Love…
There is nothing I have ever more deeply desired to write wisely about, but I will never love as I should in this life, and I will likely never understand it as completely as I would like.
Still, I’ll share some recent thoughts.
I read a book, back in Macedonia, called Father, Make Us One by Floyd McClung Jr.
I thought it would address church unity, and I suppose it did, but on a very personal level.
The basis of the first few chapters can be summarized with the following 3 sentences:
“Unity is only possible if we love one another.”
“There is no problem of disunity that cannot be solved by greater humility or forgiveness.”
And then the one that really got me.
“It is not a matter of who is right, but who is obedient to God’s word.”
Well that is a kicker – The Lord is far from unclear about the importance of loving one another in His word –
There are nearly endless verses about loving each other, but one of my favorites is this:
“A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”
John 13:34-35 NIV
First, it is honestly amusing how repetitive it is. Jesus did not want us to be confused as to what he meant.
But what really hits me is “as I have loved you.”
To summarize 1 Corinthians 13:4-8 –
Love is patient, kind, humble, honoring of others, selfless, slow to anger, and keeps no record of wrongs.
It always rejoices with truth, it protects, trusts, hopes, and preservers. Love never fails.
As we know, God is love, Jesus is fully man and fully God, thus Jesus is love. Jesus is also perfect and so loves us with perfect love, with himself. Thus, Jesus loves us with 1 Corinthians 13 love.
I recognize that I am far from loving perfectly in any of these areas, but again, there is one part that really stands out to me – “keeps no record of wrongs.” I can at least speak for myself by saying that I try to love the best I can, until I have a reason not to. Then, in a lot of ways, I recognize I stop trying.
The beauty of the gospel is that “while we were still sinners Christ died for us,” that there is nothing we can do to separate us from the love of God. (Romans 5:8, Romans 8:39, NIV)
Jesus took all the punishment for all the world’s sin from the beginning to the end of time upon Him when he was crucified. The price is paid in full. The battle is already won. It is finished.
When the Lord looks upon us he doesn’t see our sin, because it has already been paid for, he sees Jesus. He sees his sons and daughters, whom he created in His own image, and who, with faith in Jesus, are holy and righteous and blameless before Him.
That love – that unconditional, unblemished, pure love – is that love we are called to share with one another.
I imagine conversations with Jesus about innumerous interactions in which I have fallen short. I suppose conversation is not the best word considering it would go something like this:
But Jesus she just slandered me in front of all these people!
Love her.
But Jesus he is married and is hitting on me!
Love him.
But Jesus they just took credit for all the work I did!
Love them.
But Jesus she is selfish and rude and arrogant!
Love her.
But Jesus they don’t love me!
Love them.
……..
It takes incredible humility and forgiveness to love someone when they don’t love us, when they hurt us. Everything in us feels justified in our anger, in our shortness, in our hate.
Their actions or words say that they believe they are and should be positioned above us, and we believe we must respond in a way that shows them that such is not true.
But loving someone in spite of what they do does not mean in any way that what they did or said was okay. It doesn’t mean that you agree with what was conveyed by their words or actions.
Loving someone is spite of what they do means not allowing their actions to define their worth.
It means seeing them the way God sees them and loving them for who they were created to be.
This is how Jesus loves us and how we are called to love others.
And it is not easy.
As much as we desire that it would, loving someone when they hurt us doesn’t always lead them to repent. It doesn’t always fix everything.
Again, as Floyd McClung Jr. said:
“There is no problem of disunity that cannot be solved by greater humility or forgiveness.”
I know this to be true, and have seen it in action, but only when both sides are willing to humble themselves.
Sometimes your love is not appreciated. Sometimes it is not even noticed. We often receive nothing in return.
But we don’t love so that others will love us. We love because God loved us first.
And just maybe, in the same way that God revealed our value to us through his love for us, He will use our love for others to reveal their value to them.
