love or fling

Love, a term commonly misused in our contemporary time. The concept of love has been attached to emotions, materials, and behaviour, none of which have anything to do with love. I believe we cannot understand the concept of love without consulting the basis of existence. John 3:16 encapsulates the concept of love. Love is not just sacrifice; it’s selfless sacrifice. You don’t love to receive. When I meditate on John 3:16, I see pure love: God loved the human race so much that He sacrificed His only pure and pious son for the undeserving, filthy, and wicked human race, not because human filthiness made Him less God, but essentially for our redemption and eternal liberation from death. You don’t need to labor to be loved; when you have to scramble for love, it’s no longer love. You don’t love a person for their appearance or behaviour, as these will certainly fade away. You don’t stop loving a person because they hurt you. Love in its pure state is not deserving, so you can’t stop loving a person for any reason. When people say, “I used to love him, but I don’t anymore,” it’s proof that they never truly loved. God is love; He loves the sinner, for if not, no one can be saved. That prostitute on your street, whom you hate so much, God loves her. The drug addict whom you’ve condemned to hell, God looks upon him with affection. That witch in your neighborhood, whom you badly want dead, God loves her so much. The hatred in your heart against the sinners around you is proof that you are possessed. If Christ lives in you, you will look upon them with compassion. There is a height of love that all believers should operate in, but unfortunately, the church is blind to this. Love is divine; no human has the ability to love without being helped by the Spirit of Love, the Holy Spirit. Help us, Lord, teach us to love according to Your Word in 1 Corinthians 13:4-7.