Jehovah's Witnesses Straight Talk - Forum/Blog

1Johm 3:16 By this we know love, because he laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers.

What an intimate association the body of Christ has with other body members. But here is the issue in a loveless world, who can one trust? Who indeed can be loved, let alone give our life for? Moreover, why did Christ lay down his life for us? Did he do it for a reward, did he do it to make a show of righteousness, did he do it because he wanted to be a martyr?

Matthew 22:39 A second likewise is this, 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.'{Leviticus 19:18}

In other words, we should quickly see from these very simple questions that if Christ did so for a motive to honor himself, to be remembered as important, then, it would not be love. Its hard for some of us to really understand love without motive thata what we do, but is that how Christ loved us?

Luke 6:32 If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them.

Luke 7:42 When they couldn't pay, he forgave them both. Which of them therefore will love him most?"

You see it really is not a question of right or wrong, its a question of love, how love always responds. This is not a complex issues at all, it not a thinking thing, it is what love does first and each time, just as we would for our own body of flesh and blood.

Eph. 5:29 For no man ever hated his own flesh; but nourishes and cherishes it, even as the Lord also does the assembly;

To move beyond that we move into motives, and judgments, but if Christ died for us, not judging us, or if he should have been more cautiously analytical then it would not have been love for others which was more important than his own life. This was not a game, a calculated game on YHWH and Christ part to play the martyr to gain followers. No, not at all! Christ was motived by unselfish love for the human race, the same unselfish love of his Father Jehovah God.

John 21:16 He said to him again a second time, "Simon, son of Jonah, do you love me?" He said to him, "Yes, Lord; you know that I have affection for you." He said to him, "Tend my sheep."

Romans 5:5 and hope doesn't disappoint us, because God's love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us.

Love could do nothing less, it must restore life to the dying human race born into sin, not by their own will, but through linage back to Adam the father to all sinful human being. Did God request a debt, for you and me to pay the coffer day and night for his love?

Romans 13:8 Owe no one anything, except to love one another; for he who loves his neighbor has fulfilled the law.

Did Christ or God say: “You owe me big time!” You better make sure you read your bible daily, go to this many meetings, and you better give your life for your brother. No he did not!

Matthew 10:8 Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers{TR adds ", raise the dead"}, and cast out demons. Freely you received, so freely give.

What he did was tells us the issues this is the way love works, but he did not legislate it, for that is impossible to do? Love owes nothing but love. In other words; should we not be moved by God's love, and Christ, to love them back without strings, without motives of what we can get, or what we look like to others Christian's? Well, for the most part no we can't that is why we fall short of God's glory which Christ now is. Is that to condemn us into guilt day and night to extract something from us for payment?

Romans 3:24 being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus;

Romans 8:32 He who didn't spare his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how would he not also with him freely give us all things?

1 Corinthians 2:12 But we received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit which is from God, that we might know the things that were freely given to us by God.

Ephesians 1:6 to the praise of the glory of his grace, by which he freely bestowed favor on us in the Beloved.

Lets make this clear, absolutely not! In fact just a few verses down we are given the love of God again, when John tells us that when our hearts condemn us because we are not God's glory, love, God is stronger then our condemning heart, he knows what we are, he knows what we will be when we are love. He is not judging us, why?

1John 3:20 because if our heart condemns us, God is greater than our heart, and knows all things.

Very simple, we are our own judge from lack of love, we condemn ourselves, and others, but that is past, has nothing to do with God, future, who removed our judgment of our evil flesh in Christ. We must move forward, let rejoice in God's unfailing love, let us look forward to a time when we will not feel condemn when reading our bibles or someone commentary. Let understand we are short on this earth, and Moses a righteous man did not exclude himself when saying all our days are upon trouble and problems that is our judgment if we love God and righteousness. We suffer seeing we fall short, but the truth is in Christ, the truth is love, God's love does not fail, we do, we humbly acknowledge such painful truth. Let us love each other like that brothers.

Revelation 21:6 He said to me, "It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. I will give freely to him who is thirsty from the spring of the water of life.

Revelation 22:17 The Spirit and the bride say, "Come!" He who hears, let him say, "Come!" He who is thirsty, let him come. He who desires, let him take the water of life freely.

John 15:12 "This is my commandment, that you love one another, even as I have loved you.

John 17:26 I made known to them your name, and will make it known; that the love with which you loved me may be in them, and I in them."

Jude 1:21 Keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to eternal life.

See also: www.nu-truth.com