UNDERSTANDING THE LOVE OF THE FATHER—GOD
15 DO NOT LOVE THE WORLD OR THE THINGS IN THE WORLD. IF ANYONE LOVES THE WORLD, THE LOVE OF THE FATHER IS NOT IN HIM.
16 For all that is in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not of the Father but is of the world.
17 And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; BUT HE WHO DOES THE WILL OF GOD ABIDES FOREVER."
1 John 2:13,15-17 (NKJV)
Many number of believers today still have the love of the world in their hearts. Many professed believers are secretly desiring and longing for the things they claimed that they had forsaken in the world (Genesis 19:24-26). It would be difficult for a believer to forsake the practices of the world If he or she still hanging out with old friends who are practicing such things.
Separation is one of the things that a believer who is new in the faith had to do:
14 DO NOT BE UNEQUALLY YOKED TOGETHER WITH UNBELIEVERS. FOR WHAT FELLOWSHIP HAS RIGHTEOUSNESS WITH LAWLESSNESS? AND WHAT COMMUNION HAS LIGHT WITH DARKNESS? 15 AND WHAT ACCORD HAS CHRIST WITH BELIAL? OR WHAT PART HAS A BELIEVER WITH AN UNBELIEVER? 16 AND WHAT AGREEMENT HAS THE TEMPLE OF GOD WITH IDOLS? FOR YOU ARE THE TEMPLE OF THE LIVING GOD. AS GOD HAS SAID: “I WILL DWELL IN THEM AND WALK AMONG THEM. I WILL BE THEIR GOD, AND THEY SHALL BE MY PEOPLE.” 17 THEREFORE “COME OUT FROM AMONG THEM AND BE SEPARATE, SAYS THE LORD. DO NOT TOUCH WHAT IS UNCLEAN, AND I WILL RECEIVE YOU.” 18 “I WILL BE A FATHER TO YOU, AND YOU SHALL BE MY SONS AND DAUGHTERS, SAYS THE LORD ALMIGHTY" " (2 Corinthians 6:14-18 NKJV).
Until a believer gets to the stage of not envying the unbelievers who they were together with in the world before his or her conversion, being born-again, such a believer would always be looking back. A believer needed to be weaned or detached of his or her affection for the world—wordly things. This weaning of affection for the world or worldly things is the problem of many believers.
One of the things God would need from you as a believer is to give your affection to Him the moment you pledged your allegiance to Him. Jesus Christ said: "IF ANYONE COMES TO ME [Jesus] AND DOES NOT HATE [love less] HIS FATHER AND MOTHER, WIFE AND CHILDREN, BROTHERS AND SISTERS, YES, AND HIS OWN LIFE ALSO, HE CANNOT BE MY DISCIPLE" (Luke 14:26 NKJV). One thing that God would want to wean you of is your affection for those you seem to love most. Not only on people, but on any other thing you love doing or whatever.
The wisdom of God is unfathomable. If someone's understanding on this is incomplete, the person would want to see God as unjust. The wisdom in it is that God would not want you to love anyone or anything with your own human love.
Whoever you love or whatever you love doing would be by the love of God—Christ Jesus. The human love is selfish and carnal. Some have said there is no love like mother's love but that is not true. Mother's love is selfish. The love of God through Christ Jesus is the perfect love and that is the kind of love God wanted every believer to express to everyone. This love of God can only be found in believers who are born-again, because it is given by the Holy Spirit at new birth: "NOW HOPE DOES NOT DISAPPOINT, BECAUSE THE LOVE OF GOD HAS BEEN POURED OUT IN OUR HEARTS BY THE HOLY SPIRIT WHO WAS GIVEN TO US" (Romans 5:5 NKJV). However, the love is not being expressed by many believers who claimed or professed to be born-again.
Back to our point: a believer had to be weaned or detached of his or her love for whoever and whatever in the world. That is why in our text, Apostle John said; "IF ANYONE LOVES THE WORLD, THE LOVE OF THE FATHER [God] IS NOT IN HIM" (1 John 2 15 NKJV). The true love of God is found in the person who has completely denied the world, or be weaned or detached of the world.
Thus, If a believer still loves the world and craves for the things of the world and the practices of the people of the world, such a believer has not been weaned completely—he or she is yet to be fully on God's side.
How do you love others with the love of God? This thus means you love whoever It is with the capacity or enablement given to you by the Holy Spirit on the inside of you. This type of love is without sentiment. It means you love your father, mother, spouse, children, or whoever with the love of God without being sentimental about it.
This means a believer should not be homogeneous; that is, you should not love someone because you are of the same race or colour, or you are of the same tribal origin, or whatever other reasons other than God. Any love that is not based on Christ Jesus and Christ Jesus alone, it is not of God. It is human love. The reason for a believer's love should be God through Christ Jesus and the Holy Spirit. In other words, the reason why you love someone should be Christ Jesus. Not because of any other thing.
The issue of homogeneity cannot be completely ruled out in the gathering of humans, but it should not come into play when dealing with issues. If it happened at all, it is hypocrisy. A situation occurred when Peter who had been eating and having rapports with the gentiles suddenly withdrew himself when other Jewish believers came from Jerusalem (Galatians 2:11-13). Paul had to call him out on it and reprove him in the presence of others (Galatians 2:14). Why did Paul do that? Because he saw that Peter was being hypocritical and he supposed to know better. If Paul did not do that, the work they had taken time to build in that city, Antioch, would be messed up or made crumble. The gentiles would see marginalization and that would not be consistent with the gospel and all they had taught them on God's love (Galatians 2:14-16). Has your affection for the world been weaned?
If you are discriminatory, you love or like whoever because of the skin colour, or tribal origin, or whatever, yet, you claim to be of God, a believer in Christ Jesus; It means you are yet to be weaned of the belief system of the world and their patterns—the love of God in you is yet to be fully expressed. The love of God is complete and not prejudicial!
Peace.
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