Making a covenant with God is not about rules and regulations but establishing a loving relationship. God made a covenant with the people of Israel and established them as his treasured people. He promised to bless and protect them. For their part, they were to live as God instructed them - with love, righteousness, and justice. Unfortunately, they were not always up to the task and sometimes failed miserably - just as we do.

But what is God like? Matthew insists that God loves without limit or conditions - no one 'deserves' or 'earns' God's love. God does not have enemies and neither should we. We sometimes confuse loving with liking and they are not the same. We can love even people who are not very likeable. Love is practical - desiring the well-being of the other and being willing to treat them with kindness and respect even when they do not respond in the same way. We are not commanded to be perfect in the usual sense of the word. Here it means whole and complete - in other words, set no limits to your love. Then and only then will people be able to tell that we are born of God. Dare to be different and to make a difference by loving as God loves.