Jesus never said they will know you are my disciples by the number of people that show up in your buildings… Or by the number of books that you sell… Or by the amount of money in your bank account… Or by how fancy a car you drive… Or how big a house you live in… Or how many people adore you and think you’re wonderful and a great orator and a wise and impressive pastor!
No, none of these things were ever mentioned by Christ as being the mark of one of his disciples. His measuring stick was far far beyond the measuring stick of our fleshly and worldly viewpoint. He said the world would know we were his disciples but how we LOVE one another!
Perhaps we can all agree to all agree that love is measured by our actions and not our words, so let’s look at it from that point of view and I’m going to speak from my own personal perspective.
When we come in to fellowship with the body of believers and everyone waves and greet us and says hello and hugs us and tells us they love us- that feels good for the moment. But then when they don’t return phone calls, when they don’t want to get together and have lunch, when they don’t want to spend any actual time with you getting to know you it is clear there is no love. When a group forms and then excludes others, there is no love.When things get difficult and you really just need some support and encouragement and prayer, but outside of that one person designated as pastor for the group, no one else has time for you, there is no love!
Love is doing life together; love is including anyone and everyone who wants to be included; Love is following through when you say you were going to do something or be somewhere.
Love is not only encouraging continued growth in your own life and in the lives of others, but love is also making room for that growth, and accommodating that growth when it occurs rather than continue to relate to that person by how they used to be rather than how they are as a new creation in Christ!
1 Corinthians 13 has become so popular as pithy memes and wedding filler. Paul, speaking by the unction of the Holy Spirit, revealed some deep spiritual truth about love that we all need to examine in light of our own hearts and behaviors and ask God to work that incredible true work of love in us and through us, that we might truly example what it is to be a disciple of Christ. Not by how good we are or how much we do or how nice we behave; but by loving according to his standard and showing how good he is, and how much he has done, and how he behaves!
Go to 1 Corinthians chapter 13 and begin to do your own serious word study of each of the words Paul declares love is… And see where you might incorporate that more fully into your walk with Christ, drawing blessing to your self and pouring blessing out on others!!
Consider this; to truly love your neighbor is truly loving yourself and the entire body of Christ!
