THE  LENGTH  AND  LIMITS  OF  LOVE
Part I

In the next several issues of the Trumpeter I am going to present "The Length and Limits of Love". We can easily see the LENGTH of love, but sometimes it is much more difficult to see the LIMITS of love. It
is one thing to say that "God is Love", and quite another to say "he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him". But that is exactly what the Bible teaches, and it is the same author, John that makes both statements. (I John 4:8, 16 & John 3:36 respectively)

There are what appear at least superficially to be contrary verses to almost every Bible doctrine. They cannot really be contrary in what they teach, since that would be equal to "Contradiction". And I have found that every so called contradiction in the Bible is groundless when a proper exegesis and the right hermeneutics are applied to the text.

Of paramount importance for any study of Love in the Bible is to realize that love is not the ultimate attribute of God. This comes as a shock to many who have adopted the "Love Gospel". Nevertheless, the highest attribute of God is not His love but His holiness. This truth will be repeated several times in these articles.

If I am correct in my interpretation of John's Gospel and Epistles, then his use of "Love" and "World"     in John 3:16 must be understood in the light of John 3:18, 36 along with John 1:11, 12 and I John 2:15. These verses along with many others that are pertinent to our study will be handled in the next issue of the Trumpeter. 

PHILEO Strong's # 5368 and  AGAPAO Strong's Dictionary # 25  Are the two main words for Love in the Greek New Testament, and they must be defined. Some say they are merely Synonymous, that is they mean essentially the same thing. It will be obvious as we progress that I do not accept this idea. Although I will not say they are never  used interchangeably, I insist that in the New Testament they are clearly and purposefully differentiated.

It is my contention that the verb AGAPAO and the noun AGAPE as used in the New Testament should be understood to mean "A love based upon the inherent worth of the object as viewed from the eyes of the lover". Be careful here. This definition does not say that the object actually has any real inherent worth, but only that the object has worth in the eye of the beholder. Again, I will no doubt repeat this distinction several times before I finish with this subject.

It is also my contention that the verb PHILEO and its noun PHILE as used in the New Testament should be understood to mean "A love gained by experiential knowledge of the object by close associating with the lover" [Hence this kind of love cannot be gained except by close association]   

If God's Love is absolute, then there are many Scriptures that need to be "explained away".  But if not, then we may prove that His wrath is just as "absolute" as His love. Such knowledge should put the fear of God in everyone who knows about it, and give substance to Hebrews 12:14 Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord.

The best way I know to get some of this straight is to understand that love is a motive for action. It is only the action taken that justifies the motive. Just as faith without works is dead James 2:20 and 26, just so, love without action is vain. In John 14:15 our Lord says: If ye love [AGAPAO] me, keep my commandments. John 15:10 adds: If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love [AGAPE] even as I have kept my Father's commandments, and abide in his love [AGAPE]. It should be obvious to everyone that the consequences our Lord implies in these positive statements is the negative truth that if you DO NOT keep His commandments, then you are declaring that you DO NOT love Him.

Please go back and read the preceding paragraph again. It says that if you love Jesus, you will keep His commandments. But contrariwise, if you do not keep His commandments, then it is obvious that you do not love Him!

In light of what I have said so far, I will present three presuppositions that I hold, and that you need to keep in mind as we progress:

1. Love does not trump Doctrine. To love God is to believe or to think correctly. But God be thanked, that ye were the servants of sin, but ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you. Romans 6:17. To love our neighbor is to always be faithful to direct them to the Truth of God as found in the Scriptures. In the Old Testament we find that failure to correct the wayward neighbor is considered a hate crime: Thou shalt not hate thy brother in thine heart: thou shalt in any wise rebuke thy neighbor, and not suffer sin upon him. Leviticus 19:17. Today in many churches, and especially in ecumenical circles, there is the idea that "Doctrine divides - but Love unites". And of course that has a ring of truth to it because doctrine does indeed divide, it divides the sacred from the profane, and on the other hand, it is true that [false] love unites to destruction.  And that ye may put difference between holy and unholy, and between unclean and clean   Leviticus 10:10

2. Doctrine does not trump Behavior. Right doctrine and right thinking must be followed by proper conduct. Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin. James 4:17. Do we not sometimes confuse the knowledge of what is right with the doing of what is right? How many church folks learn the truth week after week through sermons at church, during their Bible reading, or even by conviction of the Holy Spirit, and totally disregard the warnings? This kind of knowledge does not only become vain, but it will lead to condemnation in the day of judgment. For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad. II Corinthians 5:10

3. Behavior does not trump Faith. This is important because it tells us that doing the right religious actions without putting our faith in the finished work of God in Christ is useless. Going to church does not replace believing God's Word. Being Baptized does not replace repentance and confession. Taking communion does not mean you believe that Jesus died for your sins and that He is coming again. Doing all the right things does not replace salvation by the Blood of Jesus. Hebrews 11:6 tells us that without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him. Please observe that this verse shows us two dynamic truths; first, we must certainly believe that God IS  i.e. that He exists. This is not a very great achievement, as James tells us "Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble. But wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead?" And so the second idea in Hebrews 11:6 is that one must also believe that God is going to do what He says. We must believe not only that God is there, but that He is fulfilling all His promises in Christ. And that He will also fulfill all His threats to those who are not found in Christ!

I am going to stop here with this introduction to our investigation into The Length and Limits of Love. In the January/February 2008 issue of the Trumpeter, I will be looking at John's writings in some detail  to find out what God is saying about His love for the "World" and the implications if we should decide to love the world.

Please keep this copy of your Trumpeter and the next in order to go back and refresh your mind about some of the important basic details above.