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Author Topic: Love One Another  (Read 12727 times)

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Stacey

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Re: Love One Another
« Reply #20 on: August 13, 2011, 02:46:17 AM »

Quote
I think we're on the same page just from different viewpoints.

Somebody made a statement one time not long ago about view points that are basically the same but not exactly, I think it was Craig, something like this,

We are eating off opposite ends of the same banana.

That's true love man..... :)
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Stacey

Duane

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Re: Love One Another
« Reply #21 on: August 13, 2011, 02:48:29 AM »

I believe love is "attitude and action".  "For God so loved the world, He GAVE..."  John 3: !6.

If one goes thru life looking for people who need help and one has a willing spirit to help--I think that is what is meant by "loving people".  

Yesterday eas perfect example.  My step son and I were changing the spark plug wires on his truck and we found they needed replacing.  He had no money, nor did I,  and the wires were $30.00. I went and borrowed $30.00 from my sister and we got the wires.  She, then, gave me a ride to the parts store.

When we went to give the wires to Joe, she remembered that he wrote and played a guitar solo for my mother's funeral.  She said "the wires are a gift from me to you for your part in the funeral!  THAT'S love!
  
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Foxx

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Re: Love One Another
« Reply #22 on: August 14, 2011, 01:35:12 PM »

I wrote this a while back but i suppose it fits with how my feelings are regarding your question :)




The Great Commandment

So I was awake at about 5:00 this morning unable to go back to sleep and I so I cracked up the ole' good book and started reading and I felt like there was a new truth revealed to me. Never know when it is going to happen do we? At any rate I thought I would share.

Matthew 22:34-40 (King James Version)
But when the Pharisees had heard that he had put the Sadducees to silence, they were gathered together. Then one of them, which was a lawyer, asked him a question, tempting him, and saying, Master, which is the great commandment in the law? Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.  On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.

Here we have the Pharisees, yet again, trying to discredit Christ and trap him in some form or fashion.  They asked him “Which is the great commandment in the law? That is to say, what is the greatest commandment, the most important in the law.
Jesus says:  Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment.

BUT then he goes onto say:  And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.  On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.

Initially it appears he is saying the “first” great law is to love the Lord thy God and then the second most important is to love thy neighbor as thyself...but is this REALLY what Jesus is saying?  Sure he says the most important law is to love the Lord thy God with all your heart, soul and mind...but then he says the second law is LIKE UNTO IT! How can that be?

If you were to ask me “What is the greatest pizza restaurant in the world?” And I say Pizza Hut is the greatest but the second greatest is Domino's and its like the first! But how? How can the second greatest be like the first greatest? That doesn't make sense! They both can't be the greatest!  The same goes with the commandment, they both can't be the great commandment, the most important above all.
Or can they? As a matter of fact, they can!
 
Ask yourself, do you know anyone who loves the Lord thy God with ALL thy heart, and with ALL thy soul, and with ALL thy mind? Is there a single person in the world that does? If they do I have not met them. But does God love us with everything he is? Most certainly.

I would be a liar if I claimed to love the Lord with ALL my heart, soul, and mind...but I am working on it always. I wish I did but I know I don't and you know what? I don't a single person who truly does either.  One day we will but we as carnal beings do not and as far as I know can not love God with EVERYTHING that I am at all times. Why? Because we are sinful in nature.

Next, do you love your neighbor as thyself? Do you REALLY LOVE your neighbor? I don't mean your family or friends but just the people around you...Do you truly love them even half as much as you do yourself? I know that I personally do care to a certain extent but I would not say I love my neighbor even a fraction as much as I love my mother, father or brother. I care if something bad happens to someone and I will certainly step up to protect someone if they are under attack or in danger but I can't honestly say that I love them as much as I love myself. I don't make a habit of judging or condemning those who disagree with my views because I know that one day they will see the truth. I simply don't have enough love inside of me to care about my neighbor as I do myself or my family and friends. To be honest I don't know a single Christian who does and most are quick to condemn many to hell for not believing what they do and they claim to do so out of love...even though the Bible says there is no fear in love. These people do not love God with everything that they are! They think they do but they are lying to themselves!

A lot of people have this idea that loving God is something you do by obeying all the things he tells us and it is true that obeying him is something we should do and you should obey his word which is to love your enemies and do good unto others but not many TRULY do. What if it is when God is truly in you, you WILL love others as much as you love yourself. It is a hard pill to swallow for many because most people don't care about loving their neighbor and they certainly don't want to base whether or not they truly love God on loving others because if we did hold people accountable by that definition then it would most definitely prove that they DON'T truly love God! At least not with all their heart, soul and mind...perhaps in some part but not totally. Why? Because they don't love their neighbor! Most people don't give a flip about just the random people in our lives unless some catastrophe happens right in front of eyes and then by conscience we act in order to help in many cases but other than most don't care.
 
So what is Jesus really saying here? Loving thy neighbor as thyself is the SAME as loving the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind! Is Jesus really saying this?? That these are the SAME THING? We have been taught that loving God is this personal relationship with Jesus and obeying what the Bible says. Yes, believing that Christ is your Lord and savior is the way to be saved but according to these verses loving God with everything that you are IS loving your neighbor...who would accept such a thing? Most Christians won't. Why? Because they want it to be all about themselves! It isn't about EVERYONE its about THEM! It isn't about the WHOLE of humanity its about just them and no one else! Thats the mindset that the Christian world has and they put up a display of caring for others when they really don't. They say they love others but they don't! They judge and condemn and persecute and hate all those who don't believe in Jesus...or more specifically what they believe.

John 15:12-17
This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you. Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you. Henceforth I call you not servants; for the servant knoweth not what his lord doeth: but I have called you friends; for all things that I have heard of my Father I have made known unto you. Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain: that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you. These things I command you, that ye love one another.

If you love your neighbor as much as you love yourself you ARE loving God with everything you are...but once again, how many people do you know that truly fit this description? I don't know any but I believe one day we will and until then strive for this. God himself is IN US and if we love one another even half as much as he loves us we will be showing a bit better the great commandment of love unto him. So am I admitting that I don't love God totally? You better believe it. I'm not proud of that but I admit it and Lord willing I will begin to show greater love to my neighbor.

Matthew 22:40  On these two commandments hang ALL the law and the prophets.

Love one another as you do yourself and you WILL be loving God with all that you are....
God Bless
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DougE6

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Re: Love One Another
« Reply #23 on: August 14, 2011, 03:15:00 PM »


Foxx..well done! Bravo!  :)
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judith collier

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Re: Love One Another
« Reply #24 on: August 15, 2011, 06:04:32 AM »

I don't believe we need to FEEL love always but for sure we must act in love. Where is that vs? Love is patient, kind, not easily offended, does not seek his own way, etc. I have disliked many people but make myself be kind and compassionate anyway. Just try not grimmacing at some of the things people say, that's hard. Isn't it true that it is not how much we love but how much we are loved is a good measure. Certainly not at any price! Understanding someone and what they have been through makes it easier to love them.
judy
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JohnMichael

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Re: Love One Another
« Reply #25 on: August 15, 2011, 10:20:16 AM »

An interesting note about this that I caught today. None of those verses use phileo; not one of them. They all use agapao.  It definitely puts those verses, for me, in a whole new light. We are to love one another EVEN IF those around us don't reciprocate, EVEN IF they spit in our faces, EVEN IF they are backbiting you and smiling in your face, etc.

I wouldn't be able to do that on my own. I would very much need His influence.

Here's what Ray said about agapao v. phileo in his Bible Study "Love." (http://forums.bible-truths.com/index.php/topic,3719.0.html)

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So now I can see some better distinctions. It, agape - is a complex emotion, arousing appreciation or delight in and desire for the presence of it’s object; as well as to please and promote it’s welfare.

Now here is the word phileo. We understand the word Philadelphia, the city of brotherly love, Philadelphia - it means to be fond of, responsive, affection based on approval and regard

That’s a little complicated, basically it’s this. God of love -agape, is a one-way street, God loves, He gives. It’s not based on whether the ones He gives it to, loves Him back. While we were yet sinners, Christ died for us, right. Why? Because He loves us, “for God so loved the world.” That includes all these drug dealing, wife beating, God defying people. He so loved the world, did they love Him back? No, very few people love God back. It’s a one-way street... He loves. He’s the One that loves, not getting anything back for it, He loves.
 
But phileo love, is where two people are fond of each other and they’re responsive to each other. It has to do with affections, based on the approval of the one you’re giving out to, you see. Why are people friends? Because they reciprocate, right.
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DougE6

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Re: Love One Another
« Reply #26 on: August 15, 2011, 10:39:48 AM »


When God encounters us deeply from His Love side, it is positively instant melt of the hardest heart. I do not believe anyone could withstand His Love if he revealed it fully.  maybe that is why Moses could not see His glory face to face, in this mortal state.  When He encounters you from His judgement side, it is instant fear to obey.  At least that has been my experience.  If God pours out His agape Love believe me, it is full of feeling. It is a better motivator for me to follow Him than anything else.

My point is, when you love your enemies, or just your relatives when they are jerks ;D and obey Gods command to love in spite of feelings, God sheds forth His agape Love in YOUR HEART! Then you have LOTS of motivation to continue loving the unlovable!  And somehow, you begin to associate loving those difficult people with Gods agape Love, and guess what, it isn't as hard to do it. Suddenly you become more patient, more understanding, more willing to give, and more able to put aside the self.  It all depends on how much of Gods agape love He has shed forth in your heart, that you can then extend to others.  Agape Love is very powerful, when it comes from God.
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indianabob

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Re: Love One Another
« Reply #27 on: August 15, 2011, 02:05:49 PM »

John,
I appreciate all of the comments.
I especially liked your as I apply it to myself.
Thanks, Indiana Bob


An interesting note about this that I caught today. None of those verses use phileo; not one of them. They all use agapao.  It definitely puts those verses, for me, in a whole new light. We are to love one another EVEN IF those around us don't reciprocate, EVEN IF they spit in our faces, EVEN IF they are backbiting you and smiling in your face, etc.

I wouldn't be able to do that on my own. I would very much need His influence.

Here's what Ray said about agapao v. phileo in his Bible Study "Love." (http://forums.bible-truths.com/index.php/topic,3719.0.html)

-------------------------------------------

So now I can see some better distinctions. It, agape - is a complex emotion, arousing appreciation or delight in and desire for the presence of it’s object; as well as to please and promote it’s welfare.

Now here is the word phileo. We understand the word Philadelphia, the city of brotherly love, Philadelphia - it means to be fond of, responsive, affection based on approval and regard

That’s a little complicated, basically it’s this. God of love -agape, is a one-way street, God loves, He gives. It’s not based on whether the ones He gives it to, loves Him back. While we were yet sinners, Christ died for us, right. Why? Because He loves us, “for God so loved the world.” That includes all these drug dealing, wife beating, God defying people. He so loved the world, did they love Him back? No, very few people love God back. It’s a one-way street... He loves. He’s the One that loves, not getting anything back for it, He loves.
 
But phileo love, is where two people are fond of each other and they’re responsive to each other. It has to do with affections, based on the approval of the one you’re giving out to, you see. Why are people friends? Because they reciprocate, right.
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Linny

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Re: Love One Another
« Reply #28 on: August 17, 2011, 12:27:42 AM »

I think it is easier to love people we feel a kinship to. I think before BT, I had a more difficult time loving anyone who didn't fit into my mold. Now I feel more loving towards everyone and less in competition with those who wouldn't agree with me or whom I disagree with.

I also think love is not a feeling but an action. I think the love God wants us to show the world is doing our best to help, love, comfort, feed, clothe, shelter, etc. all of God's children.

This is where I think us humans fail the most.

We tend to get too comfortable with our own lives that we don't "see" the hurting, needy people all around us. Or we are too caught up in our own messes to have the time or inclination to help anyone else.

And the church has done a fantastic job making sure that the pew sitters aren't doing much as they are required to give to the church and the church is supposed to do the helping. Problem is, they don't do it either. Too busy making cozy the pew sitters and pastors.

New Orleans has just finished fixing their superdome. They still have homeless/displaced people from the hurricane, but their superdome is spectacular.  :-\
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River

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Re: Love One Another
« Reply #29 on: August 17, 2011, 12:36:57 AM »

Lenny wrote :" I think it is easier to love people we feel a kinship to. I think before BT, I had a more difficult time loving anyone who didn't fit into my mold. Now I feel more loving towards everyone and less in competition with those who wouldn't agree with me or whom I disagree with."


I totally agree! It has been life changing. Thanks for sharing that Lenny.

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stanstillwhite

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Re: Love One Another
« Reply #30 on: August 23, 2011, 03:01:09 AM »

I just got through reading a book called Tortured for Christ.  Its about the underground church in Romania when the Russions took over.  The love this guy describes for his fellow brothers and sisters is almost unreal.  And that love is seen by their torturers.  They were also able to sinsearly love those who were killing them and saw many converted, who would then be in the cell with them being tortured with them and thanking God.  I think love grows among people when they share hardship.  I know I would starve to death if it kept my (blood) brother from dieing of starvation.  I want that kind of love for all my brothers and sisters.  That's a fruit of the Spirit that only God can give. Its been said before, that can't be fabricated.  I think some real persecution would help.  But maybe that's just me.

Love ya all...

Stan
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DougE6

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Re: Love One Another
« Reply #31 on: August 23, 2011, 03:17:25 AM »

stanstillwhite...

I love seeing Love in ACTION, not just in word or sayings or creeds. And it is the ONLY thing that God is going to count for praise towards him, everything else will burn.  Those ACTS of LOVE are HOLY; a sweet savour to God, an acceptable and pleasing sacrifice; and some of the greatest acts of LOVE have taken place under the radar, when people who are called by HIS name LOVE their enemies for REAL; and do what only Jesus would do, as Jesus does His works in them. Thanks for sharing that.  I wholeheartedly agree and I love reading those things, too.

Doug
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