Jesus Through Us: Following His Example in Love and ServiceSample

Love Across Social Lines

Everything comes down to love. Loving God and loving others are the greatest commandments, and if you love God, you will obey His command to love others. But what does that mean, really?

In Luke 10, an expert in the law wanted to hear Jesus’s answer to this question. To illustrate what it means to actually live out the greatest commandments, Jesus told him the story of the Good Samaritan. In this story, the priest and the temple assistant knew the royal law, but they didn’t live it out. The Samaritan, on the other hand, showed love to the man in need. He threw aside societal divisions and any thought of how he’d been treated himself, and he took the time to genuinely help this man.

The Samaritan is the example of how to obey God’s greatest command. We give of ourselves, doing what we would hope others would do for us (and more) in that position. We leave judgment and hatred behind and approach others with tenderness and compassion.

What would be your personal answer to the question in Luke 10:29: “Who is my neighbor?”

How does God’s love show up in how you treat others?

Jesus, help me to love others as much as You love me. Show me ways to demon­strate Your love to others. Give me Your deep compassion for the plights of other people. Help me realize that my neighbor is whoever has a need that I can meet. In Your name, amen.