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“Bearing with” is defined in the original Greek as : to hold up. This type of "holding up" refers to holding up under the weight or burden of another. It basically means to stand firm in the relationships with other Believers, and there are two ways to look at it.
A year ago, we began 2015 with a Bible Study Blog on the Christian Woman Chronicles Page about Love, taken from the entire chapter of 1 Corinthians 13. One of the things we learned was that no matter what our Gift, calling, or “anointing,” if we don’t have Love for one another, we are not being effective. We can’t even get to the outward part of progressing in a godly manner until we deal with the condition of our heart in our walk with God and others; and Paul gets right to it!
The Love we show one another when we bear with them is not an emotion. It has nothing to do with how we feel. It has everything to do with obedience to God’s Word, how we are to treat one another. We don’t just bear with those we like, agree with, admire, respect, or are friends with. We don’t just bear with those we have pity on or those who treat us “right.” If people are to truly see Christ-like progress in our Salvation walk, this is step one. If lowliness and gentleness are the Christianity PhD courses, Love is kindergarten class. Jesus Himself said, “By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.” (John 13:35) This is Christianity 101. We need to master it!
How do we master Loving others according to scripture?
Seeking to Grow my Walk with God and Others,
Dawn~
- We put up with each other’s weaknesses. Period. We don’t cut and run. We don’t cut each other off. We don’t stop speaking, ignore, or abandon one another. Relationships get strained, but we reconcile, even if we have to redefine boundaries.
- We show support to those who are struggling…and we ALL are struggling with something! Again, we don’t cut and run or ignore those who are heavy burdened. We support them through encouragement, kindness, friendship, and sometimes correction and instruction. But we don’t let them sink!
A year ago, we began 2015 with a Bible Study Blog on the Christian Woman Chronicles Page about Love, taken from the entire chapter of 1 Corinthians 13. One of the things we learned was that no matter what our Gift, calling, or “anointing,” if we don’t have Love for one another, we are not being effective. We can’t even get to the outward part of progressing in a godly manner until we deal with the condition of our heart in our walk with God and others; and Paul gets right to it!
The Love we show one another when we bear with them is not an emotion. It has nothing to do with how we feel. It has everything to do with obedience to God’s Word, how we are to treat one another. We don’t just bear with those we like, agree with, admire, respect, or are friends with. We don’t just bear with those we have pity on or those who treat us “right.” If people are to truly see Christ-like progress in our Salvation walk, this is step one. If lowliness and gentleness are the Christianity PhD courses, Love is kindergarten class. Jesus Himself said, “By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.” (John 13:35) This is Christianity 101. We need to master it!
How do we master Loving others according to scripture?
- Study what the Bible says about it.
- Meditate on scripture so it comes to mind when it’s needed
- Ask God for Grace to obey. This is not a human or natural way to love, so we need God’s power to do it.
- Remember that obedience leads to increased Grace. There will be times we will just have to obey with tears in our eyes and bitterness in our hearts. The more we obey, the more Grace we receive to obey, and the more bitterness fades.
- Look for opportunities to show Love. They are all around us, all day, every day!
Seeking to Grow my Walk with God and Others,
Dawn~
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