A Love Check
20 Sep 2010 Leave a Comment
When was the last time you did an evaluation on yourself concerning love? Do you still love your brother’s and sister’s in Christ like you use to? Do you love un-conditionally? Do you love the way Christ commands us to love?
In dealing with the origin of love The Bible indicates that love is from God. In fact, the Bible says “God is love. Love is one of the primary characteristics of God. Likewise, God has endowed us with the capacity for love. This capacity for love is one of the ways in which we are created in the image of God.
The Greek translation of “love” in the New Testament is “agape.” This love is represented by God’s love for us. It is a non-partial, un-conditional, and sacrificial love.
In contrast, our love is usually conditional and based upon how other people behave toward us. This kind of love is based upon familiarity and direct interaction. The Greek word “phileo” defines this kind of love, often translated “brotherly love.” Phileo is a soulish kind of love (connected through our emotions) – something that can be experienced by both believers and non-believers. This is in contrast to agape, which is love extended through the spirit. Agape love requires a relationship with God through Jesus Christ, since the non-regenerated soul is unable to love unconditionally. Agape love gives and sacrifices expecting nothing back in return.
1 Peter 1:22 says: Seeing ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren, see that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently:
There are 3 ways to love
- Love Fervently
- Love with a pure heart
- Love As Brethren
To love fervently means to have a great intensity of feeling or to boil. To be sincere means that you have to have an honest interest in another by being pure, genuine and true.
Peter is telling us that it is natural for someone who has been born again to love the rest of the brothers and sisters in the faith. That comes from being cleansed from sin and purified and starting anew life and having a common salvation. But because you have this natural capacity to LIKE each other, take it a step further, take it a notch higher, take it deeper and LOVE each other (FOR REAL).
Loving with a pure heart means that you have to purify your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit (his word) .When we become Christians, loving of our brothers and sisters in Christ should flow naturally. Our love should be genuine, real, and un-tainted. There are people today that only love on a conditional basis or shall I say I love you until you make me mad, hurt my feelings, reject me, or don’t do as I say!
Loving your brethren is just like love yourself. It’s unconditional! It’s Christ like (agape love).It doesn’t matter who you are, where you come from, or what nationality you are, we must show real love. In John 13:34-35 Jesus says: A new commandment I give unto you, that ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. [35] By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have loved one to another?
This command was first given in Leviticus 19:18 but in the New Testament it’s a renewed commandment with an additional part “As I have loved you”. Jesus not only loved His neighbor as Himself, but He loved him more than Himself, for He laid down His own life for others. In this He called upon His disciples to follow Him by being ready on all occasions to lay down their lives for each other. Now that’s what I call pure and unselfish love.
So on today let’s do A Love Check! As the young folks say “How’s your Loving”.
“From My Heart to Yours”
Prophet Sheila Thompson
C.E.O. Of Tender Hearts Ministry
Pastor of United Global
www.united-global.org
