Daily Affirmations - Day 3 - Resolute Wisdom - Follow the Way of Love

Day 3: Follow the way of love

If I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing

But you have dishonored the poor. Is it not the rich who are exploiting you? Are they not the ones who are dragging you into court? Are they not the ones who are blaspheming the noble name of Him to whom you belong? (James 2:6-7).

Father in heaven, You have made clear Your concern for the poor, the needy, the widow, the fatherless, the orphan, the foreigner, the stranger, the outcast, the oppressed, the marginalized, the defenseless, the victim, the afflicted... And when You chose to dwell with us in human form, the Lord Jesus came, not to the station of the privileged and the elite, but as One who had no riches, no status, no fame, no worldly power.

You have shown us that ours is not a passive faith, but one that is expressed in action. Throughout the history of Your people, You set up laws, commands, precepts, and principles to defend, protect, and provide for the least of society. And for Your church today, the call to active love is still a matter of great importance, beginning with the household of faith:

Suppose a brother or a sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to them, “Go in peace; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about their physical needs, what good is it? (James 2:15-16).

Yet, Lord, You do not call us to simply follow the law, but to follow the way of love (1 Corinthians 13, 14:1) with a heart commitment and a genuine investment that take us beyond mere "legal fulfilment." This is the lesson You taught the expert in the law when You told the parable of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:25-37).

And this is the lesson the apostle James reiterates: If you really keep the royal law found in Scripture, “Love your neighbor as yourself,” you are doing right (James 2:8). But James shows us that a true commitment to love is as much reflected in our attitudes and our philosophies as in our actions.

He points out that we cannot love our neighbor as ourself if we demonstrate favoritism that allies us with the rich at the expense of the poor: But if you show favoritism, you sin and are convicted by the law as lawbreakers (James 2:9).

O Lord, teach us to love resolutely, intentionally. After You taught the parable of the Good Samaritan, Your instruction was, Go and do likewise" (Luke 10:37).

"Likewise" makes a choice for compassion (Luke 10:33), action, (vs. 34) personal attention (vs. 35), dedication, continuation (vs. 36). But "likewise" also makes a choice against self-interest, apathy, indifference, coldness, hardness, and blindness (Luke 10:31-32).

May we honor You by choosing to honor and to stand with, not the rich, the elite, the powerful, and the connected, but the poor, the beaten, and the downtrodden.

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