Real love reaches into enemy territory

Loving others, an old and new testament commandment.

It just dawned on me, "Loving other's is a commandment."


Don't get me wrong.  I know we are "told" to love, and I know we,Christians, must love— but until today I never thought about it as being something we are commanded to do. Does that make sense?

John says, "Behold, I am not writing a new commandment to you, but an old commandment which you have had from the beginning ..."


What love is and is not has been a topic on my mind for a few weeks.

I'd like to share with you some of  my thoughts as it pertains to my reading 1 John 2: 7-8.

When I think about love I look at it through the lenses of self-sacrifice and servant hood.  I know that God loved us because while we were yet sinners He gave His only Son.


God's love for us prompted Him to action.  An action that was in our favor.  An action that was "good" for us.  God's action also prompted His sacrifice.  His giving.


I understand that because He loved you and me, God gave something to us that meant something to Him.  God gave something of value... someone He loved.  Since I understand what He did and am able to see what He sacrificed and gave.  I believe what He says, "God loves me."

You can tell me you love me but in all honesty, I'm one who can't hear what you're saying for seeing what you are doing to me good or bad. So if your talk doesn't line up with your walk, chances are I'm going to evaluate you by what you are doing {or not doing}.  That's how I interrupt love.

I also believe there is a level of consistency and respect in love.



We never see Jesus professing His love for us and then lying on us or bad mouthing us to others. He never sabotages over and over again His relationship with us. Nor does He try to make Himself appear righteous by making us look unrighteous.

Love always seeks good for the recipient, the one loved.

Real love far extends the boundaries of friendship and loved ones and reaches over into enemy territory—yes, that includes those who persecute us.


God is love and just as love is His identifying mark, we who call Him Father should allow love to be the mark in which we are identified with.

Dear reader, I am learning through some tough lessons that if we truly want to be set apart and let our Christian light shine we will have to learn how to love correctly.  We can't grow or be of any good service to God and ourselves as long as we hate others.

What did Jesus ask His Father to do while hanging on the cross?  Because Jesus is the embodiment of love, Jesus asked His father to forgive the very ones who had nailed Him to the cross, spat on Him, mocked Him and persecuted Him.


Love and learning how to love is the key to life.  Jesus' love reached into enemy territory and He seeing our need asked the Father to forgive those too blinded to know real love when they saw it.


I'm realizing some people will not know how to accept the love that we have to offer. We must love them anyway.  Love doesn't give up.


The more we grow in our relationship with God, the more we will come to see the importance of loving another and realize love is the key to growing relationships with others.


We don't love to be loved back, though it would be good.


It has to be our belief in hope and God's Word not coming back void that keeps us reaching... grabbing toward love.  We love because we understand the importance of it, and how vital it is to the one we love.  We must take our love and let it reach far and deep even if it extends over into the territory of our enemies.


Wanna pray for a worthy cause?  Join the Bibleless Prayer Project. 


xo, Angela

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Today's blog post can be found at Good Morning Girls A Holy Experience and Abide in His Word
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