Chris' Christian Blog

Love

"Love" 

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Over the past few days we have studied sin. Today we're going to switch it up a little. We're going to discuss love, What is love exactly? What are some of the common misconceptions about love? Today we're going to try to answer these questions.

Let's start with the question of what is love? Many would have us believe that love is nothing more than a deep emotional attachment to another person or object. It is indeed a deep emotional attachment. However love is much more than that. Love is also an action. James expresses this when he says "Suppose there are brothers or sisters who need clothes, and don't have enough to eat. What good is their in saying to them "God bless you! Keep warm and eat well---------if you don't give them the necessities of life?"

Love, like faith, only becomes real when we put some legs and hands on it. Jesus teaches the Parable of the Good Samaritan in Luke 10: 25 - 37. In these passages He humbles a group of religious leaders by saying that a man was attacked and left for dead at the side of a road. Two religious leaders came upon him at different times and walked to the other side of the road to avoid him. Along came a Samaritan though and the Samaritan helped the man and even hospitalized him at his own expense. Then Jesus asked the Jewish leaders who had done right by the man? Was it either of the religious leaders or the hated Samaritan? Bear in mind now that the Samaritans were barely human in the eyes of the Jews. Yet the Jews had to admit that the Samaritan had shown much more love than the religious leaders.

Love then is an action word. Paul describes love in I Corinthians 13. "Love is patient and kind; it is not jealous or conceited or proud; love is not ill-mannered or selfish or irritable; love does not keep a record of wrongs; love is not happy with evil, but is happy with the truth," I Corinthians 13: 7.

Love is work. It truly is. It is work and it is sacrifice. Love means we have to step outside our comfort zone. It means we have to get out of ourselves and put others first in our lives. Just think what a wonderful world we would live in if everybody put the needs of others ahead of their own!