5 Oct 2014 by Adeline Lum CM-
On 28th of September, Pastor Lee Kuan Ming of Glad Tidings Petaling Jaya preached about choosing to love.
The Corinthian have always coveted spiritual gifts such as healing and prophesying. But Apostle Paul reminded that to earnestly desire the best gift, which is love! (1 Cor 13:8) He said that the greatest amongst the faith, hope, and love—is love itself. (1 Cor 13:13) So, whatever we do, do it out of love.
Mother Teresa once said, “I think the world today is upside down. Everybody seems to be in such a terrible rush, anxious for greater development and greater riches and so on. There is much suffering because there is so very little love in homes and in family life. We have no time for our children, we have no time for each other, there is no time to enjoy each other. In the home begins the disruption of the peace of the world.”
But what is love? Jackie DeShannon sang in 1965, “What the world needs now, is love, sweet love.” On 1880, Helen Adams Keller who became deaf and blind at 19 months old, started learning words at seven years old when her teacher Anne Sullivan spelled words onto her hand. Although she enjoyed the ‘finger play’, she finally understood its linkage to the physical world when Sullivan spelled “w-a-t-e-r” while pumping water onto her hands. But when Sullivan tried to explain love, Keller was confused; she asked, “What is love?”
Pastor Lee Kuan Ming shared that there are two misconceptions about love; one is love is a feeling, an ocean of emotions. And another is that love is uncontrollable, thus the saying, “I fell in love” as if it is an involuntary action that catches you by surprise. That is why Elvis Presley sang in his song, “Wise men say only fools rush in. But I can’t help falling in love with you.”
Ref: 8tracks
But how does God describe love?
Colossians 3:14 say that love is a matter of choice.
And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity. (Col 3:14 NIV)
The second truth about love is that love is a matter of conduct. (1 John 3:18)
Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth. (1 John 3:18 TLB)
Too often though, we love only with words but not actions. Pastor Lee Kuan Ming shared a light-hearted story of how a young man named George proclaimed his love for his girlfriend, “I love you so much that I will die for you, my love.” The girlfriend replied, “Oh George! You always said that but you never did it.”
But the love of God is an agape type of love, meaning unconditional love, a commitment to act. Hence, it is possible to love someone we don’t like. God put people who are hard to love in our lives to teach us how to love. Jesus never demanded us to have a warm affection for everyone because He did not have a warm affection for the Pharisees.
But how do we do that?
Firstly, we need to experience God’s love. (Eph 3:17-19)
17 And I pray that Christ will be more and more at home in your hearts, living within you as you trust in him. May your roots go down deep into the soil of God’s marvelous love; 18-19 and may you be able to feel and understand, as all God’s children should, how long, how wide, how deep, and how high his love really is; and to experience this love for yourselves, though it is so great that you will never see the end of it or fully know or understand it. And so at last you will be filled up with God himself.
(Eph 3:17-19 TLB)
Before we love other people, we must feel, understand, and experience God’s love because He loves us first. This is because unloved people are usually unloving people. And when we are not genuinely loved, we cannot give love.
Secondly, we need to forgive our enemies. (Col 3:13)
Be gentle and ready to forgive; never hold grudges. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others. (Col 3:13 TLB)
Many of us may have a just cause for our anger. But every time we resent someone, we are giving a piece of our heart, attention, and mind to that person. Hence, to start loving people, we need to close the door to our past by forgiving them hurting us.
Thirdly, focus on other people’s needs and problems. (Phil 2:45)
Don’t just think about your own affairs, but be interested in others, too, and in what they are doing. 5 Your attitude should be the kind that was shown us by Jesus Christ…
(Phil 2:4-5 TLB)
It is easier to understand other people when we walk a mile in their shoes. Hurting people hurt people. Hence, if someone is hurting you, it is because he or she is hurt. Look beyond their faults and see their needs instead.
Fourthly, choose what you think by meditating on God’s Words. (Prov 4:23 GNB)
Be careful how you think; your life is shaped by your thoughts. (Prov 4:23 GNT)
A popular saying says, “You are not what you think you are but what you think, you are. What I think determines what I feel, which determines how I act.” In other words, you can be transformed by the renewal of your mind. Although you cannot force a feeling, you can affect the way you feel by changing your thoughts. And this can only happen if we meditate (meaning digest in thoughts) and apply God’s Words into our life. (Phil 4:8-9)
8 And now, brothers, as I close this letter, let me say this one more thing: Fix your thoughts on what is true and good and right. Think about things that are pure and lovely, and dwell on the fine, good things in others. Think about all you can praise God for and be glad about. 9 Keep putting into practice all you learned from me and saw me doing, and the God of peace will be with you.
(Phil 4:8-9)
Fifthly, act in love. The Bible describes 15 actions that describe the meaning of love.
4 Love is very patient and kind, never jealous or envious, never boastful or proud, 5 never haughty or selfish or rude. Love does not demand its own way. It is not irritable or touchy. It does not hold grudges and will hardly even notice when others do it wrong. 6 It is never glad about injustice, but rejoices whenever truth wins out. 7 If you love someone, you will be loyal to him no matter what the cost. You will always believe in him, always expect the best of him, and always stand your ground in defending him.
(1 Cor 13:4-7)
Love is the basis of all positive actions. Firstly, we are called to love people by looking past their faults. (Eph 4:2 TLB)
2 Be humble and gentle. Be patient with each other, making allowance for each other’s faults because of your love. (Eph 4:2 TLB)
Henri Nouwen, Catholic priest, professor, and writer, described love in action well:
“How can we choose love when we have experienced so little of it? We choose love by taking small steps of love every time there is an opportunity. A smile, a handshake, a word of encouragement, a phone call, a card, an embrace, a kind greeting, a gesture of support, a moment of attention, a helping hand, a present, a financial contribution, a visit … all these are little steps toward love.
“Each step is like a candle burning in the night. It does not take the darkness away, but it guides us through the darkness. When we look back after many small steps of love, we will discover that we have made a long and beautiful journey.”
Sixth, love is expecting the best from someone. (1 Cor 13:7)
7 If you love someone, you will be loyal to him no matter what the cost. You will always believe in him, always expect the best of him, and always stand your ground in defending him. (1 Cor 13:7)
Treat people the way you want them to become. Pastor Lee Kuan Ming told a story about a little boy who was bitter because although he loved music, he could neither play an instrument nor sing. Seeking apprenticeship from the violinmaker Amati, Amati told him, “The song in the heart is all that matters, for there are many ways of making music.” The boy took Amati’s words to heart and grew up to become the most refined violinmaker in history. This boy is known as Antonio Strativari.
In ending, Pastor Lee Kuan Ming shared that we can only choose to love by experiencing first the love from God.
Ultimately, God will not ask us the number of projects we completed, the numbers of books we read, or the number of degrees we have….But really, have we done our best for the love of others?
Choose to love.
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Adeline,
Thanks very much for sharing this powerful sermon by Ps KM Lee. God bless.