The Greatest of These Is Love

Christian Evangelist and Apologist Ravi Zacharias has said, I think quite correctly, "A conviction, ungirded by love, will make the possessor of it obnoxious and the dogma he possesses repulsive." The Scriptures tell us "Now abideth faith, hope, and love. The greatest of these is love," and that "He who loves another has fulfilled the law." With all that is going on in the so-called "culture war," it is time for those of us who are conservative and more important, Christian, to do a gut check and re-examine our approach. Is our political philosophy and is our political advocacy undergirded by love or ungirded by it? Are we reaching out to the people who have fallen victim to the destructive Existentialist philosophy that plagues our nation, or are we standing up like Pharisees and prounouncing judgment and casting the first stone? Jesus did not tell the adulteress "Thou art damned," he said "Go and sin no more." He showed loving compassion to those in spiritual need. It was the Pharisees pronouncing judgment. Christ was the only one who had a right to judge, and yet He did not. Does this mean we should approve of sin? No. But "love the sinner, hate the sin" is not manifested with hateful speech and vitriolic rhetoric. It was Ghandi who said when asked what he thought of Christianity: "I like their Christ, but I don't like their Christian. When I think of a Christian, I see him with a mug of beer in his right hand and a slab of beef in his left." Nietzche, the famed Athetist philosopher, said "I will start beliving in the Redeemer when the Christian looks a little more redeemed." You see, Postmodern Christianity in the Conservative churches teach abstention from alcohol and sex, and if you can do those two things, then you're in good shape. Sad to say, this is far from the truth. The message of the Gospel is far-reaching and radical, and it should infiltrate our every motive, thought, belief, and action. If we are to win this generation to Christ, it will be through showing His love to them through ourselves. We should live each day in the shadow of the Cross, and by doing so will be forced to live humbly, loving one another, and showing mercy to one another. Soli Deo Gloria, that is, To God Alone Be The Glory.