Wednesday, July 23, 2014

What is Love

What is Love?

What we need to first look at is how love is defined by society, or what I call the world. The world defines love as a passion or lust, when they see an extremely appealing person that they desire; they say "I love". Then they also have a love when they admire the other person and enjoy their company, they are quite fond of the other. Then the world has what they call "true love", this is when they have the first two types of love, the desires and emotions and feel that they will never again desire or even wish that they will want to be with anyone else again. However, as can be seen from the high number of divorces that this "true love" as with other types of love, they are not a true and lasting love. These types of love are an emotional love, they are not the pure love that we are commanded to have by God's Word. The closest the world can come to the pure love that the Bible tells us to have is the love most mothers have for their child. As close as this type of love comes, it is still emotional love and light years away from being the "true love" we are commanded to have by God’s Word.
As we look to God’s Word, we see that the love we are to have is not something He recommends or suggests for us to have or give. The love He has for us to give is a love we have been commanded to do. If we are commanded, then we can see that this pure love we are to love with and show must be an action that we MUST do. It is something we can learn to do. It is a change in our life, in our way of thinking, one that will affect our total being, our fundamental nature of our entire life, how we act, speak, and respond to situations around us. God has given us a COMMAND, an instruction that MUST be obeyed, a mandate. If the love God COMMANDED us to have was an emotional love as the world really sees the definition, then we would never be able to do as commanded, as we would not be able to love at all times as instructed, but only as we felt like.
Without pure love, love as defined by God's Word, we can have no relationship with God. Without His pure love in its fullest meaning, we are going to find ourselves lost in this world of sin.
"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: Love your neighbor as yourself. There is no commandment greater than these."
MARK 12:30-31
It is our love for God that is to be placed first and foremost in our priorities in our walk with God. The second priority before anything else is to love our neighbors as we love ourselves. OK, well who are our neighbors? Let’s look at the parable of the Good Samaritan, you can find it in "LUKE 10:29-37". What it basically says here, is that our neighbor is anyone we come into contact with. So now we may say, "No Problem," but remember that the pure love must be from our hearts, we must not hold back from God or others this great love we are to give. This pure love we are commanded to give is unconditional love that is a love that has no conditions on it. It is a love that never stops or decreases, or even wavers. We are told to love our brothers, and we are told what many will find the hardest love of all, that is to love our enemies. Wow! This pure love that we are commanded to give is not as easy as we may at first perceived once we are fulfilling the command to love.
"But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.”
MATTHEW 5:44-45
So, what is love? This pure love, which so many Christians do not fully understand or have a complete grasp of. We must turn to Scripture, God's Word, and see how love is defined. What I find we should look at is the example of Jesus’ life, the love He showed to everyone He came into contact with throughout His entire ministry here on earth, and then we also turn to the following breakdown of love from the Bible:
"Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away."
1 CORINTHIANS 13:4-8
We can see from this passage of Scripture that we find no mention of a love that is of the emotional type. Emotions come and go, depending on how we may feel at any particular time. This pure love that we are commanded by God to have is an action that we MUST do. So let me ask you this: Where are you going to get your definition of love from, God’s Word? Or this world? Who do you serve this day?
"Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love."
1 JOHN 4:7-8
"And He has given us this command: Whoever loves God must also love his brother."
1 JOHN 4:21
Who is our brother? Our brother in different places in Scripture refers to other believers who are following Christ, as we should be, and it also refers to our brothers as any member of the human race. So, if we claim to love God, we will love His pure love to ALL our brothers. This pure love is the same love that Jesus lived as our example. Many say it is impossible to love like this. Remember, NOTHING is impossible for him who believes. If you are struggling, ask God, He will give you everything you need to fulfill His command to love as he told us to. It will not be easy and at times may feel impossible, but remember that God would not have commanded us to do so if He knew we could never succeed as He commanded.
"We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love our brothers. Anyone who does not love remains in death."
1 JOHN 3:14
"If anyone says 'I love God1, yet hates his brother, he is a liar. For anyone who does not love his brother, whom he has seen, cannot love God, whom he has not seen."
1 JOHN 4:20
Loving as God commands us to love is a serious matter. This pure love is what makes us a true believer of God, one who is doing the things God has given for us to do. We can see that if we do not love, we remain in death. If we hate, dislike, loath, detest or disfavor a person, then we do not love with God’s pure love. Yes, we are to HATE the SIN, not the sinner. We must show our love as Christ loves us and the rest of mankind. We can love when our inner most being is filled with a desire from God to serve and please God. If we are to please Him and show Him our love for Him, then we will do all He has given and commanded us to do.
Let us take this time now to take a closer look at the different aspects of love as given in 1 CORINTHINAS 13
Love is patient: Long-Suffering, forbearance, uncomplaining, tolerant, enduring without complaint through a difficult situation.
Our pure love should have the ability to endure through trials and difficult times, without murmuring or even wishing ill will to someone whom you may feel responsible for the current situation and discomfort you may be having. Remember it's a choice you make to love or not. If Jesus lost patience with us, where would we be now? We would have no hope; we would be lost, doomed to eternal separation from God.
Think of loving your child through the rough times when your child is doing things wrong.
"By standing firm you will gain life."
LUKE 21:19
"Be patient then, brothers until the Lords coming. See how the farmer waits for the land to yield its valuable crop and how patient he is for the autumn and spring rains."
JAMES 5:7
Love is kind: Compassionate, merciful, tender, good, gentle, thoughtful, helpful, nice.
We should be ready to help others, not doing so as a burden, but as if you are doing it for Jesus, which you are. Any response we have when dealing with someone, should be with the attitude and mind-set that we are doing it to and for Christ, Himself. We also need to not just respond in kindness when a situation crosses our path, but we need search out and discover where we can show God's loving kindness, so that God can receive all the glory, honor and praise.
"Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience."
COLOSSIANS 3:12
"Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as Christ God forgave you."
EPHESIANS 4:32
Love does not envy: Jealousy, spitefulness, resentment, animosity.
If we are truly on God's path we will make every effort to remove envy from our attitude, for love cannot be found anywhere in envy. We find that people with envy make them­selves and others extremely miserable. Can you really even begin to picture Christ with this type of attitude? Of course not, it is totally absurd, it just would never happen. We must watch ourselves and love in the fullness God has intended for us to love.
"Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other."
GALATIONS 5:26
"A heart of peace gives life to the body, but envy rots the bones."
PROVERBS 14:30
Love does not boast, and is not proud: Exaggerate, flaunt, brag, conceited, self-important, vain, overbearing, arrogant.
In anything that we might have accomplished, seen, or heard about, we should not become proud, boastful, conceited or any of these related attitudes, for we should be humble in all we do. If we need to boast about something, then boast about the Lord. We should never try to build ourselves up, expecting praise for anything we do, for everything we accomplish is only through the Lord. Our lives should speak for themselves, by our actions and words and our attitude. If you say you are a Christian, then serve Him in everything, in every way.
"Therefore as it is written: 'Let him who boasts boast in the Lord.'"
1 CORINTHIANS 1:31
"But you are to be like that. Instead, the greatest among you should be like the youngest, and the one who rules like the one who serves."
LUKE 22:26
Love is not rude: Course, impolite, gruff, discourteous, offensive.
The pure love we are to have should include being civil, polite, courteous, calm and even dignified.
When we look to the life of Jesus, ask yourself, was He rude, impolite, gruff, discourteous or even offensive? OK, when He chased out the money changers, but in reality this was only rudeness or offensive to those who were defiling the Temple of God. We can see how rudeness is very offensive, when you offend someone you cause separation, and we know that separation is not God's goal for us. After all, offense is even talked about in the Old Testament.
"An offended brother is more unyielding than a fortified city, and disputes are like the barred gates of a citadel."
PROVERBS 18:19
"A man's wisdom gives him patience, it is to his glory to overlook an offense."
PROVERBS 19:11
"He who covers over an offense promotes love, but whoever repeats the matter separates close friends."
PROVERBS 17:9
Love is not self-seeking: Greedy, selfish, self-centered, ungenerous.
With God's pure love we will not seek out our own gain, for that is not His desire for us. His desire is to love everyone. How can you love with God's pure love that is a giving love, when you are seeking something for yourself? The love you give should be seeking the gain and increase of others. Your desire should be to serve others in God's pure love.
"Each of you should look not only to your own interests but also the interests of others."
PHILLIPPIANS 2:4
"Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling."
1 PETER 4:9
"Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up."
GALATIONS 6:9


Love is not easily angered: Rage, exasperation, wrath, resentment, mad, inflamed, fury.
In the pure love we are to give to others, we are to show NO hostility or aggressive reactions. We are to hate the sin, and love the person who sinned with Christ's pure love. We are to be extremely slow to anger, for where is there room for anger in Love?
"My dear brothers, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry."
JAMES 1:19
"A quick-tempered man does foolish things, and a crafty man is hated."
PROVERBS 14:17
Love keeps no records of wrongs: Infractions, incorrectness, improper, amiss, erroneous, evil, inappropriate.
Our actions are to forgive, just as Christ forgave us, and to have mercy, just as Christ had great mercy on us. We are to be Christ-like in our forgiving, and once we forgive, never bring up the wrong we forgave ever again. For Christ forgave our sins, once and for all, and will never bring fourth any sin He has forgiven us for. We should not be searching out the wrongs and faults in others, but we should be diligently seeking the good in them.
"Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye."
MATTHEW 7:3
"Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers a multitude of sins."
1 PETER 4:8
Love does not delight in evil, but rejoices in truth:
There should be no pleasure in the sin around us, or any type of pleasure from anyone falling into sin. For His ways are in truth. This is where we find joy, for His truth is what we should be seeking at all times, and we should be filled so that His joy bursts fourth from us to those around us when His truth prevails over sin. Just as the angels rejoice over just one person coming to a saving knowledge of Christ, we too should rejoice in victory when evil is overcome.


"For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit."
ROMANS 14:17
Love always protects: Guards, shields, defends, conserves, preserves, and keeps safe.
Love will protect and defend at all times. Even protecting someone who has fallen into sin while they get right with the Lord again. You will not abandon someone in love, for that would be a contradiction in the meaning of love. For love is NOT seeking to find faults or to tear down, but love is seeking to cover and shield and protect the person in the pure love of Christ Jesus.
"Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you."
COLOSSIANS 3:13
Love always trusts: Confidence, dependence, reliance, faith, certainty, sureness.
We should have an outlook on others that starts by trust, not necessarily in that persons own strength, but in the power of God that the person will come through whatever it is they are doing, doing right in the eyes of God, even if they started out wrong. This means we never give up on them. God never gave up on us. We know that through our Lord, that all things are possible. People are healed and people are changed. It is trusting our Lord, knowing HE is in control, no matter what our surrounding circumstances might be.
"This is what the Sovereign LORD, the Holy One of Israel, says: "In repentance and rest is your salvation, in quietness and trust is your strength, but you would have none of it.”
ISAIAH 30:15
"Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much..."
LUKE 16:10
Love always hopes: Expectation, anticipation, optimism.
Hope is the desire for something good that is being waited for in secure expectation. Something you know will happen, but have not yet seen the fulfillment of what you know will come to pass. Just as we have our hope in the second coming of Jesus, and our being with Him forever.
"For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what he already has?"
ROMANS 8:24
"For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through endurance and the encouragement of the scriptures we might have hope."
ROMANS 15:4
Love always perseveres: Persists, endures, lasts, remains, insistent, to go on and to hang in there to the end.
We see that our love is to persist, to be a force that will not give up. If we feel we are wasting our love on someone, we are to remember that we are to "never give up, never surrender". As in everything, as Christ loves us with love that lasts and endures through all our rejections and failings, then we too should strive to have love that overcomes all that the evil in the world throws at us, and a love that lasts.
"So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal."
2 CORINTHAINS 4:18
"Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us."
HEBREWS 12:1
LOVE is unfailing: Same, consistent, constant, invariable, unchanging.
This love, never, not for ANY reason or circumstance will fail to overcome all that crosses your way. Where would we be if Christ's love failed? No matter how “evil” we may see a person as; we do not love the “evil” but the person. You see the best example of love in its ultimate form, is the unconditional love of Christ Jesus for us.
"This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down His life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers."
1 JOHN 3:16
"May your unfailing love be my comfort, according to your promise to your servant."
PSALM 119:76
Jesus gave His life in love, knowing we were sinners and going to sin even committing the most evil of sins as the world sees it. Yet, it is this unconditional love that we are to have flowing out of us towards others, especially other believers,
Is your love encompassing all the Biblical love attributes? All the attributes are entwined together to form the love God commanded us to have. If you are failing in an area, pray, God will give you everything you need to accomplish what He has commanded you. For if He wouldn't, then He would never have commanded us in the first place. If you are not striving for this love, this complete love, then we know that we do not love Him, and that He is not found in us. For this love is given to us by Jesus to have, and is commanded by Him as well.
You may ask, how can I love them after what they did? You must remember that we are given everything we need to do what He commanded us. Yes, it's an ongoing process to set ourselves in the habit of loving God's way, and it is hard work, but it is NOT impossible. Pray for what you lack, He answers prayer.
Now, you may also say that, my Pastor or counselor said this, or that. Remember they are just men and women like the rest of us. If anything anyone ever tells you goes against scripture, then it is wrong. Who are you following; Men or God?
"For the wisdom of this world is foolishness in God's sight."
1 CORINTHIANS 3:19


Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell.”
MattHEW 10:28
We need to turn to His Word, throwing out all the things we are bombarded with from this world. Even the most respected educated man in all things who gives you any advice that contradicts Scripture is WRONG! If you follow this wrong advice, you will not be following God's ways, and be led away into sin.
Don’t let His Word be watered down! If God has told us to do something, then we should do it to our fullest, with our whole heart, mind and every bit of strength we have. Don’t just go part of the way. If Jesus only went part of the way we would have been left lacking. If we are not giving our all to Him, then we are giving it to this world.
We need to repent and turn 180° from where we have fallen short by our lack of trust and effort. I say again; ask the Lord for what you lack, to strengthen you when and where you may be weak, so that in this way you may persevere, and can be built into the whole person that He desires for you to be.
We need to love God, holding nothing back, giving up all sin, and in the same way that He loves us. Then in this same love, we are to love our fellow workers-in-Christ, just as He does. Your love is part of your witness to those around you, who are watching you even when you do not think they are. Let His light shine from you like a beacon to the entire world.
"By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another."
JOHN 13:35
"Now that you have purified yourselves by obeying the truth so that you have sincere love for your brothers; love one another deeply from the heart."
1 PETER 1:22
Loving deeply from the heart, this is more than just acknowledging and saying we love. It is the true, pure love that God has given us, that should be pouring fourth from our hearts onto our brothers. Love is the bond that we as Christians are to have with each other. It binds us together it overcomes the world; it is the light of Jesus shining through us. We can stand firm even in the worst of times, God has NEVER stopped loving us or loved us any less. He loves and cares for us even when we mess up and wind up on the worlds path.
Remember, His love covers all. Just as our love is to be extended even to those in sin. Love the sinner, hate the sin. The Lord has never, and will never give up on us, therefore if this is His way, then we to should act in this manner and NEVER give up on others. For just as we have been forgiven and purified by Jesus, the other person, who may be in sin at the moment, can be redeemed and forgiven, and made pure by the blood of Jesus. This includes the sinner who has done something that we would say is the worst sin we could think of, but of course using the worlds standards. For God, sin, is sin, none bigger or lesser in offence to Him. Sin is anything contrary to Him. Once a person who has sinned repents and turns from his or her sinful ways, they are made pure and holy in God's sight, and He will remember the sin no more.
Never run from a sinner unless they are trying to get you to sin or join them in sin. The world is watching our actions and reactions to everything. They are expecting us to be forgiving and loving as Christ showed us. When we do not respond or act in the way that they feel Jesus would, then they will criticize what we did or didn't do. Then in their mind they confirm that this is why they do not want to be a Christian.
I have seen more non-Christians that are far more forgiving and loving than many who profess to be "Christians". What kind of witness are you? What kind of witness to the world do you desire to be?
To be a TRUE CHRISTIAN, you MUST have love in your life, the same living love that Christ gives us. This love must flow from your life, flow like Christ's love flows out to us. For without this love we do not know Him, for God is love!
"And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love."
1 CORINTHIANS 13:13



Wednesday, May 22, 2013

Interview with Rev. Peter Barinzigo


Interview with Rev. Peter Barinzigo legal representative of Minevam church. Overseer of around 200 churches in Burundi and surrounding countries.

The biggest need for this ministry is people to help train up the Pastors and leaders of the churches.

e-mail: minevaamg@yahoo.com

PO Box: 07 Gatumba
Bujumbura
Republic of Burundi
Tel. +257 79 733 455 +257 75 833 415

Wednesday, April 17, 2013

Zambezi River Victoria Falls • Zambia, Africa

Looking into going to Zambia later this year.  I have been going through the old photographs from when I was a mission kid growing up there.  Here is one of Victoria Falls.
Mosi-oa-Tunya • The smoke that thunders
One place everyone should get a chance to see and experience the mist that drenches you.

Pray for Zambia and that the Lord will bring about great renewal.