BY JIM KASEMAN
Text: Matthew 22:37-40. “You shall love the Lord God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.” This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it. “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.”
It’s very important that we understand the subject of love properly. If not, the devil will bring destruction our way and we will think that it is God. Unknowingly, we’ll be cooperating fully with the devil but we’ll give God all the praise and glory for the destruction in our lives.
Colossians 1:9-10 tells us to possess wisdom and spiritual understanding, concerning the things of God, so that we can live godly and fruitful lives. Let this be our goal as we approach the subject: “Perfecting the Love Walk.”
Defining Love and Walking In It
I John 4:8 tells us that God is love. So, when studying the subject of love, we’re actually talking about the person of God.
Now, as Christians we’re born of God, born of His spirit, or we could say, born of love. And I John 2:6 says, “He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as Jesus walked.”
How does God walk? Well, the Scriptures describe the attributes of God in great detail so that we might imitate Jesus and walk as He walked. For example, in Matthew 25:35, 40b, Jesus says, “For I was hungry and you gave me food; I was thirsty and you gave me drink; I was a stranger and you took me in … Assuredly I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these my brethren, you did it to me.”
This reminds me of a story I heard of an American soldier in Germany at the end of World War II. He was in a pastry shop eating breakfast when he noticed a hungry orphan boy with his face pressed against the front window longing to eat some of the delicious pastry. The American soldier quickly finished eating, bought a box of pastry and gave it to the little orphan boy. As he turned and walked away from the boy, he
felt a tug on his jacket. He turned around and found himself looking down into the little boy’s eyes. He then heard the boy say, “Mister, are you God?”
Unfortunately, the only way many people will ever see God in this life, is when we walk as He walked and allow Him to live through us!
Love Is Keeping His Word
Jesus said in John 14:23-24a, “If anyone loves me, he will keep my word and My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him. He who does not love me does not keep my words.”
When the scripture talked about “keeping” His word, this means we agree with God’s word in our thinking, talking, believing and corresponding actions.
Joshua 1:8 tells us to meditate on God’s word day and night that we may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then we will make our way prosperous and have good success! Glory to God! To keep God’s word is to walk in His love!
Love Speaks Truth
Jesus said in John 14:6 that He is the truth and that Satan in the father of lies and in him there is no truth. (John 8:44).
Jesus is truth and life. Satan is lies and death. And, Proverbs 18:21 tells us that life and death are in the power of the tongue. We would be scripturally correct in saying, death and life, Jesus and Satan, lies and truth are in the power of the tongue.
For us to speak a lie, is to speak death, which is OUT OF LOVE (God)! But, to speak truth is to speak life! Which is the love of God!
For example, to believe and say that it is NOT God’s will to heal and have us walk in physical health, IS A LIE, AND IT WILL BRING DEATH!But, when we SPEAK TRUTH, God’s word, healing and health for today, WE BRING AN ABUNDANCE OF LIFE OUR WAY! Of course, this applies to every area of life.
Love Walks In Faith (Trust)
Hebrews 11:6 tells us that without faith it is impossible to ease God.
This verse took on a greater meaning throughout my Christian walk as I began to understand that the Christian family (God’s family) is built (in RELATIONSHIPS and relationships are built on faith. And, that
another word commonly used for faith is TRUST.
So, without faith (trusting God) it is impossible to please Him. Now that takes on a whole different meaning or aspect to faith. The “Faith message” then, is simply a message teaching people TO TRUST GOD IN EVERY AREA OF LIFE!
Love Obeys
I John 2:5 says, “But whoever keeps (obeys) His word, truly the love of God is perfected in him. BY THIS WE KNOW THAT WE ARE IN HIM.
And, James 2:26b tells us that faith without works (corresponding actions) is dead. We would be correct in saying, trust without corresponding actions is dead.
In other words, it would be like one person saying to another, “You say that you trust me, but why don’t you act like it?” I guess that is the same question God has had concerning many Christians today.
Love Confronts
Years before I became a Christian, I was very active in Alcoholics Anonymous and got involved in the lives of many people, helping them to achieve and maintain sobriety.
Many times spouses and families of alcoholics would have “pity” and protect them from creditors, make their bad checks good, call in sick for them when they were “hung over” from being drunk and prevent them from receiving proper medical and spiritual help. Unfortunately many of the spouses and families thought they were acting in love but in reality they were causing the alcoholic to become “sicker” and die
sooner.
We practiced what we called “tough love.” We encouraged spouses and families of alcoholics to stop hauling them out of trouble, but to confront them with the truth. And if they rejected the truth, let them
suffer the consequences of their actions in hopes that they would see “the light.”
We see many spiritual examples of people confronted with the truth. Jesus called the religious leaders “vipers” in an attempt to get their attention. (Matthew 3:7). Paul addressed the church at Galatians as
“foolish Galatians” in an attempt to get them back into the truth. Stephen preached the truth to the religious leaders, shortly before his death, and called them “stiff-necked.”
So, in confronting people with the truth in love is a part of walking the love walk. Not to confront someone in trouble, could be one way of saying, “I don’t love you enough to get involved.”
Love Is Jealous
Exodus 20:3,5 tells is that God is a jealous God and wants us to have no other gods before Him. Israel was called God’s wife, in the scriptures, and the world was called a harlot. God did not want Israel to worship other gods and whore around with the world. He wanted Israel to devote their entire love to the God of Abraham.
Likewise in relationships today. Healthy, godly marriages will never happen as long as husbands and wives cheat on each other. My wife is a jealous wife. She will not tolerate sharing my life with other women.
And likewise, I am a jealous husband and I will not share my wife with other men. Our entire love and devotion are between God and one another.
And likewise, the church is the bride of Jesus Christ and He is our Bridegroom. For us as Christians to live a worldly life instead of a holy separated life unto Jesus, is viewed by Jesus and His bride whoring around with the devil and the world called the harlot.
So, we’ve just seen another interesting attribute of God, who is love.
Love Serves
Ephesians 5;21-29 tell us that we are to love our wives as Christ loved the church (His bride).
Matthew 20:26-28 tells us how Jesus loved and loves the church. It tells us that Jesus not only came to give His life for the church but He also CAME TO SERVE – NOT to be served!
Jesus is busy serving His bride (the church) twenty-four hours a day praying without ceasing and meeting her needs in the form of answered prayer, etc.
Likewise not only do wives submit to their husbands serving them and making them complete, but, husbands as the HEAD of their wives become servants to them taking the lead in protecting them and meeting their needs just like Jesus does for His bride. Glory! Now we understand Ephesians 5:21 when it says, “SUBMITTING ONE TO ANOTHER in the fear of God.” There is no place at all scripturally for anybody to control or dominate another person. To do so is purely demonic!
LOVE GROWS
One thing about love relationships, you don’t get there over night. It’s a growing process. The speed at which it grows and matures is dependent upon the amount of time and effort we’re willing to spend with God and one another. THERE IS NO SHORT CUT!
Closing Challenge
We don’t have enough space in this article to outline all the points involved in developing the love walk. However, one portion of scripture that has been extremely helpful for me through the years has been I Corinthians 13:4-8 (Amplified Bible). Make a copy of it, personalize it and talk it and meditate on it at least twice a day as a minimum. And you will see a dramatic improvement in your love walk.
I Corinthians 13:4-8 – Amplified Bible (personalized)
Vs. 4. 1 endure long and I’m patient and kind; I’m never envious nor boil over with jealousy; I’m not boastful or vainglorious, I do not display myself haughtily.
Vs. 5. I’m not conceited – arrogant and inflated with pride; I’m not rude (unmannerly), and I do not act unbecomingly. I (with God’s love in me) do not insist on my own rights or my own way, for I’m not self
seeking (selfish); I’m not touchy or fretful or resentful; I take no account of evil done to me. I pay no attention to a suffered wrong.
Vs. 6. 1 do not rejoice at injustice and unrighteousness, but rejoice when right and truth prevail.
Vs. 7. 1 bear up under anything and everything that comes, I’m ever ready to believe the best of every person, my hopes are fadeless under all circumstances and I endure everything (without weakening).
Vs. 8. 1 never fail – never fade out or become absolute or come to an end.
In conclusion, perfecting the love walk takes time, but it will never happen until we get started and stick with it! And praise God, with His help we can do it. (Philippians 4:13)
THE ABOVE MATERIAL WAS PUBLISHED IN THE JANUARY, 1995, ISSUE OF THE JIM KASEMAN MINISTRIES SERIES (V. 21), AND WAS WRITTEN BY JIM KASEMAN. THIS MATERIAL HAS BEEN COPYRIGHTED AND MAY BE USED FOR RESEARCH AND STUDY PURPOSES ONLY.
