What is LOVE?

Well, we have talked about two important issues concerning grace and faith.
What about love?
What is love?
Where does it come from?
How do we get it?
Can love exist separate of faith, is love a product of faith?
What role does love play in Christianity?

When God created man, He instilled in man many of the attributes that He himself has. Love is one such attribute. It is something that in inherent in man because God put it there from the beginning, from the very first man. That is why evil people can and do love. The love that is in each of us responds to love shown to us by others, in the same manner that the grace that is within each of us responds to the grace that others show toward us, and in the same manner that mercy shown by others toward us is met with our own mercy toward others. We all respond favorably when we see justice meted out fairly, honestly, and deservedly.

But these are conditional and dependent upon what others are doing. We have the capacity to have unconditional love, grace, mercy, and justice, but that takes influence outside of ourselves, that is, divine influence. We must have the Spirit of God in us to be able to love unconditionally as He loves unconditionally.

That answers, Where does it come from? how do we get it and can it exist separate of faith.

Is Love a product of faith? No but it works very well with faith. What role does love play in Christianity? Love is the glue that keeps all the parts together and smoothes the rough spots in relationships. Love is one of the rewards of loving. Love is why you and I are saved...You know, for God so loved the world.

What love is not. Love is not a commodity that one can give away. All the love that one has one keeps forever. One can give gifts that say to the recipient of the gift, "I love you", but you cannot lose one iota of love away by loving someone or a lotsa someones. In truth, your love increases the more you use it (live by it), as does your faith, your grace, your mercy and your justice. Put this to the test and see if it is not true! Try to give away your love, see if you don't end up with more than you had before. Try to give away your grace, you'll see an increase in what you have. Give your faith to someone and see the increase in faith that you have. The point is you cannot lose that which you use, it only increases within you!

What is love? I don't know, but I do know I have it! God put it in me through Adam.

 

...and the Fruit of the Spirit is LOVE, JOY, PEACE, PATIENCE, KINDNESS, GOODNESS, FAITHFULNESS, GENTLENESS AND SELF-CONTROL.

My apologies to those who disdain the use of the Living Bible in any instance. This is just too beautiful to not share.

Diane

 

Yeslew,

I disagree. I do not believe that an evil person is capable of love.

The Bible is clear that it is those who are Born of God are the ones who are capable of love.

He that knows God, loves, because God is love. Without God, there is no capacity for love.

People can feel emotions, and feel an admiration for a person, and a sense of closeness, and commitment, but without God, love is impossible.

That is why OVER fifty percent of all marriages end in divorce.

That is why there is so much rampant homosexuality.

That is why there is so much pedophilia.

That is why there is so much child abuse.

Without Jah NOTHING. As the groove goes.

We are sinful, lustful, deceitful, lying, backbiting haters without God!

God Bless,
Kelly

 

3 Angels mom, Did you not love before you believed? Not even your parents? Did you have the spirit of God in you before you believed in him?

Did you not have boy friends and girl friends that were best friends because you loved each other as the bestest friends ever?

Do you think that the mob families did not have love? they certainly were evil.

True, those who do not have the spirit of God have only the power of human love, but they do in truth have love. They are fully capable of loving others with the maximum power that human love can muster.

To think otherwise is to deny that we are all made in the image of God, and that he gave us attributes like His own.

 

Once again, we can confuse human love with God’s love (just as we do with faith and grace).

His ways are not our ways. His thoughts are not our thoughts.

The following are excerpts from an article by Don Krow:

Agape - Agape love is God's kind of love. It is seeking the welfare and betterment of another regardless of how we feel. It isn’t a feeling and not necessarily affectionate. Jesus displayed it when he went to the cross and died for you and me regardless of how He felt. Jesus prayed, "..Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless, not as I will, but as thou wilt" (Mt. 26:39; Mk. 14:36; Lk. 22:41-43; Jn. 18:11). Jesus sought the betterment of you and me, regardless of His feelings. Matthew 7:12 states it this way, "So whatever you wish that men would do to you, do so to them; for this is the law and the prophets" (RSV).

Jesus' love (God’s love) was the greatest expression of love that ever came into the world. He did not love with just words but in deed and truth (1 Jn. 3:18). If your actions contradict your words, what are people going to believe, your words or your actions?

LOVE IS LONG SUFFERING - God's love has a tolerance for and endures trying situations and persons beyond an average standard. God's love is patient.

LOVE IS KIND - God's love is of a friendly nature, generous, hospitable, warm-hearted, and good. God's love is charitable and helpful, showing sympathy and understanding for others. It is considerate, forbearing, tolerant, courteous, and thoughtful, desiring only to promote another’s welfare. It is generous, liberal, and beneficial, demonstrating itself in kindly acts.

LOVE DOES NOT ENVY - God's love does not resent another's good fortune or desire to have what is his. God's love is not jealous and does not deprive another of what he has.

LOVE DOES NOT BOAST - God's love does not boast and brag or abound with self-praise. It is not vain or proud.

LOVE IS NOT PUFFED UP - God's love is not high-minded or puffed up with pride.

LOVE DOTH NOT BEHAVE ITSELF UNSEEMLY - God's love does not act, react, function, or perform in a manner that is in bad taste, improper, or in violation of what is right.

LOVE SEEKETH NOT HER OWN - God's love does not demand its own way.

LOVE IS NOT EASILY PROVOKED - God's love is not easily annoyed or incited to anger or resentment.

LOVE THINKS NO EVIL - God's love does not reason about or reflect upon that which causes or constitutes misfortune, suffering, difficulty, or the like. God's love does not ponder upon wickedness.

LOVE REJOICETH NOT IN INIQUITY - God's love feels joyful when right, sincerity, integrity, honesty, and truth prevail. (Always looking at sin.)

LOVE BEARS ALL THINGS - God's love makes it possible to withstand all stress and difficulty. Because God is love, He supports and carries on His own Person whatever is placed upon Him. God's love protects, covers, and keeps off anything that threatens the benefit and welfare of another. God's love holds back, refrains, and is tolerant and patient in all circumstances.

LOVE BELIEVES ALL THINGS - God's love puts faith in others, believing the best of everyone (without criticizing or looking for fault).

LOVE HOPES ALL THINGS - God's love persists in hoping, against all odds, in confidence and expectation of fulfillment of that which is promised. God has faith in His ability to carry out His plan for the restoration of all creation.

LOVE ENDURES ALL THINGS - God's love causes one to carry on through, despite hardships.

LOVE NEVER FAILS - God's love never proves insufficient in duration or is unsuccessful in effectiveness. Love will never disappoint or prove undependable. God's love goes on forever and will never come to an end.

God = Love, God IS love.

God is love, and love (God) never fails.

Lord, open the eyes of our hearts that we may know You. \o/

Peace, GH

 

LOVE REJOICETH NOT IN INIQUITY - God's love feels joyful when right, sincerity, integrity, honesty, and truth prevail. (Always looking at sin.)

Make that: (NOT always looking at sin.)

 

This is love:

Jesus has already come into His kingdom. He rode into Jerusalem on a borrowed donkey, cheered by a ragtag bunch of kids. He was given a crown and scepter. The announcement was written in all the languages of the Empire: Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews.

This is the kind of King that Jesus is.

In other kingdoms, the people die for their kings. Thousands died for worldly kings of every kind.

But Kings do not die for their people. What king ever gave his life for some young soldier? Doesn't happen.

But Jesus came to turn our ideas of king and kingdom upside down and inside out. He came to show us the Father. He came to show us what God's kingdom is like.

 

The Bible is clear that it is those who are Born of God are the ones who are capable of love.

Man, through great struggle and mortification, can love in heroic ways through the practice of the natural virtues. Mahatma Gandhi would be a prime example (for example, he slept with virgins to test his chastity).

However, even such great virtue does not participate in the theological virtue of divine faith, hope, or charity unless one is reborn through baptism (whether it be of water, blood, or desire).

There is natural love and then there is supernatural love. The first we have and acquire by our own efforts; the second is a gift from God and is necessary to see God face-to-face in heaven.

 

1Jo 4:7 Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God.
1Jo 4:8 He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love.
1Jo 4:9 In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him.
1Jo 4:10 Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.
1Jo 4:11 Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another.

That's what I'm talking about.

We may have deep feelings of closeness towards our friends and 'loved ones' but without God, we are without the ability to love.

I'm sorry, but even though we were made in the image of God, man FELL. We fell from that perfect nature, and now have a sinful nature.

We are not capable of anything good apart from God.

Even our 'good' deeds, as mentioned by Carson, are still filthy rags.

That's weird that he slept with virgins.

God Bless,
Kelly

 

"Yes God is love" And we will never be able to come close to knowing the love he has for his childern; but we are to strive each & every day to try an be like jesus, but we will never be able to comperhand his kind of love.

Cause for one, we will never be able to lay are life on the line like jesus did, For he done this for all sinner's...even one's that were not born yet, he went to the cross & suffered & died for us, now that is love that we cannot & will not understand...Ever.

Yes we all do have Love; but only to a certin point...We can love are family's are husband's are wife's & childern & even are friends...

But can we or should i say; would we be willing to lay are life's on the line for a person we have never met....I donot believe there is anyone that can in all honesty say they would?

Now to me; That is LOVE we will never have...

 

Willow 2

Some people have given their lives for others__ Maxamillian Kolbe for one. He was a priest in a Nazi concentration camp. One of the Jewish men was to be executed and started crying because he had a wife and children.

Maxamillain Kolbe asked for this man with the family to be spared and Maxamillian offered to take his place. They accepted his offer and Maxamillian was starved to death.

Would I be willing to do something like this? I hope I would.

“And He was saying to them all, "If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow Me.” Luke 9:23

God Bless

 

I need to make a correction. The man who Fr. Maximilian Kolbe took the place of to die was Francis Gajowniczek who was married and had kids and I don't think he was Jewish.

Catholics and Protestants put their lives on the line and were killed for hiding Jewish people under Hitler. Anytime a military person throws themselves on a grenade to save others they are sacrificing themselves for others.

I doubt if many would do anything like this if it wasn't for the teachings of Jesus Christ and these people living the gospel.


God Bless