We “love”
everything. We love the Holidays. We love someone’s new car. We love
movies or the theater. We love a certain kind of pie or cake. Or maybe we
love baseball. We even use the word for no score in tennis. Love is used
for sexual passion, for an ineffable feeling of kindness toward someone,
for a dedication to something (a “love for money”), and just a host of
other things.
Bible love is actually divided into four
different categories: 1) it sometimes refers to erotic love, the love
between the sexes; 2) it sometimes refers to a sort of kinship to all
mankind, brotherly love. 3) it sometimes refers to familial love; 4) but
the highest and most profound love is agape the kind of love that seeks
the best interests of the object of the affection. That kind of love is
fundamentally intellectual and highly functional. It seeks no reciprocity
and is not conditional.
In their commentary on Thessalonians, Hogg
and Vine write: “Christian love, whether exercised toward the brethren,
or toward men generally, is not an impulse from the feelings, it does not
always run with the natural inclinations, nor does it spend itself only
upon those for whom some affinity is discovered. Love seeks the welfare of
all, Rom. 1:2, and works no ill to any, Rom. 13:9-10; love seeks
opportunity to do good to ‘all men, and especially toward them that are
of the household of the faith,’ Gal.6:10.” (Vine, pl. 703)
Love “covers a multitude of sins,” we
are told. That’s a powerful statement. It is the love of God brings
about our forgiveness (John 3:16), and in that sense we are covered by His
love. But there’s another sense to that: we tolerate one another’s
weaknesses and are patient with one another’s idiosyncrasies as well if
we love as we ought. Furthermore, if someone sins against us, we patiently
wait for him to find forgiveness. In fact, Peter says, “And above all
things have fervent charity (this is a form of agape ) among yourselves:
for charity (still agape ) shall cover the multitude of sins” (1 Pet.
4).
John says “God is love.” Hear him:
“And we have known and believed the love that God hath to us. God is
love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God and God in him. (1 John
4:17). Love is the essence of God’s nature. It’s not just that God
loves, but that God is love. If there is love, it came from Him. He is
love. And Jesus was the personification of that love.
He states further that “No man hath seen
God at any time. If we love one another, God dwelleth in us, and his love
is perfected in us” (1 John 4:12). Love is the ultimate motive, the
supreme energy, the brilliant dynamic. By it we show our concern for one
another and in doing so, show our love for God. And, again, it’s not
just a sentimental expression of some ineffable feeling, but a willingness
to be involved, to hurt if necessary, to manifest that love. “My little
children let us not love in word, neither in tongue, but in deed and in
truth,” he says (1 John 3:18). Love doesn’t just say it, it, it gets
involved and shows it.
And love and truth are inextricably melded
together. One is not good without the other. There is no love that is not
truth and there is no truth that doesn’t involve love. For that reason,
John says, “For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments:
and his commandments are not grievous” (1 John 5:3). A person who
doesn’t keep His commandments just doesn’t love Him, it’s as simple
as that.
Love and fear are antithetical as well.
“There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because
fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love” (1 John
4:18) Fear is a kind of agitation that comes when some danger seems
present. When one is part of God’s family, no danger can come that He
cannot handle and there is therefore no reason for His children to fear.
Even death itself is, for the Christian, merely a transport to the better
place and so the bondage of the fear of it is cast out by love (cf. Heb.
2:14-15).
The subject of love is inexhaustible
because it is such a vital part of who and what we are. Love and man
belong together. But we need to be careful that we don’t love the wrong
things (1 John 2:15-17). Maybe these little points will help us all to
remember what is really important in our lives in the coming week.
Remember the greatest commandment of all (Matt. 22:37-40), “Thou shalt
love the Lord thy God, with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with
all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is
like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. On these two
commandments hang all the law and the prophets.”
Brethren, let us love one another; for love
is of God. Thanks for listening.
