GodSprings - 24 November, 2016

Has My Love Reached Its Zenith?

And it is my prayer that your love may abound more and more.

Philippians 1:9a

A recent graduate of seminary took the pastorate of a church.  In his first message, he preached on “Love for the Brethren.”  The leadership and congregation were delighted with the message.  On his second Sunday, he preached the very same message as the week before.  The elders thought this strange but said nothing, thinking he was a novice and could not get a second message prepared.  The third Sunday, he preached the very same message.  Now the congregation and leadership were up in arms and after the service they all pounced on him.  They said, “You, young man, have preached the same message three Sundays in a row.  Can you give a rational explanation of this?”  “Yes,” replied the young preacher, “You haven’t applied the message yet.  There is no use going on to the second sermon until you apply the first one.

Paul is asking God that these Philippians would have abounding, overflowing love for one another.  Paul does not pray that they love him, for he knew they did.  He does not pray that they should love Christ, for he knew they did.  What he prays is that God would give them more and more love towards one another.  Strange request, for what church was more loving than the Philippians?  None, yet there was a need for deeper, sincerer, more earnest love among the brethren because they were a church which still had some division, strife and fighting in their midst. 

We see that Paul was never satisfied with anything short of perfection.  He would not allow these Philippians to rest on their laurels.  He would not tolerate these Philippians being satisfied with mediocrity in love.  Love was to abound, overflow, super-abound.

The test of a mature Christian is not how much one knows but how much one loves.  The test of a mature Church is not how much doctrine it can spit out but how much love it can manifest.

While they had love, they needed more love.  Love is never perfected; love is never fully mature.  No Christian has ever gone far enough in love or loved too much.  No one has ever arrived in the art of loving as Christ loved.  There is always room for improvement in the skill of loving another brother or sister in Christ.

This means that biblical love is something we need to work at constantly. Husbands, are you working at loving your wife? Wives, are you working at loving your husband? Parents, are you working at loving your kids? Kids, are you working at loving your parents? It’s a lifelong process till we have perfected it as Christ.