4 Ways to Start Loving Your Neighbor as Yourself
“Love Your Neighbor as Yourself” Meaning
When Jesus said, “Love your neighbor as yourself” in Matthew 22:39, He was not teaching self love, but acknowledging self love.
Jesus was saying, “Obviously you already love yourself. . . Can you love your neighbor as much as you love yourself?”
But how do you begin to love your neighbor? Here are four ways.
1. Invest Time in Your Neighbor
John Wesley said, “Do all the good you can, by all the means you can, in all the ways you can, in all the places you can, at all the times you can, to all the people you can, as long as you ever can.” Well said. Let’s invest our time in loving our neighbors.
No life is ever wasted when it is invested in loving people like Jesus did. No life is ever wasted when it is lived for the glory of God. Life is wasted when it is lived for selfish ambition.
2. Care for Your Neighbor and Enter Their World
Sometimes I think the problem with Christians is that we see nonbelievers as our enemies. Maybe they are expressing themselves in a godless way in the language they use or the way they dress or the decisions they make, and we think, “They are not like us. They are not on our side.” In doing so, we miss the point. They are not the enemy. The enemy is Satan (see 2 Timothy 2:26). We need to remind ourselves it was not all that long ago that we too were one of “those people.”
We should care about people—enough to reach out to them and love them like ourselves. When we see someone hurting, let’s not walk away, but reach out.
3. Pray for Your Neighbor
We can also love our neighbor by praying for them. Research has shown people check their social media accounts several times a day. What if we prayed as often as we did that?
When we pray for people to put their faith in Christ, we are praying according to the will of God.
Our prayer for our neighbors should be that God will open their eyes and show them their need for Jesus Christ. The Bible tells us, “Satan, who is the god of this world, has blinded the minds of those who don’t believe. They are unable to see the glorious light of the Good News. They don’t understand this message about the glory of Christ, who is the exact likeness of God” (2 Corinthians 4:4 NLT).
4. Share the Gospel with Your Neighbor
We can say how much we love people with words, we can show it with kind actions, and that’s all important. But if someone doesn’t yet know Christ, the greatest way we can show them love is by telling them about Jesus.
God has called us to be His messengers, to share the Good News with those who need it most.
So here’s my challenge to you: before this day is over, look for an opportunity to start a conversation about Jesus with someone. It doesn’t have to be complicated. It could be as simple as sharing your story or asking if they’ve ever thought about faith. You never know how God might use that moment. There’s no better way to say “I love you” than to point someone to Jesus. Let’s be bold and share the gospel today!
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