Love thy neighbor.
Jesus emphasized the importance of loving one another. When Jesus famously tells us to "love thy neighbor", He is actually referring to an Old Testament Scripture found in Leviticus 19. In this chapter, Moses is illustrating what a healthy God-honoring society looks like. It looks like a community choosing to display love to one another. Moses goes on to explain what that love actually is. He says that to love your neighbor you must refuse to lie, steal, exhibit greed, gossip, show partiality, exact revenge, or hold bitterness in your heart to another. The absence of these things makes love possible. People do not need to be lied to, stolen from, gossiped about, or have grudges held against them. They get enough of that from the world.
"You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against the sons of your own people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself." - Leviticus 19:18
How to love.
The word Jesus uses in Mark 12 when encouraging His followers to love thy neighbor carries the meaning of being fond of someone. To love our neighbor we are to hold them in high esteem. We are to see them as valuable. The word also carries the meaning of being hospitable and welcoming to someone. Loving our neighbor encompasses divorcing ourselves from negative patterns and thought processes, but it also contains a mindset that puts great value on those around us. That mindset is to motivate us toward hospitality and generosity toward others.
"The generous will prosper; those who refresh others will themselves be refreshed." - Proverbs 11:25
Christ's example.
Christ not only preached this, but also lived it. Christ saw the value of you and I even in our rebellion against Him. He paid the price of our sin that we would be welcomed into His Kingdom and love. He only speaks the truth and holds no grudge against us. He is the manifestation of love. He is who we model our lives after.
"But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." - Romans 5:8
Jesus emphasized the importance of loving one another. When Jesus famously tells us to "love thy neighbor", He is actually referring to an Old Testament Scripture found in Leviticus 19. In this chapter, Moses is illustrating what a healthy God-honoring society looks like. It looks like a community choosing to display love to one another. Moses goes on to explain what that love actually is. He says that to love your neighbor you must refuse to lie, steal, exhibit greed, gossip, show partiality, exact revenge, or hold bitterness in your heart to another. The absence of these things makes love possible. People do not need to be lied to, stolen from, gossiped about, or have grudges held against them. They get enough of that from the world.
"You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against the sons of your own people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself." - Leviticus 19:18
How to love.
The word Jesus uses in Mark 12 when encouraging His followers to love thy neighbor carries the meaning of being fond of someone. To love our neighbor we are to hold them in high esteem. We are to see them as valuable. The word also carries the meaning of being hospitable and welcoming to someone. Loving our neighbor encompasses divorcing ourselves from negative patterns and thought processes, but it also contains a mindset that puts great value on those around us. That mindset is to motivate us toward hospitality and generosity toward others.
"The generous will prosper; those who refresh others will themselves be refreshed." - Proverbs 11:25
Christ's example.
Christ not only preached this, but also lived it. Christ saw the value of you and I even in our rebellion against Him. He paid the price of our sin that we would be welcomed into His Kingdom and love. He only speaks the truth and holds no grudge against us. He is the manifestation of love. He is who we model our lives after.
"But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." - Romans 5:8