The Work that demonstrates Love to God
“… which will allow us to understand why Jesus asked the apostle Peter three times: – “Simon , son of Jonah, do you love me?”, since the repeated questions of the Lord Jesus show us that it is not enough just to say: – ‘Yes, Lord, you know that I love you!'”
The Work that demonstrates Love to God
Table of Contents
Presentation
What was pertinent to the world of ideas, to “should be”, becomes categorical and tangible in the world of being. Love ceases to be a religious and moral experience, or a one-sided expression of the soul, of the human psyche, and comes to rest in new categories.
The way in which the Author leaves aside the Greek categories on love, so usual when dealing with the subject, and replaces them with a safe and unique category that exists in the Old Testament is innovative. This rereading made me redimension the understanding of several biblical passages, among which the one is that contains the important warning of Christ: – “No servant can serve two masters; because, or you’ll hate one and love the other.” (Lk 16:13). The Author’s conception of biblical ‘love’ evidenced in this book is surprising.
The way he approaches complex biblical passages is peculiar and interprets outside of trivial hermeneutics. By comparing some biblical passages, the author leads the reader to an intriguing investigation and, at times, even generates a certain suspense that culminates in a surprising conclusion about the true meaning of such common biblical terms, such as love and hate.
While reading this work, the vision of love according to the romanticism and humanism that is so dear to us is quickly, replace by a conception of love that takes on aristocratic and noble airs, a common scenario in the context in which the Scriptures has produced.
The fog of subjectivism permeated by the idealism that religious conceptions prescribe through the term ‘love’ is quickly replaced by a grave and objective imperative, which coats the theme with a unique new meaning.
Where I saw feeling, after reading this book, I see behavior. Love transcends the world of ideas, subjectivism, and idealism and claims its rightful place as action.
Introduction
“My little children’s let us not love by word or tongue, but by work and in truth.” (1 John 3:18).
When we hear about God, we has seized with reverent attitudes, a feeling of devotion invades us, and emotion speaks loudly. Often, when we read about God’s love for humanity, willingness comes to the surface and we want to turn our feelings and emotions into service.
When he went to fetch the ark of the cove from the house of Abinadab, King David was filling with devotion, full of emotions, overflowing with joy and reverent attitudes. David feasted with the people, with all sorts of musical instruments, attitudes that demonstrate how happy he was to bring the ark of the Lord to him.
With his vision clouded by joy, David let himself be carried away by the desperate attitude of the Philistines who, in distress because of hemorrhoids, returned the ark of the Lord on a chariot drawn by cows (1 Samuel 6:11). David and all the people of Israel forgot God’s ordinance and carelessly carried the ark using the means of transportation prepared by the priests and diviners of the Philistines (1 Samuel 6:2).
Everyone sang and played happily and following the ark that was on a new ox cart. When they reached Nachom’s threshing floor, the ark nearly fell because of the stumble of the oxen, and Uzzah, who was driving the chariot, reached out to catch it and was struck down by God (2 Samuel 6:6-7). That is when King David feared and asked the following question:
– “How will the ark of the Lord come to me?”
The biblical passage that narrates the return of the ark of the Lord to the house of Israel serves as a warning. We are being willing to do a work according to our conjecture. Alternatively, we are we aware of what God requires of us according to his word.
Have you ever asked yourself – “What is the work that demonstrates your love for God?”; “What is the biblical concept of love?”; “What does God require of man?”
The event that awakened King David to seek (obey) God as God had commanded (1 Chronicles 15:2 and 13), made me wonder: a car pulled by cows?”; “Are we loving God as He commanded?”
During two millennia of Christianity, there were numerous cultural revolutions. Civilizations and cultures disappeared, while others flourished. Every civilization and every culture that came and went had its own concepts and ideas about love. Numerous religions arose and each priest, magician, diviner, mystic, minister, leader, government, etc., adopted or developed, according to their interests, a concept of love.
The purpose of this book is to help you understand what ‘love’ God requires of us, as well as the meaning of the term love used in the New Testament, which will allow us to understand why Jesus asked the apostle Peter three times: – “Simon , son of Jonah, do you love me?”, since the repeated questions of the Lord Jesus show us that it is not enough just to say:
– “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you!”
