Who Do You Love?

“He who has my commandments and keeps them is the one who loves Me and he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and will disclose Myself to him.” John 14:21 NASB

I love my husband but I can’t say I obey his every command. There are times when his requests might be more than I can bear (like an ice cream sundae at midnight when there’s no ice cream in sight) but that doesn’t mean I love him less. Thank God he doesn’t require me to fulfill his every desire. Thank God he has found that only his Maker is able to do all that he asks or thinks and more. (Ephesians 3:20)

“Love is patient, love is kind and is not jealous; love does not brag and is not arrogant, does not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered, does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never fails.”
NASB I Corinthians 13:4-8

Who loves like that? I Corinthians chapter 13 is the true example of Christ Himself, One whose shoes are hard to follow more often than not.

Luke 10:27 commands: “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, and with all your strength and with all your mind; and your neighbor as yourself.” NASB

How do we love? Better yet, who do we love? Here the Word of God plainly states that we are to love God and our neighbor. It goes on to say that we love ourselves already and we are to love others as we love ourselves. How? What does this mean? Well, we feed ourselves when we are hungry, right? We take care of ourselves when we get sick, right? We don’t normally go around gossiping about ourselves or saying things that will destroy our character, or do we? Then why are we hesitant to feed the homeless or comfort the sick? Why do we go from here to there spreading dirty rumors about our so-called friends? Let’s face it, that is not love.

Jesus tells in the scriptures over and over how we are to love. He healed the sick, comforted the lonely, and ate with sinners. He is the perfect example throughout the gospels for us to follow. He is love, He designed love and He loves like no other. We may never be able to do all that He has done but we are certainly commanded to do our best at trying.

I spoke with a couple of guys the other day who said they wanted Valentines Day to go quickly because they did not have a Valentine. While I am blessed to have my Valentine and cannot relate with them, I do not discount their view on the day. Obviously, the one used to have a Valentine because he has children. I told him then that his children can be his valentine or his mother or sister but that did not serve to comfort him. Our world is full of lonely people who need to be loved. It is full of those reaching out for anyone who will listen. We must become a society whose ears hear and mouths answer the call of the brokenhearted.

Isaiah 61:1 reads: “The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to the afflicted; He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, and to proclaim liberty to captives and freedom to prisoners.”

We are all called to preach. People will not know the saving grace of Jesus Christ unless someone tells them. Once they are told, they have a choice either to accept it or reject it. Our job as believers is to proclaim Christ and share the great news of God’s love with this hurting world. We are not only to share by our words but also by our actions. Every step we take should be as though we are taking it toward Christ. Every move we make should be with His best interest in mind. He desires that none will perish and it’s up to us to share that desire. Our hearts must be molded into the heart of Christ. We must love like Him as though His blood were flowing through our veins.

What are you doing today to share His love? Are you expressing your love to your Savior by following His commands? If you were to be asked the question, “Who do you love,” what would your response be?
Let’s talk.
Terri can be reached at terriotterman@hotmail.com