The Source of Love

In John 13:35 we find one of Jesus' most famous statements: "By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another." It is often assumed then, that love for others is the primary characteristic of true Christ-followers. And certainly love ranks among the most essential of the family traits that are to be found among the children of God. And yet, it is too often the case that this "love" goes unexamined, and can often become synonymous with acts of benevolence, acceptance, and compassion. It is also assumed often that this "love" is more of the heart than the head, more "relational" than intellectual. This is not only unfortunate, but actually so wrong as to be dangerous because, taken too far, this kind of thinking separates two things that the Bible does not separate. This kind of thinking attempts to pit the mind against the heart, thinking against feeling, truth against relationship. But Scripture doesn't allow for this bifurcation. Scripture never considers the one to be sufficient without the other. When Christ enters the life through the Indwelling Spirit, there is both a transformed mind and a transformed life. Faith without works turns out to be no faith as all, even as works without truth turn out to be the surest sign of hypocrisy and a modern brand of Pharisaical legalism. To show this, we'll have to head to the Scriptures.

The first point to be made is that love in the Scriptures is never merely a feeling. We insist on this when we counsel those wishing to be married. We tell them "love is more than a good feeling; it is a commitment to love even when the object seems unloveable." When we say this we are admitting that love is the product of something else, something that produces it. It is not merely a feeling of compassion, or acceptance, although these things can easily masquerade as love. Rather, the love we are to have is the end result of a commitment that is itself the result of a process of analysis, and intellectual comprehension. To ever consider that truth is the enemy of love is to shortchange the very concept of real, sacrificial, committed love. But too often that is what happens when the church decides that all it needs to display is a compassionate, accepting heart. When this compassion is not the result of biblical teaching,  theological understanding, and intentional commitment, it can easily deteriorate into an external show that makes us feel better about ourselves when the real reason behind it should be a passion to see God's glory radiate through more and more worshippers. This will demand that we understand love not as an emotion, but as the fruit of an intentional commitment to live out the truth of God's Word.

Second, it must be understood that Scripture itself describes the process whereby love becomes a reality. In 1 Timothy 1:5 Paul writes: "But the goal of our instruction is love from a pure heart, and a good conscience, and a sincere faith." Notice the divine order: First instruction, and then love. Understanding the truth of God's Word is the necessary prerequisite to a proper living out of what we call love. The priority in the church must always be the proclamation of the Word, and its theological consequences.

To often today the church has been pulled away from intellectual pursuits under the guise of becoming more relevant, more relational, more accepting, more compassionate. Yet, if this relevant relational and accepting form of compassion is not fueled by biblical truth and theological thinking, it isn't the love that Paul is expecting Timothy's teaching to produce. What is needed to day is for the church to stop the pendulum swing right in the middle and affirm daily that we need both a solid biblical, theological foundation in every Christ-follower, as well as the radical expectation that every Christ-follower will live out the fruits of regeneration to the fullest. In other words, we must be a church where people care, and truth matters, and neither is considered sufficient apart from the other.

 Also notice that the love we want to produce in ourselves and our churches is love that springs from a "pure heart." This obviously means that there is a kind of love that is produced by an "impure" heart. This impure kind of love will be manipulative, self-serving, and hypocritical. It can be produced by those with little or no connection to Christ, or to His Word. If we settle for this kind of "love" we are actually allowing those who don't know Christ to masquerade as those who do. This is dangerous for the church, but it is eternally tragic for those who believe their acts of compassion can make up for a lack of true self-denial, cross-bearing, and consistent following of Christ. It is hugely important for us to admit that acts of love can be committed by those who don't know Christ. This is true both outside, and inside the church. We have to ask for much more than acts of love, though we can never ask for less. We must insist that love be the product of biblical instruction, and flow from a pure heart that has been cleansed by the Spirit and the Word.

In summary then, let me make two points. First, the ongoing, cyclical process must look like this: biblical truth and instruction is the starting place, and the priority of the church. From this instruction must come transformed lives that joyfully and consistently live out their faith in genuine acts of love, which include both compassion and righteous confrontation, both serving and forgiving, both sacrificial giving of self, and courageous defending of the faith. While the priority is instruction, success will depend on the production of the fruit of lives overwhelmed by the love of Christ, and overflowing with that love to a watching world.

Second, we the church must never settle for anything less than excellence in both areas. We must demand strong, consistent biblical teaching, and the theological formulations that must flow from it. In this there can be no compromise, no downgrade, no corruption. Why? Because such instruction is the means by which God transforms lives into fountains of love. The first is necessary but not sufficient. Truth alone is dead truth. But truth alone can produce love from a pure heart, and this love is what makes the truth sufficient.

The time when churches could be either a "teaching" church or a "reaching" church must end. Neither fulfills the biblical mandate. Neither produces the kind of transformed Christ-follower that the Scriptures picture. We must be churches that insist on the priority of biblical truth while recognizing that only transformed, loving lives matter to God. If truth is the root, then love is the fruit. And never forget that Jesus also said "My Father is glorified in this, that you produce much fruit, and so prove to be my disciples" (John 15:8).

Hope this helps,

David

What Kind of Church?

Since coming to Grace the question I’ve been asked the most is this one: What is your vision for Grace?  Here’s my answer: I believe that a church where people care and truth matters is the only kind of church the New Testament prescribes.

We’ve all seen churches where the people were caring, loving, and involved in doing good in their community while being satisfied with shallow teaching and a lack of theological thinking. On the other hand, we probably know some churches that are great at getting people to think biblically and theologically but seem to have no time to love people, care for them, and be active as transformational agents in their neighborhoods.

I’ve said all along that I’m greedy! I believe Grace has to be both. We have to be a place where people care, and truth matters. And, as importantly, we can’t let the two fight against each other. We can’t see ourselves as a group where some think, and others do; where some know the Bible, and other know how to love and care and reach out to the world. That just isn’t the way the New Testament describes the Body of Christ. We all are to be maturing as Christ-followers which means that what we know must shape who we are and how we love.

For evidence we need go no further than the verse we’ve adopted as a summary of our mission. Note well what Paul says in 1 Timothy 1:5: But the goal of our instruction is love from a pure heart, and a good conscience, and a sincere faith. Did you see the connection between an instructed person and a transformed life? It is obvious that biblical instruction is a priority, but it turns out such instruction isn’t an end in itself. It has as its purpose the fueling of love from hearts that are pure, as well as consciences that are properly taught and active, and a faith that is authentic to its core. Taken together these form a conspicuously transformed life that is able to be an agent of transformation in our world. That’s our goal! And my vision for Grace is that we work and pray tirelessly so that we become more and more the church where people really care, and truth really matters!

Hope this helps,

David

Obstruction!

I love soccer. I love the beauty of its fluidity, its athleticism, its passion. I love that the rules of the game are called "laws" and that the officials are simply there to enforce them. I especially love that, in soccer, it is illegal to "obstruct" another player's path to the ball. A mutual shoulder to shoulder charge is permissible because it is seen that each player has an equal footing. But when one player obstructs the path and play of another, it violates the law.

I sure wish this law carried over into life, and specifically into group decision-making. It ought to be that decisions are made on the basis of the best arguments, the best ideas, the best outcomes. It ought to be that everyone plays according to the same rules of listening, analyzing, and agreeing. What should not be allowed is obstruction. By this I mean the intentional opposing of an idea just for the sake of making sure nothing is ever done without opposition. I get it that it is always good to have free-flowing discussion before a decision is made. But when the decision is obvious, and already mutually agreed upon, ongoing obstruction ought to be called out. Too bad we don't have an official with a whistle to help us see the facts. Even better would be an official with a yellow card to stop play and caution the offender that such behavior won't be tolerated.

Like I said, I love soccer. And the fact that I can't play the beautiful game anymore only heightens my feeling that real life should be more like soccer. But alas, it isn't to be. I guess I'l just have to get better at my own skills like ball control, and tackling.

Thanks for listening,

David