To the church at Ephesus

The book of Revelations widely believed to be written by the apostle John speaks of seven individual Churches. 

The first Church addressed is Ephesus John writes,

"To the angel of the church in Ephesus write: 

These are the words of him who holds the seven stars in his right hand and walks among the seven golden lamp stands: I know your deeds, your hard work and your perseverance. I know that you cannot tolerate wicked men, that you have tested those who claim to be apostles but are not, and have found them false.  

You have persevered and have endured hardships for my name, and have not grown weary. 

Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken your first love.  

Remember the height from which you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first. If you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your lamp stand from its place.  

But you have this in your favour: You hate the practices of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate. 

He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes, I will give the right to eat from the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God." Revelations 2:1-7.

It has been said that each church addressed in the book or Revelations is representative of Churches that have existed throughout history and are around today. Further more one can personalize these churches. 

Thus we can look at what is said to each of the churches in Revelations and see if it is like the church congregation, denomination or church movement we attend. At the same time we can look at ourselves and see if we are acting like the church described. 

Here the Ephesian church is commended for what they have gone through, for their hard work. Jesus commends them for not tolerating wicked men. For their testing of false prophets. He even commends them for hating the practices of the Nicolaitans a group of heretics.

Jesus then says,

"I hold this against you: You have forsaken your first love."

Our first love as believers must always be God.

It is possible for a church or an individual to seem to be doing everything right yet not be truly following God.

Thus I would ask you the reader, if you consider yourself a Christian, a true follower of Christ Jesus, examine yourself, and the congregation you attend. Then ask yourself am I like the church at Ephesus? Is the congregation or denomination I am a part of like the church at Ephesus?

Please think about it.

Love not Judge

 Love not Judge

Jesus when asked,

"Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?" 

Jesus replied: " ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.'  

This is the first and greatest commandment.  

And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbour as yourself.'  

All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments." 

                                                                                                    Matthew 22:36-40

Jesus also said,

“Do not judge, or you too will be judged.  

For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you." Matthew 7:1,2.

I read an article the other day the article was on the church, in the United States. It noted how especially evangelicals have wandered well into the field of politics at the cost of their Christian principles.

What the whole article boiled down to was that the church needed to;

“Get back to the business of loving your neighbour instead of judging your neighbour.”

I would agree. Even here in Canada where I live I see many especially in the evangelical wing of the church passing judgement on those outside the church. And while many within the church do truly love others that love is masked by those who would judge anyone they disagree with.

The apostle Paul wrote,

"What business is it of mine to judge those outside the church? Are you not to judge those inside?  God will judge those outside. "Expel the wicked man from among you." 1 Corinthians 5:12,13.

What Paul is saying here is simple. We are not allowed to judge those outside the church that is Gods job. 

Our job as believers in Christ Jesus is to see that what those inside the church are teaching is correct and lines up with the scriptures.

We have no right to say where anyone will spend eternity. 

Billy Graham the late American evangelist said it best when talking about Christians he said,

“It is the Holy Spirits Job to Convict, 

God’s job to judge

 and my job to love.” 

                              Billy Graham

Thus my question to you. If you consider yourself a Christian. A Follower of Christ Jesus do you love or do you judge?

Please think about it.

Forgiveness

Forgiveness.
Jesus when teaching his disciples how to pray in what we call the Lords prayer said,
“Forgive us what we have done wrong, as we too have forgiven those who have wronged us.” Matthew 6:12.
Do you forgive?
Martin Luther King Jr. said,
“We must develop and maintain the capacity to forgive. He who is devoid of the power to forgive is devoid of the power to love.” Martin Luther King, Jr.
Rabbi Abba Hillel Silver, in a sermon on December 22, 1940 just a little over a year into the second world war said,
“There is one other fundamental difference between love and hate.
Love is always a refuge.  Hate is never a refuge.  Only a mentally sick person can find refuge in his hates.  But love is the enduring sanctuary of life.  Life may rob you of many things.  It often does.  But it can never bereave us of love itself.  That remains.” Rabbi Abba Hillel Silver.
Love is a universal thing everyone of every one of every faith, even atheist understand. It is a universal truth that can and does bring people together.
But in order to truly love someone we must be willing to forgive any wrongs they may have done. That is especially true if you claim to be a follower of Christ Jesus.    Matthew’s gospel records this conversation between the apostle Peter and Jesus.
“Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother when he sins against me? Up to seven times?” 
Jesus answered, “I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times.” Matthew18:21,22
Jesus here was speaking figuratively. He meant we are to forgive people without keeping track of many times we’ve done it. The apostle Paul reminding us in 1Corinthians 13:4 Love “...keeps no record of wrongs.”
C. S. Lewis points out,
“To be a Christian means to forgive the inexcusable because God has forgiven the inexcusable in you.” C.S. Lewis
Mahatma Gandhi had a valid point when he said,

“The weak can never forgive.

 Forgiveness is the attribute of the strong.”

                                                     Mahatma Gandhi.

The way I see it as a believer in Christ Jesus. A believer in Almighty God I and indeed all Christians must forgive and show love to all we come in contact with. We must heed the words of the apostle John who wrote,
“Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God.  
Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.  
This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him.  
This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.  
Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. 1 John 4:7-11.
Please think about it.

Of Jesus

Of Jesus
Napoleon Bonaparte said of Jesus,
"You speak of Caesar, of Alexander, of their conquests and of the enthusiasm which they enkindled in the hearts of their soldiers; but can you conceive of a dead man making conquests, with an army faithful and entirely devoted to his memory? My armies have forgotten me even while living, as the Carthaginian army forgot Hannibal. Such is our power.”
“I know men and I tell you, Jesus Christ is no mere man. Between him and every other person in the world there is no possible term of comparison. Alexander, Caesar, Charlemagne, and I have founded empires. But on what did we rest the creations of our genius? Upon force. Jesus Christ founded his empire upon love; and at this hour, millions would die for him.”
“I search in vain history to find similar to Jesus Christ, or anything which can approach the gospel.  Neither history nor humanity, nor ages, nor nature, offer me anything with which I am able to compare it or to explain it. Here everything is extraordinary.” Napoleon Bonaparte.
For centuries men have tried to conquer the world. Napoleon, Alexander the great, the Romans, Hitler . Some come closer than others to doing it. Non succeeded. Even today we have terrorist groups and others who wish to impose their will on others by force. They like the others before them will fail and be but a foot note in history.
One person who has changed the world is Jesus. Today around the world there are close to three billion followers of Jesus in every country in the world.
These people were not reached for Christ by force but by love.
The call of Jesus is that of Love. When asked,
“Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?” 
Jesus replied: “ ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’  
This is the first and greatest commandment.  
And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’  
All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.” Matthew 22:36-40.
Jesus call so calls his followers is to,
“You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’  
But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,” Matthew 5:43,44.
Jesus tells his followers to,
“So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets” Matthew 7:12.
The call of Jesus to all people is,
“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.  
Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  
For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” Matthew 11:28-30.
This is how Christianity has spread around the world. Through love, of God, ones neighbour and even ones enemy.
Hate will never conquer the world.
Please think about it.

The fear of The Lord

The fear of The Lord
The Psalmist writes,
“The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom; all who follow his precepts have good understanding. To him belongs eternal praise.” Psalm 11:10.
When man forgets there is a God, or denies His existence or perverts God’s truth to justify his own actions society goes wrong.
On a large scale we can see this happened during the reign of Hitler and his henchmen in Germany during and just before World War two. We see it happening today on a large scale with terrorist groups lacking the fear of God and perverting God’s laws to justify what they are doing and thus causing strife around the world.
We see the lack of fear of the Lord on a smaller scale with street gangs in various cities killing people. We see people stealing on a small scale such as a pick pocket or on a grand scale such as a white collar criminal who steals millions from innocent victims.
The writer of Ecclesiastes states,
“Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter: Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole  duty  of man. 
For God will bring every deed into judgment, including every hidden thing, whether it is good or evil.” Ecclesiastes12:13,14.
When people do not believe this then the road is open for them to do as they wish.
Abba Hillel Silver wrote,
“Faith in God is the strongest bulwark of a free society.  Human freedom began when men became conscious that over and above society and nature there is a God who created them...who fashioned them in His likeness, and that they are, therefore, possessed of intrinsic and independent significance and are endowed, as individuals, with original and irrevocable rights and authority.” Abba Hillel Silver.
God set for all humanity a set of basic laws that I believe is on the hearts of all men. Universal laws that are enshrined in the ten commandments.
The book of Exodus records,
“I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery. 
“You shall have no other gods before me. 
“You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below.  
You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me,  but showing love to a thousand  generations  of those who love me and keep my commandments. 
“You shall not misuse the name of the LORD your God, for the LORD will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name. 
“Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy.  
Six days you shall labor and do all your work,  but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your manservant or maidservant, nor your animals, nor the alien within your gates.  
For in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy. 
“Honour your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the LORD your God is giving you. 
“You shall not murder. 
“You shall not commit adultery. 
“You shall not steal. 
“You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor. 
“You shall not covet your neighbor’s house. You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his manservant or maidservant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.” 
Exodus 20:2-17.
These laws be you Jewish, Christian, Muslim or of other faiths are universal laws we all can understand.
These are universal laws, if you will “God basic principles for living”, that if practised correctly allow our society to function in the way God intended.
Sadly today there are many around the world that have lost their fear of God and His righteous judgment. The result is suffering and death.
It is time for our society as a whole both here in North America where I live and around the world to turn back to God’s basic principles for living.
Please think about it.

A Note On Terrorism

A note on Terrorism
Jesus when asked
“Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?” 
Jesus replied: “ ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’  This is the first and greatest commandment.  
And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’  
All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.” 
Matthew 22:37-40.
The world is going through some perilous times, with terrorist attacks all around the world. The world is essentially at war. Still it’s no different than any other war.
I was born in England just after world war two. My father served with the British army in North Africa, Italy, Belgium and Germany from just prior to the war until just past the end. A little over six years fighting against the Nazis and their allies. During that time he lost some close friends.
My mother lived in England throughout the blitz. Several of her friends died due to the bombings.
Still when they talked about the war it wasn’t about the bombings although it did come up from time to time. What they did talk about was the good times. The fun they had.
Life continued on. Yes the bombers came over dropped hundreds of tons of bombs blew up houses, put huge craters in the road and killed people, but life went on.
Not only that but it brought people together. It made them more determined than ever to defeat their enemy.
The terrorist today may not be using high flying bombers, but the bombers they use still kill innocent people. At the same time life goes on and each bombing or act of terrorism brings the peace loving people of the world together.
Especially it seems since the beginning of the twentieth century our world has become a cold, cold place.
Materialism has it seems replaced true faith as the religion of choice. People have turned far from God. Many young people such as those who have turned to terrorist groups seem to be disenfranchised with the western world in particular.
It’s no different from world war two when Hitler seen the pain, suffering and impoverishment, the treaty that ended world war one left Germany and its people in. Hitler used all the negatives the western democracies had imposed on Germany as a rallying point. Promising the German people prosperity and a renewed pride in themselves. Not only that, he at least in the beginning delivered.
Sadly his hatred of the Jews and others dragged the German people into destruction.
ISIS, Al-Qaeda, Al-Shabaab, and other terrorist organisations will sadly bring their followers also to destruction.
As a Christian I believe there is a solution to the problem or terrorism. Faith in God and faith in Jesus Christ.
The principles of Christ, Love for God, for ones neighbour, and even ones enemy are essentials to the building of a fair and just society.
These terrorist claim they are from God but they are not.
Abba Hillel Silver wrote,
“Faith in God is the strongest bulwark of a free society.  Human freedom began when men became conscious that over and above society and nature there is a God who created them...who fashioned them in His likeness, and that they are, therefore, possessed of intrinsic and independent significance and are endowed, as individuals, with original and irrevocable rights and authority.”
             Abba Hillel Silver
These terrorist groups today are not of God they are the work of Satan. If they were of God they would recognize the rights of the individual. They would be showing love to their fellow man, not sowing hate.
And here’s something else for those who would say they are from God but are not, to consider,
Jesus said,
“You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor 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 not even the tax collectors doing that?  
  And if you greet only your brothers, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that?  
Matthew 5:43-47
Think about it.

Love

Love
“Give of yourself, give as much as you can?  And you can always, always give something, even if it is only kindness!  If everyone were to do this and not be as mean with a kindly word, then there would be much more justice and love in the world.  Give and you shall receive, much more than you would have ever thought possible.  Give, give again and again, don’t lose courage, keep it up and go on giving!  No one has ever become poor from giving!”                                                     Anne Frank
Anne Frank knew what it was to experience love and hate. She experienced the love of those who hid her from the Nazis in occupied Holland at the risk of their own lives. And, unfortunately she experienced the hate of the Nazis that captured her and sent her to a death camp.
As I look at the news today I see youth killing youth for virtually no reason at all. I see the hate of terrorist groups around the world, killing innocent men, women and children.
I see hate on the streets of cities in the United States because the police officers got off after killing two black men and “system” let the families down.
At the same time I am reminded of a speech by Martin Luther King jr. who said,

We thank thee, O God, for the spiritual nature of man.

We are in nature but we live above nature.

Help us never to let anybody or 

any condition pull us so low as to cause us to hate.

Give us strength to love our enemies and to do good

to those who despitefully use us and persecute us

We thank thee for thy Church,

founded upon thy Word, that challenges us to do more

than sing and pray, but go out and work as though

the very answer to our prayers depended on us and not upon thee.

Then, finally, help us to realize that man was created to shine like stars and live on through all eternity.

Keep us, we pray, in perfect peace;

help us to walk together, pray together, sing together,

and live together until that day when all God’s children,

Black, White, Red, and Yellow will rejoice

in one common bond of humanity in the kingdom

of our LORD and of our God, we pray.

Amen.

                                                                                          Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

The apostle Paul wrote of Love,
“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, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.  
It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. 
Love never fails....
And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.”  
1 Corinthians 13:4-8a,13.
Such a definition of love is something even non-Christians can agree on. It is what the world needs.
Personally I cannot see mankind on its own filling the world with love.
While there are many, almost undoubtedly the majority of people in the world want love to reign, the minority bent of violence, the lust for power, and evils in all its forms seem to be winning the day.
That’s why I firmly believe there is a need for people to look to Christ and the love and hope he offers.
It was Jesus who said, love God, your neighbour, and even your enemy. He even called on us to pray for those who persecute us.
And in this world that seems to be slowly spiralling out of control he says,
“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.  
Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  
For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” 
Matthew 11:28-30
Think about it.

Something to think about

Something to think about
Abba Hillel Silver wrote
“Faith in God is the strongest bulwark of a free society.  Human freedom began when men became conscious that over and above society and nature there is a God who created them...who fashioned them in His likeness, and that they are, therefore, possessed of intrinsic and independent significance and are endowed, as individuals, with original and irrevocable rights and authority.”
I cannot make anyone who does not want to believe in God, believe in God. All I can say is I believe in God.
It seems to me however when men in a position of power loose there fear of God or don’t believe He exists society seems to start to fall apart.
The events of World War two show that very vividly. Close to sixty million people dead because a despotic dictator failed to recognize there was a God who would one day judge him.
Stalin another despot brought about death, and suffering to all who opposed him. Another example of a man who had no fear of God and like Hitler threw morality to the wind.
Hitler and Stalin are just two of many dictators that dot the history of the twentieth century and centuries prior. Men who came to power through force of arms only to find all power is fleeting. Men who are remembered for the suffering they caused not for the good they did.
One such dictator who came to power through force of arms recognized it was not the way to do so. That man was Napoleon Bonaparte, he said,
"You speak of Caesar, of Alexander, of their conquests and of the enthusiasm which they enkindled in the hearts of their soldiers; but can you conceive of a dead man making conquests, with an army faithful and entirely devoted to his memory? My armies have forgotten me even while living, as the Carthaginian army forgot Hannibal. Such is our power.”
“I know men and I tell you, Jesus Christ is no mere man. Between him and every other person in the world there is no possible term of comparison. Alexander, Caesar, Charlemagne, and I have founded empires. But on what did we rest the creations of our genius? Upon force. 
Jesus Christ founded his empire upon love; and at this hour, millions would die for him.”
I search in vain history to find similar to Jesus Christ, or anything which can approach the gospel.  Neither history nor humanity, nor ages, nor nature, offer me anything with which I am able to compare it or to explain it. Here everything is extraordinary.”
                                                                                               Napoleon Bonaparte,
The truths of the Bible Love for God, one’s neighbour even one’s enemies are universal truths that even none believers can understand. If one truly loves one will not strive to cause pain.
The apostle Paul wrote of Love,
“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, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.  
It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. 
Love never fails....
And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.”  
                                                                                                     1 Corinthians 13:4-8a,13.
We only have to look around the world today  to see the lack of love. Terrorist groups like ISIS, Al-Qaeda, Hamas, Hezbollah and many, many more are killing people mercilessly. Out of hate.
A young Jewish girl hiding from the Nazis in world war two Holland wrote,
“Give of yourself, give as much as you can?  And you can always, always give something, even if it is only kindness!  If everyone were to do this and not be as mean with a kindly word, then there would be much more justice and love in the world.  Give and you shall receive, much more than you would have ever thought possible.  Give, give again and again, don’t lose courage, keep it up and go on giving!  No one has ever become poor from giving!”                                                                                                                                                  Anne Frank.
Sadly Anne would know what hate was. She and her family were betrayed and sent to a Nazi death camp where she died.
Where love is absent hate can enter and hate is never a refuge. Hate is a destroyer, of society, and of people.
Back when I was a teenager there was a son by Burt Bacharach the first line went like this,
“What the world needs now is love sweet love. That’s the only thing that there’s just to little of.”
I believe the world truly does need more love. At the same time I truly believe that the world in general needs to turn back to the truths of God. Those of love, for ones neighbour, even one’s enemy. In general we need to turn back to God.
The writer of 2 Chronicles states,
“...if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land.” 
2 Chronicles 7:14

Think about it.

On Love

On Love

“One of the teachers of the law came and heard them debating. Noticing that Jesus had given them a good answer, he asked him, “Of all the commandments, which is the most important?” 
“The most important one,” answered Jesus, “is this: ‘Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one.  
Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’  
The second is this: ‘Love your neighbour as yourself.’ There is no commandment greater than these.” 
Matthew 12:28-31

Here I believe is a universal truth. Love God and love your neighbour as yourself. If we are truly loving someone we cannot hurt. Paul writing to the Corinthians said,
“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, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.  
It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. 
Love never fails....
And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.”  
                                                                                            1 Corinthians 13:4-8a,13.
This to me is true love. Thus if we are practicing true love we will not hurt anyone.
You don’t have to be a Christians to practice true love.
Love, true love, can change the world around you. Love is all about giving.
Anne Frank a young Jewish Dutch girl who spent most of World war two in hiding from the Nazis and later died in a death camp wrote,
“Give of yourself, give as much as you can?  And you can always, always give something, even if it is only kindness!  If everyone were to do this and not be as mean with a kindly word, then there would be much more justice and love in the world.  Give and you shall receive, much more than you would have ever thought possible.  Give, give again and again, don’t lose courage, keep it up and go on giving!  No one has ever become poor from giving!”                                                          Anne Frank
It is when we stop giving. When we stop loving that things go wrong.
During World War two love throughout occupied Europe was in short supply. Countries that could have helped persecuted Jews around the world, turned their backs on helping them.
Leaving it to individuals to show love and at the risk of their own lives to protect Jews from the death camps.
We only have to look around the world today to see love is in short supply. Christians are dying at the rate of one every four minutes for their faith. Others are dying simply because they are from the west.
Love in areas occupied by terrorist groups is fading away in favour of hate.
Rabbi Abba Hillel Silver
“There is one other fundamental difference between love and hate.  Love is always a refuge.  Hate is never a refuge.  Only a mentally sick person can find refuge in his hates.  But love is the enduring sanctuary of life.  Life may rob you of many things.  It often does.  But it can never bereave us of love itself.  That remains.
-Rabbi Abba Hillel Silver, rabbinic leader, from a December 22, 1940, sermon,    quoted in Therefore Choose Life: Selected Sermons, Addresses and Writings of    Abba Hillel Silver, Volume One, edited by Herbert Wiesner (1997)
Think about it.

Love

Love
“There is one other fundamental difference between love and hate.  Love is always a refuge.  Hate is never a refuge.  Only a mentally sick person can find refuge in his hates.  But love is the enduring sanctuary of life.  Life may rob you of many things.  It often does.  But it can never bereave us of love itself.  That remains.”
-Rabbi Abba Hillel Silver, rabbinic leader, from a December 22, 1940, sermon,    quoted in Therefore Choose Life: Selected Sermons, Addresses and Writings of    Abba Hillel Silver, Volume One, edited by Herbert Wiesner (1997)
Do you love? I don’t care who you are Christian, Jew, Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist, Atheist. If unconditional love is absent hate will abound.
The Nazis during world war two promoted hate, limited their love to a selected few, and it resulted in the greatest genocide in world history. Twelve million plus murdered in death camps in excess of 60,000,000, civilian and military dead in the world war that ensued.
To day as I write this IS militants, men without honour or love in their hearts are killing innocent men, women and children.
While IS is extreme I look around at society today and see at times love lacking.
I am a Christian and I look at some who call themselves Christian ministers and evangelist in the media slamming various groups for their lifestyle and I ask myself where is the love.
I see non-Christian groups Atheist in particular demanding certain religious symbols be taken out of public spaces because they are offended and have rights, and I ask where is the love.
I watched the news and hear of young people killing young people over nothing of importance.
Gang violence is becoming prevalent in all our major cities. Gangs hate. They limit their love to their own. They hate others to the point of being willing to kill.
Love is slowly it seems drifting away from segments of our society and there seems to be no solution.
I do believe however there is.
It seems to be as society here in the west has drifted away from the basic Judao-Christian teachings of loving others as you would love yourself, society has started to decline.
I look at Christians particularly in the Bible belt of the United States and some Churches here in Canada and see them becoming confrontational. While at the same time failing to meet the needs of people youth and others of the twenty-first century.
The churches that I see as succeeding, are those who realize that the message of the Bible is for today and are framing it in a relevant and meaningful way.
They are showing love to all. They are not imposing their faith on anyone but rather inviting people of all ways of life to come and see what Christ has for them.
They are presenting the gospel of Christ and saying this is what Jesus said, this is what we believe and giving them the opportunity to accept or reject that message.  
I believe that the principles of love for one’s fellow man stated within the Bible is the solution to many of man’s problems in the twenty-first century.
The Apostle Paul wrote many profound things. Writing to the Corinthians he said,
“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, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.  
It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. 
Love never fails....
And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.”  
1 Corinthians 13:4-8a,13
Writing to the Romans he said,
“If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.  
Do not take revenge, my friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,” says the Lord.  
On the contrary: “If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.” 
Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.” 
                                                                      Romans 12:18-21.
If even just these two principles were followed by all people in the world to day, our society would be a much better place.
Think about it.