CHARACTERISTICS OF LOVE
One of the characteristics of love is honesty and knowing how to distinguish the difference between good and evil so that we can love properly and avoid being taken advantage of by others (Romans 12:9). Christians often talk about love and try to live with others with love. But Christians are also deceived by love. This happens because Christians often love according to our own feelings, or love according to the world’s point of view, or even love according to Satan’s schemes. This wrong love happens because Christians do not love according to God’s standards. God’s Word has taught us that Christians are to love according to the Truths that God has recorded in the Bible, which means to love according to Heaven’s standards, not according to the world’s ways. In 1John 3:18, the Bible teaches that Christians should not love with words or tongue, but with actions and in Truth. But what does it mean to love according to Truth? Christians should know that loving “according to truth” is not optional. It is the only way to love without self-deception or harm. When we bend to worldly critique, fearing labels like “harsh” or “unloving”, we are not shielding the vulnerable, but eroding the very gospel that rescues.
Christians often think of love in the surface meaning of the word, but rarely think deeply about the real meaning in Bible verses. Therefore, when loving, Christians often love both good and bad, love goodness but also love evil, to the point of no longer being able to distinguish between right and wrong, what should be done and what should be avoided. Christians love like that because we are afraid that the world will criticize us for not having love, and therefore are afraid of not being a good witness for God before everyone. When Christians are afraid like that, we have forgotten that God weighs the heart, not the praise of the world (Proverbs 16:2). God wants us to live according to His standards, not according to the world’s criticism (Romans 12:2, Galatians 1: 10). We can use the Bible verse in Romans 12:9 as a typical example. In this verse, the Bible teaches that Christians must love sincerely and that sincerity is shown by knowing how to distinguish between good and evil. Evil is to be avoided, even hated. But goodness is to be loved and cherished.
For example, with regard to the abnormal lifestyle of many people today, Christians must stay away and find ways to eliminate it from the Christian community. We do that because God has clearly said that these are abhorrent things in His sight (Leviticus 18: 22), unacceptable in any situation or era. But now there are some churches and Christian communities that welcome people with such a lifestyle to become their members, even ordaining them to become pastors or clergy while they have no repentance, no change. Those Christians and churches do so because they are afraid that the world will criticize them for being unloving, for being racist, or afraid of losing the benefits of a non-profit organization and have to pay more taxes. Such love is love according to the devil’s scheme, according to the world’s tendency, according to self interests. Those who love in such a way are afraid of displeasing men, forgetting that such action and attitude provokes God’s anger, which no one should allow themselves to be entangled in, because God’s anger is most fearful (Hebrews 10:31). Christians can love such people with abnormal lifestyle from afar, by preaching, by introducing them to the Word of God in the Bible, hoping them to change and not harming children anymore, but love should only be shown when there is true repentance, there is real change. Doing so will help Christians to show love but keep ourselves from the bad influence of those who are still living in sin (James 1:23, Psalm 1:1).
God is unchanging, so all of His words, especially His commands, precepts, and truths in the Bible, will never change. Therefore, true love is to be careful to practice love according to God’s truth and standards, regardless of what people or the world think or criticize. In the same way, the Bible says that authorities and laws are meant to frighten criminals so that they do not dare to sin again (Romans 13:3-4). Punishment on the wrongdoer is not optional. It instituted to terrorize evil into submission, creating space for the good to flourish. But many times Christians forget that and support criminals, even when they commit serious or deadly offenses, because those Christians are afraid that the law or prison will make criminals suffered. Many Christians have been forgetting the truth in Romans 13: 3-4 and, too often, pity for the offender, and in doing so, overshadows protection for the innocent, birthing a “love” that pities the wolf more than the sheep. Many Christians have done so because they think that it is a way to show love, both to the innocent and criminals. But such thinking is completely contrary to the truth in the Bible. True love demands justice and harsh punishment because it values every image-bearer (Genesis 1:27). Christ also made it clear that punishments, whether of men or of God Himself, are designed to frighten sinners so that they do not sin again (John 5:14; Proverbs 11:21). Therefore, when Christians support the scheme of evil politicians to give light punishment to criminals, especially those who commit crimes against children, women, and the elderly, it is not love but blindness, lack of God’s truth and allowing themselves to be exploited by the devil and the world. Christians, who are called children of Light, must try our best to avoid such situations and should only love according to the guidance of the Truth in God’s word.
(to be continued)