Claiming to follow Jesus could sometimes be considered a ridiculous thing to try and do. He's a really hard guy to follow, especially when he talks about loving the poor, loving our neighbors, and loving those who hate and oppose us. Loving people who love us back can be hard sometimes , but to love our persecuters? Who really has the temperment besides Jesus to do that? 

When you think about it, it is just counterintuitive. It goes against every instinct in my body. When someone does or seeks to do harm to me or my family, it's my knee-jerk reaction, my default, to return the behavior.  To confess anything less would be treadin in dangerous territory, especially since the Lord KNOWS my heart. 

This is why it's so important to know who Jesus is and what He's asking us to do. And luckily, for us , we have His answer recorded in a historical document..... the Bible.  When asked point-blank, "What are the most important things we're commanded to do?" it's curious what Jesus says, and what he doesn't say. He doesn't mention all of the overwhelming issues of morality that we are obsessed with. He doesn't even direct our attention to the countless trepidations dividing our churches left and right. He simply says, "Love God and love your neighbors"   and those words are the words that the prophets, and diciples were hanging on throughout the history of the bible, and they are literally the context for all of the other commands we keep.

Arent we lucky, Jesus spells out our duty on this earth so simply, so plainly, and easy enough for a child to comprehend..... Our job is not as difficult as we make it. Reflect on the simplicity of those words. Follow Him because you know Him. I encourage you today to Love your neighbors because you KNOW Him!