The one who overcomes, believes; the one who believes, LOVES - part 5

We love, even if it is not going to produce a trophy for our efforts. Jesus tells us to love our neighbor in the same way we love our self.

So the next logical question we need to answer is: what does it mean to love our self? C. S. Lewis wrote, “… When I look into my own mind, I find that I do not love myself by thinking myself a dear old chap or having affectionate feelings. I do not think that I love myself because I am particularly good, but just because I am myself and quite apart from my character. I might detest something, which I have done. Nevertheless, I do not cease to love myself. In other words, that definite distinction that Christians make between hating sin and loving the sinner is one that you have been making in your own case since you were born. You dislike what you have done, but you don’t cease to love yourself. You may even think that you ought to be hanged. You may even think that you ought to go to the Police and own up and be hanged. Love is not affectionate feeling, but a steady wish for the loved person’s ultimate good as far as it can be obtained.”
 

We see our own sin and dismiss it as something that is not what we are going to base our own love of self upon. However, often we then to see others sin and decide that their sin is what we are going to base our love for them on. We look only at the sin and we do not love sin so we tend then to not even love the sinner. 
 

We often hear and even quote the cliché, “Love the sinner; hate the sin.” Perhaps you even said it to yourself before reading it here a moment ago. Though it is not a saying found in the Bible, Jude 1:22–23 contains a similar idea when it says: “Be merciful to those who doubt; save others by snatching them from the fire; to others show mercy, mixed with fear — hating even the clothing stained by corrupted flesh.” According to this, our evangelism should be characterized as having mercy on the sinners and a healthy hatred of sin and its effects as to keep us from partaking in ourselves. 

The question that we must then ask ourselves is: How much do we hate our neighbors to not have mercy on them? It makes me think again of Jesus’ words in Luke 10:2-3; “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest. Go your way; behold, I am sending you out as lambs in the midst of wolves.”
 

God’s Word has a way about it that it comes at just the right time. But just as our scriptures this week have pointed out – true love for God is found in loving your neighbor.
 

Will you love with me? I’m asking the best of the best. I love you guys and, together, we have seen miracles; we have prayed together and witnessed the hand of God move. He is not going to move in a church that does not seek Him. But proper worship in obedience is taking the hope we have to those who have not. 

How about Christian Assembly leading the charge to win this City for the King?
 

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 do not have love, I am nothing.”  END