By Heny Albert Erdmann

Chapter 8

LOVE IN THE SPIRIT OR THE SPIRIT, THE SOURCE OF LOVE

Colossians 1:8

8. Who also declared unto us your love in the Spirit.

I Corinthians 13:1-13

1. Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity [love], I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal.

2. And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing.

3. And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing.

4. Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up,

5. Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil;

6. Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth;

7. Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.

8. Charity never faileth: but whether there be prophecies, they shall fail; whether there be tongues, they shall cease; whether there be knowledge, it shall vanish away.

9. For we know in part, and we prophesy in part.

10.But when that which is perfect is come, then that which is in part shall be done away.

11. When I was a child, I spake as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, I put away childish things.

12. For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known.

13. And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity.

In this chapter we consider the source of divine love, the Giver of divine love to a human being. And this love is very closely associated with the glory of Jesus. But Jesus cannot be glorified in our lives without there being on our part a recognition of the Holy Spirit. He is the One who makes Jesus Christ real to us; and only when the Holy Spirit has come into the human heart as a resident to take over control of the life, is He enabled to make Christ real, and to shed abroad divine love in our hearts.

From Colossians, the first chapter, we glean that the Apostle Paul had just been visited by Epaphras, one of the ministers of the Colossian church, and he had reported to Paul the condition of that church. It was summed up in one sentence: "Epaphras . . . declared unto us your love in the Spirit."

The one outstanding characteristic of the Colossian church was this "love in the Spirit." And this should be the outstanding characteristic of every New Testament church of today. In such a church we find perfect fellowship; all members working toward the same end, all of the same mind.

SOME CHARACTERISTICS OF SUCH A CHURCH

Its union is unbroken. Such a church remains as a unit; it retains its oneness. "Both he that sanctifieth and they who are sanctified are all of one" (Heb. 2:11). In such a church there are no schisms, no cliques. Its members are filled with charity, unselfishness, and consideration for one another. "In honour preferring one another" (Rom. 12:10). In such a church are no gossiping tongues. There are no slanderous rumors, no quarrels and criticisms, murmurings and bad feelings.

In such a church all are joined together in harmonious love and hearty co-operation, in the worship, testimony and work.

Would to God that this beautiful picture might be more frequently repeated. Only one thing can effectively keep a church from being like the above picture -- and that is the absence of the Holy Spirit and the presence of the old carnal self.

There is plenty of love in the world. It is the secret of every romance, the theme of many a poem; it lies back of all that is heroic in national history; it guilds every record of patriotism; it glorifies every true home and fireside. But there is a great difference between natural love and the "love of the Spirit." In fact, there are many differences. Though natural love is excellent in its place, being human it is limited.

NATURAL LOVE is an instinct and a passion; LOVE OF THE SPIRIT is a new creation and the fruit of the supernatural life imparted by the Holy Spirit. The natural heart knows nothing about "the love of the Spirit." Human love may be only a little higher, in degree, than the instinct of a mother bird. It is born of earth; and with the earth, and all other earthly things, it will pass away. It is only temporary. But the love of the Spirit descends from above. It is a part of the nature of God and will last forever.

Natural love is selfish in its nature and terminates upon its own gratification. Divine love is unselfish and reaches out to do good to its object. The strongest affection born of earthly passion may turn to the most bitter hate if crossed and disappointed. It can strike down, with a death blow of vengeance, the one on whom it had placed its attentions, when that one awakens its jealousy.

On the other hand, divine love, "the love of the Spirit," forgets self, and seeks to bless its object. This divine love does not shrink from any sacrifice to accomplish its purpose. Natural love is based upon the attractive qualities of its object; Divine love springs from something within, and is the outflow of an irresistible impulse within itself. Mere human love, whether fancied or real, is attracted by the goodness or loveliness of its object. When the goodness or loveliness fails, or ceases to be as good or lovely as it had been thought to be, then human love often dies. Divine love can seize upon the most unlovely, can love it into loveliness, and can keep on loving through the impulse of its own heart, when everything in the circumstances would seem to render it impossible. And so, "God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us" (Rom. 5:8). God loved us because it was in His divine nature to do so; and so, when the Holy Spirit makes Christ real within us, we will love, because of Christ within us, even the unlovely and unworthy.

Natural love is sensitive, living in the sunshine of responsive affection. Divine love is long-suffering when there is no response, patient and true, even in the darkest hour of suffering.

The very element of divine love is suffering. In the sublime picture given us in First Corinthians, chapter 13, love begins her march by suffering long, and ends it by enduring all things. The love that blesses those that bless us is only earthly. "Do not even the publicans the same?" But the love that reaches out to those who can make no return, the love that blesses them that curse us, and prays for them that despitefully use us, is the love of God, shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Spirit. This love the Holy Spirit alone can produce in our hearts.

Natural love is changeful. Divine love is abiding and everlasting. Natural love depends largely either upon our moods or the moods of those we love. Divine love is the eternal Spirit loving on changelessly, through good and ill. Oh, how we need to pray: "Search me, O God . . . and see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting" (Ps. 139:23, 24).

Natural love is exclusive, partial and partisan. Divine love is comprehensive and universal, like the Very heart of God. It does not love only its favorites, but it loves for love's sake all that need to be loved. It does not ignore the closer ties and fellowship of life. It strengthens and deepens those ties and fellowship. It gives the husband a deeper and stronger affection for his wife, and the wife a deeper and stronger affection for her husband. It gives friends a more delicate and special bond of companionship with each other. But it does not stop there. It embraces every tie.

Human love is intemperate. Divine love is moderate and self-restrained. The petulant mother, in one moment, can hug with passionate affection her child to her bosom, and in the next moment can pour out the fierce invectives of wrath upon his head. The impulsive father can love his boy so intemperately and indulgently as to be unwilling to deny him his wishes, though he knows his taking such an attitude may cost his son his character and affect his future life.

True love restrains, and even dares to discipline, that it may do greater good, in the end, to its object.

Human love loves by sight. Divine love walks by faith. God sees and knows us, not only as we are today in our unworthiness, but as we shall be, some day, when we shine forth as the sun in the Kingdom of our Father, reflecting the glory and the beauty of our Savior's face. In anticipation of that day when we shall be glorified, if we remain true to the end, He treats us as if we had already attained.

Human love never rises above the human. "Love of the Spirit" is the love of God within us.

It has been well said that the thirteenth chapter of First Corinthians is a photograph of Jesus, and the true way to read it is to insert "Christ," or the "Holy Spirit," in place of "charity" ("love") and then transfer it to our hearts and lives, inserting Christ and the Holy Spirit in place of self in our experience. Then indeed, it will be true that: Christ in us suffereth long, and is kind; Christ in us envieth not . . . is not puffed up; Christ in us seeketh not His own; Christ in us rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth; Christ in us never faileth, etc.

And so we are constrained to sink out of self into Christ and to say: "Not I, but Christ liveth in me."

This, then, is "love of the Spirit." The Holy Spirit has come to train us in the school of love. Day by day He leads us out into some new lesson as we are able to learn it. When circumstances seem hard, let us remember we are in class in the school of discipline, that we have another opportunity to put on Christ and learn the patience, the long-suffering, of the gentleness of love.