Monday, July 22: “Self-love or Selfish?”

Joshua 7: 1: “But the sons of Israel acted unfaithfully regarding the things under the ban, for Achan … took some of the things under the ban, therefore the anger of the Lord burned against the sons of Israel.”

Whitney Houston, with her remarkable talent, could really make you believe that “learning to love yourself is the greatest love of all.” Do tell. Achan’s self-love drove him to go against the Lord’s command, steal some of the plunder from Jericho, and become directly responsible for Israel losing the battle at Ai, at the cost of thirty-six lives and the breaking of their spirit. Now, we’re not asked to hate ourselves; we’re asked to love and care for our neighbor as much as we do ourselves. And to love God more–with all we have, in fact, for He has first loved us with the true greatest love, the love that is the heart and core of the Kingdom of God.