John 3:16 reads, “For God so LOVED the world, that he GAVE his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”
Look at the two words in this verse – loved and gave. Love is something we DO, it’s not simply a feeling of affection, but love takes on the substance of DOING. The God kind of love is always connected with an action. Love is an action word, not simply an “emotion” word.
God’s own love is IN us. It came in us at the new birth, so we don’t have to pray for it, but we must develop it and yield to it, allowing it to flow. That love flows out through what we DO.
What will love DO? What are love’s actions?
First, let’s look at love’s actions toward God:
Love spends time in the Word – we can only know Him through His Word, not simply through feelings & emotions.
Love prays – we are to spend time in fellowship with God, for He longs for the fellowship of His children.
Love fulfills God’s plan – we want His plan for our lives, not our own.
Love obeys God – we obey His Word, and we obey what He’s dealing with us about by His Spirit.
Now let’s look at love’s actions toward others:
Love serves one another – we are interested in each other.
Love treats others right – we do what’s right by them.
Love prays for one another – the situations of others matter to us.
Love fulfills our place and function in the Body of Christ – doing our share of work in the local church, in the church family.
Love is generous, it’s a giver – it gives of its time, finances, and resources.
We are not saved by works, but after we are saved, works are everything – they are the fruit of our life. The Word tells us that we are known by our fruit – the fruit our lives produce.
“Love is a LABOR – it’s a work we do – it’s not just feelings and emotions.”
Ephesians 2:10 (AMPC) reads, “For we are God’s [own] handiwork (His workmanship), recreated in Christ Jesus, [born anew] that we may DO THOSE GOOD WORKS which God predestined (planned beforehand) for us [taking paths which He prepared ahead of time], that we should walk in them [living the good life which He prearranged and made ready for us to live].”
Hebrews 6:10 tells us, “For God is not unrighteous to forget YOUR WORK and LABOUR OF LOVE, which ye have shewed toward his name, in that ye have ministered to the saints, and do minister.”
Love is a LABOR – it’s a work we do – it’s not just feelings and emotions.
Second Corinthians 5:10 (AMPC) reads, “For we must all appear and be revealed as we are before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive [his pay] according to what he has DONE in the body, whether good or evil [considering what his PURPOSE and MOTIVE have been, and what he has achieved, been busy with (how we spend our time), and given himself and his ATTENTION to accomplishing].”
These verses are talking about works that spring from love – love actions. Love has right PURPOSE and MOTIVES as well as right actions. We don’t want our purpose and motives to be about US, but about God, His plan, and being a blessing to others. We are to carry the mindset that we are on this earth to fulfill God’s plan and to be a blessing to others.
According to this verse, love has its TIME and ATTENTION on the right things. Our love for God is demonstrated in how we spend our time.
James 2:17 & 18 reads, “Even so faith, if it hath not WORKS, is dead, being alone. Yea, a man may say, Thou hast faith, and I have works: shew me thy faith without thy works, and I will shew thee my faith BY MY WORKS.”
Faith is a work! Our degree of works reveals our degree of faith. So, just as faith without works is dead, love without works is dead. Faith works by love – our faith is fueled by our love. But if our love is void of actions, then it’s dead, so our faith will lack the fuel of love it needs to operate.
Words of love and longing toward God that are empty of love actions are grieving to Him. We are to love Him and long for Him with our actions and not just with our words. An affection and a feeling of love toward God is best expressed through actions, not just words and good intentions.
Obedience is the flow of love He desires. We are not to just be BUSY doing natural work, but we are also to take actions toward our spiritual progress – including spending time in the Word and prayer. As we take time to pray and study, and we lay aside the carnal, natural things and the wasting of time, we are showing our love through our obedience. We work at our profession, we raise our family – and those are good and right things to do – but we are to do those things from a FULL spiritual place. We aren’t to neglect the spiritual life in carrying out our natural responsibilities.
The strength God gives is for the DOING. Love is the doing. Without the doing, love never reaches its highest flow and expression. Love that stays only in the form of longing is never fulfilled. Longing must move to doing. Love rightly expressed is a doer. Nothing is benefited from only longings of love. Longings of love must become actions, or else love dies unborn and unfulfilled. Love turns us into a doer. Without doing, love misses the mark. It falls to the ground without accomplishing its goal and without hitting the target. Love acts, so the more your love grows, the more your actions should grow. Growing love produces a growing amount of actions.
Love asks, “What can I DO for you?” Love is void of ease and convenience – it’s not looking to give itself a life of ease. When God sent Jesus to pay the price for us, that was not easy or convenient. But love will inconvenience itself, for it LONGS to do for another. A life lived in leisure and pleasing of self is void of the depth of the flow of love that springs from God. Carnal things quench the flow of love’s deep waters.
If you love, do! Love is not expressed best through words, but through the doing. As you DO, love is made known, love is seen, love is expressed. Love grows and is fortified in the life of the doer.
How many times have people with good intentions told us what they were going to do for us, but never did it? People don’t need to announce their intentions of love – just DO them.
A love that is only spoken is selfish. It is looking for gratification without price – the price of DOING. Pay the price of love – do! Doing is that price. Don’t just speak love, but DO love. Don’t look for the fulfillment of love without doing.
Frustrated love is a spoken love that is empty of right actions. Our longings, words, and desires of love toward God will die unborn until there are actions. Without actions, we will be frustrated in our love toward God. We long to have that love gratified and satisfied, but it can’t be without actions.
We love Him to the measure we OBEY Him. When we don’t act on what’s in our heart, we don’t love God as we ought. When we don’t obey Him, it’s a love issue – not just a faith issue – but a love issue. If He tugs on us to pray, but we don’t, it’s because we don’t love Him as we ought – it’s not about having time. If He tugs on us to study, and we don’t study, it’s because we don’t love as we ought. We don’t love in deed – we only love in words.
Love without doing is a love that dies unborn – doing brings love to life. Without the doing, love has no life – no way to express itself.
God’s heart can be grieved by our love that has no doing – it’s a love that never comes to fulfillment. The lack of doing robs love of power. If we love Him, DO. If we love Him, SHOW Him. Love words that are empty of doing will TIRE God. They put off a displeasing sound in His ear.
We can’t just “lap up” and receive His blessing while setting aside and laying down our “love” responsibilities. Show Him something! He takes no pleasure in words that are empty of doing.
A love empty of actions is a wasted love. We are to fill our “love” words – fill them with doing. We are to fill our life – fill it with love actions – then we will live fulfilled.
“Living full” doesn’t just come from God and what He can do for us, but it comes also from what we DO for Him and with Him. We are to put feet and hands to our words of love – DO! Not just “BUSY” doing – but the doing that comes out of our hearts of love – including our time in the Word and prayer.
Love is a producer. It will produce much fruit. We can’t just be content with the fruit we HAVE produced, for in His plan there’s more fruit we are called to produce.
The STRENGTH God gives is for the DOING! If we lack strength, is it because we lack DOING? His strength is experienced by the DOER. We are to do, produce, act – and as we do, His strength will meet us and empower us, and He will enable us to fulfill all that His plan holds.
We are to fill up our love with doing, and His love will FILL us. We are to live a FILLED life, but a filled life doesn’t flow from an empty love that doesn’t DO something. We are to fill our LOVE with doing and our LIFE will be filled – filled with Him – for He is our example of doing, He is our example of love. “God so LOVED the world that He GAVE….”
Our love is to be full of doing, bearing much fruit. DO, and be filled with love! God’s own love is IN us, we don’t have to pray for it, but that love can only flow out through what we DO.
First Corinthians 14:1 (AMPC) instructs us, “Eagerly pursue and seek to acquire [this] love [make it your aim, YOUR GREAT QUEST]….”
We are to make the development of this love our great quest. We are to grow in love and develop the love of God that’s in us. We develop that by what we DO.
No matter if we have fallen short of these things in the past, we can make corrections – we can grow and develop in this love walk.
We choose to make it our great quest!