What is love really? Let me break love down to its divine components to enhance our understanding and empower us to love God’s way…
Love, it seems, is everywhere. You read about it in books, you see it in films and on television, you hear about it on radio and in everyday conversations, love is ever present. In our personal lives, we grapple with it in our family and official relationships. Our lives are made richer or poorer because of the presence or absence of love.
Every Valentine’s season, sights and sounds of smiling couples enjoying their “love” in pleasant and exotic destinations follow us everywhere. So the question is: should Christians or the Church be adding to the “noise” by talking about love? Should we not be focusing on more serious issues?
The answer is: Yes, the Church needs to talk about love because the world’s idea of love is very distorted and we have a mission to show the world, in action and words, what true love – God’s love – really means.
The world desperately needs love but it does not understand the true meaning of love. The word ‘love,’ connotes different things to different people. But in its pure form, it is the nature of God. The Bible captures it simply and powerfully: “GOD IS LOVE.” The world needs the love of God truly manifested through the Church of Jesus Christ.
But this duty carries a responsibility. Charity begins at home. We cannot afford strife, selfishness, envy, bitterness, unforgiveness, etc., and claim to walk in love or to be God’s children.
Every man or woman has been gifted with ‘unique colors’ of God by God Himself, reflecting His loving nature, and these they must reflect to their world.
To bring the message of the true love of God home, I have defined the colors of God’s love. These are the different ways in which His Agape love manifests in our lives. To enrich our understanding, each quality of God’s love is accompanied by a color which I believe matches this trait.
The qualities of God’s love are:
- GIVING (GREEN): John 3:16
Love is not stingy, it expresses itself through giving. When love possesses the heart, it instructs the hands and the pocket. You can’t say you love me if nothing has ever left you to me. Love that has not touched your pocket is only theory. Giving shows the sacrificial nature of love.
- KIND WORDS (ORANGE): Songs 2:3/Luke 4:22
When the love in your heart finally gets to your mouth, the result is kind words. Love speaks and its words are kind, soothing, healing, affirming and uplifting. You cannot say you love me, while you use your tongue to crush me. Like Martin Luther King rightly said: “In the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends.” Good lovers are kind talkers…they nurture their love (relationships) with their tongue.
- SERVICE (PURPLE): Phil 2:3-4 (ESV).
Purple is royalty, but true leadership (royalty) is the one that serves. Love is never too arrogant to serve. It is selfless and thinks about the good of the other person above its own. It will go out of its way to do something for another person. Jesus said: “he who wants to be first shall be the servant of all.” (Mark 10:42-45). The one who can serve another is the greater one.
- PHYSICAL TOUCH (RED): Matthew 8:2-23
Touch is an essential human need. It releases ‘feel good’ chemicals in our brain and reduces stress. A touch communicates acceptance, warmth, healing and creates significance in the one touched. To touch will also mean doing something that touches a concern in someone’s life. Jesus is called our Kinsman Redeemer because He ‘connects’ with us and He is ‘touched’ by the things that affect us.
- QUALITY TIME (SILVER & GOLD): John 4:40-41
Time is the most valuable gift we can give to anyone, because when you give time, you are giving a portion of your life that you can never get back. Jesus spent time with people and it led to changed hearts and lives. We should visit one another. Go to the hospital. Stay in touch. Make calls, send sms, but most importantly, be present. True love is spelt T-I-M-E! Also invest time in your relationships by spending time praying for one another.
- FORGIVENESS (BRONZE & WHITE): Psalm 130:3-4
We are bound to hurt one another, but we must also always be ready to forgive. There can’t be love without forgiveness. Love has its roots in forgiveness. Love that does not understand the language of forgiveness is underdeveloped; it is selfishness. Be quick to ask forgiveness, quick to forgive and quick to move on. Forgiveness imitates God and disappoints Satan. God forgives us though he has the power to punish us. We should too even when we have the ability to revenge.
“I firmly believe a great many prayers are not answered because we are not willing to forgive someone.” – D L Moody.
As we reveal the God-colors in us, we must not neglect to reveal the colors of God’s love in us!
BY: Pastor Wale Afelumo
READINGS: I JOHN 4:7-12;16-21, JAMES 2:15-16, MATTHEW 5:13-16 MESSAGE BIBLE
