The second rule actually has two parts. “Love your neighbor as you love yourself.” A good growing church will balance the truth that we are helpless sinners, depraved in the sight of God, with the fact that we are deeply and sacrificially loved. And that love pushes us to become more like the beloved one himself, Jesus Christ. We are image bearers who ought to be beloved and invested in.
The first part flows from how we are beloved. God commands us to love others as we have been loved. The parable of the Good Samaritan tells us what that looks like: irrespective of race, religion or origin, we are to love others and help them in their need.
A growing church finds ways to serve in three spheres: The community of faith; the community it is planted in; then outward to its region and its world. We get this from two sources: Paul tells us to be good to all, especially the community of faith, and Jesus tells us to go to Jerusalem, Samaria and the ends of the earth. Jerusalem was the city of the birth of the church, where it was planted. Samaria was the home of the “dirty” neighbors in the next province over; and then of course the whole world is pretty self-explanatory. Along the way, we are to make real solutions to real needs, presenting and representing the gospel as we go.
These two core principles of love are the simple root of all Christian practice. It’s not complicated. We only make it so because humans enjoy complicated things and want to make things hard...it gives us the feeling that we are good spiritual Boy and Girl Scouts. Its not necessary. Jesus said my “yoke is easy and my burden is light.”
So go and meet needs. As you go, reflect the love Christ showed on you toward others.
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