Loving God Big Sample

Love Your Neighbor as Yourself

When Jesus was asked what is the greatest commandment, Jesus replied, “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.” Matthew 22:37-38 NIV

It is clear in this scripture that God is saying that we are to love our neighbor as we love ourselves. The word “as” in the scripture is from the Greek word “hos” which means like, even as. So, we could say we are to love our neighbor "like or even as" we love ourselves. 

Who is our neighbor? Webster’s defines our neighbor as “one living or near another”. So basically the guy next door. But I think God’s picture is much bigger than this. According to Strong’s Concordance the word "neighbor" in the Greek is the word plēsion. It is defined as “a friend, any other person, and where two are concerned, the other (thy fellow man, thy neighbor), according to the Jews, any member of the Hebrew nation and commonwealth according to Christ, any other man irrespective of nation or religion with whom we live or whom we chance to meet.” 

So, in a nutshell, we are to love everyone God brings across our path. I know you’re probably thinking, "But you don’t know (fill in the blank)". The real question becomes how do you love that person whose name you put in the blank? It starts with loving God big, which will lead to loving yourself and ends up with the ability to love those neighbors that He puts in your life.  

Galatians 5:14 NIV says, "For the entire law is fulfilled in keeping this one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” 

To get more out of this devotional write down the names of those people who you put in the blank and begin to pray for them.