Act Justly, Love Mercy, Walk Humbly: A 7-Day Devotional by Pat BarrettSample

DAY 2: THE SECOND GREATEST COMMANDMENT

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

“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.’” Matthew 22:37-39 (NIV)

So, in the words of Jesus, all of the law and the prophets are summed up by treating others the way you want to be treated. Simple. Difficult, but simple. 

I often wonder why I tend to overcomplicate this one. Why is it so easy to get caught up in “spiritual ideas” and put off the really practical things that Jesus said were so important? Jesus even went so far as to say the one indicator that people will have that identify us as His disciples is our love for one another (John 13:35). Not our words, but our love in relation to each other. 

How related is our love for God and our love for other people? Scripture seems to say you actually can’t have one without the other. It’s worth reading 1 John 4:7-21, but here are the last 2 verses of that passage:

“We love because He first loved us. Whoever claims to love God yet hates a brother or sister is a liar. For whoever does not love their brother and sister, whom they have seen, cannot love God, whom they have not seen. And He has given us this command: Anyone who loves God must also love their brother and sister.”

Our love for each other reveals our love for Him. Our love for Him is expressed in our love for each other. The greatest commandments help us remember what God cares about the most. Of course, we forget at times, but one of the ways I help re-center and refocus my attention is to take scripture and sing it. It reminds me of the truth.

It all comes down to this

What You require of me

Love my neighbor as myself

And You above all things