Matthew 22:37-40
You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. 38 This is the great and first commandment. 39 And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. 40 On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.
Jesus said that all of the Law and the Prophets depend on two commandments: Love the LORD your God with all your heart, mind, and soul; and love your neighbor as yourself. In other words, you can do all things for God, preach and teach accurately, you can even give your life for the sake of the Gospel, but if you do not have love, you are a resounding symbol and you gain nothing (1 Corinthians 13:1-3).
And if we keep all the law, but we fail in the part of loving our neighbor as ourselves, what will become of us? We will be found without fruit. The LORD said that if we don’t bear fruit, we will be cut off and the thrown into the fire (John 15:1-6). So, what are we to do? Love. Love as Jesus did. He didn’t condemn. Insult. Demonize. Demean. Instead, we share the Gospel of Jesus Christ with others. Yes, we need to point out sin. But we have to do it without condemnation and insult.
So many of us claim to be Christians but insult and tear down others. What kind of testimony is that? If we, who are supposed to be Christ to the world, can’t do the basic foundational act of loving our neighbor (which is everyone), how can we expect the world to change? How we treat others matters. How we love matters.
Peace. Love. Go Forth and Watch How You Love.