Does Your Love Sentence You to Death? (Devotion)

The greatest example of love will always be Jesus. In Romans 5:8 we’re told that His love for us caused Him to give His life for us. Do we ever see such examples of love in mere men that they are willing to die for another? We do.

In Exodus 32 after Moses ascended Mount Sinai to retrieve the Ten Commandments, he comes down only to discover that the people have forgotten God’s mighty saving acts from the Egyptians and His wrath. They crafted an idol out of the plunder God gave them and worshiped before it with dancing and revelry. Though Moses was distraught and angered by their actions, this is what he said instead: “You have committed a great sin. But now I will go up to the Lord; perhaps I can make atonement for your sin.” So Moses went back to the Lord and said, “Oh, what a great sin these people have committed! They have made themselves gods of gold. But now, please forgive their sin—but if not, then blot me out of the book you have written”” (Exodus 32:30-32 NIV).

In the New Testament Paul demonstrated a similar love that was willing to die for the sake of another when he discovered that his fellow Jews refused to accept Jesus and salvation by faith alone but remained steadfast that it was their observance of the law that would save them: “I speak the truth in Christ—I am not lying, my conscience confirms it through the Holy Spirit— I have great sorrow and unceasing anguish in my heart. For I could wish that I myself were cursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my people, those of my own race, the people of Israel” (Romans 9:1-4a NIV).

The Greek word for “cursed” is anathema and means delivered over to the wrath of God for eternal destruction. Moses and Paul’s love was such that they were both willing to be put to eternal death so that others could live. The convicting question that their example set before me was, “Does your love sentence you to death?”

Not many of us will ever exchange our physical lives and certainly not our eternal lives in death so that someone else can live. But there is a way in which God’s call for us to radically love reflects death. The way in which He commands us to love Him and love others often feels like death and it often requires some real death too.

Death to our desires. Death to our pride. Death to our preference and way. Death to the acceptance and approval of man. Death to the culture or group we long to find identity in. This death looks like patience and kindness to the ungrateful and wicked (Luke 6:27-36). It looks like forgiveness and bestowing of good upon offenders (Romans 12:14, 17-21). And it looks like hating and standing against what God calls evil, even when that may cost you friendships and opportunities (Romans 12:9)

Why is it that this kind of love that displays itself by death necessary? There are two foundational reasons I find in Scripture. The first is for distinction. And the second is for salvation.

Distinction

John 13:34-35 NIV states, ““A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.””

Romans 6:3-5 NIV states, “Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life. For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we will certainly also be united with him in a resurrection like his.”

When we die to self, which is for the purpose of loving God and loving others, we are identified with Jesus because we look like Him. And when we die, just as He did, it provides an opportunity for new life just as we were given.

Salvation

Moses and Paul loved their people so much that they were willing to take their place of judgment in death so that the people could live. What is your love willing to do so that someone else can live? In so many places in Scripture we see that love draws people to life. And love draws people away from death.

Jeremiah 31:3 NIV states, “The Lord appeared to us in the past, saying: “I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with unfailing kindness.”

James 5:19-20 NIV states, “My brothers and sisters, if one of you should wander from the truth and someone should bring that person back, remember this: Whoever turns a sinner from the error of their way will save them from death and cover over a multitude of sins.”

And finally, Romans 13:8-12a NIV states, “Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for whoever loves others has fulfilled the law. The commandments, “You shall not commit adultery,” “You shall not murder,” “You shall not steal,” “You shall not covet,” and whatever other command there may be, are summed up in this one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” Love does no harm to a neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law. And do this, understanding the present time: The hour has already come for you to wake up from your slumber, because our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed. The night is nearly over; the day is almost here.

How might God be calling you to die and love so that you can look like Him and help save another? And why is His call to die and love so urgent?

Nugget #1

This past Sunday, guest pastor Bill James from Agents for Christ shared with our body from 1 Corinthians 14-33 about the law of love. I encourage you to check out the message. He concluded it by giving us four ways to test to see if our actions are done in love:

• Can you thank the Lord for it? (v. 30)

• Does it bring glory to God? (v. 31)

• If the things you’re doing or involved in does it cause someone offense? (v. 32)

• The things you’re involved in and doing does it lead others to salvation? (v. 33)

Nugget #2

The evening I finished the draft for this devotion, the Lord confirmed and repeated the message He wanted me to share as I finished up The Kingdom Husband chapter in The Kingdom Agenda by Dr. Tony Evans. Here’s the snippet that echoed what God had given me to share through this word:

“Husband, you need to decide, ‘I am willing to pay whatever price it takes to bring my wife to fulfillment. I am willing to go the distance to bring her from where she is to where she ought to be spiritually and in every other way.’ The Bible says Jacob loved Rachel so much he worked fourteen years to gain her hand (see Genesis 29:20-30). That’s a high price to pay, but that’s the price tag of love.

Too many men want to run away from their wives when there’s a problem. But if there were no problems, if your wife were perfect, she wouldn’t need a savior. Christ looked at us in our mess and said, ‘You have a Savior. Here I am.’

The husband is the savior of the wife. At the heart of that is sacrifice. If there is no sacrifice, there is no love. So my question is, Do you really love your wife? If I asked her what price you are paying to love her, could she tell me? Could you tell me what price you are paying for her?” (pg. 238).

Though Dr. Tony Evans was speaking to husbands, we can find ourselves in the text asking what are we paying to honor our relationship with Jesus, to love Him and to love others as He loves us?

Additional passages to meditate on: Romans 12, 1 Corinthians 13, Philippians 2:1-8