I have always thought i knew what vs 27 meant, but with all that is going on today and especially when this mega church pastor "who will remain " nameless" spouts off non sense
what exactly does love your neighbor as yourself mean? I live in the south now and i am not seeing a lot of this, i am pretty sure i know what this means but I can't put it into words so i would like someone to help me to make sure I am getting this one right, because i read that love covers a multitude of sins so I want to make sure i understand this correctly.
You have also touched on something else I think is important, and that is some of these mega-ministries. 1 Peter 4:8 says "And above all things have fervent charity among yourselves: for charity shall cover the multitude of sins."
Number one, he says and above all things. That means top priority. Have fervent charity among yourselves: And the word charity is the word Agape love. The word fervent literally means to stretch out the hand, or to extend out the hand.
So he's presenting a picture of an active love. In James Chapter 2, James says if somebody comes along and they're hungry and they need clothing, and you say "Well, I'll pray for you," what good is that? Faith without works is a dead faith. So when its hardships and when there's suffering, have an active extended love, and notice this: among yourselves.
If any of you have any knowledge of the Greek, the term among yourselves is in the Attributive Position. But the focus is supposed to be on fellow believers. Just like Jesus said, people will know you're my disciples by your love for one another.
One of the sickening things I've seen over the years is church ministries bringing in several million dollars a year for their projects to reach the uncivilized world. And that's great if that's what the Lord is leading you to do. But I notice that right around the church, there are a lot of people needing help.
But they look beyond that. They look at what looks good on the tote board. And even some people within the church are suffering and going without, and the sensitivity isn't there. Suffering creates sensitivity. Have an extended love among yourselves, for love shall cover the multitude of sins. That is from Proverbs 12:10.
Why cover a multitude of sins? Because that is what brings division and hardship within the body of Christ. We have to have an active extended love for repentance and restoration of sin. We have to deal with the sin issue in the body of Christ!
Here is my understanding of what love your neighbor means. First of all, Luke 10:27 says 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. This comes from Deuteronomy 6:5, thou shalt love the Lord your God, and then Leviticus 19:18, you shall love your neighbor as yourself.
The term "Thou shalt love" in the Greek text is not in command form. It is called a Future Active Indicative. What this is telling us is that if we have the Spirit of Christ living in us, WE WILL love the Lord with all our heart, soul, strength, and mind, and WE WILL love our neighbor as ourselves. It is a statement of fact. The word love is the word Agape. This is different from human love (Phileo). Agape love is a fruit of God's Spirit which we are given in Galatians 5:22.
What is interesting is that to the Jews in the Old Testament, their neighbor was their fellow Jew. In the New Testament, the word neighbor for the Christian is a reference to other Christians. In fact, Jesus said it. He said, "All men will know that you are my disciples when you have love for one another." The highest love that I can show my brothers and sisters in Christ is to be obedient to Christ.
So, we are not commanded to get out there and start loving our neighbors. The command is YOU WILL. Its a factual statement. Since God is love (Agape), and He gives us His Spirit, and His Spirit in us produces that love, WE WILL love our neighbor, and WE WILL love the Lord our God. It's impossible not to because His Spirit in us produces that love!
what exactly does love your neighbor as yourself mean? I live in the south now and i am not seeing a lot of this, i am pretty sure i know what this means but I can't put it into words so i would like someone to help me to make sure I am getting this one right, because i read that love covers a multitude of sins so I want to make sure i understand this correctly.
You have also touched on something else I think is important, and that is some of these mega-ministries. 1 Peter 4:8 says "And above all things have fervent charity among yourselves: for charity shall cover the multitude of sins."
Number one, he says and above all things. That means top priority. Have fervent charity among yourselves: And the word charity is the word Agape love. The word fervent literally means to stretch out the hand, or to extend out the hand.
So he's presenting a picture of an active love. In James Chapter 2, James says if somebody comes along and they're hungry and they need clothing, and you say "Well, I'll pray for you," what good is that? Faith without works is a dead faith. So when its hardships and when there's suffering, have an active extended love, and notice this: among yourselves.
If any of you have any knowledge of the Greek, the term among yourselves is in the Attributive Position. But the focus is supposed to be on fellow believers. Just like Jesus said, people will know you're my disciples by your love for one another.
One of the sickening things I've seen over the years is church ministries bringing in several million dollars a year for their projects to reach the uncivilized world. And that's great if that's what the Lord is leading you to do. But I notice that right around the church, there are a lot of people needing help.
But they look beyond that. They look at what looks good on the tote board. And even some people within the church are suffering and going without, and the sensitivity isn't there. Suffering creates sensitivity. Have an extended love among yourselves, for love shall cover the multitude of sins. That is from Proverbs 12:10.
Why cover a multitude of sins? Because that is what brings division and hardship within the body of Christ. We have to have an active extended love for repentance and restoration of sin. We have to deal with the sin issue in the body of Christ!
Here is my understanding of what love your neighbor means. First of all, Luke 10:27 says 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. This comes from Deuteronomy 6:5, thou shalt love the Lord your God, and then Leviticus 19:18, you shall love your neighbor as yourself.
The term "Thou shalt love" in the Greek text is not in command form. It is called a Future Active Indicative. What this is telling us is that if we have the Spirit of Christ living in us, WE WILL love the Lord with all our heart, soul, strength, and mind, and WE WILL love our neighbor as ourselves. It is a statement of fact. The word love is the word Agape. This is different from human love (Phileo). Agape love is a fruit of God's Spirit which we are given in Galatians 5:22.
What is interesting is that to the Jews in the Old Testament, their neighbor was their fellow Jew. In the New Testament, the word neighbor for the Christian is a reference to other Christians. In fact, Jesus said it. He said, "All men will know that you are my disciples when you have love for one another." The highest love that I can show my brothers and sisters in Christ is to be obedient to Christ.
So, we are not commanded to get out there and start loving our neighbors. The command is YOU WILL. Its a factual statement. Since God is love (Agape), and He gives us His Spirit, and His Spirit in us produces that love, WE WILL love our neighbor, and WE WILL love the Lord our God. It's impossible not to because His Spirit in us produces that love!
This comment thread is locked. Please enter a new comment below to start a new comment thread.
Note: Comment threads older than 2 months are automatically locked.
Do you have a Bible comment or question?
Posting comments is currently unavailable due to high demand on the server.
Please check back in an hour or more. Thank you for your patience!
Report Comment
Which best represents the problem with the comment?