Love Like God
When we love God we love like God. Who does He love? The “whosoever” of John 3: 16 and so should we.
Petty little selfish children and adolescents play games and use their friends as pawns. They play the game of “You can’t be my friend if you are going to be with —-.” They even push it to the point of “you can’t be my friend if you speak to ——.” Unfortunately some adults never grow out of it either.
Youth and adults alike, if you encounter such a person speak to them boldly about changing their attitude and if they don’t they will have identified themselves as a person who does not love the Lord properly.
People who play these games are revealing themselves to you. They are showing they feel inferior to the person they are trying to alienate. They want to shut out the person they feel inferior to and can’t compete with them. Their solution is to exclude that person from their world and try to get those with whom they want to be friends to do the same. It is a sure sign of inferiority.
Bitterness blows out the candle of joy and leaves the soul in darkness.
We must learn to break down the barrier of evasiveness and stop excusing ourselves. This involves moving beyond theory to practice. Sooner or later we have got to stop quoting Scripture and start practicing it. Don’t just parrot platitudes practice principles. Here is a practical test for this kind of love:
It believes the best about a person until proven wrong.
It wishes the best for others though they might not deserve it.
It refuses to accept all rumors which the bearer will not confirm with —- “Yes, you can quote me.”
It silences all gossip until truth can be seen to be true.
It takes the initiative in giving the fallen repentant person another chance.
Edward Markham, the renowned poet, confided in and invested his life savings with a financial advisor who robbed him of his life savings. Broken and bitter he moved beyond his feelings and drew on his will. When asked what of his many poems was his favorite. Among them were favorites such as “Lincoln,” and the famous “Man with a Hoe.” Markham replied:
“He drew a circle and shut me out,
A heretic, rebel, thing of flout,
Love and I had a will to win,
We drew a circle and took him in.”
Had a will to win! Did you catch it, “will?”
He relied on his will and overcame his feelings. Once he did then he recovered from his bitterness and the emotional depression he was suffering.
“If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone” Romans 12: 18. Markham did and benefited from it. When we do we benefit also.