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For the whole Law is fulfilled in one word, in the statement, "You shall love your neighbor as yourself." Galatians 5:14-26 In this column, we will be looking at the verses, one by one, in Galatians 5:14 to Galatians 6:10. These are important verses about love, which we are told is the mark of a true Christian. Jesus said, "A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another. 35"By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another." John 13:34-35 People should be able to tell whether or not we are Christians by whether or not we love one another. None of us are perfect. But we dare not use that as an excuse to not live as Christ's disciples are meant to live. To be a Christian, or a disciple of Christ, is to be His follower. This means to believe in Him as our Savior, but it also means to believe in Him as our Master and Lord, meaning that we expect to obey Him. Did you ever think about the fact that Jesus actually gave us commands to live by? Jesus commands are not the Old Testament Law. They are the moral law, that means they are the right way to live, period. Jesus' central command is for us to love one another as much as we love ourselves. This love is the mark of any true Christian, including a Christian girl. So, since love is the mark of a Christian girl, we need to get serious about learning what loving others really means. One good place to start is in your own family. Who is harder to love than those you live with every day, the sister you share a room with, the brother with his irritating habits, the mother who requires you to constantly obey (for that is her responsibility before God, because she is accountable to see that you turn out right by the time you are grown). 1 Corinthians 13:4-8 gives us a good description of what love is. Love is patient, love is kind, and is not jealous; love does not brag and is not arrogant, 5does not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered, 6does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth; 7bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. 8Love never fails...1 Cor. 13:4-8 Love, or the lack of it, is especially revealed in the things we say. Love does not say, "Hurry up and get out of the bathroom, I am so sick of waiting for you! You are such a bathroom hog," for love is patient. Love does not say, "That is an ugly picture you just drew, now throw it away," for love is kind. "Love does not say, "You lucky pig, I wish I had one," for love is not jealous. Love does not taunt, "I can do that better than you can," for love does not brag. Love is also revealed in the way we think. Jesus holds us accountable for not just the things we do and say, but also the things we think. Jesus said in Matthew 5:20-32 that we do not have to murder someone to be sinning. It is sin just to hate them, or as the NASB says, even to be angry with them, in other words, to hold a grudge against someone. To have a bitter, angry, resentful feeling toward someone is to have murder in your heart toward them. So we are responsible even for our thoughts. Our emotions are not wrong by themselves. But we are responsible to develop right thoughts so that our emotions will follow them. If you allow yourself to think angry thoughts, they will build and build until you feel really angry, even hateful towards someone, but if you deliberately choose to think kind thoughts, your emotions will follow, and your words will come out right, along with your tone of voice (which can also hurt someone). Love is not provoked. Are you easily provoked to anger? We can choose not to be provoked by others. We can choose to have thoughts of love toward them even if they are very irritating in their words, attitudes, and behavior. Jesus told us how to love by saying, "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you." That means we need to get in the habit of putting ourselves in someone else's shoes. We need to think about how they must feel, and act accordingly. There is an old Native American saying that goes, "Do not judge a man until you have walked a mile in his moccasins." That is part of loving others. Think about how you would feel in each situation you see another person in. Would being in pain make you feel upset and crabby? Then be kind to the person in pain, instead of judging them for their crabbiness. If you were your mother, and had 4, 5, or 6 kids (etc.) to teach and keep in line, and meals to make and the house to clean, would you wish that your kids would be more helpful? Then be helpful to your mother. This is part of love, which is Jesus' command to His people. Love is an attitude, and it takes practice, and thoughtfulness. Jesus will help you learn how to love, if you let Him, but you must want it badly enough to really try. Love is something you have to think about. A lazy mind is not a loving mind, and God wants us to cultivate a loving mind. It's something to think about, isn't it, for it is the command of Jesus Himself. Think carefully this week and next about how you can be more loving toward others, all the time, for love is the mark of a Christian girl. Until next time, live by the love of Jesus, who loved you enough to die for you. With love from Jennaya's mother |
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By Joy Marie Dunlap |
