Hello
Jesus said that loving others is the second most important thing his followers must do, second only to loving God. We must love others the same way that we love ourselves (Mark 12:28-34; Luke10:25-37) and we must treat others the way we like to be treated (Matthew 7:12; Luke 6:31). Matthew records Jesus saying that this simple rule sums up all the Old Testament law and the teachings of the Prophets.
“Therefore, everything you would like others to do for you, you do for them, for this is the law and the prophets” (Matthew 7:12).
Jesus didn’t just tell us to love others. He set himself as the example of how we should love each other. He told his disciples to love each other the same way he had loved them (John 13:34; John 15:12).
Most of Jesus’ commands to his followers are about how we should treat others. We are to be merciful to others (Luke 6:36). We are not to judge others (Matthew 7:1-2; Luke 6:37) or condemn others (Luke 6:37). We are to forgive others (Matthew 6:14-15; Mark 11:25; Luke 6:37; Luke 11:4). We are to love even our enemies and do good to those who hate us, we are to bless those who curse us and pray for those who treat us badly (Luke 6:27-30). This was revolutionary teaching in Jesus’ time, and it is revolutionary today. We live in societies where, unfortunately, our leaders often judge, condemn and ridicule each other. They also often judge, condemn and ridicule anyone who questions or challenges their point of view. We must not follow the examples set by such people. We follow Jesus, who tells us to love others.
Loving others is an essential part of obeying our loving Father, and Jesus made it very clear that he expects his followers to obey our Father. There is a link to an article “What did Jesus say about obeying God?” below.
May our loving Father bless us, strengthen us and keep us safe.
Jesus is Lord.
Peter O
Related articles
“What did Jesus say about obeying God?”
“What did Jesus say about forgiving others?”
“What did Jesus say about judging or condemning others?”
“What does Jesus want his followers to do?”
“What did Jesus say about truth?”
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What can Jesus say about giving to others in need thank you,
Hello Dawn
Our loving heavenly Father’s commands to give to our sisters and brothers who are in need can be found throughout the Old Testament. Jesus continued this teaching. He gave his followers instructions as to how they should behave when giving to the needy (Matthew 6:1-4) but perhaps the most explicit example is his teaching on the sheep and the goats (Matthew 25:31-46).
Giving to our sisters and brothers who are in need must be a central concern for those of us who serve our loving heavenly Father. I go into more detail about this in the article “What did Jesus say about obeying God?”. https://followtheteachingsofjesus.com/articles/loving-god/what-did-jesus-say-about-obedience-to-god.html
Peter, I am a 40 year “church man.” This means I was an excellent dedicated member of a local church. I was a faithful tither, faithful to all services and programs, faithful defender of the Pastor. In 2020, God graciously gave my wife and I the eyes to see and the ears to hear Him say “But Terry you lack my love and humility.”
At that time we began to read the words of Jesus for what they say. We’ve come to understand we were not faithful followers of Jesus Christ, nor had we become His disciples nor made him our teacher!
May God bless you for your willingness to stand up and teach the truth even though it so unacceptable in today’s culture.
Love needs unity to function just like we use all our different size fingers to hold a pen to write a story. We bend all our fingers to hold the pen and write so we need bend/humble ourselves to show our love just like Jesus humble himself to save us thru love.