| “For this is the message you heard from the beginning: We should love one another.” |
| —1 John 3:11 |
If you listen to the radio or watch television, you have likely noticed that a key element of advertising is to drive the message home by repeating it over and over and over again. That’s something that modern advertisers have learned from classical Koine Greek literature.
Whenever the Greek philosophers wanted to make a strong point, they would often set the stage by telling their readers what they were going to present. Then, they would make their point. Finally, they would tell their readers what point they had made. This three-fold repetition seemed to work. 1
It’s no wonder that the writers of the New Testament, whose education had relied on many of the principles laid down by the ancient Greeks, continued this same method in their biblical writings. Certain themes appear over and over throughout the New Testament.
One of those oft repeated themes relates to the expression of God-breathed love from one believer to another and from believers to non-believers. A case in point comes from the Apostle John, who wrote in 1 John 3:11:
For this is the message you heard from the beginning: We should love one another.
It is interesting to me, in this age where some would have us believe that all religions are the same, that a careful reading of the Islamic scripture finds a starkly contrasting oft repeated message: “kill all non-believers.” Followers of Islam are strongly encouraged by their leader, Mohammed, to utterly destroy anyone who is not a believer. We see this played out every day in the Middle East, where Islamic Fundamentalists—they insist they are the true followers of Mohammed—brutally kill those who refuse to embrace their particular brand of Islam.
This is so very different from the message of Christianity that I cannot fathom how anyone could think that these two very different religions are the same. Followers of Christianity are strongly encouraged by their leader, the Lord Jesus Christ, to openly express God-breathed love toward all people, even their enemies. In fact, in Matthew 28:18-20, Jesus told his disciples to:
Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
This day—this new day—let those of us who follow in the footsteps of Jesus do as He insists. Let us show God-breathed love toward every person we meet. And, let us, therefore, proclaim the God of mercy, grace, and love to all who seek to learn of Him.
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| 1 A long-demonstrated strategy for classroom instruction in the U.S. military requires the instructor to tell the students what he or she intends to teach in that day’s lesson. Then, the instructor teaches that instructional content. Finally, the instructor reviews for the students what he or she intended to teach. This repetitive methodology has become a classical way of conducting adult training because it has worked so well. |
Based on a blog originally posted on Wednesday, May 24, 2017
