Love others as you love yourself

[Dorothy Mae]

“Do unto others as you would have them do unto you” is the command from God to us regarding how we are to behave to others.

This assumes we love ourselves and some think we need to learn how to do this before we can love others. But the evidence shows us that we each, in fact, do love ourselves by the standard presented.

That standard does not include liking yourself or others. It doesn’t entail enjoying your company more than anything else. It isn’t to have warm fuzzy feelings when you look in the mirror or think you or others are great. It’s simply to treat others as we treat ourselves.

So let’s think about this. If someone made sure you the rest you needed, made sure you had your favorite clothes and meals, saw to it that all your body needs were met, your emotional needs, your intellectual needs and paid money so that you enjoyed your favorite entertainment now and again, you would feel that they really loved you. And you do that for you. You care for needs and caprices. Jesus would say go and do likewise for others as you can. Pretty clear. How you feel about the recipient is not a part of the equation.

 

[T. E. Smith]

Is love more than just actions? What else is there?

 

[D-D-W]

“Do unto others as you would have them do unto you” is the command from God to us regarding how we are to behave to others.

This assumes we love ourselves and some think we need to learn how to do this before we can love others. But the evidence shows us that we each, in fact, do love ourselves by the standard presented.

And if you are full of self doubt, self loathing or suicidal? That is a big assumption IMO.

I believe our Lord upped the bar on that one:

John 13:34
A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another.

John 15:12
“This is My commandment, that you love one another, just as I have loved you.

So the standard is not our own any more, but the Love of Messiah.

 

[Dorothy Mae]

And if you are full of self doubt, self loathing or suicidal? That is a big assumption IMO.

None of that means you don’t love yourself by the above description. The opposite of loving is not loathing, it’s indifference. The people you describe care very deeply about themselves. The suicidal person wants the self not to suffer. That’s love. People we love we don’t want to see suffer.

Self loathing is because we love ourselves and are deeply distressed we are the creature we are.

God doesn’t say that we ought to think we’ll of others. He says we ought to, for example, want them not to suffer same as we don’t want to suffer.

 

[Edward]

I thought the opposite of loving was fearing?

 

[D-D-W]

I thought the opposite of loving was fearing?

Faith Hope and Love each have multiple opposites.

Fear is one of the spiritual opposites of Faith.

Love has hatred as the emotional opposite and indifference as the functional opposite.

 

[T. E. Smith]

I thought the opposite of loving was fearing?

Often fear = hate

 

[Edward]

Faith Hope and Love each have multiple opposites.

Fear is one of the spiritual opposites of Faith.

Love has hatred as the emotional opposite and indifference as the functional opposite.

I actually had that thought just I clicked it, lol. Multiple aspects.

 

[T. E. Smith]

Often fear = hate

So Edward , for this you could see this story I posted https://christianforums.net/threads...dren-should-be-publicly-beheaded-on-tv.90507/

 

[Dorothy Mae]

I thought the opposite of loving was fearing?

Could be discussed.

 

[Dorothy Mae]

I believe our Lord upped the bar on that one:

John 13:34
A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another.

John 15:12
“This is My commandment, that you love one another, just as I have loved you.

So the standard is not our own any more, but the Love of Messiah.

For most christians just loving others as they love themselves would be a big improvement.

 

[Dorothy Mae]

Is love more than just actions? What else is there?

You can do for others without loving but you cannot love without doing for others.