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"Well said, teacher," the man replied. "You are right in saying that God is one and there is no other but him. To love him with all your heart, with all your understanding and with all your strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself is more important than all burnt offerings and sacrifices." Mark 12:32-33
One evidence of our relationship with God is how we treat others! Our love for our Savior and Creator should spill over into a love for those that He loves! I would not be able to have a close relationship with you if you told me you loved me but hated my wife...she is a part of me and our relationship includes how you feel about her. Same with God...we can't tell him we love Him and then work against those whom He loves. That is totally incompatible!
ReplyDelete"Whoever loves his brother lives in the light..." John reminds us that loving others is a required part of the believer's life. I get so busy and miss so many opportunities to love. God told me plainly this morning, "Slow down and make it a point to listen to and love others." Good word.
ReplyDeleteIt says "to love" isn't a new commandment, which is true. It's commanded from God throughout the bible which shows us how important & how much God wants us to love. Everyone craves love (true, honest, pure love) but only those in Christ recieve it. Christ gives us this true, honest, pure love & we should us it! We shouldn't "shun" or tear down people down. We have no reason to hate our brothers & sisters in Christ.
ReplyDeleteWow good stuff from both of you guys thats awesome insight to what John's point is for writing this passage. I would like to add that Jesus set a new standard of love like I've always thought that love is the same but Jesus raised the bar. This is shown when John says in 1 John2:8 Yet it is also new. Jesus lived the truth of this commandment. The reason it is even considered new now is because Jesus actually raised the standard of what love's is for me as well as my brothers and sisters wow thats good stuff
ReplyDeleteI think this passage is a reminder of just how important love is for Christians. If we love every person in our lives but hate just one, then we are liars! It is often too easy to love only those that love us, but we are constantly reminded that our love should know no bounds. Wow...what an awakening!
ReplyDeleteWhile love is very important in this passage, let's not forget that those who do love "live in the light". What is one characteristic of light? It draws people and things to it. Just as a moth is drawn to a flame, people are drawn to those who exhibit light and love in their lives. We also realize that there is no such thing as darkness, there is only an absence of light. The darkness we see all around us in our world is just an absence of the presence of God (God is love). We are called to be light, let's help each other to do just that.
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