But what is love to a believer in Christ, or according to Christ; was it not an act of love for the Father to send his only begotten Son to the world to be a sacrifice for our sins so that we could all have the chance to find repentance if we so choose it. To have unconditional love for our fellow brothers and sisters, even our enemies, is no doubt a hard concept for most of us, if not all of us. Love thy neighbour, treat thy neighbour the way we would want to be treated, one of only the two commandments that Christ said we should follow, this and worshiping the one true God, the Father, above all others; but putting that one aside, why can it be so hard to treat people the way we would like ourselves to be treated? And I’m sure we all have an answer for it, or perhaps not.

Or maybe it’s not even a question of love, or rather just a question of a smile or a friendly hello to our neighbour. For example, take a workplace where most people hate their boss, regardless of whether that boss is a nice person or not, just because of the way the world is they tend not to be liked. So, the workers argue with the boss, who is then in a bad mood for the day, they then go home, with that bad mood and proceed to take it out on their family or even their pet; then the whole family is in a sour mood, and they go and take it out on everybody they know. And it has nothing to do with that boss being a bad person, they could be a good person, a loving person, but having animosity all day they continue carrying it with them when the day finishes. But what if, someone simply told that boss that they are doing a good job, offered them a kind word, a friendly word, a word of encouragement, might that boss then have a better day, be in a much better mood, go home and treat his loved ones better. All because someone was nice and isn’t this so true about most situations, we find ourselves in. How much better do we feel ourselves when a friend, or a loved one, or even a stranger offers us a kind word.  Who knows what a simple word of support can have on someone? It’s easy to criticise but hard to praise. And as cliched as it sounds, the ripples of a single pebble upon the water does spread out across the whole surface, just like a waterfall begins with a single drop.

Love takes on many forms, but it is impossible to express it with a clenched fist, it’s oceans of emotions, of sharing a part of yourself with others. And perhaps now, more than ever, we need to begin looking at love not through the eyes and ways of the flesh, of the world, but rather through the eyes of the spirit. As our Father and his Son taught. True love doesn’t expect anything in return, it gives and doesn’t take, it teaches and leads to true healing, as the word tells us. True spiritual and unconditional love is not looking for somebody to love you back, it’s not about receiving, it’s about giving.  How difficult a concept is it for us to keep loving a person even when they walk away, and how much harder to go on loving that person no matter what they do to us, love does not mean flowers all the time and loving an enemy also doesn’t mean sitting down to dinner with them.

If all we ever know is earthly love, then how can we comprehend true spiritual love. Only God can define love and not mankind and its philosophers.

                          Copyright Peter Jessop © October 2023