Loving Our Neighbours as Ourselves: Seeing Through Jesus' Eyes

 “...teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you."…Matthew 28:20b

I am not sure about you but I have had some neighbors that I was not particularly fond of. An extreme case of a nasty neighbor was reported in the news recently. An 81 year old man had been terrorizing his neighborhood in Azusa, CA for the past 10 years. He has been actively shooting out windows and windshields with ball bearing propelled by his sling shot. It probably took a long time to catch him because no one would suspect a man of this age to be engaged in such destructive behavior. 

People are born with a natural love of self. Among the first words we learn as children is "mine". The negative side of self love leads us to feeling superior to others and demanding attention or having our desires fulfilled by others. 

The positive side of self love is when we care for ourselves by eating healthy, exercising and bathing. There is a benefit to us and a benefit to others if we have properly aligned self love. 

I think what Jesus is saying in this second great commandment is that we ought always to be ready to help or take care of the legitimate needs of others in the same way we would do to take care of ourselves. 

I am usually quite reluctant to hand money to panhandlers. However, on a recent trip to a shopping center there was a man, with obvious physical limitations, soliciting help from people as they passed by. I was parked some distance away and observed this man for several minutes when I felt a prompting to give him something. I took some money and approached him. In the course of the conversation I learned he was a father of two who were doing well in school and he was very proud of his children. What I gave him would not come close to meeting the need in his family but I think this small act illustrates the point of what Jesus was saying. We need to be ready to meet the legitimate needs of others in the same way we like to take care of ourselves. 

As we grow as disciples of Jesus we will begin to see other (neighbors) the way Jesus sees them. 

 A practical way I have begun to see others as Jesus sees them is to pray for the person stopped next to me as we wait for the traffic light or for the pedestrian who is waiting to cross the street as I pass by.  By starting to love neighbors in these small ways I believe God will direct us how we can love neighbors by taking care of their legitimate needs as we are directed by the Spirit of God. 

K R Paton

President