And now, dear lady, I am not writing you a new command but
one we have had from the beginning. I ask that we love one
another. And this is love: that we walk in obedience to his
commands. As you have heard from the beginning, his command is
that you walk in love.
--2 John 1:5-6; (NIV)
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Quotation:
LORD, who hast taught to us on earth
This lesson from above,
That all our works are nothing worth,
Unless they spring from love;
Send down thy Spirit from on high,
And pour in all our hearts
That precious gift of charity,
Which peace and joy imparts:
The healing balm, the holy oil
Which calms the waves of strife,
The drop which sweetens every toil,
The breath of our new life.
Without this blessed bond of peace
God counts the living dead:
O heavenly Father, grant us this,
Through Christ, the living Head.
Let all who love the Lord join hands
To aid the common good,
And knit more close the sacred bands
Of Christian brotherhood.
Make all thy pastors one, O Lord,
In heart, in mind, in speech,
That they may set forth thy pure word,
And live the life they preach.
Let all hold fast the truths whereby
A church must stand or fall;
In doubtful things grant liberty,
Show charity in all.
Thus shall we to our sacred name
Our title clearly prove,
While even our enemies exclaim,
"See how these Christians love."
... Richard Massie (1800-1887), A Collection of Hymns, for
the use of the people called Methodists, John Wesley,
London: Wesleyan Conference Office, 1876, #822, p.
744-745
We can test all thing and should, yet even this we do in love. For 2000 years men have been testing and it has cost them much. Communites all over the world , huddled together because they found, for instance, the Catholic church wanting in regard to Scriptures. They paid the price. And then there are the witch-hunters. Down through the ages, believeing to do God a service. How can we know these men? You will know them by their love. There has always been the burners and those who get burned. Let us be found on the sold out side of Truth and Love, not one or the other, both. To speak the Truth in Love is one of the most powerful things that we can do. If you cannot do it without the love, it is best to remain silent until you are overtaken by a love so deep , that you weep for the souls of men and you weep at the feet of Jesus....brother Frank