Agape In Action

Love is more than words. It marked by actions that see and meet the needs of others. 

“Why should one tribe be missing from Israel today?” Now the Israelites grieved for the tribe of Benjamin, their fellow Israelites. “Today one tribe is cut off from Israel,” they said. “How can we provide wives for those who are left, since we have taken an oath by the Lord not to give them any of our daughters in marriage?” In those days Israel had no king; everyone did as they saw fit.” 

Judges 21:2-25

The text says they were grieved. Does your heart break for what breaks the heart of gone? When you see others in need is your heart filled with compassion or complacency? This challenge is especially difficult in light of how wrong the Benjaminites were. Their hearts were removed to compassion for the very people they had just fought against two had done them wrong. It is easy to love people who are kind to us, but can we love those who offend us or have hurt us?

The most surprising aspect of this text is what is missing. At no point do they seek the Lord about how to make things right with the people. They try to solve the problem through vows, workarounds, and human strategies. They want to help others, but they don’t seek the Lord in how to do it.

Solomon says in Proverbs we should not lean on our own understanding. They want to help, but their love is not yet aligned with God’s wisdom. It says they had no king. It says they all did what they pleased. Isn't that one of our greatest issues? Do we not have a tendency to try to solve problems rather than spending time seeking God? 

“How long will you defend the unjust and show partiality to the wicked? Defend the weak and the fatherless; uphold the cause of the poor and the oppressed. Rescue the weak and the needy; deliver them from the hand of the wicked.” Psalms 82:2-4 

God's compassion has criteria to it. God is not haphazard or unintentional. He gives us a syllabus for the class on how to love. It is not vague.  He says defend the weak, uphold the cause of the poor, rescue the needy. He never says if you feel like it or if others deserve it.  When you look around your community, who could you help? Where is your heart stirred? Often, the places where you have experienced pain can become places of great meaning as you find how you can help others going through struggles that you have been through.  

Stewardship is a simple pass or fail test. When we stand before the Lord, he will ask what have you done with what I gave you. Did you help the needy, the weak, and the poor? Did you help the people I put into your life who needed help or did you help yourself to an unneeded helping of more? 

“Better the poor whose walk is blameless than the rich whose ways are perverse. The rich are wise in their own eyes...Whoever conceals their sins does not prosper, but the one who confesses and renounces them finds mercy. Blessed is the one who always trembles before God, but whoever hardens their heart falls into trouble...Those who work their land will have abundant food, but those who chase fantasies will have their fill of poverty...those who trust in the Lord will prosper...Those who give to the poor will lack nothing"

Proverbs 28:6-27

Solomon says the compassionate heart responds by living generously. Love isn’t just measured by big emotion, but it’s personal, practical, consistent generosity. Solomon says those who give the poor will lack nothing.  More than a one off this is meant to become a habit, a mindset, a way of living that demonstrates trust and a true heart of love for others. Where are you giving? Who could you bless today? 

The truth is, you cannot out give God. Every time you give to those in need, God will refill your cup.  You do not give to get, but you cannot God because He is the original giver and provider of all things. As you pour out your cup for what he cares about, He will fill your cup. Solomon says blessed are those who always tremble before God. The right perspective that will lead us on the right path is to remember to change our perspectives and remember that everything we have is from God and for God. 

What do you really believe? Do you believe that if you give that God will replenish your cup? Do you believe the words that those who give to the poor will lack nothing? In Malachi, God tells us to test Him in our giving. He says see if I will not fill your barns to overflowing. If we knew that God would replenish our cups, what step of giving could I take today?

“Is it a time for you yourselves to be living in your paneled houses, while this house remains a ruin?”...the Lord Almighty says: “Give careful thought to your ways. You have planted much, but harvested little. You eat, but never have enough. You drink, but never have your fill. You put on clothes, but are not warm. You earn wages, only to put them in a purse with holes in it...build my house, so that I may take pleasure in it and be honored,” says the Lord...the whole remnant of the people obeyed the voice of the Lord their God...the people feared the Lord..."I am with you,” declares the Lord" 

Haggai 1:3-13

Haggai begins to answer the question why don't we give. It’s not that we don’t care at all. Haggai shows that the issue is that their priorities drift. The issue is not absence of feeling, but misalignment of focus. It says the people lived in paneled houses rather than investing in helping people worship God. Can you relate? Do you think more about your own home improvement projects than building the house of the Lord? 

There is a progression we see in the text and a simple truth. Jesus said that upon this rock I will build my church. The word He used for church does not mean people. It means people. If we love God, we will faithfully be generous, compassionate, and sacrificially serve as often as we are able. The truth is, we cannot say we love God and not love others around us.

“See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! Dear children, do not let anyone lead you astray. The one who does what is right is righteous, just as he is righteous. We should love one another. We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love each other. Anyone who does not love remains in death. This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters. If anyone has material possessions and sees a brother or sister in need but has no pity on them, how can the love of God be in that person? Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth."

1 John 3:1-23

John starts where we should all start which is by acknowledging how great God's love is for us. God wants us to know who we are and who He is. He wants us to see that our identity is that of His child and how much we are loved. How does that shape how you will live?

Is it an accident that this is the message for today or is God sending you a word that you might receive, hear, and act on the call to make a difference in someone else's life today? What good is it to read passages of the Bible that talk about loving, but not put into action living out that love? 

The progression of the texts is clear. First we fear God and find freedom through the love we receive from Christ, our grateful hearts are meant to be moved like what we saw in Judges where the people could not just sit by and watch others suffer, we seek God so our actions wisely align with God's will of bringing justice to an unjust world, we step back to make sure our priorities stay centered  on building God's house by building up others, then we love extravagantly in real, consistent, and compassionate ways that help the people right in front of us who are in need. 

John says there is a tangible relationship between trusting God and giving. John says you're a child of God and that those who are his children do with the Father commands.  Let us not say we love each other with cheap talk, but let us walk in the light as Jesus is in the light by doing God's will today.