The Word Works!: THE LOVE OF GOD II

This reminds me of the parable of the Good Samaritan. We looked at an instance where a lawyer (Pharisee) tempted Jesus by asking Him to show him the greatest commandment in the law. Jesus told him to love God and his neighbour as himself. Because he wanted to justify his actions, he asked Jesus a question: “…who is my neighbour?” (Luke 10:29). Jesus answered him again saying, “A Jewish man was traveling on a trip from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he was attacked by bandits. They stripped him of his clothes and money, beat him up, and left him half dead beside the road. "By chance a Jewish priest came along; but when he saw the man lying there, he crossed to the other side of the road and passed him by.

A Temple assistant walked over and looked at him lying there, but he also passed by on the other side. "Then a despised Samaritan came along, and when he saw the man, he felt deep pity. Kneeling beside him, the Samaritan soothed his wounds with medicine and bandaged them. Then he put the man on his own donkey and took him to an inn, where he took care of him. The next day he handed the innkeeper two pieces of silver and told him to take care of the man. 'If his bill runs higher than that,' he said, 'I'll pay the difference the next time I am here.'” (Luke 10:30-35, NLT).

After this parable Jesus asked the lawyer, “Which now of these three, thinkest thou, was neighbour unto him that fell among the thieves?” (Luke 10:36). The lawyer answered it was the man who showed mercy on the Jew. Jesus then said to him, “…Go, and do thou likewise” (Luke 10:37). Oh, anyone I meet is my neighbour! Samaritans, from the area sandwiched between Galilee to the north and Judea to the south, were hated by Jews because they intermarried with non-Jews and did not strictly observe the Mosaic Law. The Samaritan helped the man who was his enemy. When we help other, we help Christ (Matthew 25:40). In other places of the Gospels, we hear that Jesus Himself had compassion on people (Matthew 9:36; Matthew 14:14; Mark 6:34; Luke 7:13).

We see some statements in the Old Testament like, life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, burning for burning, wound for wound, stripe for stripe (Exodus 21:23-25; Leviticus 24:20; Deuteronomy 19:21). This law tells you to retaliate when someone hurts you; someone slaps you and you slap him back. The people also loved their neighbours and hated their enemies (Leviticus 19:18; Psalm 139:21, 22). This is the law given to the Old Testament folks. That’s why Elisha cursed the youths who mocked him. Immediately, two bears charged out of the underbrush and knocked them about, ripping them limb from limb – forty-two children in all (2 Kings 2:23-24). But that’s Elisha, a man of the Old Testament.

Let’s look at what Jesus tells the new creation: “"Here's another old saying that deserves a second look: 'Eye for eye, tooth for tooth.' Is that going to get us anywhere? Here's what I propose: 'Don't hit back at all.' If someone strikes you, stand there and take it. If someone drags you into court and sues for the shirt off your back, giftwrap your best coat and make a present of it. And if someone takes unfair advantage of you, use the occasion to practice the servant life. No more tit-for-tat stuff. Live generously. "You're familiar with the old written law, 'Love your friend,' and its unwritten companion, 'Hate your enemy.' I'm challenging that.

I'm telling you to love your enemies. Let them bring out the best in you, not the worst. When someone gives you a hard time, respond with the energies of prayer, for then you are working out of your true selves, your God-created selves. This is what God does. He gives his best — the sun to warm and the rain to nourish — to everyone, regardless: the good and bad, the nice and nasty. If all you do is love the lovable, do you expect a bonus? Anybody can do that. If you simply say hello to those who greet you, do you expect a medal?

Any run-of-the-mill sinner does that. "In a word, what I'm saying is, Grow up. You're kingdom subjects. Now live like it. Live out your God-created identity. Live generously and graciously toward others, the way God lives toward you” (Matthew 5:38-48, MSG). I believe this statement explains itself. Let’s love and help each other. It doesn’t matter where we’re coming from. We may be raised up from different backgrounds, we may have different skin colours; but that changes nothing. We have the same blood! A Whiteman can donate blood to the Blackman and vice versa. The major part is that we’re members of the body of Christ.

One time Jesus and His disciples returned to the house where He was staying, and the multitude was gathered about them. Jesus’ mother and brothers arrived at the house where He was teaching. They stood outside and sent word for him to come out and talk with them. When Jesus received the call, He said, “…Who is my mother, or my brethren?” (Mark 3:33). He didn’t say this to mean that He hated or didn’t want them. He then looked at those around Him and said, “Behold my mother and my brethren! For whosoever shall do the will of God, the same is my brother, and my sister, and mother” (Mark 3:34-35). What a revelation we should all have!

Sometimes I wonder why people are so concerned about races. Someone is saying I love white people, others are saying I love black people and hate the rest. What is wrong with such folks? There are people in churches who are not in good terms with those in other churches. This is carnality! Paul wrote to the church at Corinth: “For ye are yet carnal: for whereas there is among you envying, and strife, and divisions, are ye not carnal, and walk as men? For while one saith, I am of Paul; and another, I am of Apollos; are ye not carnal? Who then is Paul, and who is Apollos, but ministers by whom ye believed, even as the Lord gave to every man?

I have planted, Apollos watered; but God gave the increase. So then neither is he that planteth any thing, neither he that watereth; but God that giveth the increase. Now he that planteth and he that watereth are one: and every man shall receive his own reward according to his own labour. For we are labourers together with God: ye are God's husbandry, ye are God's building” (1 Corinthians 3:3-9). The New Living Translation puts the verse 9 this way: “We work together as partners who belong to God. You are God's field, God's building — not ours.” So why should I say I belong to “Pastor A” so I hate “Pastor B” and his church? The centre point of our Christian life should be Christ; that’s all! We may have different beliefs but we are one body in Christ Jesus. We are God’s Temple!

Let’s seek to help each other; let’s look forward to making others become as successful as we have become. It shouldn’t be always the “I want to get richer than everyone attitude.” Let’s seek the wellbeing of others. I love the way the Message Bible puts it: “The way we know we've been transferred from death to life is that we love our brothers and sisters. Anyone who doesn't love is as good as dead. Anyone who hates a brother or sister is a murderer, and you know very well that eternal life and murder don't go together.

This is how we've come to understand and experience love: Christ sacrificed his life for us. This is why we ought to live sacrificially for our fellow believers, and not just be out for ourselves. If you see some brother or sister in need and have the means to do something about it but turn a cold shoulder and do nothing, what happens to God's love? It disappears. And you made it disappear. My dear children, let's not just talk about love; let's practice real love. This is the only way we'll know we're living truly, living in God's reality. It's also the way to shut down debilitating self-criticism, even when there is something to it. For God is greater than our worried hearts and knows more about us than we do ourselves.

And friends, once that's taken care of and we're no longer accusing or condemning ourselves, we're bold and free before God! We're able to stretch our hands out and receive what we asked for because we're doing what he said, doing what pleases him. Again, this is God's command: to believe in his personally named Son, Jesus Christ. He told us to love each other, in line with the original command. As we keep his commands, we live deeply and surely in him, and he lives in us. And this is how we experience his deep and abiding presence in us: by the Spirit he gave us” (1 John 3:14-24). Wow! I want you to really consider all we’ve been sharing and it’ll change your life.

It’s easy for someone to say he loves than to actually show it in his deeds. God’s Word says we perish for lack of knowledge (Hosea 4:6). When you become so conscious of our nature and who we’ve become in Christ Jesus, you’ll see how it’s easy to love your fellow man. God’s Word tells us to be filled with the Spirit (Ephesians 5:18). It’s easy to get these things done when we’re filled with the Spirit. That’s why those in the flesh (carnal) cannot please God (Hebrews 11:6). How then do we get ourselves filled with the Spirit?

The Message Bible makes it clearer: “Don't drink too much wine. That cheapens your life. Drink the Spirit of God, huge draughts of him. Sing hymns instead of drinking songs! Sing songs from your heart to Christ. Sing praises over everything, any excuse for a song to God the Father in the name of our Master, Jesus Christ” (Ephesians 5:18-20). Your Spirit is stirred whenever you sing praises to God and over every circumstance. But take note there are some songs that are not Spirit-inspired. Don’t sing songs that make you complain or murmur against God; don’t go for songs that are filled with bitterness and make you sorrow the more. God inhabits in the praise of His people (Psalm 22:3).

Love is unique on its own, for “Flood waters can't drown love, torrents of rain can't put it out. Love can't be bought, love can't be sold — it's not to be found in the marketplace” (Song of Solomon 8:7, MSG). Love is priceless! Sometimes we think we can offer money in some way to buy it; no, that wouldn’t be a true one. If married couple understood this love Bible tells us about, they would have a long way to go. Most marriages are in shambles because of lack of knowledge about love. Some Christian counsellors report that most of their counselling experiences reveal that, too often, many Christians do not know who they have become; they don’t know what they have. No wonder God said His people perish for lack of knowledge. If you’re born again, you can love like God, unconditionally, because the God-kind of love is a product of your recreated human spirit.

Don’t compare your marriage to that of your friend or somebody you know. Don’t depend on experience to bring the best to your marriage. People say experience is the best teacher; what about the Word of God? Is it less important? A BIG NO! God instituted marriage and He’s the only one that can tell us how to work it out. Study the Word to know how to fix and turn things around, no matter how bad they seem. Anything is possible with God (Matthew 19:26; Mark 9:23; 10:27; 14:36). Study the Word! The fruit of the Spirit that indwells us is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law (Galatians 5:22-23).

Don’t brood over the pain or hurt someone caused you; instead, cover his wrongs with love. “He who covers and forgives an offense seeks love, but he who repeats or harps on a matter separates even close friends” (Proverbs 17:9, AMP). Many relationships have been broken or parted because of lack of forgiveness. Some people have allowed the slightest mistake to bring a long-built friendship to an end. I love the chorus of a song: “Draw back your bow, let love go; shoot straight for the heart; with all of your might, set your sight; take in from the stars; to love God love people; that’s the centre of the mark.” We say God is beautiful because love is beautiful.

The Apostle takes a whole chapter to tell us about love, and I want you to study it over and over: “IF I [can] speak in the tongues of men and [even] of angels, but have not love (that reasoning, intentional, spiritual devotion such as is inspired by God's love for and in us), I am only a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. And if I have prophetic powers ( the gift of interpreting the divine will and purpose), and understand all the secret truths and mysteries and possess all knowledge, and if I have [sufficient] faith so that I can remove mountains, but have not love (God's love in me) I am nothing (a useless nobody).

Even if I dole out all that I have [to the poor in providing] food, and if I surrender my body to be burned or in order that I may glory, but have not love (God's love in me), I gain nothing. Love endures long and is patient and kind; love never is envious nor boils over with jealousy, is not boastful or vainglorious, does not display itself haughtily. It is not conceited (arrogant and inflated with pride); it is not rude (unmannerly) and does not act unbecomingly. Love (God's love in us) does not insist on its own rights or its own way, for it is not self-seeking; it is not touchy or fretful or resentful; it takes no account of the evil done to it [it pays no attention to a suffered wrong].

It does not rejoice at injustice and unrighteousness, but rejoices when right and truth prevail. Love bears up under anything and everything that comes, is ever ready to believe the best of every person, its hopes are fadeless under all circumstances, and it endures everything [without weakening]. Love never fails [never fades out or becomes obsolete or comes to an end]. As for prophecy ( the gift of interpreting the divine will and purpose), it will be fulfilled and pass away; as for tongues, they will be destroyed and cease; as for knowledge, it will pass away [it will lose its value and be superseded by truth].

For our knowledge is fragmentary (incomplete and imperfect), and our prophecy (our teaching) is fragmentary (incomplete and imperfect). But when the complete and perfect (total) comes, the incomplete and imperfect will vanish away (become antiquated, void, and superseded). When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child; now that I have become a man, I am done with childish ways and have put them aside. For now we are looking in a mirror that gives only a dim (blurred) reflection [of reality as in a riddle or enigma], but then [when perfection comes] we shall see in reality and face to face!

Now I know in part (imperfectly), but then I shall know and understand fully and clearly, even in the same manner as I have been fully and clearly known and understood [by God]. And so faith, hope, love abide [faith — conviction and belief respecting man's relation to God and divine things; hope — joyful and confident expectation of eternal salvation; love — true affection for God and man, growing out of God's love for and in us], these three; but the greatest of these is love” (1 Corinthians 13:1-13, AMP). I believe there are people in our world who need our company or one word from us that will change their lives forever.

As Christians, children of the light, we are to show Christ's love in a dark world. We are to let Christ's love shine through us. Let’s do what we need to do while we still can. Let’s not put off the good we are called to do! Don’t put off forgiving others – forgive now! Don’t put off sharing with that neighbour with whom you’ve been wanting to share for years – share now! Don’t put off going forth and doing the great things God has called you to do – do them now! We’re living in the last days and Jesus can show up at any time – let’s get out into the field and finish the work that needs done so that we might all be able to rejoice together in the end.

Finally, “Above all things have intense and unfailing love for one another, for love covers a multitude of sins [forgives and disregards the offenses of others]” (1 Peter 4:8, AMP).