Matthew 22:36-40
“Teacher, which is the most important commandment in the law of Moses?” Jesus replied, “‘You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind’. This is the first and greatest commandment. A second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as Yourself’. The entire law and the demands of the prophets are based on these two commandments”.
Almighty God,
I praise you for your goodness. I praise you for the redemption of mankind through the sacrifice Jesus made on the cross. I love you and seek to follow your commandments. I do admit that I often fall short and must rely on your abundant grace and mercy. Thank you, Father, for your love for me that forgives and looks past my failures.
Father, loving you is the easier part. But one of my failures is not always loving my neighbor; specifically, those who do not agree with my values. I do not seek to harm anyone intentionally. I do recognize there is injustice and inequity in the world. But often I feel more like David in the Psalms; calling for the punishment of those whom I consider more of an enemy than a neighbor. I am made in your image and yet I am reviled as the cause of their grievances. You as the Creator are reviled also as an unjust and unloving Father. This hurts and it angers me.
Lord, you know that sometimes I don’t love them and don’t want to love them. Help me to love as Jesus loved. Help me to focus on the fact that Jesus died for all mankind and forgave even those who sought his death. Help me to listen and try to understand my neighbor’s viewpoint, even though I may not agree with it. Help me to be an instrument of peace, not war. Help me to understand that I cannot fully love you if I do not love my neighbor.
Thank you, Father, for your patience with me. I pray that John 13:35 will be my focus: “Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples.”
Amen
Fred Hicks
