Greatest Commands #5:
Love Your Neighbor
Introduction
We have been studying Jesus’ response to the question, “Of all the commandments, which is the most important?” (Mark 12:28). Jesus’ answer: “The most important commandment is this: ‘Listen, O Israel! The Lord our God is the one and only Lord. And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength.’ The second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ No other commandment is greater than these.” (Mark 12:29-31). What would our communities look like if we truly lived this
command — to love God and love neighbor — as the greatest law of life? How does this direct the function of our congregation? How does this challenge us in our daily walk with Jesus?
In both Mark and Matthew’s account, those around him did not ask him any more questions. “And after that, no one dared to ask him any more questions.” (Mark 12:34). In Luke’s account, the lawyer asks for a clarification: Who is my neighbor? That is when Jesus tells the parable of the Good Samaritan. But we have settled in to Mark’s gospel and I would like to stay there for the moment.
After Jesus’ answer, in Mark’s account, the lawyer follows up with an interesting observation. Mark 12: 32-34 The teacher of religious law replied, “Well said, Teacher. You have spoken the truth by saying that there is only one God and no other. And I know it is important to love him with all my heart and all my understanding and all my strength, and to love my neighbor as myself. This is more important than to offer all of the burnt offerings and sacrifices required in the law.” 34 Realizing how much the man understood, Jesus said to him, “You are not far from the Kingdom of God.” And after that, no one dared to ask him any more questions.”
Jesus is giving commands for a love without limits.
1. Love Without Limits
Jesus provided the greatest command from Deuteronomy six. For the second command, he quotes from Leviticus 19:18, which says, “Do not seek revenge or bear a grudge against a fellow Israelite, but love your neighbor as yourself. I am the Lord.” The context of Leviticus 19:16-18 urges these ways to love neighbors:
Do not go about spreading slander among your people. Do not do anything that endangers your neighbor's life. I am the Lord. Do not hate a fellow Israelite in your heart. Rebuke your neighbor frankly so you will not share in their guilt. Do not seek revenge or bear a grudge against anyone among your people Finally, love your neighbor as yourself. I am the Lord. Jesus is the first one to take the Shema and join it with this command to love your neighbor.
Originally, the commands were given to Jews to love their fellow Jews. Jesus later expands the definition of “neighbor” to include everyone. Barclay wrote that, “He took an old law and filled it with a new meaning.”
But Jesus’ command doesn’t stop with how we treat others — it also begins with how we see ourselves.
2. Love Starts With You
David Owens wrote, “Those who love themselves are those who are most able to love others and love God. And those who loathe themselves are most likely to hurt others and despise God.”
Why Should We Love Ourselves?
We should love ourselves because we are made in God’s image. In the words of the popular T-shirt, “God don’t make no junk.”
Because God loves us perfectly and unconditionally. There is nothing we can do or say that will ever cause him
to stop loving us. That love is real. That love is for every single one of us.
Because God believes in us enough to work through us. He has so much confidence in us that he gives us his Spirit as a deposit and as our counselor and helper. God has invested his all in us and he has no other plan than to work in and through us.
This isn’t self-worship; it’s self-awareness — understanding our worth in God’s eyes so we can love others rightly.
3. Love Over Ritual
The lawyer impressed Jesus when he said, “This is more important than to offer all of the burnt offerings and
sacrifices required in the law.” Jesus’ response was, “You are not far from the Kingdom of God.”
1 Samuel 15:22 “Listen! Obedience is better than sacrifice, and submission is better than offering the fat of rams.”
Hosea 6:6 "I want you to know me more than I want burnt offerings.”
“To be truly religious is to love God and to love the men whom God made in his own image; and to love God and man, not with a nebulous sentimentality, but with that total commitment which issues in devotion to God and practical service of men. - Barclay
4. Love That Fulfills the Law
Romans 13:8-10 “Owe nothing to anyone—except for your obligation to love one another. If you love your neighbor, you will fulfill the requirements of God’s law. For the commandments say, “You must not commit adultery. You must not murder. You must not steal. You must not covet.” These—and other such commandments—are summed up in this one commandment: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” Love does no wrong to others, so love fulfills the requirements of God’s law.”
Galatians 5:13b-14 “…Use your freedom to serve one another in love. For the whole law can be summed up in this one command: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’”
James 2:8 “Yes indeed, it is good when you obey the royal law as found in the Scriptures: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’”
Conclusion
Flight attendants teach the safety procedures. They say, “If the airplane loses pressure, the oxygen mask will drop. If you are traveling with a child, put the oxygen mask on yourself first, then put it on the child.” You have to put the mask on yourself first, because you can’t take care of another person if you first don’t take care of yourself. You can’t love another person if you do not love yourself.
When the teacher of the law repeated back what Jesus had said, the Lord replied, “You are not far from the Kingdom of God.”
The difference between being near the Kingdom and being in the Kingdom is whether we actually live out the love we confess.
To love God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength is not just to admire Him from a distance — it’s to open our lives fully to Him. And to love our neighbor as ourselves means we don’t just say we love people — we act, forgive, serve, and give as Christ has done for us. When Jesus joined these two commands, He was describing the life of someone who walks with Him every day. Loving God and loving people aren’t two separate paths; they are one road that leads straight into His Kingdom.
So today, ask yourself: Who around me needs to experience God’s love through my kindness, forgiveness, or encouragement?
What might change in my family, workplace, or church if I began loving others as God has loved me?
The greatest commandment isn’t complicated — but it does require commitment. When we love God completely and others sincerely, we are no longer “not far” from the Kingdom. We are standing right in the middle of it — where God reigns, love rules, and hearts are changed forever.
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Discussion Questions
1. Why do you think Jesus linked loving God and loving our neighbor together in one answer? If you had to define
“neighbor” in your own words, who would that include?
2. What does it mean that “no other commandment is greater than these”* (Mark 12:31)?
3. In what ways does loving your neighbor prove or reflect your love for God?
4. The lawyer said that love is “more important than all burnt offerings and sacrifices.” What modern “sacrifices” do we sometimes prioritize over love?
5. Jesus quoted *Leviticus 19:18* — how did He expand the definition of “neighbor”?
6. If Jesus were speaking this to our congregation today, who might He be telling us to include as “neighbors”?
7. What boundaries or biases make it hardest for us to love others as Jesus did?
8. How can the church model “boundary-breaking” love in a divided world?
9. Why is it important to love yourself in a healthy, godly way? What’s the difference between godly self-love and
selfishness?
10. Can religious activity ever become a substitute for real love? How can we make sure our worship, giving, and
service flow from love rather than obligation?
Resources
Barclay, William. Daily Bible Study: The Gospel of Mark. Revised Edition. The Westminster Press, 1975.
Quak, Allan. Your Neighbor As Yourself. https://sermoncentral.com/sermons/your-neighbour-as-yourself-allan-quak-sermon-on-love-253119
Ogden, Greg. The Essential Commandment: A Disciple's Guide to Loving God and Others. InterVarsity Press, 2011.
Owens, David. Greatest Commandment sermon series. https://sermoncentral.com/sermon-series/greatest-commandment-series-sermon-series-from-david-owens-9936
