“Now may our God and Father Himself, and our Lord Jesus, direct our way to you, and may the Lord make you increase and abound in love for one another and for all, as we do for you, so that He may establish your hearts blameless in holiness before our God and Father, at the coming of the our Lord Jesus with all His saints.” – 1 Thessalonians 3: 11-13
“Increase and about in love for one another…so that He may establish your hearts blameless in holiness.”
I have never really thought about how Love is the essence of Purity. I mean, I have thought that God is Love. I have thought God is Pure. I have thought God is Blameless. I have thought that Jesus came through Love to give us Purity, and through His blood we are found Blameless. I know these things to be true, and I am fighting to live them out in my life so that I can show others who look at me that I believe these things. However, even in knowing these things, in believing these things, I have not seen Love and Purity as the same side of the coin. But they are… let me go on to explain.
When we increase in Love for one another, we decrease our sin. Because Love in its essence is Holiness (or Purity), it drives out HATRED, SELFISHNESS, GREED, LIES, ANGER and IMPURITY. It is the fire that refines; it is the blade and cut down weeds. And, in the same picture, it is the breeze that whispers encouragement and the wave that soothes the troubled sands. Love pushes you to do the best you can for someone else; it is sacrificial.
There are twisted versions of Love; images that are grotesque. Some people say that Love caresses money, steals with envy, talks only about self, prospers without generosity, and eats at the head of the table. These are images that we, the world, put on Love. False images, deceitful images, understandable images. We want Love to be those things so that it will be easy to obtain, easy to be. We accept the lie because the Truth is almost hidden from our eyes. We say things like, “love yourself, love your food, love your clothes, love your…” We are not talking about Love; we are talking about a watered-down version, which is so utterly different from Love that we should not even grace it with the same name. No, love and Love are very different.
Don’t misunderstand me. We do find ourselves falling over ourselves, striving to find the things that won’t satisfy. We are cautioned not to love money, not to love pride, not to love evil. So, if that kind of love exists, how can we separate it from the Love of God? How are they different when they are the same word?
love, as the world sees it, is weightless, fickle, and selfish. It screams things like, “me first! me only!” It also does not find time for other people, thinks that money is the pride of life, goes to church only to feel good, finds forgiveness easy to say, but forgetfulness easier to deal with. It can say the right things, do the right things, eat the right things and drink the right things. I can carry itself well, but doesn’t have to. It logically considers what would be best for its owner, without regard to others. It speaks quickly, angers easily, and professes wisdom without fruitful actions. It wonders away, only to come back in little time, finds joy impossible, and is afraid. It worries, but not enough to “sin”. This love can appear in many forms, some of which are so close to True that they confuse us. So, I will make this easy.
The worldly love says “me, my, mine, I, us, we, need, want, have to, but, see here, I know…”
The Godly Love says “Jesus”.
That is the difference, and that is why it is Purity and Holiness and Blamelessness. It is not about the owner anymore, and it is not about the other people either. It is about Jesus. All about Him. It is Full, Beautiful, and Lifelong. It cries “JESUS!” It makes time for other people because Jesus did. It believes money is useful, and sees that money can and should be given away. It goes to church to fellowship with believers, be encouraged and filled, serve, and to be challenged to go back out and share Love. Love forgives, recognizing that forgetting is not the same thing. Love thinks the right things, strives for the right things, and calls after the right things. Love logically considers what is best for Jesus, from Jesus and to Jesus. It is slow to speak, slow to anger, seeks after Wisdom and depends on Grace. Love never fails.
And that’s the difference.
foreverajourney 