The Love of God is missing in so many assemblies!!

[rosejones]

To know the love of GOD is very important! The Bible says in 1 John 2:11 ~ "But he that hateth his brother is in darkness, and walketh in darkness, and knoweth not whither he goeth, because that darkness hath blinded his eyes." And in 1 John 3:17 ~ But whoso hath this world's good, and seeth his brother have need, and shutteth up his bowels of compassion from him, how dwelleth the love of God in him?

Proverbs 17:17 says, "A friend loveth at all times, and a brother is born for adversity." How did Jesus love the church? The love of Jesus for His church was a selfless, sacrificial love. Jesus loved the church. He loved sinners. He loved you and me so very much that He was willing to sacrifice His very life on the cross of Calvary. That's how much He loves us and that's how much we should love!!

Romans 12:10 says, "Be kindly affectioned one to another with brotherly love; in honour preferring one another..." And 1 Thessalonians 4:9 ~But as touching brotherly love ye need not that I write unto you: for ye yourselves are taught of God to love one another...1 Peter 2:17 Honour all men. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honour the king....

1 John 2:10 He that loveth his brother abideth in the light, and there is none occasion of stumbling in him.~~~1 John 3:10 In this the children of God are manifest, and the children of the devil: whosoever doeth not righteousness is not of God, neither he that loveth not his brother.~~~

Just how important is this LOVE? 1 John 3:14 We know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren. He that loveth not his brother abideth in death.

[kingdomapostle]

Where in your opinion is the love missing?

[Godsdrummer]

Originally Posted by kingdomapostle

Where in your opinion is the love missing?

The way so many so called Christians treat there fellow man.

1Jn 4:7 Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God.
1Jn 4:8 He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love.

Can one say they love one another then judge them and say they are going to hell? In the face of Jesus teaching that we are not to judge one another?

Is one showing love when they hear something about a brother or sister that is not right and they can't wait to go tell someone else about it?

Is it love to look at your fellow man/women and desire to have things better then them?

Is it love to spend more than you have (credit card etc) to buy a car house clothes just to keep up with the rest of the world?

[HRea]

Originally Posted by Godsdrummer

The way so many so called Christians treat there fellow man.

Too often we apply the world's standard of what love should be instead of God's standard of love. The way Christians treat one another is NOT the evidence of a lack of love, but it reveals the lack of spiritual maturity and growth. Christian love is a purposeful act of will, not an emotional trigger; it's born from our view of where we're at in the Kingdom of Jesus Christ. With growth, this act of will becomes a part our nature and manifests itself through compassion toward others (within and without the Body of Christ).

The tone of the following passages border on brutal; yet Paul and James intended for them to snap the reader out of their carnality and focus on repairing their place in Christ. I couldn't imagine either apostle not loving the recipients of these letters, but desiring them to quit their folly and go on to perfection.

1 Corinthians 3:1-3
1 And I, brethren, could not speak unto you as unto spiritual, but as unto carnal, even as unto babes in Christ.
2 I have fed you with milk, and not with meat: for hitherto ye were not able to bear it, neither yet now are ye able.
3 For ye are yet carnal : for whereas there is among you envying, and strife, and divisions, are ye not carnal, and walk as men?

James 4:1-5
1 From whence come wars and fightings among you? come they not hence, even of your lusts that war in your members?
2 Ye lust, and have not: ye kill, and desire to have, and cannot obtain: ye fight and war, yet ye have not, because ye ask not.
3 Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts.
4 Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God.
5 Do ye think that the scripture saith in vain, The spirit that dwelleth in us lusteth to envy?

[mfblume]

When people think the world will know we are His people by the clothes we wear, rather than by what Jesus said -- our love for one another -- go figure.

[Praxeas]

Originally Posted by rosejones

To know the love of GOD is very important!

Where do you get the notion that the love of God is missing in many assemblies?

[Godsdrummer]

Originally Posted by HRea

Too often we apply the world's standard of what love should be instead of God's standard of love. The way Christians treat one another is NOT the evidence of a lack of love, but it reveals the lack of spiritual maturity and growth.

Christian love is a purposeful act of will

1 Corinthians 3:1-3
1 And I, brethren, could not speak unto you as unto spiritual, but as unto carnal, even as unto babes in Christ.
2 I have fed you with milk, and not with meat: for hitherto ye were not able to bear it, neither yet now are ye able.
3 For ye are yet carnal : for whereas there is among you envying, and strife, and divisions, are ye not carnal, and walk as men?

James 4:1-5
1 From whence come wars and fightings among you? come they not hence, even of your lusts that war in your members?
2 Ye lust, and have not: ye kill, and desire to have, and cannot obtain: ye fight and war, yet ye have not, because ye ask not.
3 Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts.
4 Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God.
5 Do ye think that the scripture saith in vain, The spirit that dwelleth in us lusteth to envy?

To use these passages to preach that one must perform works to please God is the way most think. Don't misunderstand what I am saying here about works. I agree there are some things we do work at to be better Christians. But there are other things that should be natural to one that has the spirit of God. Or I question if they have the spirit of God.

What Paul and James are addressing here is the fact that Professing to be Christian does not make you one. That the fruits will follow a true Christian. Just as Jesus said "have we not done many works in thy name? Yet Jesus says I will tell them I never knew you" One can do all the good deeds one wants but if it does not come from a heart of love it will show in the end.

[HRea]

Originally Posted by Godsdrummer

To use these passages to preach that one must perform works to please God is the way most think.

I wasn't speaking about works in even the remotest sense, unless my reply was taken to mean that spiritual development was manifest is this way. If this was the case, then I apologize for the confusion. I did not mean to infer that works and fruit are synonymous (fruit being the result and evidence of spiritual growth, works being the exercise of faith).

However, I did mean to strongly infer that how we treat one another is indicative of spiritual maturity.

Originally Posted by Godsdrummer

What Paul and James are addressing here is the fact that Professing to be Christian does not make you one. That the fruits will follow a true Christian.

I disagree; what Paul and James are both addressing is our treatment of one another in the body of Christ. Their description, I believe, was the very focus of the original post of this thread.

[Godsdrummer]

Originally Posted by HRea

I wasn't speaking about works in even the remotest sense, unless my reply was taken to mean that spiritual development was manifest is this way. If this was the case, then I apologize for the confusion. I did not mean to infer that works and fruit are synonymous (fruit being the result and evidence of spiritual growth, works being the exercise of faith).

However, I did mean to strongly infer that how we treat one another is indicative of spiritual maturity.



I disagree; what Paul and James are both addressing is our treatment of one another in the body of Christ. Their description, I believe, was the very focus of the original post of this thread.

I think we are both misunderstanding each other.

What I am trying to say is that true love is not what we intentionaly do for our fellow man, but it should come naturaly if we are filled with is spirit.

I think what Paul and James were speaking to is that they paid lip service but were not truly spirit filled else they would not be carnal. Does this come from muturity as a Christian? Are these things to be taught in order for a Christian to become more mature?

I think the fruit WILL be automatic for one that has been born of the spirit. Paul says the fruit of the spirit IS. Fruit come natural. Jesus said you shall know them by the fruit. James says Faith without works is dead. Too many times we take this to mean that we must make an effort to produce works. But a closer look at what James is saying I think is that "you will know my Spirit because you will see the fruit of the spirit manifest in my life".

Not that I will do good works to prove I am a Christian.