> General Discussions
Love of truth?
G. Driggs:
--- Quote from: firefly77 on June 13, 2009, 09:16:12 AM ---
--- Quote ---For me anyway I never, beyond that point, ever trusted ANYONE who said "I love you". My reaction was usually "yea, right" and then giving them a good long look at my backside while walking away. As my grandmother would say to my siblings, "he doesn't trust your words, he MIGHT trust your actions". Sad really.
--- End quote ---
Gary,
Very well said! You can tell me all day long that you love me... I would much rather see the action behind those words. I am a German, born and raised in Germany (22 years), before coming to the US. The words "I love you" carry a great commitment towards the person we say it too. I find in this country we say those words to anybody without contemplating the meaning of what we just said. I was literally shocked the first few years I lived here, how indiscriminately people said "I love you" and how it has lost its meaning. It certainly did not help my already crippled understanding and still ruffles my feathers every time I hear it.
Angie
--- End quote ---
Hi Angie, I sincerely hope you do not take this the wrong way, or maybe it is I taking this the wrong way. I simply want to try and help.
You say, "You can tell me all day long that you love me... I would much rather see the action behind those words." But how would you know it if you were to see it? Because you also say, "It certainly did not help MY ALREADY CRIPPLED UNDERSTANDING and still ruffles my feathers every time I hear it." Im no hypocrite, because Im only just learning what true love is. I've never had that before I came here. True love is obeying God, and loving your neighbor as yourself. Be willing to do anything good for anyone, especially the brothers and sisters here. All I have to offer you all is praise, prayer and fellowship. These things you cannot see all the time, but I assure you I do it cause I love you and care about you, and most importantly because God commands it, Whom I MUST obey. Make no mistake, I'am not perfect either, I still struggle with hate often, but it is becoming less and less. Someday we will all be perfect, but not while we are in this flesh. It is good that you are here.
Much Love & Peace to you, G.Driggs
Mat 5:46 For if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye? do not even the publicans the same?
Luk 6:32 For if ye love them which love you, what thank have ye? for sinners also love those that love them.
firefly77:
--- Quote ---Mat 5:46 For if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye? do not even the publicans the same?
Luk 6:32 For if ye love them which love you, what thank have ye? for sinners also love those that love them.
--- End quote ---
You are absolutely right... Would I even recognize if it was given to me? How warped is my definition of love? It scares me a bit to think about it. Maybe God is shaking it up for me?! I think Churchianity has not helped a bit in this respect. Teachings of "co-dependency" added more confusion. I am back to square one, just like when I first came here and had to forget everything I was ever taught in Church, i.e. Jesus the savior of a few and hell. I am taking baby steps and it is oh so painful. God is confronting me daily with my "conditional" loving. Getting saved is HARD!
I can add some scriptures to this:
Luke 6:28 Give blessing to those who give you curses, say prayers for those who are cruel to you.
Luke 6:35 Rather, love your enemies, help them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then you will have a great reward. You will be the children of the Most High God. After all, he is kind to unthankful and evil people.
Amrhrasach:
--- Quote from: G. Driggs on June 13, 2009, 10:52:35 AM ---
--- Quote from: firefly77 on June 13, 2009, 09:16:12 AM ---
--- Quote ---For me anyway I never, beyond that point, ever trusted ANYONE who said "I love you". My reaction was usually "yea, right" and then giving them a good long look at my backside while walking away. As my grandmother would say to my siblings, "he doesn't trust your words, he MIGHT trust your actions". Sad really.
--- End quote ---
Gary,
Very well said! You can tell me all day long that you love me... I would much rather see the action behind those words. I am a German, born and raised in Germany (22 years), before coming to the US. The words "I love you" carry a great commitment towards the person we say it too. I find in this country we say those words to anybody without contemplating the meaning of what we just said. I was literally shocked the first few years I lived here, how indiscriminately people said "I love you" and how it has lost its meaning. It certainly did not help my already crippled understanding and still ruffles my feathers every time I hear it.
Angie
--- End quote ---
Hi Angie, I sincerely hope you do not take this the wrong way, or maybe it is I taking this the wrong way. I simply want to try and help.
You say, "You can tell me all day long that you love me... I would much rather see the action behind those words." But how would you know it if you were to see it?
Much Love & Peace to you, G.Driggs
--- End quote ---
It wasn't my intention to turn this thread into a testimonial thread, just so everyone knows. G.Driggs, I know your statement is intended for Firefly and I'm sure she will provide her own answer. But your question begs a perpendicular view. That's not a problem. For those who have never really known "love" from a parental sense as in the case of Firefly and many, many others, KNOWING love when you see it is a challenge AND no prior training ground. That's a problem. FEELING love accompanys that very challenge. Same lack of training, same no training ground. To me they go hand in hand. And then we come to the Lord. He offers his love freely, true. But until he opens our hearts to understand his love, it's beyond our measure of understanding. In even the smallest sense. Faith. Trust. These things come from him. Our efforts fail. Period. Since he grows us according to his will, not ours, perhaps he hasn't opened yet that understanding fully and giving us "baby steps" because that's all we can take for now.
Back to Ray Smith.
The beauty of Ray's teachings. He takes matters of Christ and teaches in a manner that understanding begins to sprout. Love is no doubt one of them. For some like myself Ray and his teachings are a God-send.
I hope I'm making sense and not just wandering off.
Gary
Ninny:
That makes sense Gary, and sometimes love is just a word that we throw around. God is where the deep abiding love is, none of us can fully appreciate that love until we understand that no human can fill that place in our heart that belongs to God. Human parents can mess up so badly it's almost beyond repair, but then God fills that space left empty by human parents, too! If we could just grasp the love of God we would all "get it". We leave that to God He is the mender of broken hearts and wounded spirits...
Kathy
aqrinc:
Here is a bit more about love and love of the truth. Every one has a story about their childhood, either bad or good. What we need to see is that all this is for learning and growing into the stature that GOD And Our Lord Jesus Christ, Have already determined that we will be.
GOD"S Will for us is much Greater and Better than our will for us can ever hope to grasp in this life.
Thus when we Pray, it is that: THY WILL BE DONE O' GOD.
Joh 3: 14-20 (CLV)
14 And, according as Moses exalts the serpent in the wilderness, thus must the Son of Mankind be exalted,
15 that everyone believing on Him should not be perishing, but may be having life eonian."
16 For thus God loves the world, so that He gives His only-begotten Son, that everyone who is believing in Him should not be perishing, but may be having life eonian."
17 For God does not dispatch His Son into the world that He should be judging the world, but that the world may be saved through Him."
18 He who is believing in Him is not being judged; yet he who is not believing has been judged already, for he has not believed in the name of the only-begotten Son of God."
19 Now this is the judging: that the light has come into the world, and men love the darkness rather than the light, for their acts were wicked."
20 For everyone who is committing bad things is hating the light and is not coming to the light, lest his acts may be exposed."
Joh 15: 12-16 (CLV)
12 This is My precept, that you be loving one another, according as I love you."
13 Greater love than this has no one, that anyone may be laying down his soul for his friends."
14 You are My friends, if you should be doing whatever I am directing you."
15 No longer am I terming you slaves, for the slave is not aware what his lord is doing. Yet I have declared you friends, for all that I hear from My Father I make known to you."
16 Not you choose Me, but I choose you, and I appoint you, that you may be going away and be bringing forth much fruit, and your fruit may be remaining, that anything whichsoever you should be requesting the Father in My name, He will be giving it to you."
1Jn 4: 15-21 (CLV)
15 Whoever should be avowing that Jesus is the Son of God, God is remaining in him, and he in God."
16 And we know and believe the love which God has in us. God is love, and he who is remaining in love is remaining in God, and God is remaining in him."
17 In this is love perfected with us, that we may have boldness in the day of judging, seeing that, according as He is, so are we also in this world."
18 Fear is not in love, but perfect love is casting out fear, for fear has chastening. Now he who is fearing is not perfected in love."
19 We are loving God, for He first loves us."
20 If anyone should be saying that "I am loving God,and should be hating his brother, he is a liar; for he who is not loving his brother whom he has seen can not be loving God Whom he has not seen."
21 And this precept have we from Him, that he who is loving God may be loving his brother also."
george :).
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