Let Us Love One Another

By Kevin Rutherford

    The church at Corinth had many problems. Some of those problems directly affected the relationships between brothers and sisters in Christ. The way those Christians were treating each other is the reason why Paul showed them a more excellent way. The more excellent way is love (1 Corinthians 12:31, 13:13)
    When Christians do not love one another there are going to be problems in the church. Not only will there be problems in the church but there will be Christians who lose their souls. John wrote, “We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love the brethren. He who does not love his brother abides in death. Whoever hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him” (1 John 3:14, 15).
    Whether or not we love our brothers and sisters in Christ says a lot about our relationship with God (1 John 4:7-11). If we do not love our fellow Christians then we are not born of God, do not love God, and do not know God. We can claim to love God all we want to but if we are not treating our brothers and sisters in a loving manner we are simply liars.
    The greatest example of love is God’s love for mankind (1 John 4:10-11). God sent His Son to die for us. That gives evidence of tremendous love. We love God because He loved us and made it possible for our sins to be removed. John drew an important conclusion based upon these facts. “Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another” (1 John 4:11).
    The love that we have for other Christians will be seen in the way that we live, and in the things that we do (1 John 3:16-18). If we see a brother and we have the ability to help them we will do so. In fact, it should make us happy to be able to help out a fellow Christian. If we are not willing to help each other we are not of the truth and our hearts condemn us before God (1 John 3:19).
    Our love for one another will greatly affect our eternal destiny and our influence in the community. Why would anyone want to be a part of a group if they do not believe the members of that group love one another? We need to have a genuine love for fellow Christians that will be obvious even to those who are in the world (Romans 12:9, 10). When they see the love we have for another it is possible they may be drawn to the church.
    To be Christ-like we must love one another. To be godly we must love one another. To have a strong influence on others we must love one another. To encourage each other we must love one another. To help each other we must love one another. To go to heaven together we must love one another. May God help us always to abound more and in our love for Him and in our love for our fellow Christians.

- Kevin Rutherford preaches for the Warners Chapel church of Christ in Clemmons, NC. He may be contacted through the congregation's website: http://warnerschapelchurchofchrist.org/