Devotional December

Devotional for Adults
December 14, 2018

Practical religion

"You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul with all your strength and with all your mind; and to your neighbor as yourself "(Luke 10: 27).

IT IS A DANGER to be religious but not Christian; believe in God but not have faith and trust in the plan of salvation. The parable says that an expert in the law of Moses approached Jesus and asked him what he could do to inherit eternal life. His answer is found in today's verse. This is the essence of a practical, internal religion, which has to do with the heart, the mind and the forces of the whole being, to take care of others with love; it is the center of the law and the norm by which the children of God are to live.

Jesus said: "Do all that and you will have eternal life." But the man was not satisfied with the answer. I wanted to know who was the neighbor Jesus was referring to. I wanted to know how to love others without knowing them and how to help without being asked. Jesus illustrated it with the parable of the Good Samaritan, who mentions the man who descended from Jerusalem to Jericho, fell into the hands of robbers and was left dying by the road. Both the priest and the Levite who passed by him did not help him, although they belonged to the sacred office and represented God before the world. However, the Samaritan felt mercy, helped him and cared for him until he got better.

The question "Who is my neighbor?" Is forever answered. Christ demonstrated that our neighbor is not merely who belongs to the same church or faith as we are. It has nothing to do with distinction of social class or skin color. Our neighbor is every person who needs our help.

This is how we come to the following conclusion: "The supreme love of God and the impartial love of man are the principles that must be practiced in life" (E. G. White, The Desire of Ages, page 498). Because the love of God in the heart is the only source of love for our neighbor. The Scripture says: "He who loves God, let him love his brother also" (1 John 4:21).

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