Our tradition is all about self-love, however what does Scripture say about it? Is it prideful? Sinful? Take a look at these Bible verses on self-love.
Self-love is such a stylish matter lately in each space of life.
You’ll have been looking for Bible verses about loving your self, what God says about self-love,
You’ll discover every kind of messages on the market like:
- “Love your physique at any dimension!”
- “Be your personal finest buddy!”
- “When life is difficult, simply smile at your self and know you might be ok.”
The Mind & Habits Basis defines self-love as,
a state of appreciation for oneself that grows from actions that assist our bodily, psychological, and religious development.
Self-love means having a excessive regard on your personal well-being and happiness. Self-love means caring for your personal wants and never sacrificing your well-being to please others. Self-love means not settling for lower than you deserve.”
I’ve to confess, a few of these issues sound correct (or no less than near proper) however many of those messages nonetheless ship up warning flags to me.
This definition says our appreciation for ourselves ought to depend upon our actions (“that grows from actions…”) and, if my love for myself depends solely on the love I can earn or deserve…nicely, I’m sunk!
I mess up and fall quick each single day, so that might create a really unsteady, unreliable self-love to take me by means of life.
As Christians, individuals who consider God created us, I simply don’t suppose we will outline self-love with out together with Christ in our definition.
That’s what spurred me to jot down this submit.
Listening to the self-love messages being passionately shared on the planet and figuring out they form of apply to me, however desperately desirous to be rooted in what God says about self-love within the Bible.
So, as an alternative of following my intestine or taking my phrase for it, let’s dive in and see what Scripture says on the subject.
Bible Verses About Self-Love – What Does God Say?
1. Matthew 22:37-39
Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all of your coronary heart and with all of your soul and with all of your thoughts.’38 That is the primary and best commandment. 39 And the second is prefer it: ‘Love your neighbor as your self.’
Matthew 22:37-39
That is at all times the primary verse that involves my thoughts that mentions loving your self (nicely, loving your neighbor as your self). Really, the concept of loving your neighbor as your self is introduced up eight occasions within the Bible!
Listed here are the opposite 7 Bible verses that point out loving your neighbor as your self.
2. Leviticus 19:18
“‘Don’t search revenge or bear a grudge in opposition to considered one of your individuals, however love your neighbor as your self. I’m the LORD.
Leviticus 19:18
3. Mark 12:31
The second is that this: ‘Love your neighbor as your self.’ There isn’t any commandment higher than these.”
Mark 12:31
4. Romans 13:9
The commandments, “Don’t commit adultery, Don’t homicide, Don’t steal, Don’t covet,” and no matter different commandment there could also be, are summed up on this one rule: “Love your neighbor as your self.”
Romans 13:9
5. Matthew 19:19
Jesus replied, “‘Don’t homicide, don’t commit adultery, don’t steal, don’t give false testimony, honor your father and mom,’ and ‘love your neighbor as your self.’”
Matthew 19:19
6. James 2:8
If you happen to actually preserve the royal regulation present in Scripture, “Love your neighbor as your self,” you might be doing proper.
James 2:8
7. Luke 10:27
He answered: “‘Love the Lord your God with all of your coronary heart and with all of your soul and with all of your power and with all of your thoughts’; and, ‘Love your neighbor as your self.’”
Luke 10:27
8. Galatians 5:14
Your complete regulation is summed up in a single command: “Love your neighbor as your self.”
Galatians 5:14
Clearly, this idea is necessary since it’s repeated a lot, so let’s dive in a bit deeper into what loving your neighbor as your self really means.
There are two necessary issues to notice right here:
1 – First, earlier than loving your neighbor as your self, you need to love God along with your complete self.
You’ll be able to’t transfer on to the subsequent step with out this basis (which might be the largest lacking piece within the messages from our tradition). Experiencing God’s love comes first.
When you will have totally skilled God’s love first, which means you’ve skilled God’s grace. You might be allowed to be imperfectly human and nonetheless dearly cherished, not doing a single factor to deserve it. However, if you expertise God’s grace, it ought to set your coronary heart on hearth, feeling so undeserving and overwhelmingly blessed, that you just so badly need others to expertise that reckless love, as nicely.
That’s the place loving your neighbor as your self is available in. You’ll be able to’t assist however move it on!
2 – Loving your neighbor as your self is a difficult message to grasp as a result of the Bible can be stuffed with encouragement to “die to self” and stay selflessly.
So, how are we speculated to stability these two issues that appear to be said as reverse extremes? How can we love selflessly but additionally love as we love ourselves?
I believe an necessary half to recollect right here is that God created you to have worth (take a look at these reminders of your identification in Christ). Simply since you worth your neighbor doesn’t imply that you lose any worth (on that notice, take a look at these reminders on the misunderstood idea of humility).
So, the query then turns into, are you permitting your self to expertise the identical grace, compassion, kindness, and gentleness that you’re extending to others?
In my dive into these Bible verses on loving your self, the above verses are actually the one ones particularly mentioning loving your self.
There may be yet one more that I’ve included under that touches on the subject of caring for your self.
Bible Verse On Self Care
9. Ephesians 5:29-30
In any case, nobody ever hated their very own physique, however they feed and care for his or her physique, simply as Christ does the church—for we’re members of his physique.
Ephesians 5:29-30
The conclusion I’ve come to is that our quest ought to not be to like ourselves extra.
Generally the messages we hear about find out how to love ourselves extra result in a sort of self-obsession, eager about ourselves and solely ourselves on a regular basis in a quest for happiness.
As a substitute, we needs to be aiming to permit ourselves to completely expertise God’s love for us.
And, actually, might there be something higher than that?
How might we, in our imperfect damaged humanity, probably love ourselves greater than God in His flawless, unconditional love for us? How can we develop our confidence in Christ alone?
So, the subsequent part consists of some Bible verses on God’s love for you (simply some of them – there are a LOT!), which is able to hopefully enable you to repair your eyes on Him, the Creator and Perfector of essentially the most good love you can ever expertise.
Bible Verses on God’s Love For You
10. Zephaniah 3:17
The Lord your God is with you, the Mighty Warrior who saves. He’ll take nice enjoyment of you; in his love he’ll now not rebuke you, however will rejoice over you with singing.”
Zephaniah 3:17
11. Isaiah 54:10
Although the mountains be shaken and the hills be eliminated, but my unfailing love for you’ll not be shaken nor my covenant of peace be eliminated,” says the Lord, who has compassion on you.
Isaiah 54:10
12. John 3:16
For God so cherished the world that he gave his one and solely Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish however have everlasting life.
John 3:16
13. Romans 5:8
However God demonstrates his personal love for us on this: Whereas we have been nonetheless sinners, Christ died for us.
Romans 5:8
14. Romans 8:37-39
No, in all this stuff we’re greater than conquerors by means of him who cherished us. For I’m satisfied that neither demise nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the current nor the longer term, nor any powers, neither top nor depth, nor the rest in all creation, will have the ability to separate us from the love of God that’s in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Romans 8:37-39
15. 1 John 3:1
See what nice love the Father has lavished on us, that we needs to be referred to as youngsters of God! And that’s what we’re! The explanation the world doesn’t know us is that it didn’t know him.
1 John 3:1
16. 1 John 4:7-8
Expensive associates, allow us to love each other, for love comes from God. Everybody who loves has been born of God and is aware of God. 8 Whoever doesn’t love doesn’t know God, as a result of God is love.
1 John 4:7-8
17. 1 John 4:9/11
That is how God confirmed his love amongst us: He despatched his one and solely Son into the world that we’d stay by means of him. That is love: not that we cherished God, however that he cherished us and despatched his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Expensive associates, since God so cherished us, we additionally ought to like each other.
1 John 4:9/11
18. 1 John 4:16
And so we all know and depend on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them.
1 John 4:16
19. 1 John 4:19
We love as a result of he first cherished us.
1 John 4:19
