“Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.” 1 John 4:8
Just like forgiving is something God commands us to do, so is His command to love one another. Although we may think there are conditions to loving each other, it’s hard to escape God’s direction in doing so.
A biblical scholar told how a man went to his Pastor to tell him he was going to divorce his wife. In response the Reverend responded, “But God commands you to love your wife.”
Ephesians 5:25 commands men, “Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the Church and gave Himself up for her.”
“But I don’t love her anymore,” argued the man, “and I can no longer stand to be around this woman.”
“So if you divorce her and she moves into the house next to you?” asked his Pastor, “What will you do, because God commands us in Mark 12:31, to love our neighbor?”
“But I hate her! She made my life miserable,” explained the husband. “I don’t want anything to do with her.”
The Pastor then asked, “So are you saying she’s your enemy? If so, what about Matthew 5:44, where Jesus says, ‘But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you?’”
No Escape Routes from Loving Each Other
If we haven’t figured it out by now, God is serious about us loving each other, whether we’re married, related, neighbors, strangers or even enemies.
Just like the husband discovered as a Christian, there is no escape route from God’s command to love one another. As much as we like to disqualify others as undeserving of our love, we cannot escape the ultimate command God gives to us.
God’s words concerning loving one another are quite strong. Strong enough to explain, that if we are refusing to love each other, then we don’t know Him. If we are unloving but say we love Him, then it is pretty clear evidence that we truly don’t love God either.
It’s something we don’t want to even consider or accept, but God’s word is true. If we don’t measure our actions up against His words, then we need to recognize that we aren’t seeking to do His will or open to submitting to His ways.
If we examine ourselves and find we are falling short of following God’s command to love, God gives us His example to follow in order to be set free from an unloving heart.
No Way to Escape Loving Those We Don’t Want to Love
God is our example of how to love those we don’t want to love. He shows us how to love people without requiring them to love us first. “But God demonstrates His own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8).
Jesus lived a life on earth showing us how to do God’s will even when it’s difficult. “For I have come down from heaven not to do My will but to do the will of Him who sent Me” (John 6:38).
Each of us decides if we are going to follow our will in choosing to love one another or God’s will. Following His will in life is submitting to His truth of how to respond to life’s situations.
1 John 4:9 explains, “This is how God showed His love among us. He sent His one and only Son into the world that we might live through Him.”
Because of Jesus, we don’t have to rely on ourselves to love others because we can live and love through Him.
Let’s Pray:
Dear Father,
Forgive me, for refusing to love others. Help me to be like You in loving people, to let Your love live through me, even towards those whom I don’t want to love and those who don’t love me.
In Jesus’ name,
Amen
Photo Credit: ©Getty Images/Irina Vodneva
Lynette Kittle is married with four daughters. She enjoys writing about faith, marriage, parenting, relationships, and life. Her writing has been published by Focus on the Family, Decision, Today’s Christian Woman, kirkcameron.com, Ungrind.org, StartMarriageRight.com, and more. She has a M.A. in Communication from Regent University and serves as associate producer for Soul Check TV.
Originally published Tuesday, 26 December 2023.
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