The fundamentals of the faith cannot be underscored enough. At times this writer seems to veer from them too long and it causes one to lose his spiritual footing. Last Sunday we covered the oneness of the church and saw the beauty of knowing the church was not an afterthought. This week we will consider “Loving God and Our Neighbor,” another fundamental of the faith. This concept was in principle during the Patriarchal System and was directly stated during the times of Moses and Christ (Lev. 19.18; Matt. 22.37-40). Friends, we want to increase our love for God and His blessed will and also our love for our fellow man. These two go hand in hand.

Why should we increase our love for God? We should increase our love for God because He is the faithful God who keeps covenant and mercy. (Deut. 7.9). Paul would say this about our God: “God is faithful…” (1 Cor. 1.9). Brethren, we should strive to be more like Him in all things because of His faithfulness. We cannot understate the need to be faithful to Him and glorify His Son in all we say and do. His faithfulness and care for us is vitally necessary for us to work out our salvation with fear and trembling (Phil. 2.12). We should consider loving Him more because of His bountiful care and concern He has demonstrated to us (Ps. 116.12).

What does increasing our love for God look like on a daily basis? It is doing our part to get to know Him more along with His Son. Jesus said these words: “And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.” (John 17.3). Paul would say this about increasing his knowledge about Jesus: “that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death.” (Phil. 3.10). Friends, increasing our love for our God and His Son is a pursuit, a quest, and a journey to be enjoyed and embraced to enhance our lives and the lives of others.

When our love for God increases, then our love for our neighbor should as well. The age old question is, “who is my neighbor?” (Luke 10.29). This was asked to Jesus on one occasion during His ministry. Our neighbor is simply this: our fellow man, or the one we come in contact with daily, from time to time or even just one time. Our neighbors, friends, are those to whom we have an opportunity to make their lives a little better through service and an admonishing word. Perhaps we can help someone who has been having difficulty in life like the man who was beaten up and left for dead in Luke 10.30-36. Perhaps we can see it in our hearts to give aid to a brother who has a family coming into town and needs a little assistance from us to make their stay more comfortable (Luke 11.5-8). There are many ways to seek opportunities to love our neighbors.

Furthermore, we can increase our love for our neighbor by equipping ourselves more in the word of God to be ready to give an answer for the pitfalls and problems people have in life. Job said, “Man who is born of woman Is of few days and full of trouble” (Job 14.1). The word of God has the answers needed for life and godliness if we would just read, study and apply them to our daily lives. When we are asked about how to behave in the home or respond to our employer or even resolve conflict, the prepared Christian can aid those inside and outside of Christ in these things. These are some ways to increase our love for God and our neighbor. These blessings make for more opportunities to teach the gospel and position the brokenhearted to experience spiritual healing from their trials and tribulations of life.

In conclusion, let us strive to genuinely love our God and His beloved Son everyday of our lives. Let’s develop ourselves in every area of life and not in semblance. Let’s truly get to know the True and Living God and become one with His Son. When we do this, then our service to our fellowman becomes enjoyable, encouraging, enlightening and edifying. Let us remember to go out into the world and shine the light of the gospel in our lives and seek to bring glory to our God (Matt. 5.13-16). Brethren, let us imitate Jesus and go about doing good to all men and especially those who are in the household of faith (Gal. 6.10). God is true.