Our Commitment - To Loving One Another

The church that the Lord desires

To be the New Testament church that the Lord desires requires us= to not only receive one another but to also love one another. Receiving one another is not optio= nal. We must receive all believers beca= use God has received them (Rom 14:3-4; 15:7).&= nbsp; So also, loving one another is not optional. It is the Lord’s new command= ment to us (John 13:34). By receiv= ing and loving one another, we live out the vision of the universal church (Matt 16:18) in a practical way. Moreover, our loving one another becomes a testimony to let all men = know that we are the Lord’s disciples (John 13:35). People will know they have found t= he Lord’s church by our love and care.

The church grows and is built up in an environment of love

As the church, we grow by holding to truth in love (Eph 4:15) and are built up in love (Eph 4:16). Holding to truth without love can cause us to become legalistic and dogmatic (rigid and insistent in our beliefs to the point of being certain = we are right while believing everyone else is wrong). In this kind of environment, the insistence on being ”right” becomes = more important than the love and care to one another. This can result in relationships t= hat are cold, insensitive, and distant.

Without an environment of love, the church cannot grow and be built up! According to 1 Corinthians 14:1, w= e are encouraged to pursue love. Th= is is to eagerly seek after love and earnestly endeavor to acquire love. An environment of love among the s= aints is something that has to be cultivated, nurtured, and nourished. This is similar to a greenhouse th= at needs careful tending so the plants can have a warm environment to flourish= and grow healthily. In the same w= ay, people flourish in a warm environment of love.

Love is the most important matter in the Christian life!<= /p>

God is love (1 John 4:8, 16).&n= bsp; Without love, someone speaking in tongues has become sounding brass = or a clanging cymbal. Without love, someone with the gift of prophecy, knowing all mysteries, having all knowle= dge, and having all faith to be able to move mountains, is nothing. Without love, someone may dole out all their possessions to feed others and even deliver = up their body to boast, but they profit nothing (1 Cor 13:1-3). Love is eternal (1 <= span class=3DSpellE>Cor 13:8). “Love survives everything and holds its place forever. It never fails, never fades out or= comes to an end.” (Recovery Version, 1 Cor 13:8, Footnote 8-1). 1 Corinthians = 13:4-7 describe 15 virtues of God expressed as love.

The way to love – put on the inward parts of Christ

Philippians 1:8 – Paul longed after the saints in the inward part= s of Christ. Paul experienced Christ’s inward affection, tender mercy, and sympathy for the saints.=

Colossians 3:12-15 – We are told to put on inward parts of compassion, kindness, lowliness, meekness, long-suffering, and to put on love over all these things. This is the living ou= t of the inward parts of Christ expressed in His beautiful human virtues through us. When we experience Christ= in this way to love the saints, we will have the peace of Christ ruling in our hearts.

The issue of Christ loving through us will be a practical care to the saints (I John 3:17-18). What a miracle= that we can live out the love of Christ toward others. This love even covers a multitude = of sins (1 Peter 4:8). If we see= k to live in the atmosphere of the Lord’s love and warmth, then we will be= on the way to becoming the church that the Lord desires, Philadelphia – the church of brot= herly love (Revelation 3:7). May th= e Lord cause us to increase and abound in love to one another and to all (1 Thess 3:12).