We begin by being instructed that we must consider one another. We should show love for one another. Now, in today’s world this is a tricky matter because love has all sorts of meanings that are outside biblical concepts. When God and Christ use the word love they are talking about real love. Real love caused God to send to a dying world, shackled in sin and owned by Satan – His only son Jesus. We were slaves to Satan and sin – just think of slaves being shackled in the hold of a wooden ship headed out of Africa. That is a good picture of humanity before Christ came to die for our release. The whole kit and caboodle of us were such slaves,, just as if we had been invaded, conquered and shipped off by aliens to some secret design of the aliens, to their far away planet. We have no idea what Satan wants of us as he drags us down to Hell.
In today’s world it has been argued that love requires us to give needles to heroin addicts, puberty blockers to young children, unhealthy food to potentially diabetic persons. And that list goes on and on. And the fact is, that none of that is love. Giving in to your desire is not a sign that I love you. Recently I am hearing an argument that we should not remove illegal aliens from our country because we need them to pick our crops and do things that no American wants to do. I don’t know if that is true but is it a loving argument that we have a desire to keep people in an always downcast position, like in the Indian caste system where people can’t climb up or out because they are needed as subservient? Always to be poor people to pick our vegetables and clean our office bathrooms. I do not think that argument is a sign of showing love any more than I would accept that we should accept the kidnaping of young children and girls because they can be forced to do jobs free women in this country won’t perform. Love is much harder than that – love is trying to understand just how horrible hell will be for those who do not find Jesus Christ and because we manage to have some understanding of the horror, we do everything we can to bring them the good news – the message of salvation.
Now, the writer to the Hebrews makes it clear that we can not be an island unto ourselves. We are still required to come together and worship. And when we gather in love for one another there is a synergism that happens where we become stronger and happier than we can be by ourselves. Worship is not only something for God but it is also something important and necessary for each of us. Back then it was observed that people thought they didn’t need to congregate. And the very same thing is happening today. One of the biggest problems in America today is loneliness.
Loneliness causes a great deal of depression, and it also causes people to do stupid things they would not do if they were not lonely and starved for attention. Loneliness and depression may be the easiest debilitating factor to overcome. Invite someone to come to church and don’t take no for an answer. When I did counseling for the court, I required people to go to and become part of a local church congregation. Boy, did I get the push back from every corner. But I insisted. And I could insist and get judges to go along with my treatment because I was 6 times more successful than the love driven clinics. And I had judges who would make that clear. So those who were sincere about recovery changed their minds and went to church. I still have a long list of people who are thankful they went to church. Several have become deacons and elders in their churches and are driven to use their churches to reach others.
Rev. Dr. Rudolph G. Babcock