Godly Love in Action

And this is love, that we walk after his commandments.  This is the commandment, 

That as ye have heard from the beginning, ye should walk in it. 

2 John 1:6

Love is the fulfillment of the Law.

Love worketh no ill to his neighbour: therefore love is the fulfilling of the law.  Romans 13:10

Be it a labor of love or not, we have to understand that love is the greatest of the kingdom principles; that we love God with all of our heart and with all of our soul and with all of our mind and with all of our strength and secondly, that we love our neighbors even as we love ourselves. 

And he answering said, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbour as thyself.  Luke 10:27

Love is a part of our work in the Lord. It is an action word that is accomplished through deeds and in truth.

My little children, let us not love in word, neither in tongue; but in deed and in truth. 1 John 3:18

Not only that, it is a commandment: 

And this is love, that we walk after his commandments. This is the commandment, That as ye have heard from the beginning, ye should walk in it.  2 John 1:6

A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another. John 13:34-35

Be ye therefore followers of God, as dear children; and walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling savor.  Ephesians 5:1-2

The things that our love for God causes us to do -  including our love for God and for one another - should be steadfast and unmovable; not shifting with our circumstances.  

Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord.   1 Corinthians 15:58

We show our love for God in our adoration, worship, praise, and obedience resulting in outgoing concern, compassion, love and service toward others and by giving our lives as a living sacrifice. 

I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.  Romans 12:1

This verse provides the primary key on how to be unified: we must sacrifice ourselves for one another. 

Sacrifice is the essence of godly love. 

If we are not willing to sacrifice, we are not showing love. It is as simple as that. The attitude of godly love—being willing to sacrifice—must be the underlying attitude as we interact with each other. "Service" is the last word in the above verse, and sacrifice is our reasonable, logical, rational, spiritual service. It is the way we minister to one another and exhibit Godly love.

Hereby perceive we the love of God, because he laid down his life for us: and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren. 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?  1 John 3:16-17

Good question, so how do we get there; what gives us the capability - the capacity to exhibit Godly love? To be able to put love into action, we first have to clothe ourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. We have to bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances we may have against one another. We have to forgive as the Lord has forgiven us.

And when we have done all those things, then we are acting in accordance with God's will for us:   

And above all these things put on charity, which is the bond of perfectness [or maturity in God.    Colossians 3:14

Just as there are some things that we need to put on, there are also some things we need to take off: 

®     You can’t Love with hypocrisy:

Let love be without dissimulation. Abhor that which is evil; cleave to that which is good.
Be kindly affectioned one to another with brotherly love; in honour preferring one another; Romans 12:9-10

®     Don’t love the wrong way:  

Don’t confuse the love of God with the love of the world: 

And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God. Romans 12:2  

Love of the world is forbidden by God, and conforming to it shows that a person loves it and therefore hates God: 

Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him.  1 John 2:15 

 ®     Don’t love in fear:

There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love.  1 John 4:18

The person who has God's love perfected in him cannot fear because he has no dread of punishment and no torment from sin.

Love in action is also the absence of: impatience, meanness, jealously, envy, vainglory, rudeness, selfishness, anger:

Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.   1 Corinthians 3:4-8 

Mostly what God does is love us. Keep company with Him and learn a life of love.  Look to our perfect example.  Watch what He does, and then we do it, like children who learn proper behavior from their parents. Observe how Christ loved us. His love was not cautious but extravagant. He didn't love in order to get something from us, but to give everything of himself to us. Love like that!

So of course, the very best example of love in action that has ever lived is Jesus himself. Jesus is the biblical pattern that we should follow. Look for love in His every action. Look for love in His every word. Love is there to be found in all that Jesus did and said.

Someone penned this observation of Jesus' love: 

          He did not heal the sick to show how spiritual he was.
          He did not turn water into wine to prove a point.
          He did not pick those particular disciples to make himself look good.
          He did not cast out demons to prove how much God was using him.
          He did not tell parables to get in with the in-crowd.
          He did not walk on water to impress.
          He did not calm the storm to gain respect.
          He did not feed the five thousand to become popular.
          He did not wash the disciples’ feet to make people look up to him.

It was all out of love! Love for His followers. Love for the sick. Love for the lost. Love for God.

In Jesus, we find a kind and compassionate love. A love that cares and meets needs. A love that nurtures, cherishes and forgives. A love that is patient and humble.

That’s Godly love in action!



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