There are many times in life when we are faced with the choice: "do I do what I want or what is better for someone else?" In these moments, how we answer speaks volumes to the nature of our hearts and the degree of maturation that we have reached in our sanctification. God asks us to love one another as He has loved us, laying down our lives for one another (John 15:12-14).
This is more than a challenging exhortation, it is impossible. We are utterly unable to love each other as Christ has loved us apart from the indwelling of the Holy Spirit performing His perfect work of sanctification within us. In order for us to have any ability to truly love one another, we need to rely on Him as the sole source of that love.
When we focus on the Lord, He bestows His love upon us so that we are able to love others. In a way, the Lord fills our love supplies so that we have hearts like storehouses full of sacrificial love to express to one another the way God desires. This is beautiful: God Himself gives us the necessary equipment to accomplish the requirements of godly love.
The greatest commandment, Love the Lord with all heart, mind, soul, and strength, should guide and endow us with every faculty needed to fulfill the second commandment: loving our neighbors as ourselves (Deut. 6:5; Matt. 22:37-39; Luke 10:27). Loving God is our primary purpose but when we love God we learn how to love as He does.
Jesus is the perfect example of love. In Him, we learn what love is and what love should look like. In Paul's letter to the Philippians, he is clear that love requires humility and selflessness, as to always take on an attitude that regards others as greater than ourselves. This proposition, however nice to ascend to in virtue, is utterly impossible to accomplish in practice apart from the Lord's help.
We should all take on an attitude of selflessness in love. If we could keep this simple assertion at the forefront of our minds when we relate to one another, we would be that much more able to live out the second commandment. God is clear that we should strive to love as He has loved us. Praise be to God for He is good to help us so that we could love as He desires!
No comments:
Post a Comment