Love Songs

05.15.13

1 Thessalonians 4.9-10 9 Now concerning brotherly love you have no need for anyone to write to you, for you yourselves have been taught by God to love one another, 10 for that indeed is what you are doing to all the brothers throughout Macedonia. But we urge you, brothers, to do this more and more… (ESV)

One of the truest tests of true love for a man is to sing the love songs of youth to his aged wife. The love songs of youth are all about attraction, and romance, need, and mystique. Some seem to think love songs are only for the young and then we get older and quit being so silly about love.

Proverbs 30 says: Three things are too wonderful for me; four I do not understand: the way of an eagle in the sky, the way of a serpent on a rock, the way of a ship on the high seas, and the way of a man with a virgin. (Vv. 18,19 ESV) My question is: when does the way of a man with his woman ever change? Is it supposed to? Can he continue to sing the songs of love?

Paul encouraged the Thessalonians to continue to love each other more and more and with the same excellence they had already demonstrated – in the church, who we’re with is all we got, so love the ones you’re with. Make room for more but love the ones you’re with. The Thessalonians got this – and did it.

One of the truest tests of love for the disciple of Christ is to love God and to love people. Sometimes God appears to be distant, but our love for Him isn’t to be reserved for just the cool of the day (see Genesis 3) or Sunday mornings, it’s to be constant, continual, and permanent. So too, our love for one another and for others. Can we sing the love songs of the faith to each other as the Church?

I used to attend a church where the Pastor made every other row of us (beginning with the first row) turn and face the next row behind and sing, out loud, “I Love You with the Love of the Lord”. He meant well but we all felt pretty danged awkward. We shouldn’t have, and weren't supposed to but we did. I think most of us hated it when he made us do that.

Our problem was we didn’t understand 1 Thessalonians (or probably the rest of the Bible for that matter.) Love, is what the Bible is all about. Recognizing our need for love is why we turn to God in the first place. Realizing that God could love someone as unlovable as me is huge – and God says, as I have loved you (Paul) turn now and love others that way too.

I think many are afraid of love because they don’t love and think they are unlovable. I have trouble with love because I think I have too much to protect. But that is where the freeing love of God comes in and reminds me it isn’t about performance but His presence in my heart channeling His love through me to others. I need to find myself in places where that can happen – as often as I can. God’s love is what will save a loveless world. And it starts with me.

Father, oh that I may love as You love and live as You live: focused on others in their need, and free to be a channel of Your blessing – Amen.