We serve each other in love, not only to those who are our brothers and sisters in Christ, but to all we meet, for in reality it is not our love that we offer.
The emotion of love is not the driving force behind our actions, but those actions can be affected by emotions, and while in most cases there is nothing wrong with that course, we must always remember 1st John 4:19. “We love him, because he first loved us.”
And the pinnacle of His love was the action of the cross.
The opposite of love my friends, and please remember this, is not hate, it is disobedience to the will and Word of God.
“If ye love me, keep my commandments.” (John 14:15)
When iniquity was found in Lucifer, it was not formulated within his mind initially because of hatred, but because he recognized his position as the covering cherubim, as one who was created perfect, and when pride began to become the focal point of his thoughts, and he knew it to be against the Most High, he did not deny that pride, running to the Almighty for help, but disobeyed and followed that path of disobedience.
“And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife,” (Gen. 3:17a)
Eve was deceived, Adam did not hate the Lord before he ate of the fruit, he loved Him who walked in the garden with him, but personal desires overrode his love.
Disobedience to the Lord our God is rarely done out of a hatred for Him, but it always reveals a lacking of love for Him.
“And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment.” (Mark 12:30)
You must be able to answer this question for yourself, does it change what that proceeding verse means if it was written with these eleven words instead? “Thou shalt obey the Lord thy God with all thy heart.”
“And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?” (Luke 6:46)
I do not believe it is possible to obey the Lord without a heart of love for Him, that person would be called not only a Legalist, but a hypocrite as well, but it may be even worse to say that one loves Him yet does not obey Him.
“And Samuel said, Hath the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams.” (1st Sam. 15:22)
Faith can follow while still questioning, search the Scriptures, you will find nearly every prophet, apostle and man or woman of God doing so, and you will also find that, while at times, the Lord explained Himself to those saints, many times He did not, yet all of them said these same words in some fashion.
“Thy will be done.”
Faith is obedience, and that obedience is always done out of love for Him.
“The disciple is not above his master, nor the servant above his lord.” (Matt. 10:24)
“And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together.” (Romans 8:17)
As a child obeys their parents because they know all that is done for them is done out of love, so we are to obey the Almighty, as servants and children.
Understand this truth, all you who read this, love for the Lord Jesus Christ is not love if there is no obedience of actions behind that love, love without obedience, without action, is nothing more than the deceptions of the heart, and actions performed without a love for Him who first loved us, without love as the foundation of those actions, is nothing more than a routine followed for the sake of self.
Does a soldier show love for his commanding officer if he obeys him? He does if he has faith in his commandments.
Our actions reveal our love for the Lord when they are done with the knowledge that He loves us, our faith and trust in Him, our love for Him moves us to action, no matter the personal consequences to ourselves.
We serve in love, and our obedience to His will and Word reveals that love.
