“If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give all I possess to the poor and surrender my body to the flames, but have not love, I gain nothing.” 1 Corinthians 13:1-3.
Wow !!! That’s powerful stuff I thought. If we have Faith to move mountains yet have not love it counts for nothing. Even if we give all we own to the poor? I’m not so sure about the burning body bit; but this man is over the top I tell you.
Let’s see what Jesus has to say about this. Better go to the expert, I always say.
“Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: Love your neighbour as yourself.” Matthew 22:37-39.
What?
Presumably by neighbour Jesus means everyone around us. The whole of humanity. That's a big ask I tell you!
Some people are just not lovable. He created them so He should know.
Like the guy driving that big van this morning and keeping a distance of
just three inches from the back of my car? And hooting his horn time
and again even though I was driving within the speed limit. Perhaps he
was in a hurry to go to the toilet !
Or like that obnoxious pompous boss at work who seems to delight in making everyone suffer?
Are we supposed to love such people?
Jesus goes on to say:
"But I tell you who hear me: Love your enemies, do good to those who
hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. If
someone strikes you on one cheek, turn to him the other also. If
someone takes your cloak, do not stop him from taking your tunic. Give
to everyone who asks you, and if anyone takes what belongs to you, do
not demand it back. Do to others as you would have them do to you." Luke
6:27-31.
This is way too much love I tell you.
And there I was thinking that going to Heaven is a matter of ticking the right boxes:
Baptism? Done that. Tick.
Go to church on Sundays? Done that. Tick.
A few more ticks here and there and my passport and visa are ready for me to enter Heaven !!!
On reflection, being a Christian is much more difficult than it seems at first.
"Not everyone who calls me 'Lord, Lord' will enter the Kingdom of
Heaven, but only those who do what my Father in Heaven wants them to
do." Matthew 7:21.
In other words – There are no parrots in Heaven.
What a splendid post, Victor -- especially your last sentence. Applauding from Alabama!
ReplyDeleteThank you so much Mevely for your support and applause. Much appreciated my friend.
DeleteGod bless you and your family always.
What Jesus calls us to do IS hard and absolutely impossible without the help of the Holy Spirit, Victor. We simply must obey Him, trusting He will be there for us in every time and place. Blessings!
ReplyDeleteAmen Martha. We so need the help of the Holy Spirit.
DeleteGod bless you and yours.
YOU definitely said a lot about what HE said. Is it tough? for me not often, BUT everyonce in a while .......
ReplyDeleteI do think of you and love you, and a very serious Thanks..
Thank you for your friendship Jack. God bless you and your family always.
Deletethecontemplativecat here. So much truth is said in so few sentences! Loving the neighbor as yourself is a big stumbling stone for so many. I am reading The Questions book. Thank you for explaining difficult concepts or thoughts so well.
ReplyDeleteThank you so much Susan. I appreciate your support and encouragement. I hope my book "Christian Questions" does help someone somewhere. Please tell others about it or/and leave an AMAZON review. Many thanx and God bless.
DeleteA top-notch message this morning...We are called to LOVE, but in a split moment of frustration we show everything but love. I thank you for this sweet message today...
ReplyDelete