Love for our fellow men

A natural result of loving God is to love all that God loves and values. Because all people are of great value to God and dignified by being created in the very image of God, everyone who loves God will value people the same way. Jesus says, therefore, that this is the second commandment, the second principle upon which rests the whole of our Christian life.

God puts an immense value on people. Jesus says that one person is worth more than all the world. It is because man is created in God’s image that each person has such value. God has set eternity in all men’s hearts. Man had such value for God that he was willing to give his only Son to rescue us. Jesus gave himself for us because he loved us so much.

Despising others is a serious sin that Jesus does not hesitate to condemn. (See Matt.5:21-22) as it goes right against the law of love.

Love your neighbour as yourself. (Matt 22:39)

Our neighbour is each and every person who lives in our neighbourhood; it is everyone with whom we have something to do; it can be a friend or a relative; a fellow countryman or a foreigner; an ally or an enemy; each one is our neighbour.

Christian love is genuine humanity

Some of the love content in inter-personal relations:

a. To love one’s neighbour implies that we do not do anything which can harm another person, his property or his character.

b. To love one’s neighbour implies that we must not be selfish or put our own interests before his in such a way that he suffers. To love is to seek to do good and to do what is in the best interest of our fellow men.

c. To love a person is, in cases of guilt, disagreement or discussion, to do what is right and just and to pay as much attention to others’ interests as to our own.

d. To love a person is to have the same respect for his character, integrity, property etc. as we have for our own. It is to be just, honest and loving.

e. To love is to say ‘no’ to ourselves in order to bless and help another person. It is to do to others what we would wish them to do to us.

The Golden Rule is the rule of love

So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets. (Matt. 7:12)

Exercise:

In what way is this Christian teaching on love different from the common culture in which you live?

A right relationship with oneself

In order to be able to love our fellow men in a right way, we must first love ourselves the right way. We cannot give more love than we have. If we have not learned to value ourselves, as God has created us, we will have difficulty loving others. To have a right relationship to oneself is a condition for being able to value others rightly and to develop a good relationship to them.

To love our fellow men does not mean that we must neglect our own duties in order to help others. Our first responsibility is to ourselves and our own family. If we do not take care of our own we are worse than heathens (1.Tim. 5:8). As long as my work and my business activities are not injurious to the rights of my fellow men or my responsibility for them, then it is right and good that I first take care of my own duties, and the well being of my own family, before I help others.

Love for Christian brothers and sisters

Christian love shows itself first as brotherly love.

By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another. (John 13:35)

Christian love includes all who are Christians, all who are born again, all who have received Jesus as Lord and Saviour. We do not ask about which denomination they belong to, we will love all those who love Jesus! Love is the only sure hallmark of Christian people!

We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love our brothers. Anyone who does not love remains in death. (1 John 3:14)

No-one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us. (1 John 4:12)

If anyone says, «I love God,» yet hates his brother, whom he has seen, he is a liar. For anyone who does not love his brother, whom he has seen, cannot love God, whom he has not seen. (1 John 4:20)

Exercise:

Mention three things you have learnt through this lesson and explain how you intend to put it into practice.

Continue to memorise the previous Bible verses and add this one to your list:

I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another. (John 13:34-35)