What is L.O.V.E.? (Matthew 22:36-40)

[GosDontez]

You're welcome. I just want you to know that I'm tracking with you, even if it's in my own limited and still learning kind of way.

Peace,
2PhiloVoid

I just hope we watch where we're going on this track. Don't wanna get derailed. All KINDS of obstacles.

 

[GosDontez]

When you love biblically (using 1 Corinthians 13 as the base), do you experience pleasure, pain, or no emotion at all?

 

[GosDontez]

I like it. But it's not a verb, nor a combination of noun and verb. It is just a noun. Biblical love is not a noun alone, my friend

Zoey, how 'bout this for a verb....?

"Love is caring deeply, passionately and affectionately for someone or something based on some form of attraction or relational connection."

 

[dreadnought]

Commands. Laws. Rules. Controls. Borders. Boundaries. All predicated on one simple concept: How things work.

This may be a trivial inquiry, but if this "love" thing is the greatest commandment, then doesn't it need to be DEFINED? If it can't, then how do we know we're doing it right?

So what do you think love is and how is it properly performed?

I don't know if this answers your question, but I think love is about how we TREAT people as opposed to how we FEEL about people.

 

[GosDontez]

I don't know if this answers your question, but I think love is about how we TREAT people as opposed to how we FEEL about people.

Hey, thanks for responding.

So would how you treat someone be based on how you feel about treating someone?

For instance, would you treat someone you know well, whom you don't know, because of someone you do know?

 

[dreadnought]

Hey, thanks for responding.

So would how you treat someone be based on how you feel about treating someone?

For instance, would you treat someone you know well, whom you don't know, because of someone you do know?

You're welcome.

I think we are supposed to love everybody - treat everybody well. Of course, some people cause us trouble, and we, I believe, are at liberty to protect ourselves from such people.

 

[razzelflabben]

Well, 1st I'd be concerned about a "bible" person who's indifferent to another human being. If a person is "biblically" driven, that implies Christian, thus sinner, thus it would be empathy AND sympathy for ALL fellow humans because a Christian would understand.

If "you" feel or emote for yourself as a sinner, that's humbling. So "you" would feel or emote for all humans. Therefore, no indifference.

Are you indifferent to some fellow humans?

You are trying to argue that you have a deep passionate emotion towards all men even the guy you have never met and know nothing about...which seems very odd indeed. Love is compassionate, thus it reacts to people that we "feel" indifferent to. There is even a study out there somewhere (my kids showed it to me a couple of years ago) about how the further we get from our inner circle the less emotion we have for those we don't know. Now remember, in this discussion we aren't talking about someone we meet but someone we have never meant. How much emotion do you have for Samuel Reed? For Priscilla Stanford? What about those people who you don't even know a name of? You seem to be confusing someone and their story with true emotion for someone.

Look, I am not arguing that man does not have emotions (which you seem to not understand or accept) but rather I am arguing that our Love for others is not driven by emotions.

 

[razzelflabben]

And how many people read the bible? Or how often?

I know quite a few. I myself study the Bible about 20-30 hours a week down from the 40+ I was doing.

 

[razzelflabben]

If biblical love is not done out of emotion, but out of obedience, then why do "you" obey?

we already talked about that...did you miss it or do you just need me to repeat myself?

 

[razzelflabben]

When you love biblically (using 1 Corinthians 13 as the base), do you experience pleasure, pain, or no emotion at all?

Huh? We go from emotions that drive our Love to emotions that result in our Love...which are you wanting to talk about?

 

[razzelflabben]

Hey, thanks for responding.

So would how you treat someone be based on how you feel about treating someone?

For instance, would you treat someone you know well, whom you don't know, because of someone you do know?

GosDontez...I want to tell you a story that addresses this question to a degree.

About 7 years ago our son died suddenly in a freak accident. One of the people we know tried to accuse us of killing our son by our belief in the trinity. IOW's his argument was that God was judging us for our belief in that very same God. Well, needless to say that man was not high on our list of favorite people. In fact, he was making it harder for us to keep our other kids healthy through the ordeal not to mention our own issues of grief. Well, one day we saw the man out in one of our local stories, almost accidentally ran him over with the shopping cart, technically he almost ran us over but you get the idea. I had been studying Biblical Love and so I asked God to show me how to Love him. Wow! I wanted to strangle him and my husband almost came to blows with him but God calmed me and I was able to have a conversation with him in which he confessed he was wrong.

Now you could say that was a strong emotion but the story was given not about emotions (a story about that in a moment) but rather as Love not relying on treating people as they deserve.

About emotions...my husband and I went to pick up our daughter. She had a young man with her that we never had met or heard of before. He helped her carry her things to the car. BtW, she was in the military at the time so not strange for a young man to be with her it's part of the culture. Anyway, we had no emotions about the guy at all because we didn't know him or anything about him. None the less we invited him to come home with us for the weekend out of Love and discovered an amazing young man with an even more amazing story. Our daughter currently barely gives him the time of day but he still calls us friends, parents of a sort, etc. Love does NOT require some emotional response and yet it does include emotions in our response. IOW's where Love includes emotions it does NOT rely on them.

 

[razzelflabben]

You reply so much and so often, I'm struggling to keep it all together.

In relation to this reply......you lost me.

what part specifically? It seems pretty clear to me...our salvation is not based on emotion but rather on promise and truth, grace and Love.

BTW, I thought you wanted to discuss Biblical Love, now we start actually discussing it you seem to want to quit

 

[GosDontez]

You are trying to argue that you have a deep passionate emotion towards all men even the guy you have never met and know nothing about...which seems very odd indeed. Love is compassionate, thus it reacts to people that we "feel" indifferent to. There is even a study out there somewhere (my kids showed it to me a couple of years ago) about how the further we get from our inner circle the less emotion we have for those we don't know. Now remember, in this discussion we aren't talking about someone we meet but someone we have never meant. How much emotion do you have for Samuel Reed? For Priscilla Stanford? What about those people who you don't even know a name of? You seem to be confusing someone and their story with true emotion for someone.

Look, I am not arguing that man does not have emotions (which you seem to not understand or accept) but rather I am arguing that our Love for others is not driven by emotions.

1. When you love others, do you do it because of how you feel about Christ, whom you are obeying?

2. If you believe that all humans are sinners according to scripture, then don't you know all humans on that level as a sinner?

3. If you are related to your fellow human sinners in that you also are a sinner, thus you understand sinners... then would you have a deep, caring, and affectionate coompassion for all humans?

4. Would a Christian, having received forgiveness of sin from Christ Jesus, be indifferent to any other human sinner?

 

[GosDontez]

we already talked about that...did you miss it or do you just need me to repeat myself?

If biblical love is not done out of emotion, but out of obedience, then why do "you" obey?

Do you obey Christ Jesus because of how you feel about Christ Jesus?

 

[GosDontez]

Huh? We go from emotions that drive our Love to emotions that result in our Love...which are you wanting to talk about?

So, in other words, we go from emotions that drive our obedience to emotions that result in our obedience?

 

[GosDontez]

what part specifically? It seems pretty clear to me...our salvation is not based on emotion but rather on promise and truth, grace and Love.

BTW, I thought you wanted to discuss Biblical Love, now we start actually discussing it you seem to want to quit

So we are not saved based on how God felt about us?

 

[razzelflabben]

1. When you love others, do you do it because of how you feel about Christ, whom you are obeying?

sort of and sort of not. Christ changes our hearts so it is a natural extension of who I am in Christ as well as my Love for Him. Remember what I said is not that man is not an emotional creation but rather that Love does not depend on emotions to be Love. So you would have to argue that it isn't a nature extention of who I am (the new creation) rather than that I don't Love God.

2. If you believe that all humans are sinners according to scripture, then don't you know all humans on that level as a sinner?

I don't even know what this means...seriously I don't. I've read it many times and I still don't understand what you are asking. If you clarify maybe I can answer.

3. If you are related to your fellow human sinners in that you also are a sinner, thus you understand sinners... then would you have a deep, caring, and affectionate coompassion for all humans?

not always, there are people we don't even know exist. It's kind of hard to have compassion for people we don't even know exist. But again, remember you are arguing against the notion that Love does not require emotion to exist.

4. Would a Christian, having received forgiveness of sin from Christ Jesus, be indifferent to any other human sinner?

why not? If I don't know if Joe exists or not why would I have a passionate feeling for him? That makes no sense.

 

[razzelflabben]

If biblical love is not done out of emotion, but out of obedience, then why do "you" obey?

Do you obey Christ Jesus because of how you feel about Christ Jesus?

Again, why must I repeat myself? Of course I Love Christ and I obey even when I don't "feel" Love for Him. Like any child would obey their parents even if they didn't "feel" Love at the time. Like I said many times over now. Love involves emotion but it does NOT rely on emotions to exist. This is seems is where you are missing the truth of Love. Shall I give you more examples?

 

[razzelflabben]

So, in other words, we go from emotions that drive our obedience to emotions that result in our obedience?

Huh? You are not making any sense. Maybe you should take some more time to respond since this is two posts close together that make no sense.

 

[razzelflabben]

So we are not saved based on how God felt about us?

Huh? Look, I really need you to respond to what I am saying if you expect me to be able to answer any of your questions. So let's say it one more time and see if it gets through to you.

Love is both emotion and action and as such it does NOT rely on emotion to exist. IOW's no matter how I FEEL I can still Love. Love is not an extension of my feelings. Feeling both make Love easier and challenge me to Love when I don't FEEL Love. So once again, you are supposedly arguing that Love requires feeling in order to exist because what I keep telling you is that it does NOT require emotions to exist.

As I said, I can give you more examples if that will help.