There can never be any word that has been abused more than “love” in the world. The blatant abuse arises from non-comprehension of the meaning of love. Even a rabid rapist can claim to have committed the grim offence out of love. One wishes that the proper definition of love should be etched on a stone tablet and used as a referral in courts of justice if sanity prevails.
Infatuation is commonly mistaken for signifying love and yet inflicting the opposite. Racism, tribalism, regionalism and class considerations are often wrongly assumed to be driven by love. This includes corrupt individuals who may be as generous as considered to be, to those benefitting from it. We live in a world strewn with smacks of total confusion, emanating from improper definition of love.
The wicked characters, known to exist in this world, are often considered loving, by those connected to them. A murderous bandit may be regarded as most benevolent by his relatives. A notorious villain is often considered to be a hero by his beneficiaries. The devastating wars can be orchestrated by people who pray for God’s guidance in such nefarious activities.
Apartheid was considered disdainful by many people, but there are those still cursing and exhibiting what they consider as good reasons for establishing apartheid. The same applies to corrupt business people, across the world. Having made money, those individuals can be known to be most benevolent, even in their commendable Church activities. Absolute evil appears as not attainable in this world.
Pan-Africanism is commonly mistaken for exercising love towards fellow Africans, just as racist ideologies are considered as established for good intentions. Africans, documented as having been prejudiced for a very long time, appeal for sympathy. But Pan-Africanism cannot be different from tribalism, for instance. Pan-Africanism is as fallacious as the circumstances that imposed existing conditions that divided people across the world. One may be known to advocate for unity, but according to whose terms?
Indians are reputed for caring and loving towards their fellow Indians. Africans are, therefore, encouraged to emulate Indians, when being encouraged to extend love to their fellow Africans. However, the behaviour of Indians is another form of practising racism. The term racism is commonly considered unacceptable and yet Africans are encouraged to behave similarly. Those Indians could be living well today, but also susceptible to unpredictable future problems. Nothing can be predictable for anyone, as long as that person is not practising God’s love.
Any other form of civilization in this world should never be assumed as a model for practising true love. All solutions in addressing human problems come directly from God. Rightness cannot be found in the behaviour of those who caused the prevailing problematic conditions. There is no need to look at the behaviour of other fellow humans when considering the meaning of love. God remains to be the only standard. This is what sustains the definition that ought to be etched on a stone tablet.
The farce in love application is also practised by Christians in their diverse denominational backgrounds. Christians are known to religiously practice everything commonly interpreted as attached to God. That makes those Christians feel assured of God’s approval, but without checking how such behaviour conforms to God’s love. Christianity, currently characterized by denominational divisions, may, actually, be God’s worst enemies, just as the Pharisees were Jesus’ worst enemies. Love is commonly interpreted according to how one’s own denominational members access benefits.
The incoherence that currently characterizes Christianity testifies to how Christianity has deteriorated against God’s love, according to Christ’s recommendations. Logic is maintained in practising Christianity according to the principles established by the author of Christianity. If Biblically guided, where is the problem that has caused Christians to be disunited? The exact words that were pronounced by Jesus, concerning love, are deliberately skirted, as physically inapplicable.
“You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbour and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are even the tax collectors doing that? And if you greet your brothers, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect” (Matthew 5:43-48 NIV).
The Holy Bible describes Love as synonymous with God. How possible can any person ever exercise love, when not connected to Christ’s teachings? The impossibility is highlighted in denominational postures, highlighting the opposite of what Jesus taught. The subject of love is lost, as long as debated in pockets. Currently, it seems impossible to find any denomination that practices Jesus’ teachings. There is no love to talk about when driven by the assumption of being different from other fellow humans. In the above Scripture, Jesus gave His disciples a hint on how perfection can be achieved.
The origin of human problems is in practising love according to physical dictates. For instance, without spiritual understanding, loving one’s enemies cannot be practicable. Christianity is currently practised according to the consideration of maintaining the status quo. Each denomination coalesces under a denominational leader. This is notwithstanding the information provided by Jesus remains indelible. No sane Christian can claim not to have been informed of what Jesus taught.
The only prescribed qualification to earn membership in God’s Church is to be baptised in the name of the Father, Son and the Holy Spirit. The primary consideration would be assurance that those baptizing in that manner, would have become one with the Father, Son and the Holy Spirit. The composition of God’s Church carries no leadership structures. One cannot look elsewhere, except Christ’s teachings:
“But you are not to be called ‘Rabbi,’ for you have only one Master and you are all brothers. And do not call anyone on earth ‘father,’ for you have one Father, and he is in heaven. Nor are you to be called ‘teacher,’ for you have one Teacher, the Christ. The greatest among you will be your servant. For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted” (Matthew 23:8-12 NIV).
This implies that anyone baptized in the name of the Father, Son and the Holy Spirit, cannot be called ‘Rabbi’ or anything equivalent. That person can also not grant Rabbinical respect to another person also baptized in the name of the Father, Son and the Holy Spirit. The works of Christ remain distinct from humanity. This is why the apostle Paul was at pains, attempting to correct the uninformed Corinthian congregants (1 Corinthians 1:10-31).
Those Corinthian believers were oblivious to the Spiritual content of Christianity; just as those of today appear oblivious. The only test of anyone speaking on behalf of Christ is whether echoing the words of Christ. That does not necessarily suggest that whoever would be gifted with expounding Christ’s teachings should therefore be accorded preferential respect. The reverence for Christ is a spiritual term that can never be accorded to physical humanity.
Greatness among Christians is confirmed in Jesus’ adoption of servant-hood, by dying for humanity. Christians are Christ’s brothers, implying that they cannot claim the Christian title without their willingness to do the same. The official disciples of Jesus were originally twelve, before Judas Iscariot’s demise. But that number has risen by leaps and bounds, since the Pentecostal phenomenon in Acts 2. Paul highlighted the benchmark:
“Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross. Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” (Philippians 2:4-11 NKJV)
The Apostle Paul’s exhortation shows the way that signifies Christ’s glory in each believer. However, there has always been some confusion in understanding what is meant when describing Christ as having been in very nature God. Who of the human beings has not been in very nature God? Doesn’t the Bible distinctly portray humanity as having been created in God’s image? Is there a special reason for humans to avoid that reality?
The revelation of Jesus ought to have shuttered the mystery of humanity, since the parabolic story of Adam and Eve. God desires that humanity should be at one with God. But, as spiritual as God’s love is spiritual, it is impossible for God to impose His will on physical humans. The decision to accept God’s Kingdom was designed for individual consideration. The acceptance or failure to accept, as Biblically provided, is an individual decision, where even God is not involved. Anything else would not be according to the tenets of love.
“If I give all I possess to the poor and surrender my body to the flames, but have not love, I gain nothing. Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, and it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, and always perseveres. Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. For we know in part and we prophesy in part, but when perfection comes, the imperfect disappears” (1 Corinthians 13:3-9 NIV).
The above illustration of the attributes of love cannot be physically applicable. The earlier anyone becomes aware of this reality, the better for him/her to come to his/her senses. Christianity is not a casual matter, adopted for lack of other things to do. A Christian describes someone who is not different from Jesus. This is an invitation to sobriety. Those, to whom God is communicating, cannot be uncertain of these revelations.
Of course, Jesus should be regarded as our personal Saviour, but Christ never sought to be worshipped. The ability to make distinctions to such realities is what differentiates between fallacy and truth. God’s love has nothing to do with human behaviour. There is nothing wrong with being affiliated with one’s kinsmen, but that should never be mistaken for God’s love. Additionally, no human being can ever repay God’s love.
The difference between God’s love and that of humanity is that God’s love remains for eternity, while human love perishes. I thought I loved my parents when they were alive. But having both deceased, there cannot be any reason for me to continue loving them, except in my good and bad memories of them. This describes the limitations of my affinity with them. As I observe my physical humanness, my frail body is degenerating into old age, slowly fading into oblivion.
My children and grandchildren will soon realise that their affection for me, could not be sustained any longer. Our physical humanness is like mist, here this morning, but completely disappeared the next period. There is no reason to mourn for such realities. Wishing for anything else would be breaching the axiomatic laws of nature. The only indelible assurance of what remains for eternity is God’s love.
Any person is free to be as corrupt as possible, with or without consequences. This is what is delineated for this world. Nothing should be viewed as extraordinary. Some people have lived their lives to cause the greatest suffering to fellow human beings, while others have contributed positively to other people’s emancipation. We live in a world with a mixture of good and evil. Expecting anything else is unrealistic.
When committing ourselves to the author of Christianity, promising human deliverance, things change for the better. There is no reason to be sorrowful, after all. God’s love, with guarantees of eternity, has been unveiled, for which everyone is invited. Observing our loved ones not being excited about God’s way of life, can be disheartening. But God’s love demands that such people should be allowed to exercise their rights as granted freedom.
Andrew Masuku is the author of Dimensions of a New Civilization, laying down standards for uplifting Zimbabwe from the current state of economic depression into a model for other nations worldwide. A decaying tree provides an opportunity for a blossoming sprout. Written from a Christian perspective, the book is a product of inspiration, bringing relief to those having witnessed the strings of unworkable solutions––leading to the current economic and social decay. Most Zimbabweans should find the book as a long-awaited providential oasis of hope, in a simple conversational tone.
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