- 6 days ago
- 7 min read

What Does It Mean To Love?

Updated: 2 days ago

The Sense of Fairness

Matthew 7:1-5

Authorized (King James) Version

7 Judge not, that ye be not judged. 2 For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged:

and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again.

3 And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother’s eye,

but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye?

4 Or how wilt thou say to thy brother, Let me pull out the mote out of thine eye;

and, behold, a beam is in thine own eye?

5 Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye;

and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother’s eye.

Proverbs 16:8

Authorized (King James) Version

8 Better is a little with righteousness

than great revenues without right.

Everyone is born with a sense of fairness in our human nature because we're created in God's image (Gen. 1:26, 27). A sense of fairness is what's right and best for people. God's mercy and grace surmise God's love for us, and God's love surpasses our human nature (Eph. 3:19).

Evil is the violation of our sense of fairness (Rom. 7:14-23). God's love is to overlook a transgression to our sense of fairness (Pr. 19:11). God's mercy is to give us what we don't deserve (Ti. 3:5/ Rom. 5:8/ Eph. 2:8, 9). God's grace is to not give us what we do deserve (Rom. 4:4, 5). To operate in the love of God means to show mercy and grace to people. To give people what they don't deserve when they transgress our sense of fairness, and to not give people what they do deserve when they transgress our sense of fairness. Our sense of fairness wants to give people what they deserve when they transgress our sense of fairness. This is what all the fighting is about.

We can't act in love without God's Spirit in us. To overcome our human nature takes a spiritual power which is God's Spirit. It takes a supernatural power to mature our natural self. We act childish when people wrong us. We want to fight and execute judgement to give people what they deserve and call it justice. That righteous indignation is what God calls "a child" in us and God wants us to show mercy and grace as He did to us. To give people what they don't deserve when they transgress our sense of fairness and to not give people what they do deserve when they transgress our sense of fairness. Bless when it hurts, child. That's when God's power enables us.

2 Corinthians 12:7-10

New International Version

7 or because of these surpassingly great revelations.

Therefore, in order to keep me from becoming conceited,

I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me.

8 Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me.

9 But he said to me,

“My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.”

Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. 10 That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions,

in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

Romans 5:1-5

Authorized (King James) Version

5 Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ:

2 by whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand,

and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.

3 And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience;

4 and patience, experience; and experience, hope:

5 and hope maketh not ashamed;

because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.

John 15:1-5

Authorized (King James) Version

{Paraphrased}

15 I am the true vine, and my Father is the {gardener}.

2 Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away: and every branch that beareth fruit,

he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit.

3 Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you.

4 Abide in me, and I in you.

As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine;

no more can ye, except ye abide in me.

5 I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him,

the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.

Matthew 18:21-35

New International Version

The Parable of the Unmerciful Servant

21 Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me? Up to seven times?”

22 Jesus answered, “I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times.

23 “Therefore, the kingdom of heaven is like a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants. 24 As he began the settlement, a man who owed him ten thousand bags of gold was brought to him. 25 Since he was not able to pay,

the master ordered that he and his wife and his children and all that he had be sold to repay the debt.

26 “At this the servant fell on his knees before him.

‘Be patient with me,’ he begged, ‘and I will pay back everything.’

27 The servant’s master took pity on him, canceled the debt and let him go.

28 “But when that servant went out,

he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred silver coins.

He grabbed him and began to choke him. ‘Pay back what you owe me!’ he demanded.

29 “His fellow servant fell to his knees and begged him, ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay it back.’

30 “But he refused. Instead, he went off and had the man thrown into prison until he could pay the debt. 31 When the other servants saw what had happened,

they were outraged and went and told their master everything that had happened.

32 “Then the master called the servant in. ‘You wicked servant,’ he said,

‘I canceled all that debt of yours because you begged me to.

33 Shouldn’t you have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had on you?’

34 In anger his master handed him over to the jailers to be tortured,

until he should pay back all he owed.

35 “This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you

unless you forgive your brother or sister from your heart.”

Romans 7:14-23

Authorized (King James) Version

14 For we know that the law is spiritual: but I am carnal, sold under sin.

15 For that which I do I allow not: for what I would, that do I not; but what I hate, that do I.

16 If then I do that which I would not, I consent unto the law that it is good.

17 Now then it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me.

18 For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me;

but how to perform that which is good I find not.

19 For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do.

20 Now if I do that I would not, it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me.

21 I find then a law, that, when I would do good, evil is present with me. 22 For I delight in the law of God after the inward man: 23 but I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members.

Proverbs 19:11

Authorized (King James) Version

11 The discretion of a man deferreth his anger;

and it is his glory to pass over a transgression.

Proverbs 17:9

Authorized (King James) Version

9 He that covereth a transgression seeketh love;

but he that repeateth a matter separateth very friends.

Proverbs 27:6

Authorized (King James) Version

6 Faithful are the wounds of a friend;

but the kisses of an enemy are deceitful.

Titus 3:4-7

Authorized (King James) Version

4 But after that the kindness and love of God our Saviour toward man appeared,

5 not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us,

by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost;

6 which he shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Saviour;

7 that being justified by his grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life.

Romans 5:6-11

Authorized (King James) Version

6 For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly.

7 For scarcely for a righteous man will one die:

yet peradventure for a good man some would even dare to die.

8 But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

9 Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him.

10 For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son,

much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.

11 And not only so, but we also joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ,

by whom we have now received the atonement.

Ephesians 2:8-9

Authorized (King James) Version

8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:

9 not of works, lest any man should boast.

Romans 4:3-5

Authorized (King James) Version

3 For what saith the scripture? Abraham believed God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness. 4 Now to him that worketh is the reward not reckoned of grace, but of debt.

5 But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly,