Love - Leviticus 19:18

[Elder-Shawn Denise Briscoe]

“you shall (will) love your neighbor as yourself: I Am the Lord/ JEHOVAH / Ha-shem”. (For those of you who are not familiar with the name of GOD as HA-SHEM; this what HIS name means. Everything within man's power should be done to glorify the name of God before the world).

Before I begin to talk about the love that the LORD GOD is speaking about in the above scripture; allow me to ask and answer some questions I’ve asked of you.

(1) Who is your neighbor?

All mankind; mankind is created in the image of GOD.

(2) Who do you consider your neighbor?

We must view our neighbor as more than someone that lives right next to us in our neighborhood.

(3) What does your neighbor look like to you in your eyes?

Our neighbor looks just as we do. They are not plant life nor are they animals. They are created in the image of GOD just as we are.

Mankind has taken the word love and twisted it to fit our agenda as to whom we will love. This is not what the LORD GOD commanded of us. What HE said is very clear and really there is no way to be confused by HIS request. Love our neighbor as ourselves. Now I must admit that if we don’t love ourselves than how is it possible to love our neighbors? We can’t. So before we can love our neighbor work on loving self; and the way we do this is by finding out just who GOD is and how HE loves us and see’s us. We have been talked down to for most of our lives and we have come to believe the lies that we have been told. Such as we are nothing and we will never be anything. No one will ever love us. We are the very image of a member of our family that they more than likely don’t love either. We are abused emotionally, mentally and physically because we look like someone that is unloved or resemble in character that of someone who is unloved. We can’t help the make-up of your DNA so we buy into all the negative non-sense that we hear and see about ourselves from others. But the LORD GOD does not see us as others see us. The LORD GOD loves us with an everlasting love and HE wants us to love ourselves and to love HIM as well. But again, we can’t do that until we meet the LORD GOD and we meet HIM in HIS Word. Not through logic. If we can’t read then listen to HIS Word on your MP3 player, on the television, on radio, have someone read the Word to us, on the computer and there may be other avenues in which we can listen to the Word of GOD. So mankind is without excuse. Unless we are as Helen Keller, blind, deaf and mute we will have to find another avenue to get the Word of GOD, but I know it can be done for even she learned to communicate with her hands. Someone introduced her to JESUS and she is not only known as one who had three major short comings regarding communication. But she traveled around the world helping others and communicating the love of GOD in her life and how HE loves others as well; she also demonstrated her love towards her neighbors as she traveled. Once we meet and trust in CHRIST JESUS and believe in HIM and trust in HIS love for us; then we can begin to love ourselves and love others. We will not limit our neighbors to just those who live just a few steps or feet from where we live. We will see that if we live in America that those who live in Africa, Asia, Europe the Middle East and other countries are our neighbors as well. So don’t stick your nose up in the air when you see someone less fortunate than we are. Don’t turn a blind eye to someone who is in real need of help. Love your neighbor just as you love yourself and most importantly as GOD loves you. Oh, by the way the love that JESUS is speaking about in the above scripture is love that is compassionate, merciful and has pity on those who are in great need. JESUS desires that we show kindness to all mankind not just to those we like or are attracted to.