Daily Bread

One of the scribes came near and heard Jesus and the Sadducees disputing with one another, and seeing that he answered them well, he asked him, ‘Which commandment is the first of all?’ Jesus answered, ‘The first is, “Hear, O Israel: the Lord our God, the Lord is one; you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.” The second is this, “You shall love your neighbour as yourself.” There is no other commandment greater than these.’ Then the scribe said to him, ‘You are right, Teacher; you have truly said that “he is one, and besides him there is no other”; and “to love him with all the heart, and with all the understanding, and with all the strength”, and “to love one’s neighbour as oneself”,—this is much more important than all whole burnt-offerings and sacrifices.’ When Jesus saw that he answered wisely, he said to him, ‘You are not far from the kingdom of God.’ After that no one dared to ask him any question.

It all boils down to love doesn't it? Receiving love and giving love.

When it comes to receiving love, one of the lessons from the Bible — from the Old Testament through to the New — is that love cannot be earned. Over and over again, God communicates that God is not interested in 'burnt-offerings and sacrifices', yet it seems to be part of the human condition to seek approval from God and from others. If love is love then it is freely given and there is nothing we can do to earn God's love. In the same way, we cannot make someone love us — no matter how many cups of tea we bring them in bed! As I have repeated many times in sermons and writing, God loves us because God loves us because God loves us, and perhaps sometimes we need to stop trying to earn the love of others and accept that they love us because they love us because they love us.

So what about giving love? The two greatest commandments are clear, to love God and to love others. Love is a verb. Love has to be expressed, and we do this with all four aspects of our being — our physicality, emotionality, intellect, and spirituality. I have written more about this (see the links below).

Relationships are never easy, and it is difficult to navigate social interactions, complex situations, and painful circumstances. Once, when facing a very painful situation with one of my daughters — where she was going though a tough time — I approached a pastor for advice. His wise words stuck with me: "Just love your daughter."

When we wonder how to respond to someone, when we are perplexed or struggling to know what to do, perhaps we too will be reminded of those wise words and, "just love them," for it all boils down to love doesn't it?

For further reading on love:

What is love?
What does it mean to love God?
What does it mean to love your neighbour?

Holy God
I long to be a person filled with love —
someone who is a blessing to you and to the world.
May I love you with all my heart, soul, mind, and strength,
and may I love my neighbour as myself.
When I try and earn your love or the love of others
remind me that love is freely given and cannot be earned.
May I rest in the knowledge and presence of your love.
Now and forever.