Jesus, in the Gospel, summarizes the law of Moses into love of God and neighbor. Love is the fullest expression of Christian discipleship. Jesus’ vision says that love is the way Christians must live.
For many people, keeping the law of loving God is much easier than loving our neighbors. Loving our neighbor as ourselves reminds us of how we can go the extra mile to treat others as created in the image and likeness of God. The question that we must ask is do we love ourselves?
Loving ourselves is the first step toward loving God. It is this love that we have for ourselves that encourages us to love others. Pope Francis says, “Being a disciple means being constantly ready to bring the love of Jesus to others, and this can happen unexpectedly and in any place: on the street, in a city square, during work, on a journey."
Discipleship is about loving ourselves and others in the same way that God loves us. We express this love with all our heart, mind, and soul. We spread the message of love in a world that sometimes forgets that we all are connected to God.