Year A, Lectionary 148
God's commandments of loving God and our neighbor isn't about following a set of rules. It is about maintaining relationship with God and others. To remain in communion. When we fail to follow God's commandments, we're simply cutting ourselves from God, from love, and from life.
“So when Paul commends the Thessalonians for turning from idols to the living God, he's alluding to Exodus chapter 20, verse 1 and following”
“Think of the person you, you love the least. How well do you love that person? That's how well you love God.”
“In our pursuit of love and compassion we must also recognize that love extends beyond actions. It involves a transformation of our hearts, a deepening of our understanding, and a commitment to stand for what is right and just.”
“My neighbor is the one who's close to me, who's next to me”
“And so, when we look at the commandment, when we look at the law through the eyes of love, we will not see the law as a burden”
“And when we know God's love, when we truly know God's love, it's a lot easier to love our neighbor”
“every single bit of part of you is worth loving, because God loves you regardless of who you might think you are and what you have done”
“That is why Jesus can even command us to love our enemies. He is not asking us to like them, or to admire them, or to feel warmly towards them. He is asking us to refuse hatred, to reject revenge, and to seek their good, even when it is costly.”
“But empathy is hard because it invites you and I outside of our comfort, our desire, into the experience of others. Not always to completely understand it but to accept it. And then to ask the question 'how am I called to be God-like to that other?'”
“So what Jesus has basically done is taken the, the negative prohibitions that you find on the two tablets of the Decalogue and he's flipped them and summed them up in positive commands”
“Justice simply begins with refusing to stop caring for each other. We just begin with love.”
“Can we claim to love the Lord our God and despise that same God's children?”
“we were all helped in one way or the other. We were all born vulnerable, we needed the help of parents, siblings, friends, to get to where we are now. And so if you are in a position to help, do not withhold what is within your power to offer to someone.”
“We love when we rejoice in somebody else's blessings rather than being envious of them”
“For to 'love your neighbor as yourself' means to know there is no separation, just as there is no separation in God's heart. Every one of us carries the divine within us and then we can never be separated from the love of God.”
“Do you love God before all things or do you have all things before God?”
“The question 'who is my neighbor?' is the question that we are all asked on a daily basis. Our neighbor is the person that God puts in front of us. Our neighbor is the person in need.”
“We love our neighbor because God loves us. God shows us the compassion so we must show the compassion to those around us.”
“This week, remember one kindness that helped you become who you are today. Thank God for it. Then pass something of that kindness to someone who cannot repay you.”
“Faith becomes real when you and I notice those who are overlooked and offer practical care”
“faith is...an evidence of love for God”
“Your life is a gift from God, but you too are a gift to God if you allow it”
“perhaps the question posed to us is: how do we love our neighbor as ourselves? Have I kept my selfishness under control?”
