By This Shall All Men Know...

Lately, the Spirit has been speaking to my heart about love. The Bible tells us that God is love (I John 4:8), and that His love has been shed abroad, or poured out, into the hearts of His children. (Romans 5:5)  But it is not supposed to end there. God loves us not only for our sake, but also that we may show His love to others. His Word tells us, “By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.” (John 13:35)  We are to love our brothers and sisters in Christ. And it is more than saying, “I love you.” Love requires action. We are to be sensitive to the needs of those in the family of God and be willing to minister to them. It is so sad that many churches are fraught with division, and the love of God is not evident in the relationships of those who say they love the Lord.  John asks us, How can you love God whom you have not seen, when you cannot love your brother whom you have seen? (I John 4:20) 

Beyond that, we are to love those who are not yet in the family of God. A very familiar verse of scripture tells us, “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” (John 3:16). God loves humanity so much that He sent His Son to die for us, and it is His plan for us to take the gospel message to those who do not have a relationship with Him. (Mark 16:15)

There are several ways to love those in need of the Savior:

1. We can pray for their hearts to be open to receive the gospel, and ask the Lord to provide opportunities to share the good news with them.

2. We can launch or become involved in ministries that help to meet practical physical needs.

3. We can build relationships by offering a listening ear. Some people just need to know someone cares about what they are going through.

4. We can share our testimony and witness to them about the saving grace of Jesus Christ.

It seems to me that it is easy to get so wrapped up in living what we believe to be “good Christian lives” that we neglect to reach out to others with the love of Christ. I have found that most of the time when the Spirit leads me to write about something, I need to work on it in my own life, and this is no exception.

Lord, help us to remember that we are to love with Your love. May we be willing vessels through which Your love flows to others.