Real Love

Let love be without hypocrisy.
Abhor what is evil; cling to what is good.
Romans 12:9

What do Christians do? Christians love each another. At least, that’s what Jesus said in John 13:35. "By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”

Love is the authenticating mark of real Christianity. By that I mean, the way you know you’ve been in the presence of real Christians – and not just people who pretend to know Jesus – is by the love they share for one another. The apostle John said the same thing in 1 John 4:7-8,

Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love.

How important is it to have love for fellow believers? It’s so important that having such love is proof that you belong to Jesus and not having it shows that you don’t. That’s why Paul says that “love must be without hypocrisy”, that is, it must be genuine and unfaked. A fake love, like a pretend faith, does nothing. And that’s the point.

Real love – genuine Christian love – is active! It’s not just a feeling you get once in a while, it’s a motivation for ministry. It moves you to take action for the good of those you love. People who love one another share in each other’s burdens. They join together to fight the evil and confront the sins they know would bring harm to each other’s lives if left unchecked. By their actions they seek to bring good to one another, to meet each other’s real needs; and to heal each other’s hurts with the grace and compassion of Jesus.

May God fan such love into a flame in our fellowship here at Rockport!

Learning to love you for His sake!
Pastor Scott Lee