Compiled By: Lisa K Gonzales
Source: The Life Application Study Bible
8 “Yes indeed, it is good when you truly obey our Lord’s royal command found in the Scriptures: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ 9 But if you pay special attention to the rich, you are committing a sin, for you are guilty of breaking that law.” ~ James 1:8-9
The “royal command” is the law of our great King Jesus Christ, who said, – “Love each other in the same way that I love you” – John 15:12 – We are to love each other as Jesus loved us, and He loved us enough to give His life for us. Although we may not have to die for someone, there are other ways to practice sacrificial love: listening, lending a helping hand, giving of not just our money but our time as well, and encouraging. This law, originally summarized in Leviticus, is the basis for all the laws of how people should relate to one another. – “Never seek revenge or bear a grudge against anyone, but love your neighbor as yourself. I am the LORD.” – Leviticus 19:18
Jesus reinforced this truth in Matthew, and Paul taught it in Romans and Galatians. – 37 “Jesus replied, “‘You must love the LORD your GOD with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.’ 38 This is the first and greatest commandment. 39 A second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ 40 All the other commandments and all the demands of the prophets are based on these two commandments.” – Matthew 22:37-40 – Jesus was saying that if we truly love GOD and our neighbor, we will naturally keep the commandments. This is looking at GOD’s law positively. Rather than worrying about all we should not do, we should concentrate on all we can do to show our love for GOD and others. – “Pay all your debts, except the debt of love for others. You can never finish paying that! If you love your neighbor, you will fulfill all the requirements of GOD’s law.” – Romans 13:8 – Why would Paul call love for others a debt? We are permanently indebted to Christ for the lavish love He has poured out on us. The only way we can even begin to repay this debt is by loving others. Because Christ’s love will always be infinitely greater than ours, we will always have the obligation to love our neighbor. – “For the whole law can be summed up in this one command: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’” – Galatians 5:14 – When we are not motivated by love, we become critical of others. We stop looking for good in them and see only their faults and soon the unity is broken. Have you talked behind someone’s back? Have you focused on others’ shortcomings instead of their strengths? Remind yourself of Jesus’ command to love others as you love yourself. When you begin to feel critical of someone, make a list of that person’s positive qualities. If there are problems that need to be addressed, it is better to confront in love than to gossip or hold a grudge.
We must treat all people as we would want to be treated. We should not ignore the rich, because then we would be withholding our love. However, we must not favor them for what they can do for us, while ignoring the poor who can offer us seemingly so little in return. We may be surprised at the treasures someone who is considered poor may hold.
Open the eyes of our hearts, LORD, so that we may see others as YOU see them. Help us to love others as we love ourselves and help us Father GOD to focus on the good in others and not their shortcomings – to see their strengths and not their weaknesses. When we have a problem with someone, help us to confront in love not hostility, to forgive and not hold a grudge. We want to be obedient to YOUR greatest command – to love YOU with all our heart, our soul, and our mind – and to love others as we love ourselves.
Photo: Basilica Saint-Anne-de-Beaupre’ (Quebec, Canada)
Photo By: Lisa K Gonzales
Click on the photo to enlarge
