Four reasons why we MUST love others.

If God is love, and He is, the question of love becomes paramount for a child of God. Knowing God's love and living God's love is the basis of the Christian life. However, there is one dimension of love that must captivate us. It is the love we show toward others. The Word of God is particularly eloquent on this subject, and we sometimes find surprising and unexpected things there. While preparing the mini-chapter on love for my upcoming book on 'God's Mind,' I was once again struck by the motivation of brotherly love. Let's look at these four verses; I invite you to meditate on them; they will take you to another dimension of brotherly love.

God loved us

First, we must love others because God has loved usIn other words, the motivation for love is this: since we have received love from God, we must give it to others. This is powerful. PersNo one receives to keep for themselves. Receiving from God places us under an obligation to give to others. You have been loved, you must love. Every Christian has the responsibility to communicate love.

 

We love God

Second, we love God. God commands that all who love God must also love their brothers and sisters. Indeed, in biblical thought, whoever loves God is obligated to love their brothers and sisters. We cannot say, "It's Jesus and me and no one else," as many do. God commands us. shows that the two go hand in hand. Indeed, if we love God, we would love those whom God loves, we will have a heart for those whom He cares about. God therefore wants His people to function as a community of love and not as isolated individuals, each loving God while hating one another.

 

Love comes from God

Third, we love because love comes from God, and we are born of God. This point is captivating. The logic is simple and indisputable. He who loves is born of God and knows God; this is evident in the love he manifests, having received it from God. He who does not love shows that he does not know God, he is not born of God because God is love. If he does not have the love of God in him, it is because he is not born of God.  So we understand that whoever is born of God naturally has love within them because God is love and God's love is imparted to them at conversion. So asking us to walk in love is asking us for something for which we are already equipped by the new birth. But we must choose to do it.

To love is a commandment of Jesus

And finally, we love because Jesus gave us the commandment to love one another as He loved us. Love is therefore a commandment of Jesus, which means, obligatory. Those who love Him obey Him; if we love Jesus, we will do what is necessary to show love to others. It cannot be otherwise. But another crucial point: not only do we love others, but we do it as Jesus loved us. In other words, a total gift of self; a generous, constant, overflowing, and pure love. And we received it at the new birth. Let us choose to activate this love and make it a lifestyle. God insists on it.