The Second Great Commandment

Matthew 22.38, 39

“This is the great and the first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”

John 13.35

“By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”

It begins with the people of God.

Neighbor-love begins in the household of faith. Here is the best place to develop our skills of loving others as we love ourselves, first, because we spend a good deal of time with our fellow believers, and, second, because they understand the priority of love and will receive it graciously (we hope). We are to do good to all, Paul tells us, but especially those who are of the household of faith (Gal. 6.10). The harder we work at loving our fellow believers, the easier it will be to love those beyond the pale of faith, including our enemies. This love for one another is a crucial apologetic for our faith. People will know that we are following Jesus when they see the love we have for one another, and as they experience our love for them. This will prepare them for the explanation of why we love this way, and how they can, too.

Pray

Teach me to be more consistent in loving my neighbor, O Lord. As I meditate in Your Law each day, help me to see the ways it guides and directs me to an active practice of loving others as I love myself. And may You be glorified in all my love for others.

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“In the Gates” is a devotional series on the Law of God by Rev. T.M. Moore

T. M. Moore is editor of the Worldview Church. He serves as dean of the Centurions Program of the Wilberforce Forum and principal of The Fellowship of Ailbe, a spiritual fellowship in the Celtic Christian tradition. He is the author or editor of twenty books, and has contributed chapters to four others. His essays, reviews, articles, papers, and poetry have appeared in dozens of national and international journals, and on a wide range of websites. His most recent books are The Ailbe Psalter and The Ground for Christian Ethics (Waxed Tablet).

Scripture quotations in this article are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, (c) copyright 2001,2007 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Editor’s note: The use of a translation other than the Authorised Version in an article does not constitute an endorsement in whole or in part by The Christian Observer.

The Second Great Commandment

Matthew 22.38, 39

“This is the great and the first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”

John 13.12

When he had washed their feet and put on his outer garments and resumed his place, he said to them, “Do you understand what I have done to you?”

All their feet – every one.

Jesus washed the feet of all His disciples – including Judas. He knew that Judas was shortly going to betray Him. He knew that this man’s deceitful, treacherous actions would lead to suffering of unprecedented magnitude which He alone would bear. Yet He washed His feet. As tender and careful as He was with John and the others, Jesus was with Judas. In so doing He was simply carrying out His own instruction to love our enemies (Matt. 5.44). This is the way God has always loved us. Even when we were His enemies, He sent Jesus to die for us. Even while we maintained our rebellion against us, He strove with us by His Spirit and wooed us by His glory. Even when we were busy pursuing our own treacherous and sinful agenda, He sent His messenger to proclaim the Good News of forgiveness and eternal life. He loved us while we were His enemies, and He calls us to love our enemies as well. There is no place for holding grudges, spreading malicious gossip, or seeking anything but the blessings of God for those who hate us. Neighbor-love treats as neighbors all who have a need, even if those needy persons wish us only ill.

Will you have to deal with any “enemies” today? How will you show them the neighbor-love of Jesus?

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“In the Gates” is a devotional series on the Law of God by Rev. T.M. Moore

T. M. Moore is editor of the Worldview Church. He serves as dean of the Centurions Program of the Wilberforce Forum and principal of The Fellowship of Ailbe, a spiritual fellowship in the Celtic Christian tradition. He is the author or editor of twenty books, and has contributed chapters to four others. His essays, reviews, articles, papers, and poetry have appeared in dozens of national and international journals, and on a wide range of websites. His most recent books are The Ailbe Psalter and The Ground for Christian Ethics (Waxed Tablet).

Scripture quotations in this article are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, (c) copyright 2001,2007 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Editor’s note: The use of a translation other than the Authorised Version in an article does not constitute an endorsement in whole or in part by The Christian Observer.

The Second Great Commandment

Matthew 22.38, 39

“This is the great and the first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”

John 13.6

He came to Simon Peter, who said to him, “Lord, do you wash my feet?”

If God has called you, don’t let anyone talk you out of it.

Peter is the original day-late-and-a-dollar-short disciple. He tends to see things after the fact, and then tries to make a good show of setting things right. He’s just like us, in other words. Here he puts on this big demonstration of humility before the others (doubtless following up on Jesus’ teaching about Kingdom greatness – see how humble, and thus, how great he is!). He says, in effect, “No, Lord, this is not right. You shouldn’t be doing this. This is not for You.” Sometimes when we take up some work of ministry, out of a sense of being called to it by the Lord, others will try to discourage us. You shouldn’t be doing this. You’re wasting your time on ungrateful people. Your time is too valuable for this. And so forth. They’re doing this not for our sakes, but for theirs, because if it’s good for us to do such service to others, it’s probably something they should consider, too. True love, though, understands that, when God has called us to a task, we need to stay at it until He and He alone releases us.

Have you ever begun something, out of a sense of being called by God, only to give it up when it got too difficult, or when others challenged your involvement?

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“In the Gates” is a devotional series on the Law of God by Rev. T.M. Moore

T. M. Moore is editor of the Worldview Church. He serves as dean of the Centurions Program of the Wilberforce Forum and principal of The Fellowship of Ailbe, a spiritual fellowship in the Celtic Christian tradition. He is the author or editor of twenty books, and has contributed chapters to four others. His essays, reviews, articles, papers, and poetry have appeared in dozens of national and international journals, and on a wide range of websites. His most recent books are The Ailbe Psalter and The Ground for Christian Ethics (Waxed Tablet).

Scripture quotations in this article are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, (c) copyright 2001,2007 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Editor’s note: The use of a translation other than the Authorised Version in an article does not constitute an endorsement in whole or in part by The Christian Observer.

Matthew 22.38, 39

“This is the great and the first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”

John 13.3-5

“Jesus…rose from supper. He laid aside his outer garments, and taking a towel, tied it around his waist. Then he poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples’ feet and to wipe them with the towel…”

Pay attention!

The big difference between Jesus and His disciples in this situation had to do with what they saw when they entered that room. The disciples doubtless looked around to figure out who would sit where. Perhaps they were thinking about the food they would shortly consume. Luke tells us that they were actually fighting among themselves about which of them would be the greatest in the Kingdom of God (Lk. 22.24-27)! While the disciples are all consumed with thinking about themselves, Jesus is looking around and seeing an entirely different scenario. There’s a need here. They must not eat without washing their feet. But who would do the washing? No servant was in the room, only Jesus and the twelve. They were distracted by other things. So Jesus, discerning the need, took it upon Himself to fulfill it. This is what love does. It doesn’t focus its attention on its own things; instead, it looks to the needs of others, is attentive to their concerns, and considers how best to alleviate that need or concern. Love listens, observes, and feels what others feel.

In a situation with other people, do you find that your outlook is more like the disciples or like Jesus?

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“In the Gates” is a devotional series on the Law of God by Rev. T.M. Moore

T. M. Moore is editor of the Worldview Church. He serves as dean of the Centurions Program of the Wilberforce Forum and principal of The Fellowship of Ailbe, a spiritual fellowship in the Celtic Christian tradition. He is the author or editor of twenty books, and has contributed chapters to four others. His essays, reviews, articles, papers, and poetry have appeared in dozens of national and international journals, and on a wide range of websites. His most recent books are The Ailbe Psalter and The Ground for Christian Ethics (Waxed Tablet).

Scripture quotations in this article are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, (c) copyright 2001,2007 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Editor’s note: The use of a translation other than the Authorised Version in an article does not constitute an endorsement in whole or in part by The Christian Observer.

The Second Great Commandment

Matthew 22.38, 39

“This is the great and the first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”

John 13.3

“Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into his hands, and that he had come from God and was going back to God…”

Why, after all, are you here?

Neighbor-love begins with a true understanding of who we are and why we’re here. Jesus lived every moment of His life with a clear and unobstructed sense of His calling. He possessed all power and authority from God. How would He wield it? The devil tempted Him to use it in self-interest, but Jesus knew that God’s power is to be used for God’s glory in deeds of love toward others. He also knew that He had come from God. He was an Ambassador from the heavenly court, and all His actions must reflect the mercy, compassion, long-suffering, goodness, and love that emanates from that throne. This understanding of His mission naturally propelled Him to works of love at every opportunity. Finally, Jesus always kept in mind His destination. He would return to God before long and there must give an account of His ministry. He must keep up love to the very end, and not withhold it even toward those who would betray and abandon Him, or those who would mock and murder Him. He must be able to stand before God Who sent Him and say, in essence, “I have used Your authority and power to fulfill all that You sent Me to do; I have loved to the bitter end.” When we see ourselves as empowered by God, sent by God, and one day standing before God, we will be much more inclined to love others and to esteem them more highly than ourselves.

How much of your everyday life is guided by this sense of mission and calling from God?

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“In the Gates” is a devotional series on the Law of God by Rev. T.M. Moore

T. M. Moore is editor of the Worldview Church. He serves as dean of the Centurions Program of the Wilberforce Forum and principal of The Fellowship of Ailbe, a spiritual fellowship in the Celtic Christian tradition. He is the author or editor of twenty books, and has contributed chapters to four others. His essays, reviews, articles, papers, and poetry have appeared in dozens of national and international journals, and on a wide range of websites. His most recent books are The Ailbe Psalter and The Ground for Christian Ethics (Waxed Tablet).

Scripture quotations in this article are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, (c) copyright 2001,2007 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Editor’s note: The use of a translation other than the Authorised Version in an article does not constitute an endorsement in whole or in part by The Christian Observer.

The Second Great Commandment

Matthew 22.38, 39

“This is the great and the first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”

John 13.15

“For I have given you an example, that you also should do just as I have done to you.”

Jesus is the Way of love.

The Law of God is summarized in two great commandments. The first requires that we love the Lord our God with all our soul and strength. God Himself shows us how to fulfill this requirement, as we saw last week. The second great commandment leads us to love our neighbors as ourselves. But we must be careful here lest we think that love is something which originates with us, as though we were able to define the terms of love according to our own understanding or practice. We are quite adept at loving ourselves; self-love unrestrained by love for God is of the essence of the law of sin. Loving our neighbors often boils down to feeling OK about them, not wishing them ill, or avoiding any deliberate or overt actions which might harm them. Those may well be ingredients of neighbor-love, but we will never learn to love our neighbors as God intends until we look to Him and let Him show us how. Jesus is the best and most readily-available example of love in action, and His ministry to His disciples on the night of His betrayal shows us the essence of neighbor love. As we look more carefully at Jesus’ washing His disciples’ feet, we will understand better what love requires of us.

Who are your neighbors? That is, whom do you anticipate seeing this week who is legitimately entitled to your neighbor-love?

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“In the Gates” is a devotional series on the Law of God by Rev. T.M. Moore

T. M. Moore is editor of the Worldview Church. He serves as dean of the Centurions Program of the Wilberforce Forum and principal of The Fellowship of Ailbe, a spiritual fellowship in the Celtic Christian tradition. He is the author or editor of twenty books, and has contributed chapters to four others. His essays, reviews, articles, papers, and poetry have appeared in dozens of national and international journals, and on a wide range of websites. His most recent books are The Ailbe Psalter and The Ground for Christian Ethics (Waxed Tablet).

Scripture quotations in this article are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, (c) copyright 2001,2007 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Editor’s note: The use of a translation other than the Authorised Version in an article does not constitute an endorsement in whole or in part by The Christian Observer.