“And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ This is the first commandment. And the second, like it, is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.” Mark 12:30-31
One of our readers asked, “I know in the Bible it says love your neighbor like yourself, what does that mean? I have asked that question and I can’t get an answer. I don’t love myself. I struggle every day just to get up.”
Dear friend, I completely understand the struggle. Every Christian can struggle to get out of bed in the morning, wrestle with feelings of weariness and doubt. But know this: you are not alone—our hope in Christ!
The command to “love your neighbor as yourself” might seem daunting when you are exhausted, but Jesus didn’t give us an unattainable burden. Instead, He offers a path filled with His grace, transforming our hearts and empowering us to love others from the overflow of His love. The key is understanding that this love flows from the gift of salvation—a free, unearned treasure that rewrites the genetics of the eternal part of us: our soul and spirit.
In Mark 12:29–31, Jesus highlights the greatest commandments: love God fully and “love your neighbor as yourself.” We can not fulfill these commandments by our bare power—we must operate in God’s Spirit. Just like our salvation, which is not something we work for, it’s a divine gift.
“For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.” Ephesians 2:8-9
God loved us first. (Romans 5:8) When we receive His gift and surrender to Him, we are born again, and the greatest miracle happens: Our soul and spirit receive the “genetics” of Christ. Just as children inherit traits from their parents, salvation infuses us with Christ’s nature, making us a new creation. (2 Corinthians 5:17)
Consider what this spiritual transformation looks like. Before salvation, our soul and spirit are dead in sin, cut off from God, and dominated by fear, anger, or despair. But at salvation, God breathes His spiritual life into us:
“But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ.” (Ephesians 2:4–5)
Our born again soul, which is “in Christ” enables us to have the mind of Christ. Having His mind allows us to live in His powerful love. Our spirit, once separated from God, now intimately communes with Him.
Galatians 5:22–23 describes the fruit of these new genetics as “love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.” Imagine: instead of chronic anxiety, we have the opportunity to experience supernatural peace that guards our heart. (Philippians 4:7) Christ in us produces outward manifestations of His fruit towards others.
This transformation does not give instant perfection to our outward man, because our flesh is never any better than the day we were born again. Paul describes this struggle between our unregenerated flesh and our born again soul in Romans Chapter 7:18-19:
“For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh) nothing good dwells; for to will is present with me, but how to perform what is good I do not find. For the good that I will to do, I do not do; but the evil I will not to do, that I practice.”
Loving our neighbor as ourselves can only happen when we are winning this struggle. To do so, God must be the center of every area of our life. Then we will see the miraculous manifestation of the supernatural love of God towards others. Some days, we must start small. But even on tough days, we can send an encouraging text to a friend, pray for a coworker’s struggle, or offer a listening ear to a neighbor. These actions reflect Christ’s genetics in you, and as you step out, God multiplies your efforts. Refreshing others often refreshes us!
My friend, our struggles don’t disqualify us; they magnify God’s power.
When a day gets hard, dig into God’s Word. Cry out to Him. Ask Him to show you any sin that is distancing you from your connection with Him. Repent, and turn to Him. He desires you so much that He died for you.
If you are born again, then—in Christ—you are equipped, beloved, and capable of loving others as you are loved!
Prayer
Father, thank You for the gift of salvation by grace through faith. Lord, remind me that the power to love others comes from You. In my struggles, remind me of Your love and empower me to share it tangibly with others. Fill me with Your Spirit’s fruit, showing your strength through my weakness. Let Your peace guard my heart as I step out in obedience. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
