- Jeanice Sherai
- Apr 24
- 3 min read
The second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself. Matthew 22:39
Learning to Love Yourself Means Understanding that Self-Love and Self-Care isn't Vain
Sometimes, I wear outfits that make me cringe when I see them in photos. It's like they transform into a fashion disaster 😂 the moment they're captured on camera.
As I gracefully age like a fine wine 🍷 (*might I add 😁), I've decided that if I don't like how I look in something, it gets the boot 🥾. Life's too short to keep clothes that make me feel less than the beautiful being I am. Let me tell you, that's not vanity—it's just good old-fashioned self-care and self-love.
Life is teaching me daily how to love myself. The intricacies of the being that God took His time in creating. The not-so-loveable parts of me I am called to embrace even as God is working in me to change them. I am called to love.
Today, our devotional focuses on the word 'love. ' Life teaches us that love is more than a feeling; we see love in its most genuine form in action. Learning to love ourselves has a direct correlation to how well we learn to love others.
Intent on Misunderstanding
In today's focus scripture (Matthew 22:39), Jesus faces a range of questions from people who would rather see obedience to rules than love in action. Does it sound familiar to the battles we see in the world today?
These groups of people were identified as the Pharisees, Herodians, Scribes, and Sadducees.
Their intentions: To misunderstand Jesus, challenge His identity, and try to catch Him off guard.
Their goal: To trap Jesus so that they had an excuse to kill him, so they relentlessly questioned Him everywhere that He went.
It's quite amusing — the groups that questioned HIm didn't truly get along with each other. But, they found a shared nemesis in Jesus. So, because of that shared nemesis, they teamed up to see if they could convince everyone else that Jesus was not the guy to follow (*deep sigh).
Isn't that just like today? Instead of us, as individuals, just quietly clicking the unfollow button on our own, we want a crowd of people to follow our convictions about a person. Their behavior in Bible days aligns perfectly with the popular "cancel culture" trend. Solomon teaches us in Ecclesiastes that there is "nothing new under the sun." It looks different because we're living in a different age and time than before. Yet, it's the same battles and behaviors that we study and read about in God's Word.
God's Greatest Command
When we continue in Matthew 22, Jesus is eventually asked about God's greatest command, and in response, He directs their attention to one word: love.
Rather than listing all the commandments and prioritizing them as He was being asked to do. He pointed them towards one thing that could change how we respond to all commands.
The reality is clear: we experience God's presence in our lives through the way we love others. We generally succeed in loving those who love us but struggle more when the love is not reciprocated. Many of us also struggle with self-love because we compare ourselves to God's image and feel such a vast distance between who we are and who our Father is. This self-reflection can also complicate our ability to love others.
The Expression of Love
We all express love uniquely. Some people have a distinct gift for uniquely showcasing love, and that's perfectly fine. Be grateful for the diverse roles within the body and our calling to demonstrate God's love.
Loving ourselves on this journey through Earth will help us to have grace and love for others. We won't get it perfectly, but God is not looking for perfection.
I love you! 🤎
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