Do we love one another?

John 13:35
By this shall all men know that you are my disciples, if you have love one to another.


Notice it doesn't say that we will be known as His disciples because of what doctrines we follow, or whether we have experienced miracles, or even that we love our enemies, but by how we treat each other.

It's sad that in so many Churches we see so many people being hurt by each other. I don't care what the denomination is or what name happens to be over the Church, we are suppose to be disciples of Christ, yet do we act any different from those who don't follow Him?

How many of us claim to love our Christian brothers and sisters, yet never check on them to make sure they're ok? Or when we hear gossip about one another we're ready to believe the worse? Satan has a field day within the Church by turning us against one another. I've seen Churches split because the congregation couldn't agree on what color the new carpet should be. I've seen none believers have more concern for the hurt and hungry than many who call themselves Christians.

With Valentine's Day fast approaching, I would like for each of us to look at how we treat those who are our brothers and sisters. I'm not talking about Church, as in the building you choose to go to to worship, every believer in Christ is a part of the Church. We are the Church. We are the body of Christ.

When you stub a toe, is your toe the only part of the body that's affected? Or does it affect the entire body? As the body of Christ, should it be any different? Everyone that is a follower of Christ should have a connection to others, and that connection is love. If the connection isn't there, then maybe it's time to re-examine our own lives and our own walk with the Lord.

When I was in college I had an English professor that was Vietnamese. He said something that really stuck with me. In Vietnam they consider themselves very fortunate if they have a friend, 2 friends was extraodinary. Why? Because to them a friend was someone who was willing to lay down their life for you. Sound familiar? John 15:13 Greater love has no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. I believe this is the kind of love we are suppose to have for each other. After all, if those who are not Christians live this belief, how much more should we live it? If we can get to the point where this is not just words, then I believe we'll see the love within our body, and so will those who are not Christians. Can you imagine the impact that would make on the unsaved?