Having established what Christian love is, and God and Jesus as the source of that love, we now turn to the application of this love toward mankind. As stated before, love is a part of every relationship in the life of a Christian. We find in the New Testament the need for love toward our brethren, our family, our neighbors and even our enemies. This and the next few articles will address these relationships. We will begin with our love for our brethren.
There is so much said about the love Christians are to have for one another that an article such as this will only touch the surface. We will begin with the words of Jesus to His Apostles on His betrayal night. John 13:34-35 records Him saying, "A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all will know that your are My disciples, if you have love for one another." When Jesus called this a new commandment He was not saying it was something they had not heard of before, but rather that there is a new precedence associated with it. He is emphasizing its priority in the New Kingdom, His church. He states we are to love one another even as He has loved us. We have already noted the degree to which Jesus loved us. His example admonishes us to act in kind. And then Jesus makes a declaration about just how important this is. He states that our love for one another will testify to the world that we are His disciples. In saying this, Jesus implies that if we do not demonstrate love one another, we are not His true disciples. When you see a congregation where brethren do not have love for one another you will understand this. When brethren are continually fighting among themselves, bickering, complaining to their friends about how bad their brethren are, and promoting division (whether personal or doctrinal) they are telling their friends that the church is not a place to find true peace that they claim to provide the answer for. Such actions also say to the world that Jesus cannot bring unity. Rest assured, Satan is aware of this and he does everything he can to instigate such attitudes among brethren.
John in his first epistle, wrote of the importance of brotherly love by saying, "If someone says, 'I love God' and hates his brother, he is a liar: for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen how can he love God whom he has not see? And this commandment we have from Him: that he who loves God must love his brother also." (1 John 4:20-21) Notice in this text how important it is that brethren love one another. Loving God is linked directly to loving our brethren. The love that is mentioned here is agape love.
Another text that speaks of brethren loving one another is Romans 12:10 which says, "Be kindly affectionate to one another with brotherly love, in honor giving preference to one another." In this text Paul is listing a number of things that Christians are expected to do for one another. Brotherly love is mentioned in the middle of them. Brotherly love is the Greek word philadelphia which means, "tender affection" (W.E. Vine) or fondness toward a brother. It is a genuine feeling of a relationship that is developed by spending time together and getting to know one another. The like precious faith that brethren share will naturally bring them closer together. In reality as you study the context of Romans 12 (vs. 9-18) you will find there numerous things that will promote brotherly love.
Understanding the need for brotherly love we want to now notice some ways this love is demonstrated.
Brotherly love is seen in preferring your brethren. Romans 12:10 states that we are to prefer one another. Perhaps there is no better way to show your love for your brethren than to choose them over the world. For the true Christian this will not be a problem, because of the similarities in interest. In fact he will look forward to and make opportunities to do things with brethren instead of worldly friends. This will include considering them by worshipping together (Hebrews 10:24-25).
Brotherly love is seen in serving your brethren. Paul wrote "For you, brethren, have been called to liberty; only do not use liberty as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another." (Galatians 5:13). Paul is dealing with the consideration brethren are to have for one another when it comes to differences in matters of judgment. He points out that one must not take advantage of his brethren for personal gain. Rather than asking, "What's in it for me?" the Christian asks, "What can I do for you?" The Christian does not always demand that he gets his way. He is willing to sacrifice on behalf of his brother. Paul wrote to the Philippians, "Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself. Let each of you look out not for his own interests, but also for the interests of others." (2:3-4). Truly, one way we manifest brotherly love is by serving them.
Brotherly love will cause us to forgive one another. It is no secret that at times we will do things against our brethren and they will do things against us. But brotherly love will cause us to forgive them. Paul said about forgiveness of our brethren, "And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you." (Ephesians 4:32). Other passages are as emphatic about forgiveness as Jesus was about brotherly love in John 13. (See Matthew 6:13-15, etc.) If we love our brethren we will want to forgive them for the sake of peace in the body.
Brotherly love will also cause us to correct our brethren when they need it. Paul wrote. "Brethren, if a man is overtaken in any trespass, you who are spiritual restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness, considering yourself lest you also be tempted." (Galatians 6:1) As we can see in this passage, our love for our brethren sometimes involves that which is unpleasant. If we love our brethren we will rebuke them when they need it. This does not mean that we should "nit-pick" every little thing we don't like about our brethren. But when we notice something that will put their soul in jeopardy, our love will prompt us to go to them and make efforts to restore them. This is no different than a parent who disciplines and punishes a child because they love them. The other side of this is to consider that when you are rebuked or corrected, you need to take it as a Christian. Be thankful that your brother cared enough to let you know about your error. True Christian love toward our brethren will cause us to act like this.
Many other things could be said about what brotherly Love involves. I hope we can see in this article just how important it is in the life of a Christian. What about you? Do you love your brethren, as you ought to?