FOLLOWING THE MASTER – A Lenten Devotional

First Sunday in Lent

February 14, 2016

Fulfilling the Royal Law of Love

8 Copyright 2016 Monica Hernandez, Ph.D.

"If ye fulfil the royal law according to the scripture, thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself, ye do well" (James 2:8, KJV).

Another St. Valentine=s Day is here and we will be loaded with flowers, chocolates and beautiful cards with wonderful rubrics on love. Our ears will be filled with ideas and sermons on the nature of love, and the need and admonishment to love. However, if we fulfil the royal law of truly loving our neighbours as ourselves, we would do well.

How can we love others as ourselves? Love covers a broad spectrum of kind acts and we can love others as ourselves by doing kindness to them as we would like kindness to be done to us. As well, we cannot love others in the way we ought if we have a poor image of ourselvesCif we are continually putting ourselves down. If we are to love others in a manner that is appropriate, then we would first have to appreciate and love ourselves, not in an arrogant manner, but in a manner that reflects God=s love to us.

We love ourselves in an appropriate manner when we recognize that we are each created in the Aimage and likeness of God,@ and He did not create us with values that are poor and unworthy of His good pleasure. Everything He created was deemed Agood@ by Him and when He created us, His masterpiece, He gave us Adominion over all the earth...@

In learning to love, the understanding must be to love and appreciate ourselves as God loves and appreciates us, then we can extend that God-given love and appreciation to others as God loves and appreciates us all.