Love Your Neighbor Challenge — Day 12

Love requires connection with God.

The type of love that Jesus demonstrated and the type of love he asks us to give cannot be committed on our own. Even were we able to, it would likely be done out of pride in a way that draws attention to how great we are or done in a way that makes us feel good. Jesus tells us that when we do good things so people notice us, then we receive our reward.

Loving in a Jesus way is hard enough. When you add to it the concept that we should do this from pure motive, that’s even more impossible. This is only possible by seeing ourselves as the conduit.

This is brilliantly described in 2 Corinthians 4:5-6.
“We don’t preach ourselves, but rather the lordship of Jesus Christ,
for we are your servants for Jesus’ sake.
For God, who said,
“Let brilliant light shine out of darkness,”
is the one who has cascaded his light into us
—the brilliant dawning light of the glorious knowledge of God
as we gaze into the face of Jesus Christ.”

In this passage, he describes that it’s Jesus that shines through us as we focus on him. That’s the source of our love. In Matthew 5:14, Jesus said that we are the light of the world and that our natural place to be is to set on a table or to be set at the top of the hill so that all can see.

Let’s shine brilliantly, knowing that it’s God’s light in us. The purpose of this isn’t our glory, but God’s glory. And this happens “as we gaze into the face of Jesus Christ.”

It’s not too late to join our month-long Love Your Neighbor Challenge! This has the power to change your world.

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