Bible Study Christian love

[Khristeeanos]

Here are a few references of love in the New Covenant Scriptures:

Matthew 22:38-40
This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments."

(For reference Mark 12:30-32 adds, "There is no commandment greater than these.")

Do you see how the entire Jewish Covenant was specifically created to be a Covenant based upon love?

Romans 12:8-10
Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Honor one another above yourselves.

Are we "devoted to one another in brotherly love?" Not just here at Worthyboards forums, but at your local congreation, your home, your neighborhood, your place of work, and even in places like the grocery store, bank, post office, and any other place you go.

One of the most important passages in the entire Bible concerning love is not one I have ever heard quoted before:

Romans 13:8-9
Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for he who loves his fellowman has fulfilled the law. The commandments, "Do not commit adultery," "Do not murder," "Do not steal," "Do not covet," and whatever other commandment there may be, are summed up in this one rule: "Love your neighbor as yourself."

Again, love is the fulfillment of the Law. I personally believe that love for God will always lead to a love for others.

1 Corinthians 13:2
If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing.

I think that The Apostle Paul states that nothing matters if it isn't motivated by love.

Colossians 3:13-15
Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.
Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful.

Love should be our first priority. Is it? As Christians who profess to follow Christ, how can we individually make this our goal to "put on love?"

1 Peter 1:21-23
Through him you believe in God, who raised him from the dead and glorified him, and so your faith and hope are in God.
Now that you have purified yourselves by obeying the truth so that you have sincere love for your brothers, love one another deeply, from the heart. For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God.

Ahh, the Apostle Peter. He was formerly argumentive, abrasive, worldly, and self-seeking before he met Jesus. But look at how he was personally transformed. He tells his sheep to "love one another deeply, from the heart." How much do we fulfill this?

1 John 2:9-11
Anyone who claims to be in the light but hates his brother is still in the darkness. Whoever loves his brother lives in the light, and there is nothing in him to make him stumble. But whoever hates his brother is in the darkness and walks around in the darkness; he does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded him.

This is just a short list of the references in the New Covenant Scriptures that deal with Christians loving other Christians and non-Christians as well.

How do we as Christians posting on these forums love each other? Do we as a group love each other or are we more focus on our own lives and profit?

If Christ were here among us, we would have the greatest understanding of loving one another. While He isn't physically here, we have His life recorded in the Scriptures. We can take heart that Jesus #1 goal was to save us from our sins, and I personally believe that His #2 goal was to demonstrate true love.

Jesus prayed for the unity of His believers. He went as far as to say:

John 17:20-26
"My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one: I in them and you in me. May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me. "Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am, and to see my glory, the glory you have given me because you loved me before the creation of the world. "Righteous Father, though the world does not know you, I know you, and they know that you have sent me. I have made you known to them, and will continue to make you known in order that the love you have for me may be in them and that I myself may be in them."

Did you catch that? Jesus was praying just hours before He would be crucified and His prayer was that all of His followers would be unified. How can that happen?

Here is the key:

John 13:34-35
"A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another."

The message is clear, the fulfillment is difficult.

Let us tear off the shackles of hate and pride and selfish ambition and seek first His kingdom and His righteousness so that we can love one another deeply, from our hearts.

(All Scripture references from Bible Gateway are are from the New International Version of the Holy Scriptures.)

 

[Blazin Bones]

Beautiful post. I can't say that much to it. I think that many of us here, including myself, are guilty of not presenting the message the way Jesus taught us to. Again, beautiful post. 8-)

 

[Khristeeanos]

Beautiful post. I can't say that much to it. I think that many of us here, including myself, are guilty of not presenting the message the way Jesus taught us to. Again, beautiful post. 8-)

There are so many more verses that could have been used, but my personal favorite is:

John 13:34-35
"A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another."

 

[Khristeeanos]

Out of 2,319 registered users of this forum, is there really only 1 other person who wants to talk about the most important thing God has commanded us to do?

 

[Blazin Bones]

No, it's just that we know the last thing on a Christian's mind is bible study.

J.K.
I just think that most of us jumping all over the place haven't seen this topic yet.

 

[Restin]

Blind Love

Ahh, the Apostle Peter. He was formerly argumentive, abrasive, worldly, and self-seeking before he met Jesus. But look at how he was personally transformed. He tells his sheep to "love one another deeply, from the heart." How much do we fulfill this?

• Rev 3:19 ' Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline; therefore be zealous and repent.

Love without discipline is 'blind'.
.......R

 

[Gary]

DIME: Here is the key:

John 13:34-35
"A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another."

The message is clear, the fulfillment is difficult.

Gary: I like these verses which tells us how we should test if we are fulfilling the commandment above:

This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers. If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need but has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him? Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth.
(1 John 3:16-18)

The message is clear, the fulfillment is achieved by ACTION, not only words.

God bless you. I have enjoyed your posts on "Love"

 

[Khristeeanos]

Acts 2:42
They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.
43Everyone was filled with awe, and many wonders and miraculous signs were done by the apostles.
44All the believers were together and had everything in common.
45Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need.
46Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts,
47praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.

Do we "devote" ourselves to these things? I wish we did!

 

[paxigoth7]

Well, you are right, we should. If we could just simply love each other the way God loves us that would be all that is required of us.

I think, though, sometimes we don't know what real love looks like... and sometimes love has a tough side that we have to engage in order to be loving...

Perhaps we could talk about practical ways to love each other in our world...

 

[Khristeeanos]

Well, you are right, we should. If we could just simply love each other the way God loves us that would be all that is required of us.

I think, though, sometimes we don't know what real love looks like... and sometimes love has a tough side that we have to engage in order to be loving...

Perhaps we could talk about practical ways to love each other in our world...

OK, what is a practical way that someone has shown you genuine Christian love? :P

 

[Bob10]

John 17:20-26

Did you catch that? Jesus was praying just hours before He would be crucified and His prayer was that all of His followers would be unified.

Hello, DIME Ministries

John also records that after the Passover dinner, The same night in which He was betrayed, Jesus said to His Disciples: "If you love me, keep my commandments" (Jn 14:15, 21).

These are the same Commandments Paul said are holy, just and good. Paul said of one of these Commandments that he kept: "I would have not have known what it is to covet if the law had not said, 'You shall not covet' " (Rom. 7:7)....... "so the law is holy, and the commandment is holy and just and good" (vs 12)......So then, with my mind I am a slave to the law of God, but with my flesh I am a slave to the law of sin" (vs 25, New Revised Standard Version).


Many people believe the Ten Commandments are the very antithesis of love. But love is directly tied to obedience to the Ten Commandments (I John 5:2-3):

"But this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God, and keep His commandments. For this is the love of God that we keep His commandments: and His commandments are not grievous."

We repeatedly see that the law and the prophets was based upon love toward God and love toward neighborâ€â€summary principles from the Ten Commandments. Often, we will find the principle of love toward neighbor repeated in the New Testament, pointing directly to the Ten Commandments.

 

[Khristeeanos]

I haven't done as good a job as I should be lately in terms of loving other people.

I guess I should be praying more.

 

[Khristeeanos]

• Colossians 3:12-14
  Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.