Love each other deeply. What a wonderful sentence! As those who are called according to God’s good will, raised to life in Christ, and living with the Spirit of the Triune God within us, we are the church. As the church, we are to love each other…deeply.

We often speak in the church of loving our neighbors and loving the poor and others outside the church and this is good; however, the Bible frequently speaks of brothers and sisters in Christ loving each other. Unfortunately, this is something we struggle with, but why?

Sinners and Saints
Simply put, we are all saints in Christ, but still sinners as well. That sinful nature and the sins it bears churn up trouble. We are tempted to gossip, belittle, hold a grudge, be selfish, etc. by our sinful nature and sometimes we give in.

We are saints, too, though. The Spirit is living and working within us. So, how do we find a way to truly love each other…to love each other deeply?

• Get to know each other – Let’s face it. Sunday is great, but there’s not much opportunity on Sunday morning to develop real, deep relationships. Get together at other times. Meet up for lunch or coffee. Join a small group ministry. Make a point to connect with each other and really share each other’s lives.
• Make time for each other – In the U.S. we tend to pack our lives so full of obligations that we don’t have time for each other’s “inconvenient” struggles. Look for ways to lighten the load and make time both for each other and for yourself. Rest is a wonderful time (note to self, work on this.)
• Be financially wise – If there’s one thing I learned from Dave Ramsey and his Financial Peace University program, it’s that there are always ways to cut our expenses. Half the time, we don’t even realize how much we spend. Sometimes that are also ways to increase our earnings relatively quickly and easily. By being financially wise, we can not only put ourselves in a better financial position, but we can have something extra which we can use to provide for our brothers and sisters in need.
• Connect to the source of love – God is love. Spend more time with Him in prayer, Bible reading, and worship and ask Him to open your heart to love others more.
• Share your life – One of the best ways to get someone to open up and share about their life is to open up and share about your own life. Try it.
• Be willing to take a risk – The truth is that loving others is risky. We open ourselves up to pain, betrayal, and more. However, the risk is worth it. Enjoy the good times, forgive the betrayal, and accept that there may be pain, but that person is worth it.

Let’s start, today. How often have we thought about something, but put it off and then never get to it? So, let’s begin, now. Pray about it and then try reaching out to a friend in Christ and invite them to lunch or a coffee. Share a little more during that time than the normal surfacy stuff. You may find that it doesn’t take very long to start to have a deep connection in Christ. Then you are well on your way to loving each other deeply.

Heavenly Father,

You love us deeply, more than we can possibly imagine. Fill us with Your love and help us to love each other deeply.

Amen.