February 8

Matthew 25:31-26:13

Jesus says the greatest command is to love God and to love our neighbor as ourselves. He intricately connects our love of God with our love of people and vice versa. You can only do one when you are doing the other. Jesus makes this point very clear in some of his final words to his disciples. He proclaims that the judgment people will face will be connected to “whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine.” Jesus is so intricately connected to his family, that what we do for our earthly brothers and sisters is equated to what we do for Jesus. So, are we treating people as if they were Jesus?

Then a woman poured “expensive perfume” on Jesus’ head and the disciples responded with indignance. They felt like the value of the perfume should have been used to help people. Yet Jesus stresses that he would only be on earth for a short time and this woman showed him immense love while also preparing him for his burial. Love of God and people should both be evident in our lives. We can only truly love people when we are loving God; and we can only love God when we are loving people. So, how is your love meter? Let us especially love in light of Christ’s return, choosing to love God and others.

Father God, help me to love you and to love you through my love of others. Help me to not see people as obstacles but opportunities. Amen. 

How would seeing people as Jesus change your attitude toward them?