LOVING ONE ANOTHER...I

Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal. And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing. And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing.

1 Corinthians 13:1-3 KJV

His extroverted personality annoys you. She seems too quiet. He favors a liturgical worship style, while you like a contemporary one. Her political views are too liberal for your conservative taste. Sound like any of the people at your church?

You may dislike them or disagree with them, but their commitment to Christ makes them your spiritual brothers and sisters. If you fail to reach out to them in love as Christ calls you to, then your broken relationships will do great harm to all involved. But if you take Christ’s command to love them seriously, that love will become a powerful force for good – both in your church, and your community.

 As we are commanded to love one another as followers of Jesus Christ, I want to share with you Whitney Hopler’s edited note on how to love one another from Gerald L. Sittser's book, Love One Another: Becoming the Church Jesus Longs For, (InterVarsity Press).

Remember what God intends the church to be.

 

The church should be a foretaste of what heaven will be like, with many vastly different people unified in their diversity by their love for Jesus Christ. It should be such a loving community that it’s an incarnation of Christ’s own sacrificial love. Realize that differences are normal and healthy; it’s simply how you respond that tests whether or not you’re willing to love. Keep God’s desire for the church to be a loving community in mind. Don’t settle for less, as far as it depends on you.