It all starts in Matthew 22.

Jesus is addressing some of the Sadducees and Pharisees, starting in verse 25:

“One of them, an expert in the law, tested him with this question: ‘Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?’

“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. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’

All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”

How are you at loving others?

I wish I was better at it. As I read these commands to love God and love others, I realize that too often, I’m only following the second command when it’s convenient or for a side benefit. It’s embarrassing to admit, but it’s true.

A common reason people love others is to be liked. It sounds shallow, I know, but at the root of far too many acts of kindness is a desire to be accepted or embraced by others. When we love our neighbours, it’s almost always for us, in some way.

How do we love our neighbours with pure motives?

I automatically think about the book, “Crazy Love” by Francis Chan. It’s convicting, to say the least. Chan unpacks whether or not you can truly love your neighbour without getting anything in return. A great question to ask to find out is, “Can I love my neighbour if he doesn’t like me?”

Francis explains that it all comes down to the first commandment, loving God. And even more than that; falling in love with God. As it is simply written in 1 John.

“We love because he first loved us.” (1 John 4:19)

In Crazy Love, Chan unpacks an incredible amount of Scriptural evidence to get the reader to understand the magnitude of God’s love for us.

We’re all a work in progress.

Little by little, let’s try to focus our time and energy on loving God. Then we won’t have to worry so much about our motivations for loving our neighbour.

If we can fully understand the love God has for us, and fall in love with Him, authentically loving our neighbour without personal motives can be possible.

If you haven’t read it, you should check out the introductory video below for Francis Chan‘s book, “Crazy Love“.

Join the Conversation, Leave Your Thoughts

• What do you find the most difficult about loving others?
• When you do show love to others, what’s your typical motivation?
• Where do you see the connection between loving God and loving others?