"Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them." - Ephesians 4:2
I recall a conversation I had with a Christian friend many years back in which she claimed to have turned to Buddhism because "those people really know how to live." I was not very close friends with this girl, so I do not know how strong her own faith had been (I do know that she had only professed to be a Christian for two years). I also do not know if she had completely turned from Christianity or if she was simply exploring some Buddhist teachings while maintaining a walk with the Lord. But this statement really stuck with me. At first, I was taken aback. To be honest, my judgmental 14-year-old heart was seriously doubting the genuineness of her faith. Over a decade later, however, I am filled not with judgement but sadness. I am sad that individuals can be turned off to Christianity because they don't know what Christianity is really about.
The primary reason people, especially seekers and new Christians, are turned off to Christianity is our lack of love. Christians can be mean. I am reminded of that song "Jesus, Friend of Sinners," which has the line "Nobody knows what we're for, only what we're against, when we judge the wounded." Is our hope in Christ and the love that he gives immediately visible to outsiders? I'm not saying people should immediately get saved when they see you without ever having a real conversation, but does your spirit make them curious about this Jesus you claim to live for? Or do you (unknowingly sometimes) push them away by only casting judgment without expressing love for the hurting?
"But the fruit of the spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things, there is no law." - Galatians 5:22-23
This was one of the first scriptures I memorized (besides John 3:16) as a child in Sunday School. I could go into a lengthy discussion about what it means to be "fruitful," and why the word "fruit" is singular when clearly more than one trait is mentioned, but I just want to focus on the first part of that scripture: "But the fruit of the spirit is love." But what is love? (Baby, don't hurt me?) I have a post where I go into depth about the specifics of love (but fail to give a concise definition). Read that post. Although I did not concisely define love, I gave a few practical examples of love.
I am reminded of another scripture, John 13:35, "By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another." How can we expect to be accepted as trustworthy witnesses if we, as Christ's disciples and ambassadors, do not show love to outsiders or even each other?
