Do you love me? Those are powerful words, not to be used lightly. Jesus said, “If you love me, you will keep my commandments.” You can ask yourself this question when you do the wrong things against God’s Word. This is not to condemn you, but to make you stop and think, “Am I glorifying God in what I am about to say or do, or have I just done? Do I really love God enough to do what He does? want in my life?
If you are in a relationship with someone like friend, husband or wife, etc., then you can ask them this question also when what they do and say is not loving you or hurting you in any way. Don’t use it in an accusatory way, but ask them if they think they were showing you love for what they just said or did. Use it as a means to begin an ongoing dialogue with each other to help enrich your relationship.
Let’s say you’ve had an argument and one or both of you have said some hurtful things. After both of you have calmed down, sit down and ask yourself that question, then go from there and rebuild what has been broken, perhaps for many years. People in general are in the habit, during the height of emotion, of saying whatever comes to mind, and those words cannot be retracted. Ask God to help you with this and take responsibility for what you say and do. That is a sign of spiritual and other growth.
You can expand this question to suit your own circumstances, but start with that and continue from there. We all need reminders of what is right and what is wrong, because we are all sinners and we need God’s grace. None of us are exempt.
How is your life? If you go to church, do you wear a Sunday mask and behave differently the rest of the week? That is not following Jesus, it is hypocrisy, and you need to ask for forgiveness and then change with God’s help. Look within yourself and see what kind of attitudes you are displaying. Don’t wait for your relationships with God and others to go downhill before making an effort to change. God is willing to forgive you, but you must have a heart willing to learn in order for you to allow that change to happen. You have to allow God to change you because He gave you free will (I John 1: 9-10).
As you finish reading this article today, think about how you treat God and others. Use this and other questions to help yourself and others in a positive way with God at the center of your life (Matthew 6:33).