Појединац, Породица и Друштво
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Love That Expects Nothing Back
What the video says
Helping someone who has nothing to give back except prayer and gratitude is proof and confirmation of true, free love in Christ. The speaker says love is perhaps the most misused word in human history, and that we usually mean self-interest when we speak of love. If we do not recognise the living God in the eyes of our neighbour, especially the one from whom we expect nothing, we will hardly recognise Him in power and glory.
Key moments
- Helping someone who cannot repay us, except by praying for us and giving thanks, is proof and confirmation of true, free Christ-like love.
- Love is perhaps the most misused word in human history; what we usually mean by love is actually love of self-interest.
- If we do not recognise the living God in the eyes of our neighbour, especially one from whom we expect nothing, we will hardly recognise Him in power and glory.
The speaker takes up the question of what love actually is, arguing that love is perhaps the most misused word in human history. When people speak of love, they usually mean love of self-interest: affection or care that returns some benefit to the one who gives it. Against this, the speaker holds up helping someone who has nothing to give back except prayer and gratitude.
Such help, given to a person who cannot repay us, is proof and confirmation of true, free love in Christ. The love that costs us something and brings no return is the love that resembles Christ's own. The speaker then draws a connection between how we treat the poor and how we will see God.
If we do not recognise the living God in the eyes of our neighbour, especially the neighbour from whom we expect nothing, we will hardly recognise Him in power and glory. The person who cannot repay us becomes the place where our love is tested and where God is either seen or missed. The teaching moves from a diagnosis of the word love to a concrete practice: giving to those who can offer only prayer and thanks in return, and receiving that prayer as enough.
Main points
- Love is perhaps the most misused word in human history; what we usually mean by it is love of self-interest.
- Helping someone who cannot repay us, except by praying for us and giving thanks, is proof and confirmation of true, free Christ-like love.
- The person who has nothing to give back becomes the test of whether our love is free.
- If we do not recognise the living God in the eyes of our neighbour, especially one from whom we expect nothing, we will hardly recognise Him in power and glory.