The Key To Love

 

A lawyer asked Jesus in Matthew 22:36-40, “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." Jesus says it all comes down to love. We may understand how we can and should love God and others, but it is harder for us to understand how to love ourselves. Often people don’t know how to love themselves because they have a wrong image inside.

When mankind was created, they were created in God’s image.(Gen. 1:26) The image they had of themselves was the image of God. But when Adam and Eve ate from the tree they became independent. They lost touch with their creator, and in doing this they lost their identity. Instead of being identified with God and His characteristics of love and goodness, they now identified themselves with sin and the accompanying characteristics of doubt, shame, and guilt. Through Jesus Christ we can see ourselves in the image of God again!

Once you were alienated from God and were enemies in your minds because of your evil behavior. But now he has reconciled you by Christ's physical body through death to present you holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation. (Colossians 1:21-22) ...since you have taken off your old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator.(Colossians 3:9-10) Since the Bible tells us we have been renewed in the image of God, how do we actually change our self-image? First we need to repent. Repenting is not just turning from a sinful act. It means to change the way you think. It is not just a single event, but a lifestyle of change of mind. Day after day we are not just repentant of our sin, but how we see ourselves. We have to allow God’s word to paint a new image on the canvas of our souls.

Jesus said the key to love is loving yourself. When we allow God to recreate the image we have of ourselves we will be able to locate the divine within us and see Him, and not our old self. His love is developed in us as we study His word and fellowship with Him through prayer. We will not be ashamed of our self-image.(Tim 2:15) . We will experience a life of peace as God's friend. It will free us up to love God and others as He commanded us.


 

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