Substandard Living

Galatians 5:22-26 "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. The law is not against such things. Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another."
John 13:34-35 “I give you a new command: Love one another. Just as I have loved you, you are also to love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”
Jesus gives his followers grace upon grace.  As his followers, we are filled with, permeated by his grace.  In Galatians, we are told the fruit of the Spirit.  The first aspect of this fruit is love.  I find this fitting given that the only command that I find that Jesus gives us is to love.  Not only to love, but to love the same way that Jesus has loved us.
When we choose to focus on ourselves, our wants, our focus, our rights; we have forgotten to love. We are told in 1 Corinthians 13:5 that love is not self-seeking, is not irritable and does not keep a record of wrongs.  In verse 7 we are also told that love “bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things."  When we choose to not live in this love, we are living substandard lives.
Love is not easy but love is our given command.  Not only are we told to love, but Jesus gave us a life of demonstrating what he means by this.  Jesus has commanded us to love one another.  This phrase is used almost 100 times in the New Testament.  We are told to (some examples) have fellowship with one another (1 John 1:7), hospitality one to another (1 Peter 4:9), be subject one to another (1 Peter 5:5), pray one for another (James 5:16), comfort one another (1 Thessalonians 5:18), and be kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving (Ephesians 4:32).  In all these one anothers we can add “as Christ has <insert action here> you, so you must also <insert action here> one another”.  These one anothers are expressions of love.  Jesus showed us these in his life and to us.  Not only am I to forgive my brother, but I am to forgive my brother the way Christ has forgiven me.
  1. Do you struggle with love?
  2. Which “one another” are you going to focus on today?

--Zine Smith

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