Too Fast For Love

'YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF.' There is no other commandment greater than these."  Mark 12:31

You may or may not be too familiar with much of God’s Word, but I believe it is safe to say that most every adult has heard God’s greatest commandment at least once during the course of their lifetime.  In fact, when we talk about loving our neighbors, it’s so ingrained in our minds that the term almost becomes second nature.  The thing about it is that I don’t think many of us understand what this verse actually means.

Loving your neighbor is not just loving your ‘good’ or ‘close’ neighbor, but actually loving the neighbor that may drive you crazy. Or it could mean loving the neighbor you try to avoid at all costs.  We are so focused on caring for ourselves before others that most people never actually get around to do it.  To truly understand loving our neighbors, we must look at Jesus who loved people “not only because He genuinely cared for them, but also because He brought glory and honor to His Father in Heaven.”

Loving other people sounds so simple, but in reality, it is sometimes very hard to do.  It is obviously important to God as this second commandment follows the first commandment: “LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD WITH ALL YOUR HEART, MIND, SOUL, AND STRENGTH.” If you think about these two commands for a moment, both hang the law and the prophets.

Although it may be difficult to love another person as we love ourselves, we can all do a better job of learning how to ‘live in love.’  The best part about it is that you don’t have to be a Bible scholar or theology major to know much about loving other people.  Just think about how different the world we live in today would be if more people actually obeyed God’s command to love others as themselves…As a Believer and follower of Christ, loving others is not just important or the right thing to do-it’s our reason for being and our purpose here on this earth!!