Letters From Grandpa #509

• LETTERS FROM GRANDPA
• 509

Dearest grandchild,

Today’s letter will begin with a riddle: “WHAT IS IT? It is the most valued possession of both rich and poor. The poor man can have it for nothing. The rich man cannot buy it for any amount of money. It has no shape, color, or substance, yet it is easily recognized. The more a person distributes it, the more he has in supply. It is all around us everywhere, yet many have suffered for the lack of it. Some have frustrated their lives in search of it and perished without it. Others have willingly given their lives because they had it. It is older than the world, yet it is ever new, and will last throughout eternity. It is love!”

Jewish scholars have counted 613 laws in the Torah. Yet Jesus reduce all the law and the prophets to only two commandments, and both of them involve love. An expert in the law once asked Jesus: “Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?” Jesus replied: ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.” (Matthew 22:36-40)

Paul wrote about the importance of love to the Romans. He said: “Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for whoever loves others has fulfilled the law. The commandments, “You shall not commit adultery,” “You shall not murder,” “You shall not steal,” “You shall not covet,” and whatever other command there may be, are summed up in this one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” Love does no harm to a neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.” (Romans 13:8-10).

Love has a way of providing guidance. The UN estimates that there are 185,000 babies born every day and not one comes with an instruction book. When we love our children, however, our love prompts us to meet the baby’s needs whatever they might be. Greg Morse informs me that each session of Congress typically passes from 200-600 statutes, giving us a total of approximately 300,000 federal regulations. Yet, today’s generation seems to be more lawless than ever. The love that provides guidance, however, is automatically produced by the Holy Spirit in connection with our conversion.

Paul wrote: “Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails!” (1 Corinthians 13:4-8) Love meets so many needs that an early church fathers wrote: “With love there are no questions, and without it there are no answers.” Yes! Sometimes love even demands punishment for whom the Lord loves He chastens!

Every new baby is unique with it’s own fingerprints, it’s own personality, and its own special needs. A mother’s love, however, will invariably seek to solve every problem. Let us again emphasize that Christian love is beyond ordinary love. Jesus said that anyone can love those who are your friends, “But I tell you: love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be the sons of your father in heaven.” (Matthew 5:44-45) Jacob DeShazer, for example, was one of the Doolittle Raiders who was shot down over Japan in 1942. As a POW he was subjected to starvation and torture and his hatred for the Japanese consumed his life. During his 40 months of captivity, he was loaned a Bible for three brief weeks. When he completely surrendered to Christ his hatred for the Japanese was

miraculously transformed into love. After the war Jacob went to Bible college and returned to Japan as a missionary in 1959. He spent the next 30 years of his life helping the Japanese to also experience the love of Christ which passes knowledge (Ephesians 3:19). The love of Christ had transformed his life!

DeShazer’s most famous convert was Mitsuo Fuchida. He was Japan’s top pilot who led the infamous raid on Pearl Harbor. In 1950 Fuchida read a tract written by DeShazer and gave his heart to Jesus. These two former enemies became brothers in Christ, close friends, and ministered together in the wonderful work of evangelism. They demonstrated that the love of Christ can conquer hate!

It is a mistake to think that the God of the Old Testament was different from the God of the New Testament. There is only one God and He has always been a God of love (1 John 4:1). Furthermore, God never changes (Malachi 3:6). The message of love is in the Bible from the beginning to the end: “This is the message you heard from the beginning: We should love one another. Do not be like Cain who belonged to the evil one and murdered his brother.” (1 John 3:11-12)

Some feel that Job is the oldest book in the Bible. Please note that Job was commended for his love: “Whoever heard me spoke well of me, and those who saw me commended me, because I rescued the poor who cried for help, and the fatherless who had none to assist them. The one who was dying blessed me; I made the widow’s heart sing. I put on righteousness as my clothing; justice was my robe and my turban. I was eyes to the blind and feet to the lame. I was a father to the needy; I took up the case of the stranger. I broke the fangs of the wicked and snatched the victims from their teeth.” (Job 29:11-17) This is precisely the kind of behavior prompted by love that God will remember on Judgment Day.

Some day we will all stand before the Judgment seat of Christ (2 Corinthians 5:10). On that Day God will demand an answer for the way we treated the hungry, the thirsty, the stranger, the naked, the sick, and the prisoner (Matthew 25:31-46). Remember! “God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God and God in him. In this way, love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence in the day of judgment, because in this world we are like him.” (1 John 4:16)

I love you,

Grandpa Boyce