You diligently study the Scriptures because you think that by them you possess eternal life. These are the Scriptures that testify about me, yet you refuse to come to me to have life. (John 5:39, 40 NIV84)
Studying Gods word with the desire to do nothing more than gain knowledge to show others means we do not truly understand what God says. There are too many people who want the knowledge that Gods word offers, without taking in the grace, love and lifestyle. If we live for knowledge, we will not find what we're looking for. The amazing truths to the bible are found through a relationship. When we love someone we don't feel like we *have to* study them, but watch carefully, learning all we can about them so we know every aspect of their life.
God is a very deep being. We will never know all He knows, nor will we ever know everything about Him. But He tells us that of everything we can learn, love is above all else.
"If I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but do not have love, I have become a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy, and know all mysteries and all knowledge; and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. And if I give all my possessions to feed the poor, and if I surrender my body to be burned, but do not have love, it profits me nothing. Love is patient, love is kind and is not jealous; love does not brag and is not arrogant, does not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered, does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never fails; but if there are gifts of prophecy, they will be done away; if there are tongues, they will cease; if there is knowledge, it will be done away. For we know in part and we prophesy in part; but when the perfect comes, the partial will be done away. When I was a child, I used to speak like a child, think like a child, reason like a child; when I became a man, I did away with childish things. For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face; now I know in part, but then I will know fully just as I also have been fully known. But now faith, hope, love, abide these three; but the greatest of these is love. (1 Corinthians 13:1-13 NASB)
We can have all the knowledge of the world, but we are nothing if we do not have love. We can go serve communities, the homeless, widows and orphans; but if we do not have love, it means nothing.
It really isn't that difficult. We are to be like God, serve as He served, talk as He talked, live as He lived; and the bible says "God is love". Everything we do in this life should have love rooted deep inside of it. If what we are about to say doesn't sound loving; we must hold our tongue. Doesn't matter if it is the truth, a fact, or an opinion; if it isn't out of love DO NOT SAY IT. If we are about to do something and it isn't loving or could be hurtful to another person, back away. I don't care what it is, how funny it will be or if "most" people wouldn't mind. If you damage your image of Christ for a SINGLE person, that is one more person that will never be open to the gospel.
We have become a people that are too strong headed for our own good. We have gotten so fed up with "conservatives" ruining our fun that we have become a bunch of heartless beings; doing what we want, when we want...with no thought of the consequences. If it offends somebody, "Too bad. It's the truth and they need to learn to deal with it."
Of course, because Jesus always spoke the truth dryly without a hint of love; right? See, here is the difference. When Jesus "spoke the truth" he was speaking out of compassion and kindness, realizing people needed to hear truth, but knowing WITHOUT LOVE, nobody would listen or think good of Him whatsoever. He would be doing more harm than good and would have turned away thousands and thousands of people from the gospel and they would have all gone to hell.
Think about it. Is it REALLY worth it to us to speak our mind freely, state our opinion, or prove we're right at the cost of another being going to hell? Oh, you don't think your one action could do that? Think again. One simple slip up on your part could mean the forever tormenting of another person. You say that's their fault for being offended too easily? Then you do not KNOW Christ. You know OF Him.
It is stated very clearly.
"Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. The one who does not love does not know God, for God is love. In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. We love, because He first loved us. If someone says, "I love God," and hates his brother, he is a liar; for the one who does not love his brother whom he has seen, cannot love God whom he has not seen." (1 John 4:7-11, 19-20 NASB)
Love in our lives is proof we have Jesus living inside of us. If we do not have love, we cannot know Him.
It's time we look at our lives. Do we produce the love that Jesus had for those around Him, or do we let other people know we care nothing about them by the bitterness we allow to cover our lives?
It is time for a change.
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