It’s been
very difficult for me to write of late.
The four part reason for that is:
I am not spending enough time (for me) with the Lord, I have had too much on
the mom plate, health issues, and sadness over the general condition of
humankind and ‘the church’. Now that I’m
thinking of it, I should probably be listening to some good teaching every day
to encourage and help me keep going.
Note to self- remember.
There is no
excuse for realizing things so late in life, but here is another thing I just grasped
yesterday. Yes humankind is messed up
because of sin, but we are all sinners and that will not change to the
end. What makes it so bad on the earth
today isn’t the wickedness we do, but that we do not truly love one another-
human to human- as we should. Ultimately,
if we truly loved a person, we would not do anything
to harm them at any time and we would constantly be out for their best
interests.
Love never does anything that is harmful to its
neighbor. Therefore, love is the fulfillment of the Law. Rom. 13:10 ISV
Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in
humility count others more significant than yourselves.
Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. Php. 2:3,4 ESV
That would
eliminate all oppression, abuse, murder, adultery, theft, cheating, war, desire
for power and immense wealth, etc.
Hunger would be eliminated because we would make sure all people had
their needs met, not just our own. No
one would struggle to pay their bills because we would love each other enough
to share, those who own businesses would treat their employees generously, and
employees would work hard at their jobs.
Politicians would be honest and blameless- only out for the good of the
people. No one would drive drunk, set
bombs off, ignore their debt, use the term ‘buyer beware’ to justify their
cheating, disrespect another human, profit off others addictions, etc.
So how do we
love people that way? First, we need to
know the God who is love and loves us, even while sinners (Rom.
5:8). “Beloved, let us love one another,
for love is of God, and everyone who loves has been born of God, and knows God. The one who
does not love has not known God. For God is
love.” (1Jh. 4:7,8) “…Yea, I have
loved you with an everlasting love…” (Jer. 31:3) (Nothing)
“shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our
Lord.” (Rom. 8:39). Second, we need to allow God to change us
daily, learning from Him, “But regarding brotherly love, you do not need that I
write to you, for you yourselves are taught by God to
love one another.” (1Th. 4:9)
Third, we need to know God commanded us to love.
Jesus said to him, You shall love the Lord your God
with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is
the first and great commandment. And the second is
like it, You shall love your neighbor as yourself. Mt. 22:37-39
Jesus said
the greatest commandment is to love God completely because He knew we could
only experience abundant life and eternal life this way. He also knew that the only way we could truly
love others is with God first in our lives.
We are to love others, Christian or not. We are to do good to others, Christian or
not. And as we follow Christ
daily bearing our crosses (Lk. 14:27)
and crucifying the flesh (Gal. 5:24), we have the assurance that He will
continue to work in us until He returns, “being confident of this very thing,
that He who has begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ,” (Php. 1:6)
Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love
one another. 1Jh. 4:11
So then as we have time, let
us work good toward all, especially toward those of the household of
faith. Gal. 6:10
Do not withhold good from those to whom it is due,
when it is in the power of your hand to do it.
Pr. 3:27
Therefore to him who knows to do good, and does not
do it, to him it is sin. Jm. 4:17
Let
all that you do be done in love.
1Cor. 16:4