FORGIVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF
“Thus says the LORD: Return, O Israel, to the LORD, your God; you have collapsed through your guilt. Take with you words, and return to the LORD; Say to him, ‘Forgive all iniquity, and receive what is good.’” ~ Hosea 14:2-3
“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength. The second is this: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. There is no other commandment greater than these." ~ Mark 12:30-31
Love. Sin. Repent. Repeat.
This is my cycle (and perhaps many others’). No matter my efforts to live a life of faith-centeredness, prudence and humility, I’m reminded that God’s gift of free will is offered to the fallible human being that is me. I have sinned. I sin. And I will most likely sin again. That is why, with free will comes an even greater gift – God’s love and mercy.
In Hosea, God calls the people of Israel to repent and to remember that their sin and guilt can be forgiven through sincere repentance and the desire to return to Him. Yes, sin pulls us away from God, but His love and mercy are always ready to welcome us back. In Mark, Jesus speaks on this same love and mercy. It’s what I have come to identify as the grand love of God. He says that the greatest commandment is to love God with all our being, which includes returning to Him with a heart full of love and devotion; a love that He offers us and a love that we are called to show others.
It's easy to love those who are easy to love. It’s easy to forgive those who apologize wholeheartedly. I often forgive quickly and show care and understanding to these same easy-to-love people in my life but find myself challenged to do the same for those who I find difficult to be around. But it’s not, “love only the nice neighbors.” It’s, “love your neighbor,” which could be anyone from a rude stranger in line at Target, to a close friend, perhaps even relative, who isn’t easy to give love to, let alone mercy. Loving our neighbor, however, is like an extension of returning to God by treating others with the same love, compassion, and forgiveness that He so often gives to us.
Is there someone whose love and mercy you seek? Is there someone who needs your love and mercy?
Anna Gonda