What is Love – Part 3

 

Mat 22:39 And the second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself.

This is the second part of the command that Jesus said was the most important.  This seems to require the most extensive explanation.  I am going split this topic into other categories that will be discussed at a later date.  Here is a list of some of the categories that I will talk about later:

  1.  Showing each other love while working together.
  2.  Showing towards people that don’t like you.
  3.  Showing love towards people that irritate you.
  4. Love for the lost and misguided.

There are other subjects that could be listed.  These are all I can think of at this time.  You could think of other subjects.  My mind is so limited.

God takes how people treats us or how we treat other people personally.  We are his creation.  He used himself as a template to each other.  When Saul (Later called Paul) was persecuting Christian, Jesus appeared to him and said, “Why are you persecuting me?”  Jesus said me not my followers.  To persecute Christians was the same as persecuting Him.  What greater love that a God could show placing his people at the level as Himself.

Galatians 5:13, 14 You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh; rather, serve one another humbly in love.
For the entire law is fulfilled in keeping this one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.”

This scripture almost seems in conflict with the greatest commandment.  After to fulfill the entire law, don’t you also need to love God also.  This must refer to the attitude we are to treat one another.  We are not to treat or see each other as Gods, but as God’s creation.  How do you feel when after you drew a painting, or put together a kit or anything else one makes, that the heart and soul was put into.  Any complaint about what you made is usually taken personally and you feel insulted by the complaint.   This shows how God regards each of us.  We are his creation.  Anytime we are insulted, God takes it personally even with our imperfections.  God is showing us the road to perfection and is continually working on us.  He does not like it when someone interferes with His work.  We may need to go to heaven to accomplish that, but God is working on it while we are on Earth.  God does it because He loves us.

Another aspect of loving each other is that God has gave us permission to call Him our Father.  That means He thinks of us as His sons and daughter (little s and d).  Which father likes it when their children fight against each other.  God loves us as we are His children and we should observe each other as God sees us.

As I said in the other blog posts, my mind is finite is finite.  I never regard what I say is the final word or something that can’t be corrected.  This is a writing that is to be a starting point for a more involve relationship with God.  Happy travels.


					

What is Love – Part 2

 

LOVING GOD
Mat 22:37 Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’

How can we do this? No matter how strong our love is there is a voice inside us that says we can do better. How much love is enough? When can we be confident when we know God is looking at us and we know He is smiling?

These are hard questions especially when one wants to know much is needed to please God.  One can answer these questions by saying that God knows our heart. He knows what we want our self to be like. He knows that our desire is to be close to him and to please Him.  What can we do to show God what we want more than anything in the world is to please him?

All to often we think of God waiting in the sidelines to catch us messing up.  This is not God at all.  Have you ever had a parent or a mentor or someone else who you enjoy being with.  These people give you limits.  When you go beyond those limits, they become stern.  You feel as if you are separated from them.    You feel distraught.  What is really happening is that authoritative figure is waiting for you to perform an action to eliminate that separation between him or her and yourself.  Sometimes the authoritative figure will make the first move.  God is that authoritative figure.  He loved you so much that he gave his only Son to be that sacrifice to unite you and God.  Sometimes now God wants to hear you repent.  Repentance does not only take away that division between you and God, but also makes you feel better about yourself.

Another way is to ask God to give us the ability to love him the way he deserves to be loved.  This goes against our human nature.  We want to do things our self using our own ability.  Look through the Bible.  God asks us to do many things.  God also shows us that he will help us in our actions when we allow God to participate.  The ancient Christian writers called this passive actions and active actions.   Active means our actions.  Passive means what we allow God to participate.  When we are spirit led, there are both active and passive actions that act together in sequence with one another.

To love God with all our might, we must be aware of his continual presence.  That doesn’t mean that one has to feel his presence, but just the knowledge that the presence of God is with you.  When you wake up in the morning, ask God what his plans are for you today.  He might tell you or he might not.  Just go on with the days business.  Thank God when events happen in your life whether good or bad .  Remember God is with you no matter what.  Enjoy him always.

Just like I said in previous essays, God treats us both as individuals and as a group.  Your experiences with God is different than mine.  My goal is to stimulate you in contemplating all the ways God showed his love towards you.  Enjoy His presence.