OVING OURSELVES Do I love myself? Here is the “surprise” from yesterday’s lesson: the reference point for loving others is our love for ourselves. “You shall love your neighbor as yourself” (Matthew 22:39). How should you love yourself? Some confuse loving ourselves with indulging our desires and appetites—things we do to feel good. As you have probably realized, rewards from self-indulgence are fleeting. Others have difficulty loving themselves because of past experiences—serious mistakes they made, sins that have held them hostage. God has graciously given us a way to be released from the burden of past mistakes. It is to ask for and receive His forgiveness. Then this promise becomes reality for us: “As far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us” (Psalm 103:12). There is really only one way to properly love yourself, and that is to see yourself as Jesus sees you. You are of infinite worth to Him, precious in His sight, filled with His Spirit, part of His body of believers, commissioned to fulfill His grand design for your life, the object of His great love and affection. As one who is intensely loved by God—totally unshackled from the baggage of the past—you can love yourself and then “love your neighbor as yourself.” In effect, you become a conduit, transporting God’s love to others. It’s a great way to live! KEY VERSE: “By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another” (John 13:35).
Posted on: Thu, 04 Jul 2013 21:50:06 +0000