What's Love Got To Do With It?

There is something stirring in our little corner of the blogosphere...

And it deals not with high theology, nor politics, nor church discipline, nor is it difficult to explain...

Okay, well perhaps it IS difficult to explain. And perhaps it does have some theological strings attached, and may effect some political ideals, and weigh in on some aspects of church discipline......alright, okay, I give up! Let me tell you...

Our little niche of cyberspace is abuzz with LOVE! Love is in the proverbial air, shall we say. Questions are brewing like, "What is it?", "Who are we to 'feel' it for?", "Is it predominately a 'feeling' or is it mostly a 'mindset'?", "Is it a question that can be tackled, this question of love?", and frankly - "WHERE DO WE BEGIN?" And to be clear from the outset - primarily, the question thus far has dealt with 'ooey gooey' love, otherwise known as romantic love. You know, that kinda of love that Hollywood makes into some idol for all "meaningful" relationships to worship. Romantic love, in and of itself, is not idolatrous in all expressions. However, much of what masquerades as love today...is just that...a masquerade. What we are seeking here is the essense of love, the purpose that God intended it to bear for men and women, and our responsibilty to live out that purpose in a biblical manner.

Paul said in Romans 11:36, speaking of God, "For of him, and through him, and to him, are all things: to whom be glory for ever. Amen." To do justice to our question of love, and give due diligence to our answer, this discussion must flow "from him, through him, and to him". The gift of love is certainly not the same as the gift of faith. And the gift of hope is most definately not the same as the gift of faith. But the foundation of them all, the mighty river of which these streams emit is God himself. "And he shewed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb." - Revelation 22:1

Man..."a pure river of water of life"! Talk about crazy awesome! Okay, so where am I going with all this? Love, rightly expressed and spiritually centered, should flow from God, through God, and to God...just like everything else. And like it's counterparts, faith and hope, there are somethings about love that are unexplainable apart from the mighty workings of God himself. That being said, I think it is well worth the time and effort to seek out God's plan for love in our lives; it's past applications (spiritually in justification), it's present implications (spiritually in sanctification), and it's future ramifications(spiritually in glorification).

EP began tackling some greek definitions of love and its effect on our discussion in his previous post, and Travis at Stepping In Faith has been leading his own study into this heavenly gift of God.

All in all, it looks to be a good series...

I'm excited to see what the Lord does with it,
Bro. Hank ><>