To Serve With Love (Part 2)

To Serve With Love (Part 2)
“You, my brothers, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature; rather, serve one another in love.” Galatians 5:13 (New International Version)
The first and greatest commandment, said Jesus, is this: “You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.” He continued, “A second is equally important: Love your neighbor as yourself” (Matthew 22:37, 39 NLT). Our relationship with one another is connected with our worship to God. How can we love God, and hate His prized creation – mankind? Throughout all major world religions there is universality of what many express as the “Golden Rule:” “Whatever you want men to do to you, do also to them” (Matthew 7:12).
I’ve decided to put together an unofficial acronym for the word “love.” Each letter of this powerful 4-letter word will represent an idea that I attribute to love; the “L” representing “longsuffering.” God Himself provides the example. Second Peter 3:15 “And remember, the Lord’s patience gives people time to be saved.” Just think about how patient God is toward us, taking His time with us, until we come to a place of maturity and fruitfulness. Truth be told, most of us can admit that we are not always so easy to deal with. But God’s love for us won’t allow Him to abandon us. His love pursues us, rescues us, redeems us, and restores us.
In sincere gratitude, His longsuffering nature towards us should reproduce in our relationships with one another. Ephesians 4:2 “Always be humble and gentle. Be patient with each other, making allowance for each other’s faults because of your love.” In other words, in our dealings with one another, be flexible. If disagreements arise due to matters of personal opinion, be bendable, be flexible, give a little… for love’s sake! I don’t always have to be right! There’s no personal opinion of mine that’s worth losing my brother or sister. I don’t always have to be right, but God’s word is always right. My opinions may change, but His word never changes. So by His grace, and because of His love, may we demonstrate the longsuffering nature of your Heavenly Father!