RushwaveChapter 4: Love as God Defines
from Church Vision, book 3 in the series The Christian Faith
In saying God calls the church to be a loving community, it is critical to qualify what being loving means. We cannot foist upon God’s command our own interpretations. He not only calls the church community to be loving, He also clearly defines what being loving looks like. So if a person boldy claims the God of the Bible calls the church to be loving, but at the same time shows total disregard for how scripture testifies that love is to be manifested, that person is neither speaking the truth nor speaking for God.
This evil world distorts the glorious truths of scripture, and one clear example of this is how some define the word “love” or what it means to be “loving.” And there are local churches and even entire denominations that have adopted these lies. The false teaching is this: being “loving” means refraining from calling various activities or lifestyles sinful, and also refraining from teaching those who practice those behaviors will not inherit God’s kingdom. Thus if a person professes to be a Christian and has an indifferent or celebratory attitude towards premarital sex, homosexuality, lesbianism, adultery, prostitution, cross-dressing, drunkenness, drugs, lying, cheating, abortion, or the like, the person is to be accepted into the church, affirmed, and even celebrated. Teaching anything to the contrary, so they say, results in people wrongly feeling unwanted, guilty, and alienated. The false teaching being embraced, therefore, is this: “We are a loving community because we accept and affirm everyone, speak against no one, and do not tell people their individual choices are wrong. People can inherit God’s kingdom irrespective of their lifestyle choices in these personal matters. God is a loving God.”
The notion that being loving means being accepting or affirming of all forms of immorality is completely foreign in scripture. When the woman caught in adultery was dragged before Jesus, it is true He did not encourage her to be stoned to death as the Law required. But He also did not approve of her lifestyle either. He said “I do not condemn you either. Go. And sin no more.” John 8:11 Jesus’ response to the woman caught in adultery shows several things. First, He viewed her activity as sinful. He did not say to her, “Your sexual lifestyle is your choice; no one should be having an issue with you about it or call what you did wrong.” Secondly, He did not view her adultery as something beyond her ability to stop, as though her being disposed to commit adultery released her from all future moral obligations. He did not say, “You just have a sexual orientation to be with more than one man. Don’t be concerned about it, instead just embrace who you are.” Thirdly, He did not view His message to her as condemnatory. In other words, He saw no inconsistency between saying “Neither do I condemn you,” labeling her behavior “sin,” and calling her not to engage in it again.
In similar manner, the apostles in their writings to the churches regularly identified various behaviors as sinful, commanding believers to abstain from those evil works, and teaching those who practice those behaviors are not genuine children of God. And yet in those same letters, they exhort over and over again the need to be loving, and they saw no inconsistency between the two positions. Thus in his letter to the Thessalonians Paul wrote “… may the Lord cause you to increase and abound in love for one another.” But in that same letter he also said “For this is the will of God … that you abstain from sexual immorality.” And to the Corinthians Paul taught “Love is patient, love is kind and is not jealous …” But in the same letter he warns “Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor homosexuals, nor thieves, nor the covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God.” In both these instances the messages were public directives communicated by letter to entire churches!
The world can take this false notions of what being “loving” means to even further extremes, charging that if one does not affirm or celebrate these immoral behaviors, he is being hateful and hostile. But such false teaching only distorts what truly does constitute being hateful or hostile. For example, brutally assaulting immoral people on account of their immorality is indeed hateful. But teaching in the context of a church service that certain behaviors are sinful, is this really being hateful?
The consequences of adopting these false teachings are absolutely ruinous and ultimately logically inconsistent. If the world’s teaching about what constitutes being loving are true, then we must conclude the God of scripture is hateful, and Jesus Himself and the apostles He commissioned were hateful people. In addition, if asserting an activity is sinful necessarily constitutes being hateful towards those who engage in that activity, then are not those who condemn others for such assertions necessarily hateful towards those with whom they disagree? Furthermore, if over thousands of years of explicitly stated and repeatedly prohibited behaviors in scripture are actually not immoral, then on what basis is anything immoral? Finally, is it loving to tell a man who is driving towards a cliff there is nothing wrong with the road he is on? Is not the loving thing to do is say “Wait! Turn around! You are headed for a cliff and will die!” If this is true in earthly matters, is it not even more so in eternal matters?
So God calls the church to be a loving community; this is indeed the culture God intends for His people. But being loving, as defined by God, in no way negates discussion, exhortations or commands regarding specific behaviors. It is not hateful to classify certain behaviors as sinful, warn church members not to engage in those behaviors, and teach that those who practice those behaviors will not inherit the kingdom of God. This is not being hateful or showing hostility. It is speaking the truth. And when that truth is spoken in love, it reflects the teachings and lifestyle of Jesus Himself, as well as the apostles He commissioned.
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