CHRISTIAN LOVE - Redefined?

Love is often considered that mushy thing. 

    It is misunderstood for generosity. 

        It is the defined as the superlative of ‘like’.

            It is also seen as attraction or infatuation.

                 It is described as an extreme desire for something or someone.

But ‘real love’ comes from God and is beyond anything that normal people can ever imagine.  We need to be ‘born again’ by the spirit of God in order to comprehend the God kind of love.  Real love is not an emotion, it is character.  We can truly love only when we are fully aligned with the love of God.

1.         God’s love is born out of true light:

God is light and in Him is no darkness (1 John 1:5)_.  Light shines in darkness.  Light casts no shadows of darkness.  When there is complete light, it exposes everything.  Nothing is hidden in its presence.  God is that true light.  The light that reveals all that is concealed.  He does not have to assume or guess.  He knows everything about everything. 

Yet He loves everyone with an unfailing love that is totally unbiased and has no partiality.  His unconditional love is birthed in His knowledge of everything about everybody.  Because God sees and knows all things, He is able to bear all things, believe all things, endure all things and hope in all things which are the essence of ‘true love’ (1 Corinthians 13).  Hence, true light produces true love.

Similarly, we too who are called to fellowship with the Light (God) ought to be unbiased and impartial.  Imagine two friends in a room with God and His full light shining on them.  Both of them are able to see each other clearly.  They are able to see their shortcomings, failures, and weaknesses.  Both of them realize that God still loves them.  This realization helps them to love one another.  If we are in the light as He is in the light, then we have fellowship one with another and the blood of Jesus Christ cleanses us from all sin.

We should consider ourselves as being able to see as God sees and this will help us to be empathetic towards all people.  We will then be kind, patient, without envy, bearing all things, believing all things, enduring all things and hoping in all things (1 Corinthians 13).  We can then love all people as God loves them, which will then result in true fellowship with one another.

Again, a new commandment (to love one another) I write unto you, which thing is true in him and in you: because the darkness is past, and the true light now shineth   (1 John 2:8)

The commandment that was from the beginning comes as a new commandment.  Darkness is perhaps the law and the true light is grace which comes through our Lord Jesus Christ who was grace personified.

The law said, ‘an eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth’.

But grace said, “Whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also”.

Therefore, if we claim to be in the light (grace) and hate our brother; we are in darkness (law).

Apostle James affirms this when he says, “a blessing and a curse cannot come out of the same mouth, or a fountain cannot give out sweet water and bitter water or a fig tree cannot bear olive berries or vine cannot bear figs or a fountain cannot give out salt water and fresh water” (James 3:10-12).

And if we love our brother, we are in the light and we shall not stumble.

But if hate our brother, we are in darkness and we will not know where we are going.

2.         God’s love is unbiased and impartial:

God makes his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.  His love is the same towards all men.

If we love people who are nice to us, that is considered normal.  But if we love those people who are not nice to us that is considered special. We are encouraged to love all without preference.  This will make us perfect just as our Father in heaven is perfect.  Unconditional love is a mark of perfection (Matt 5:45-48).

3.         God’s love covers a multitude of sins (1 Peter 4:8)

God’s love towards His Son Jesus Christ enables Him to see us forgiven.  When Jesus Christ gave His life for us, God accepted the sacrifice of His Son thereby He is able to acquit us of our sins. He accepts us in His beloved (Eph 1:6)

In the same way, we too who walk in the light and have true fellowship with God is able to walk in forgiveness and pardon towards others.  Our life of forgiveness towards others prompts God to cleanse us from all sin through the blood of Jesus Christ.

The forgiveness for ‘our sins’ is directly dependent on our forgiveness of the ‘sins of others’.

“For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you: But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses” - (Matt 6:14-15).

Even the Lord’s Prayer affirms this in saying, “And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors” – (Matt 6:12).

4.         God’s love is perfected in those that keep God’s Word:

But whoso keepeth his word, in him verily is the love of God perfected: hereby know we that we are in him – 1 Jn 2:5

Keeping God’s Word simply means obeying His commandment which is to love one another.  We are told that no new commandment is being given except the one that was given in the beginning (1 Jn 2:7).

“For this is the message that ye heard from the beginning, that we should love one another.

Not as Cain, who was of that wicked one, and slew his brother.

And wherefore slew he him? Because his own works were evil, and

his brother’s righteous.”  (1 John 3:11-12.)

 - Melchizedek