Articles
True Christianity
Love is something which the Bible speaks of in great detail. The love we have for God
and our fellow man is at the core of who we are as Christians. When Jesus was asked about the
greatest command, Jesus answered, “The most important is, ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God,
the Lord is one. And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul
and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ The second is this: ‘You shall love your
neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these” (Mark 12:29-31).
These commands didn’t just go away. They are carried over into the New Testament teachings
for us as Christians.
We are commanded to love. “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one
another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know
that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another” (John 13:34-35). If Jesus is our
Lord, we will do as He commands. Love can be commanded because it is more than just a
feeling.
It is important for us to understand what true love really is and how it is to express itself
in our daily lives. “Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or
rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at
wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all
things, endures all things” (1 Corinthians 13:4-7).
We often teach our kids that they should treat others the way they would like to be
treated. “Do to others as you would have them do to you” (Luke 6:31). This is also a rule for us
as adults, but somewhere along the line we often seem to forget. When we think about the way
we expect to be treated. it is important to examine our own actions and see how we are really
treating others around us. ~B Tolbert
