For my first number of years as a Christian, I suffered from
a lack of sound teaching. It was legalistic – try harder and do better – with just
a thin veneer of grace. Consequently, I suffered with the fear that I just wasn’t
good enough or likeable enough for God, and however hard I struggled to win His
approval, I could never feel confident that I had. I therefore felt alienated
from God and also from the church.
The understanding of the grace of God came slowly, but with
it came peace and joy – a confidence that it was all about His righteousness and not my own. As I because convinced of His
undying love for me, I was set free from so much that had tormented me.
However, we are saved and given this incredible free gift
for a reason – to adore and serve Him gladly. We must not only bask in His love,
we must also embody His love. As He has loved us, we must love others. As he
has forgiven us, we must also forgive others. As He has done for us, we must do
for others. Do we discard His commandments? No, we maintain it (Rom. 3:31):
·
“As the Father has loved me, so have I loved
you. Now remain in my love. If you keep my commands, you will
remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his
love.” (John 15:9-10)
Obedience reflects our love. If we refuse to obey, it means
that we refuse to love and even to trust Him. If we trust Him, we will do what
He commands. If we don’t trust Him, we won’t!
If we do trust Him, we will endeavor to love the brethren, and when we fail –
and we will fail – we confess our sins and try again. If we are unwilling to
love the brethren, then we are unwilling to love God and to follow Him:
·
We know that we have
come to know him if we keep his commands. Whoever says, “I know him,” but does not do what he commands is
a liar, and the truth is not in that person… Anyone
who claims to be in the light but hates a brother or sister is still in the
darkness. (1 John 2:3-4, 9)
Love is both an indication of our salvation and a duty. If
we have faith, we will love the brethren. If instead we refuse, we lie and don’t
know the Lord. Therefore, we must repent.
How do we love the brethren? First, by recognizing who they
are – any who put their trust in Jesus, anywhere in the world!
There are tens of thousands of Christians being routinely
slaughtered, especially in Muslim countries, and the Western church remains largely silent:
·
Still, the response [to the genocide] remains
muted. President Barack Obama could use U.S. moral authority and foreign
aid leverage against countries turning a blind eye to persecution. Time
magazine’s man of the year, Pope Francis, could use his Christmas message to
highlight the suffering of Christians and make it a recurring theme of his
papacy. It would be gratifying if the mainline U.S. Protestant churches that
get so worked up every time Israel
issues a permit to build a new home in the disputed West
Bank could show a similar outrage backed up by a firm commitment
to fight oppression of their fellow Christians.
This should be an embarrassment to us! When I raise this
issue with “progressive Christians,” they shrug off their responsibility,
protesting, “We are concerned about all people.” Although this is true, we have
a special calling to first love the brethren:
·
“A new command I give
you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.
By this everyone will
know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” (John
13:34-35; 17:20-24)
If we love the brethren, we also serve
others by demonstrating the reality of Jesus. If we don’t love the brethren and
ignore this present genocide, then we fail to attest to the reality of Jesus.
Besides, love is meaningless if it doesn’t
begin at home. The husband who doesn’t love his wife, doesn’t love his children
either. Instead, we best serve our children by loving our mate. We best serve
the world by loving the brethren.
How do we love the brethren? By praying for
them! By opening our mouths! By crying out on their behalf! By carrying
placards at the UN to embarrass the offending nations! By petitioning our
pastors and legislators! By flying flags outside of our churches: “Stop
massacring our people!”
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