"A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples if ye have love one to another."
John 13:34-35
Yesterday – “Love is giving!”
Today:
What to say about love on Valentine’s Day? I am not a poet; I wish I were for my wife’s sake. I’m more of a tell-it like it is guy. And I have found that there is a Bible principle for that – “speaking the truth in love” (Ephesians 4:15). Yes, saying what needs to be said, truthfully, but lovingly. I have found that telling the truth to someone is often easier than telling it lovingly. But that’s the command, be loving in my truth-telling!
Throughout my life, I have been taught different definitions of love. They each have impacted my life, and I trust I’m learning to love in the Christlike, Bible way. My youth pastor, Mike Greene, taught me the first meaning of love many years ago when I was a young teen in a youth group.
“Love is the willing self-sacrifice on the part of one, in behalf of another.”
As a teenager, I adopted the world’s idea of love. Everyone should love me, and I had no responsibility to reciprocate! To me, love was one-sided, what I could get out of it, and the arrows all pointed toward me!
The concept of sacrificing myself for someone else was a new idea. Learning to do for others certainly changed my attitude towards individuals. People are not things to be used, but souls to be loved and won for Christ’s sake.
The second definition of love helped mold my thinking and actions, which I learned when I was a young youth pastor myself. I heard it from several sources, my dad, Pastor Bill Goode, and Pastor Jay Adams. This new view added a new dimension to how I loved others – my motives.
“Love is doing what is best for the other person in the light of eternity, regardless of the consequences.”
Yes, I had learned that I needed to love sacrificially, but I didn’t always have the right motives when I expressed love for others. I must admit that sometimes my motives had to do with what I thought was best for me, not the other person.
My love for others had been so short-sighted. I learned from this new principle that love has an eternal dimension.
“Love will never end. But all those gifts will come to an end—even the gift of prophecy, the gift of speaking in different kinds of languages, and the gift of knowledge” [1] (1 Corinthians 13:8, HSB).
“So these three things continue faith, hope, and love. And the greatest of these is love” (1 Corinthians 13:13, HSB).
I had to make another change in how I loved people. Now I saw them as eternal beings headed to heaven or hell. And it might be that God could use my love to influence a person for eternity! So now, as I work with people, I keep in mind that how I love them is not just about helping them make the right choices for today, but eternally.
The last part of that definition also touched my thinking. I must admit, to my shame, that there have been times when in serving others, I have been too aware of their feelings, and rather than speak the whole truth, I hedged my words so I wouldn’t offend them. You see, love always tells the truth, but lovingly. When loving others, we are bound to say what they need to hear, “in the light of eternity, regardless of the consequences.” I learned from this that when I tell the truth in love, I am not responsible for what they do with it. That may sound harsh to some, but we must say what God wants them to know if we love that soul. What they do with God’s truth, accepting it or rejecting it, will change them for eternity.
The third definition of love that has changed me is the simplest one.
“Love is giving.”
We see this concept clearly in the life of Jesus Christ. He loved people, and His actions and words point us to that fact. He left heaven’s glory and splendor to come live on this earth with humans, sinners who had rejected Him, their Creator, and the King of Glory! Jesus loves people, and He has given His life for them. He died to save us from our sin, and then He returned to heaven to prepare us a dwelling place for eternity. Jesus gave, and gave, and gave, why? Because He loves us! And He is our best example of how to love others. He loves unilaterally, expecting nothing in return, and so should we. That’s what self-sacrificing, eternal love is all about.
We need to remember Jesus’ words,
“A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples if ye have love one to another” (John 13:34-35).
We need to learn to love others in the same way that Jesus loves us!
“Love’s focus is the other person’s need.”
Quote: “Jesus loves me this I know, for the Bible tells me so!”
[1] HSB is the Harvest Study Bible from Harvest Ministries in Guam.