What does it mean to love Jesus? To love a man you’ve never even seen? To love anyone for that matter? We say we do, but how do we explain it? How do we justify it to others? How do we express it to others? How do we testify to it? Is our love real? That is, are our intentions true to Christ or are they superficial and shallow? I go so far as to challenge your definition of love and what it means to you. Are your first thoughts to head straight to the Webster’s Dictionary, or to the Bible. Even in the Bible, there are different manners of love . There is shallow, transparent love of those desiring earthly things like possessions and power. Additionally, longing for anything but God. And then there is true love. Something much greater. Something that when desired and worked at changes you from the inside out.
It would be impossible to take even one word away from Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians, 13: 4-8 on the definition of love and still have it read as God intended, read it slowly and soak it in, “4. Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 5. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 6. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 7. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. 8. Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away.” The definition by Scripture is filled with actions and feelings that require the one who loves, to place effort in to love. To strive for…and although some of these things come easy to one and not another, the whole is a constant working that can only be reached through Christ, and is unattainable without him. For Christ is the above. He is Love. He is every descriptive word from that Scripture. The above definition may be a hard thing to swallow for those who believe in the concept of love at first sight. The reality is that love isn’t just an emotion. It is countless emotions together to serve the purpose of love. The result of these, is love. Some would argue, “Just leave love to the heart, or just leave love out of the eye of scrutiny. It’s something that just happens.” But can we afford this view of love? It seems to me this is a non confrontational way of saying we all have our own idea of what love is, so don’t intrude on an emotion. This is a dangerous ideology. There are several reasons for this. The first being simply, it contradicts scripture. Love is not what you make it or make of it. It is clear and exact and it comes to us through Christ. Secondly it puts you at the reigns of defining something God creates in you. It allows you to put your own perceptive definition of love into the small and insignificant one-dimensional world around you.
Now, if the Bible is clear on what love is, why do we find ourselves so far from it? Why do we find ourselves wanting? Judging by what Paul says, and if it were up to us alone we would fall short of love every time wouldn’t we? Love does not come naturally to our sinful nature. By the above definition it seems obvious that only through Christ could we truly love at all. But how does that happen? If we can only love through Christ, how can we love Christ, when it takes Him to work in us? Well, what better way to know love than from the one who created it, the one who will never fall short of it. Jesus puts love on our hearts. We have a misconception about love, that it should come easy, that we should stare starry eyed at it. That we “fall” into it. That the feeling alone creates unity and eternity. And although it is eternal, it is never that simple. Just look at a loving marriage. It may have started with fireworks but in time it has become mature, it is an endeavor, it has become far more rewarding because of the effort put into it. The payoff is much bigger than in the early part of a relationship. That’s how God wired us. He put it in us to love at all. He created you for it and it for you.. Love is not a choice and it doesn’t always come easy. Jesus when confronted on the subject of the most important Commandment states this in Matthew 22:36-40, "36. Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?"37. Jesus replied: "'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.'38. This is the first and greatest commandment. 39. And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.'
40. All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments." This scripture is not an infatuated love. It is not a material love. It is a respectful, reverent love. It is not temporary, but eternal. Biblically it is the Law, and ALL the Law and prophets hang on those two commandments. Paul also wrote in Second Corinthians 5:13-15, “13. If we are out of our mind, it is for the sake of God; If we are in our right mind, it is for you. 14. For Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died.. 15. And He died for all, that those who live shall should no longer live for themselves but for Him who died for them and was raised again.” Christ’s love compels us. Who can resist it? I should think none. It is impossible to be accepting that Christ is the Truth unless he puts it in you. Unaided, we would run away from Him eternally. For example a piece of wood by itself does nothing but lie. It doesn’t give advice, or bathe, eat or pray. It is entirely incapable of doing anything but remaining a piece of wood. That is until I ignite in it a burning consuming flame that it was incapable of achieving on its own. It has now become something very different, so much so that all the senses are affected by it. So it is the same with the heart. It is incapable of love or decisions of heavenly divinity until Christ’s love ignites it. I guess you could say its an invitation you can not refuse. The thought of rejecting Christ’s invitation for love is hopeless. You can not reject the love of Christ, for he put it on you.
And it is impossible to accept first, then love. Few would argue with that. And for those who feel the choice is theirs to love in the first place, understand that your heart wouldn’t know love without Christ, It would forever be slave to sin. Sin knows no love. And absence of love is evil. The iniquity of mankind is a depraved company of immoral wickedness. And the world was so backwardly wicked and void of love that God sent his only Son as a sacrifice for the evil of all mankind. Not for some, not for most. All. That alone signifies the urgency for a Savior of the world. But Christ, the true definition of love and (in my opinion) the subject of Paul’s definition of love, lives the definition. He was the living example of love in every way. He showed us the ultimate act of love by crucifixion. And only through him, can we understand it and live it out.
1 Corinthians 13:1-13 [NIV], “1. If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. 2. If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. 3. If I give all I possess to the poor and surrender my body to the flames, but have not love, I gain nothing.
4. Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 5. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 6. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 7. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
8. Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. 9. For we know in part and we prophesy in part, 10. but when perfection comes, the imperfect disappears. 11. When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put childish ways behind me. 12. Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.
13. And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.
We testify to love with His love.
