spirit.

We are to surrender ourselves as a channel for His love to flow out from us. God never requires us to do what is impossible with human effort. If we allow Him, He will be the one working in us to accomplish what we thought was humanly impossible. Our love of God and love for God is to be manifested by showing love to others. By doing that, we will definitely draw people to Jesus. If God has said it, it will surely come to pass.

What does God say about this?

Jesus replied:  ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’

Matthew 22:37-39 (NIV)

Honor your father and mother,’ and ‘love your neighbor as yourself.’”

Matthew 19:19 (NIV)

Whoever claims to love God yet hates a brother or sister is a liar. For whoever does not love their brother and sister, whom they have seen, cannot love God, whom they have not seen.

1 John 4:20 (NIV)

What does this mean for practical living?

God’s love is the only antidote and cure for all the sins, evils and ills of this world. Look around and we will find that people find solace in songs, movies and events that demonstrate and promote themes of pure, gentle and unselfish love. As God’s children, we are made in His image. God is love. He has demonstrated it by sending His Son Jesus to die on the cross for our sins so that we can be reconciled to Him and have eternal life.

If we have experienced God’s love in our lives, why are we not sharing it with others who do not yet know Him? If we love our families, friends and neighbours, we do not want them to perish in eternity without God. We can start showing God’s love to our neighbours by looking out for opportunities to reach out to them. Share a testimony of God’s goodness in conversation, offer to pray for their life situation or simply invite them to practical life events and activities organised by the church. Remember that while God lives in each of us, He is Omnipresent (all present), Omniscient (all knowing) and Omnipotent (all powerful). We simply need to be His channel of love, and He will draw people to Himself. As we love others, the fullness of His joy will fill our hearts.

Reflect and respond to God’s Word

• Why did God choose “love” and not “prosperity” as the hallmark characteristic of Christians?
• Why do we find it so easy to loathe someone rather than to love that person?
• Identify somebody “unlovable” by your standards and think of one way to show him/her God’s love. Remember that God loves him/her too.