The Second Greatest Commandment

 

Going back to my last post --- An expert in the law asked Jesus which was the greatest commandment. Jesus answered, “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” --- Jesus went on to say, “And the second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself. All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments” (Matthew 22:37-40).

 

Jesus gave the parable of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:25-37) to help us understand who is a neighbor to us and what it means for us to be a neighbor to them. We know nothing about the man in the parable who was attacked, whether he was holy or a great sinner, rich or poor, or what his beliefs were. He is not even specifically identified as a Jew although it can probably be assumed that Jesus’ hearers thought this to be the case. None of it mattered because he was in need of caring love from a “neighbor”. The Good Samaritan cared for the man who had been attacked, even though Samaritans and Jews had a mutual enmity between them. Jesus thus expanded the definition of neighbor to include all those we might come in contact with, especially those for whom we have an obligation to help.

 

We live in a polarized “We” and “They” world. “We” are fine, “They” are the enemy and there is nothing good about them or deserving of aid, comfort, or respect. This is in direct opposition to Jesus’ teaching. He commands us to love and be a neighbor not only to “Us” but to “Them” as well. Jesus said, “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: Just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another” (John 13:34). If we want to be called by His Name, we must try to love others with the same giving, sacrificial love that He has for us.

 

How we live out this commandment in today’s world is more complicated than I can deal with in a single post. However, here are a few points to begin thinking about. I’ve listed some relevant scriptures that you can meditate on.

 

1. Look at everyone you come in contact with as if they were Jesus and treat them accordingly (Matthew 25:34-40). We are all made in the image and likeness of God (Genesis 1:27). John tells us, “Anyone who does not love his brother, whom he has seen, cannot love God, whom he has not seen” (1 John 4:20).

 

2. We have a debt to love others because of Jesus’ great love for us (Romans 13:8). We are like the priest and the Levite in the parable if we “walk on the other side” and fail to help those in need. We witness to the world when we bring Jesus’ love and compassion to them.

 

3. Be expansive in your view of who constitutes your neighbor. People who you may never meet can be your neighbor, if you have the opportunity to help them. Do what you can to meet their needs and faithfully pray for them.

 

4. Loving others is not a function of our agreeing with them or our opinion about their “worthiness”. Jesus calls us to love even our enemies (Matthew 5:43-48). Practice empathy.

 

5. Remind yourself frequently about how love acts and aim to be loving towards all:

“Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.” (1 Corinthians 13:4-8).