How many things have we had to endure for love? Surely many; How many did Yeshua endure for love of us? The unspeakable. This postmodern era has disfigured the true face of love and has debased it in its meaning; For some to "love" is something material, for others it is to feel attraction for somebody, and even many think that to love is always to receive something.
I tend to teach that to define from God's perspective that it is "love" it is imperative to first clarify that it is not, and in fact, we love simply because God first loved us; The human being by nature does not know to love, in contrast, God, by nature, loves; He is like that. There is no need to "do anything" to love us, simply love us because He is love.
How do we know that he loves us? Because he gave the most wonderful thing he had: to his Only Son, and not only gave it, but he did it so that he died in our place, for our sins. So how can we reciprocate that love? We can do at least three things:
- To love my brother; If "no one has ever seen God," the closest way of looking at him is to love the one whom I can see.
- To love my enemy; Because if I love only the one who loves me, what reward ("payment for services") will I have? Even God loves for a reward (souls)
- Love myself; When I know who I am in God I can endure the injury, knowing that I too often failed God and He was always broad in forgiving me ... and to whom much is forgiven, much loves.