In Romans, chapter 8, verses 38-39, the author, Paul, gives a list of possibilities that could (and will) try to interfere with God’s love for you.
Read to see how this seemingly discouraging list actually highlights God’s great love for us. It models how we should love others unconditionally and without exceptions.
LEARNING TO LOVE WITHOUT EXCEPTIONS
Paul’s list of possibilities that try to stop God from loving you includes death, life, angels, and demons. The list also consists of the present, the future, powers, height, and depths. Paul summarizes the list by saying, “and anything else!” His conclusion is, “Nothing can stop God from loving you.”
Likewise, difficult as it may be, we can let nothing stop us from loving everyone. God commands us to love others unconditionally and without exception to their ethnicity, beliefs, behavior, or even their disdain for us. This way of loving illustrates God’s “Agape” love (Luke 6:27-36).
You may already know about Agape love. How do you show it? Can you do more to extend this highest degree of love to all people? Read on.
Here are five points to assist you with sharing God’s unconditional love to others without exceptions.
1. Commitment. Unconditional love requires commitment. You must decide whether or not you will love others without reciprocity. You can never look to receive back the love you give to others (Matthew 5:44).
2. Acceptance. True acceptance of someone includes not wasting your energy on how other adults choose to live their lives. “God, give me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, Courage to change the things I can, and wisdom to know the difference.” (Reinhold Niebuhr, 1951)
3. Forgiveness. Forgiving others is crucial to unconditional love. Did you ever notice how much Jesus had to pray to forgive? Even at his execution on the cross, he prayed for God to forgive his offenders. Therefore, how much more do we have to pray about forgiveness to others? (Luke 23:34)?
4. Safety. Unconditional love does not condone criminal behavior. Mistreatment and disrespect indicate severe dysfunction. Never mistake any form of abuse as an act of love. Get help or leave the abusive relationship (Romans 13:10, Matthew 22:39).
5. Expectations. When we expect others to respond to our loving actions in a certain way, we make them victims of our expectations. Besides, we set ourselves up for disappointment over and over again. The commitment and acceptance principles above will also help you conquer unfair expectations (1 Cor 13:31).
You are now empowered to share the unconditional love you have received from God without exceptions. This highest form of love will whittle away any obsessions with others as you grow stronger in your faith (2 Peter 1:5-7). You are free to live your unique, God-ordained purpose in life.
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