Unconditional Love

There are no perfect people in this life. There's no perfect friendship, no perfect relationship, no perfect employee, teacher, boss, etc. The perfect person isn't a reality.

But that doesn't mean people don't have good in them. In fact, although all people are inherently sinful, all people are made in the image of God.

Can you imagine if God only loved perfect people? Can you imagine if God's love for each individual was based on what they've done right in life?

I'll admit I really don't understand God's love fully. I don't get why God loves so unconditionally when all we do is betray him over and over again. But he does.

It's crazy. It's convicting.

It's convicting because it is way too easy to base your feelings towards someone on what they've done right and what they've done wrong. Who am I to decide how kind I am to someone based on the good in their life? If God loved like that, there wouldn't be a whole of people on this earth to love.

We love because he first loved us. (1 John 4:19)

We serve because he first served us.

We sacrifice ourselves because Christ paid the ultimate sacrifice for us.

People might betray you, they might take advantage of the kindness and love you give them..... Love them anyway. Be kind anyways. Serve them anyways.

You won't make a kingdom impacting difference in someone's life if you love conditionally. Anyone can do that.

So where do we start?

The first place to look is Christ's example. He gave his entire life for an undeserving world. I can guarantee you it wasn't easy. But I imagine what made it worth it is the love He has because we're image bearers of God himself.

See people as God sees them. Maybe broken and flawed, but beautiful and loved all the same.

"If you look for the bad in people expecting to find it, you surely will." -Abraham Lincoln

Stop waiting for people to mess up. Stop looking for reasons not to love, and serve, and be kind. Stop thinking about why people don't deserve your kindness.

If you base who you love on perfection, you will find in the end there is no one left to love.

Love isn't love if it has conditions.

Being the hands and feet of Jesus means loving in a crazy kind of way that people won't understand. Forgive people that everyone calls you crazy for forgiving. And love them selflessly.

Because that's Jesus.

The concept is simple, but the fight to love others unconditionally will be a battle you have to choose to fight for the rest of your life.

Take it day by day. Person by person. Look at someone and ask yourself if God loves them? If the answer is yes (which 10 out of 10 times it will be), then so should you.

I encourage you this week to do something crazy, something almost unheard of: love without conditions, without judgement, and without reason. 

#livelifeanchored