Sincere and True Love

Romans 12:9 calls love to sincerity. This word reaches a part of the heart we do not always want to examine.

We can show care while expecting something in return. We can stay close to people as long as they please us. We can speak about love and still act from self-interest, pride, or the desire to be recognized.

The Word calls us to look at this honestly. Sincere love needs to be born from a heart dealt with by God. It begins when we allow the Lord to confront our intentions and teach us to treat others without using relationships to feed our own will.

Jesus showed us this love in real life. He dealt with fragile people without despising them. He also spoke the truth without turning it into hardness. His love reached the whole person, with mercy and holiness.

1 John 3:18 also calls us to love in real action. This love appears in ordinary choices, in patience at home, in the way we respond when we are opposed, and in the willingness to care without seeking applause.

Today, ask the Lord for a truer heart. May the love of Christ deal first with your intentions and then be seen in your conduct.

9 [Let] love be without dissimulation. Abhor that which is evil; cleave to that which is good.

18 My little children, let us not love in word, neither in tongue; but in deed and in truth.