DAILY TEXT, From today Sunday June 18, 2023,  Treat one another with loyal love and mercy (Zac. 7:9).

Let's Examine the Scriptures Every Day 2023

Sunday June 18

Treat one another with loyal love and mercy (Zech. 7:9).

We have good reason to show loyal love to one another. We find some of them in these proverbs from the Bible: “May loyal love and fidelity not abandon you […]; then, in the eyes of God and man, you will get approval and the fame of being very perceptive”; “the man of loyal love benefits himself,” and “he who earnestly seeks justice and loyal love will find life” (Prov. 3:3, 4; 11:17, note; 21:21). These proverbs mention three reasons why we should show loyal love. First, because in the eyes of God he makes us valuable. Second, because he benefits us ourselves. For example, it helps us cultivate lasting friendships. And third, if we show loyal love, we will obtain blessings in the future, including eternal life. Surely we have good reason to obey this command of Jehovah: "Treat one another with loyal love and mercy." w21.11 8 pars. 1, 2.

TO WHOM SHOULD WE SHOW LOYAL LOVE?

How do we imitate Jehovah's loyal love? (Mark 10:29, 30).

As we saw in the previous article, Jehovah only shows his loyal love—that is, his deep and everlasting attachment—to those who love and serve him (Dan. 9:4). We want to do what Ephesians 5:1 says: "Imitate God as beloved children." Therefore, we want to cultivate a deep and eternal attachment to our godbrothers (read Mark 10:29, 30).

What do people in general understand by loyalty?

Surely we will agree that the better we understand what loyal love means, the better we will show this quality to our brothers. Therefore, let's see with an example the difference between what is loyal love and what people in general understand by loyalty.

We could say that someone who has worked for many years for the same company is a loyal employee. But in all those years he may have never met any of the owners. He may not always agree with company policies. He is not there for love, but because he needs a job to earn a living. He will continue to work at the company until he retires, unless he finds a better position elsewhere.

What drives someone to show loyal love? and Why will we analyze some portions of the book of Ruth?

The difference between the employee loyalty we mentioned in paragraph 6 and loyal love is the reason why they are shown. Why did God's servants in Bible times show loyal love? They did not do it out of obligation, but because their hearts prompted them to do so. Let's look at David's example. His heart moved him to show loyal love to his dear friend Jonathan even though Jonathan's father wanted to kill David. Years after Jonathan's death, David continued to show loyal love to Jonathan's son Mephibosheth (1 Sam. 20:9, 14, 15; 2 Sam. 4:4; 8:15; 9:1, 6, 7 ).

We can learn a lot about loyal love by looking at some portions of the Biblical book of Ruth. What lessons about loyal love do the characters in that book teach us? How can we apply these lessons in our congregation?

Why did Naomi come to the conclusion that Jehovah was against her?

The book of Ruth tells us the story of Naomi, her daughter-in-law Ruth, and a man named Boaz, who loved God and was a relative of Naomi's husband. Due to a time of famine in Israel, Naomi, her husband, and her two sons went to Moab. There, her husband died. Both of her sons married, but unfortunately also died (Ruth 1: 3-5; 2: 1). Those blows of life sank Noemí more and more into discouragement. She was so consumed by her grief that she came to the conclusion that Jehovah was against her. Notice how she expressed what she thought of God: “The hand of Jehovah has turned against me, . . . the Almighty has filled my life with bitterness.” She also said: “Jehovah has turned against me. The Almighty has caused me much suffering” (Ruth 1:13, note, 20, 21).