What Is Love?

Love Is Good, Right?

Is it fair to suggest that everyone on the planet thinks that love is a good thing?

Is it fair to suggest that we are all on the same sheet of music in declaring love as something of value?

I mean, after all, we have all kinds of groups using it as part of their message nowadays. Slogans such as "LOVE WINS" have plastered social media. What does the word love here mean exactly...?

America has been in a great deal of turmoil lately due to a senseless loss of many, many lives. It is a painful tragedy and for some more painful than others when the life lost is a close family member or friend. As a result, you may have seen many emotional responses in the form of new postings online. Many are about how Jesus called us to love our neighbors with even some suggestions on how to do that. This billboard pic is rather cute as well. You may have even seen it online somewhere by now.

What does the word love in this graphic mean exactly...?

These are only a couple of examples out of countless posts online related to love and how God wants us to love our neighbor, or that the hate needs to stop, or that love wins, that love is supreme. It really does seem that love is something around which all of us can rally. Regardless of your lot in life, your ethnic background, your religious affiliation or lack thereof, your age, your personal preferences, or criminal history - love seems to stand out as good.

So what is the problem? If we all agree that love is good why is this not more simple? Do we even know what it means...?

I would suggest to you that the reason it is not more simple is because everyone is throwing around the word LOVE with the assumption that everyone else is using the same meaning. I would even go so far as to suggest to you that some are throwing it around knowing full well that you are using a different meaning and use that as a means of manipulation.

Equivocation of terms. (definition taken from Google)

Now, while the definition implies some measure of intention, I will acknowledge that a great deal of this probably happens innocently enough, with most folks not even realizing it when it comes to the word 'love', but difficulty will follow if two people are trying to talk about the same thing using two different meanings. It is therefore extremely important to ensure that when entering a discussion on any topic that you start by defining the terms.

So when you HEAR something like 'Jesus loves everybody' or 'Love your neighbor as yourself' - what does that mean to you? What does it mean when you SAY it?

The Command To Love

Let's look at the command to love your neighbor that is given to us in the Bible. Where do we find it?

Leviticus 19:18
You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against the sons of your own people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the Lord.

Matthew 5:43-48
You have heard that it was said, 'You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.' But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? And if you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same? You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.

Matthew 22:34-40
But when the Pharisees heard that he had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered together. And one of them, a lawyer, asked him a question to test him. "Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?" And he said to him, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets."

Now these are only a few of the places where we might find mention of this in the Bible but it will suffice.

First, we can see from the passage in Leviticus that this concept is not solely a New Testament one. God even spoke it to Moses!

Secondly, the Sermon on the Mount! Jesus actually steps it up a couple notches doesn't he? Not only are we to love our neighbor but our enemies as well. If we only love those who love us - how are we any different?

Third, Jesus lays it out again but indicates it as a second commandment to loving God himself with all heart, soul, and mind. He also indicates that the two together are on what all the Law and the Prophets depend.

Earlier in the Sermon on the Mount (v. 17), Jesus said, "Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them."

Absolutely! Jesus says to love your neighbor as yourself. What exactly does that look like...? In a world where people have different definitions of what love really is... what does 'love your neighbor' look like?

Who Gets To Make That Decision?

Who gets to come up with the definition of love?

Well, I would suggest to you that since God gave the command, God gets to define it - not us. The good news is that God created us in His image and through His son Jesus, we have all the access to God that we need in order to find out what it looks like to love your neighbor.

See the Image of God video from the folks at Join the Bible Project

How do we love our neighbor? I have a suggestion. Let's go back to Matthew chapter 22 where Jesus indicates the first and greatest commandment of loving God with all our heart, soul, and mind for a moment. Loving our neighbor comes in second. Focus on God first and the rest will come as a natural outpouring of the hope that is within us.

Here is an acronym that may help.

Live

Out

Volitional

Exaltation

Live Out - this is our expression and lifestyle that people see - what we live out. To be volitional is to be willful in our choice. Exaltation is worship. Worship God. 

God gave his son Jesus who died on a cross for our sins that we might accept that gift and come to a relationship with Him. That we might not perish as the consequences of our sins would dictate but have everlasting life in communion with the One whose love for us was so great that He sent His son to die on a cross to take care of those consequences for us. Now that is love and through this relationship we can come to know love as it was meant to be.

God, who IS love itself knows full well what it looks like. He loves us all in a way that we can only dream to imagine. If we would but turn our hearts away from our own flawed definitions and turn to Him for the definition instead... 

I pray that we might all come to know Him and live out a volitional exaltation of Him in all that we do and that through our willful expression of worship to God we can come to understand how to love our neighbor as ourselves because we will know firsthand how He loves us.

One of my favorite quotes comes from Ravi Zacharias...

Unless there is a change in the heart of a human being, laws are but a surface solution. It is putting a band-aid to a joint that is out of order."

Let Jesus come and change your heart and let us all begin to truly love our neighbors.

Thinking About Fair

Here in America, and very likely in other places, there seems to be a really big push that all things be equal - everything should be fair.

This sounds good on the surface but there is an underlying problem... people are in constant disagreement as to what fair and equal mean. As a result, the attempts to make things fair and equal become hot moral and political topics.

Now, let me say that this post is not meant to share my side of a particular issue but to simply talk about the concepts of fair and equal.

What Does Equal Look Like?

Over time, I have seen a number of images that adress the ideas of fair and equal in some way or another. Here are a couple that I thought resonated with me.

So... same resources or same results? Which is fair?

At some point in recent history you may have seen the words equality and equity thrown around in the media. I like this graphic because I think it accurately depicts how both sides of our issues are thinking.

Both sides attempt to provide an aspect of "SAME" for the boys.

On one side it might be said that this is fair - all the boys have a box.
On the other side it might be said that this is fair - all the boys can see the game

Now - I have three boys myself and I am able to envision the complaints in either scenario.
On the left, my little guy is going to complain at the top of his lungs that he cannot see.
On the right, my big guy is going to complain at the top of his lungs that he doesn't have a box and he wants one too.

Some knowledge of the bigger picture can help to narrow down the idea of what is fair and equal.

Here is another graphic that I like.

How does context change the concept of fair?

I appreciate the humor of the cartoon but it highlights a very real situation in American culture. I believe this cartoon was originally pointed at education but I think it applies to other issues of equal and fair as well. How do we determine fair without knowledge of the bigger picture?

Some Reflection

I cannot help but think about how the ideas of same, fair, equal, equity, and equality all overlap and conflict at the same time depending on how you look at the issue.

Are these differences OK in some cases? What if the man in the second graphic was interviewing for a position that requires the hired animal to climb trees as a function of the job? At this point perhaps, it would seem a reasonable performance based request. In the end, the best animal for the job will win out. What I also recognize here is that the animals are not equal themselves - they are all very different and unique in their own way. They have different abilities.

Webster's Dictionary defines the words this way:

• Equality - the quality or state of being equal : the quality or state of having the same rights, social status, etc.
• Equity - fairness or justice in the way people are treated
• Fair - agreeing with what is thought to be right or acceptable - treating people in a way that does not favor some over others - not too harsh or critical

Starting with the idea of fair - by definition, fair is an agreement with what is thought to be right or acceptable. Oh dear! Can you see a problem here already? Thoughts are not always the same among groups of people. Fairness ties into the definition of equity and equality deals with things being the same in some way but we already have seen that arguments occur over what aspect of "same" in a given situation constitutes fair.

UGH - I think my head is spinning.

God's Word - Same For All

Enter the Bible. The Word applies to all people equally. We are told that all people have sinned (Romans 3:23) and the punishment is the same regardless of the sin and that punishment is death. (Romans 6:23)
For God, all sin is the same. The ranking of sin is a human construct. Stealing a candy bar vs the rape and murder of someone are both sin. 

I would guess that few would argue in favor of the death penalty for both the crimes - wouldn't be fair, right?

But wait! We have Jesus! He died for all sins. He paid the price for us. He paid the price for the thief and the killer. Same gift for everyone! We all have the same opportunity to accept that gift. 
Some would argue that this is not fair either. Why should the killer get the same gift as the candy bar thief? That's not fair! The killer's crime was worse! ARRRGH!

Seems like a vicious circle. This is a struggle because we apply our human knowledge and understanding to divine concepts. Good thing that God is able to see the bigger picture - nay - the WHOLE picture. 

Where do you draw the line between fair and equal then? 
My thought is that - you don't. God has already drawn that line. 
Humans should stop trying to redraw the lines and rewrite the definitions in ways that work for them.

God gives the same for all...

1. Same punishment
2. Same gift
3. Same choice

...even though everyone doesn't walk away with the same thing...

Looking for the Big Deal?

Which door will you pick?

I hope this helps you to think about fair and equal a little differently. I would love to hear your thoughts.

Have an awesome day!

One Thing Leads To Another

A Season of Thanks, Gifts, and Fresh Starts

In a time span of just a little over a month there are three well known holidays that get a great deal of attention. Between the last Thursday of November and the first day of January we consider all we have to be thankful for, spend time with family, and list aspirations of self-improvement for the upcoming year. I am thankful for the gift of Jesus which has allowed me to have a fresh start. That pretty much sums up three holidays in one sentence!

At any rate, after all the wonderful festivities of Christmas Day have passed, the next celebratory event comes in only one week on New Year's Eve. New Year's is often a time when resolutions are made. One of my resolutions, as I stated in the last blog post was to actually spend a little more time writing on this blog.

A couple of things came togehter in my mind the last few days which I felt were coming together for this post. A chain of events - if you would...


1. A Book I Read

     A while back I read a book called Soul Detox: Clean Living in a Contaminated World by Craig Groeschel. I found it to be a very easy read that spoke to me on many different levels. This is not meant to be a book review but the gist of the book helps to provide some inspiration for dealing with all the toxic things in life and keeping yourself healthy on the inside.

In the book there is a quote on page 198 (*I have the Kindle version so I am not 100% sure if that matches the print copy. It also indicates location 2168 on the Kindle)

The Bible says clearly and directly, "Do not be misled: 'Bad company corrupts good character'" (1Cor. 15:33). I'm guessing Paul began with "do not be misled" because when it comes to hanging out with the wrong kind of people, so many of us can become misled, then tolerant, then corrupted by those around us.

The passage goes on to give some examples of folks who meant to do well by perhaps witnessing to them about Christ but in the end fell away themselves. The message here is to know when to get out of certain situations. The book later points us to genesis 39:12 which gives the example of Joseph running away from Potiphar's wife when she made a move on him. Joseph knew when to get away.


2. A Commercial I Watched

I later thought of a commercial where one thing leads to something else in a crazy and humorous chain of events. The message is to basically not allow the first thing to happen by having cable. Instead, get DirectTV and these things won't happen to you. Ha Ha

Here is the video for you.

Certainly, I think the events portrayed in this commercial are a bit extreme but nonetheless, they do have their foundation in a very real cause and effect relationship that every one of us has experienced. The things we say and do have consequences and we need to know when to step away.


3.  A Resolution I Made

Yay! So another year has gone by. The idea of having a fresh start is one that I like to have and starting a new year seems like a good time to do that, right? I resolved to spend more time blogging on this particular blog. I have been more active on my other blog and even started a third one but this one has been neglected for five years. This post is part of my attempt to follow through.

As I thought of resolutions for the new year - thoughts of the often portrayed method of celebration at this time of year also came to mind. I really hate to generalize because I know that not everyone celebrates the same way but it is also very difficult to escape the way media portrays American culture. Even in our celebration of things it is important to know when to step away.

Some Thoughts

So I am thinking of these things as it relates to making good choices or to making some aspect of my life better - and I figure that is what I should make my post on. I would love for people to think of ways they can make improvements in their lives or to make better choices going forward. There is still time. Start by making some good choices today!

Some Questions

• Can you think of a time when one thing led to another for you that ended up badly?
• Do you know when to step away?
• Are you able to identify those things that are toxic in your life?

That third one is so tough, isn't it? Sometimes we don't know what is toxic unless we have experienced a little bit of cleanliness first. It is so much like the saying "You don't know what you don't know".

• What steps are you taking to reduce the levels of toxicity in your life?
• What are your resolutions?
• Can you think of a time when one thing led to another for you that ended up for the better?

It gets better

Over time, I hope to share with you how one thing led to another in my life for the better.

Have an awesome day!