Love Or An Illusion: The Love That Transcends Man’s Idea

Shared on February 23, 2025

Introduction

Everybody is an expert on love and has something to say.  Honestly, I get tired of hearing what the “expert” say about love because their idea of love pales in comparison to true love.  So, I want to continue where I left off in last week’s message – Together We Stand, Apart We Fall – and continue to define love.  

What Is True Love?

John wrote his first epistle with faith on his mind.  John desired for early believers to move with faith and to move sincerely.  Notice that to move with faith, in 1 John 4:7, John called on believers to love one another.  The call to love is expressed throughout John’s first epistle.

The action of faith

You see, faith is an action.  The action of faith is love.  Notice what John called for when he wrote, “Beloved, let us love one another (1 John 4:7).”  Keep in mind that Jesus said that in our faith we should love the Lord with our whole heart and love our neighbor as we love ourselves (Matt. 22:36-40).

Faith moves by love.  What is of the utmost importance is that our love is sincere – genuine, honest, and true.  Sincere love was important for John’s readers to know and understand which is why he, as Paul did, defined what sincere love is.

Like Paul, John pointed to God and said, “Love is of God.”  John added, “Everyone who loves is born of God and knows God.”  Many speak as experts on love, telling others what love is and how to love.  However, those who don’t know God can’t speak of true love!  They can only speak of a love that is of man, of the world.

To know God is to know and understand Him intimately.  We can know God intimately through a personal relationship with Him.  Through fellowship with God, we can witness firsthand how the Lord tends to us, cares for us, and lifts us up.  Through fellowship with the Lord, we learn that love doesn’t cheat, abandon, or forsake as love is faithful (loyal). 

Consider God’s love for man in how He created us.  God created mankind out of love as we are the most unique life present in this world.  When God placed mankind in a world, He made sure that it was beautiful and well-furnished.  What did we do with the life God gave us and this world that we live in?  We polluted and corrupted both with our propensity to sin.

This is love

John wrote, “In this the love of God was manifested toward us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him (1 John 4:9).”  John expresses what God’s love looks like – what it does.  Consider this:  Why did God send His only begotten Son?  To live, John is speaking about living in our soul and living for everlasting life.

God made man to live with, not temporarily, but for everlasting life.  However, sin blocks God and mankind from being able to dwell together.  Firstly, God will never abide with sin.  Secondly, sin corrupts our soul to the point that it dims its light – it kills it.

On that note, John stated, “In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins (1 John 4:10).”  Jesus is the atonement offering that atones for our sins so that we can have life!  God gave His only begotten Son just so that you and I can live with Him!

What did we do to deserve such love?  What is it that we can give God for God to love us so?  What is that we can add to prosper God for Him to love us so?  In our lack of an answer to answer those questions, we see what true love is!

True love is willing to sacrifice to lift up another.  Even more, true love is willing to sacrifice much to lift up another without expecting anything in return.  Are you willing to sacrifice your wants and desires, to help lift those around you?

Do We Love Each Other?

Shouldn’t we share the love God has shown us with all of those around us?  The child of God should answer yes.  John wrote, “Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.”

The child of God should be willing to love and support others.  The child of God should be willing to sacrifice their wants to help supply the needs of others (1 Cor. 10:24; 13:5).  Why?  Because God has showed that kind of love to us!

 As Paul pointed out in 2 Corinthians 1:3-4, God has comforted all of us in our tribulations so that we can comfort others in their times of need.  Comforting others with the same grace that has been shown us is a fundamental principle of our faith.  You, the child of God, have been called on to help uplift others when you are able to do so!  

Man’s Perverted Version of Love

As I said at the start, the world’s idea of love bothers me greatly.  The reason why the world’s idea of love bothers me so is because its love is delusional.  The love that is an illusion that is so perverted from the love God has shown us.  Let me explain my making this statement about the world’s idea of love.

John has shown us that true love moves with a devotion towards others.  The world’s idea of love misses the key ingredient of devotion to others.  You see, the world’s idea of love is self-centered; it’s all about “me” and “I”.  We focus a great today on the wants of “I” and that “I” supersedes all.  Selfishness doesn’t work together with love.

Now, selfishness is not the only problem with the world’s idea of love.  If we take a look around, we will find that the world’s idea of love has created a bunch of strife.  The world’s idea of love divides, separates, segregates, and isolates.  

We are a people who will only love those within our race – those that look like us.  We are a people who will only love those who share our nationality.  We are a people who will only love those who share our culture, our politics, and our beliefs.  Then, when we share things like faith in common, we still don’t come together as we continue to divide along race.

What makes the world’s idea of long so terrible is the fact that the wicked and the evil take advantage of people loving in such a manner!  We cannot be blind to what is taking place in our country right now!  Remember, it’s all built up on a notion of “love”.  God did not create us to “love” in such a manner!

Fear Has No Part in Love

Why is man’s idea of love so toxic and divided?

In Exodus 1:8-11, we can see why man’s idea of “love” moves the way that it does.  During the days of Joseph, when the children of Israel first came to the land of Egypt, they dwelt in harmony with those in Egypt.  However, after the days of Joseph, a new Pharaoh rose in Egypt who felt differently towards the children of Israel.

This Pharaoh noticed that the children of Israel had large numbers and were mightier than the Egyptians.  This Pharaoh feared that one day the children of Israel would rise against them.  Because of his fear, he moved against them and set taskmaster over them to hinder them.  This Pharaoh did this “out of love” and to “protect” his people.

The same kind of fear has been used to hinder many people throughout ancient history, recent history, and in our present day.  Today, we can see how fear of what someone might become has brought hurt and harm.  Many people today are blocked and hindered because of the fear of what they might become.  

John rebuked the notion of moving in such fear and then saying you are moving out of love.  John wrote, “there is no fear in love (1 John 4:18).”  Fearing me or another because of our skin color, and then mistreating us is wrong – it is a sin!  Fear another because of their sexuality or how the speak, and then mistreating them is wrong – it is a sin! 

Has God given us a spirit of fear?  Did God give us the spirit of fear to move to hinder others because they’re different?  Has God commanded us to move out of fear to bring harm because another is different?  Paul wrote that God has not given us the spirit of fear, but the spirit of power, love, and a sound mind (2 Tim. 1:7).

God’s Rebuke of Man’s Idea of Love

Let me be clear:  God has rebuked man’s idea of what love is.  God rebuked our idea of what love is when He gave the world His only begotten Son.  Jesus taught us what love is.  Jesus showed us what love is when He laid down His life for us!  We ought not ever confuse God’s love for man’s perverted failing of love!

In my key verse, John wrote, “If someone says, ‘I love God,’ and hates his brother, he is a liar.”  Are you saying that you love God but you hate your brother?  “Brother” in this sense is not talking about your “blood” brother.  John was speaking about every single person in this world, regardless of their race, nationality, culture, beliefs, or sexuality!

Are you moving out of love or is your love an illusion?  God has always wanted us to love in such a manner going back to when He created man to flourish together (Gen. 1:28).  Sadly, man has failed at God’s desire of love nearly since our beginning.

Cain murdered his brother Abel out of anger and envy.  During the days of Noah, man was depraved (morally corrupt).  During the days of Abraham and Lot, Lot couldn’t escape Sodom without God as neighbor mistreated neighbor.  I repeat again, in scripture, we see where man constantly felt the need to lord over another.

When the Lord made His covenant with the children of Israel, He had to command them to love each other.  God commanded them not to murder each other.  God commanded them not to commit adultery, nor steal, nor bear false witness against each other.  They had to be commanded these things because of man’s propensity to constantly harm and hinder one another.

Jesus told us the Parable of the Good Samaritan so that we can stop leaving others by the wayside!  Jesus told us the Parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus so that we can do right by those in need, when able.  Jesus told us the Parable of the Unjust Steward so that we can be merciful to others as God has been merciful to us.  

Jesus preached that we ought not to be angry at another without cause (Matt. 5:22).  Then, Jesus preached that we are to love everybody, even those who despise us, hate us, and stand in opposition to us (Matt. 5:43-48).  Don’t dare call yourself a child of God if you haven’t heeded God’s rebuke!  Don’t dare call yourself a child of God if you think it is OK to maliciously bring harm to another.

Heeding God’s Rebuke to Love

So, we need to assure ourselves of moving with love, don’t we?  We must stop being delusional about what’s in the world today as if it is love – it is not.  So, how do we move with real love?

As John said in 1 John 4:21, we must heed God’s rebuke and love our brothers.  We must not leave others by the wayside.  We must care for those who are in need especially when God has blessed us to be able to do so.  We must be more merciful and gracious to others.

Even more, we must move to cast out our fear of those who are different from us.  John wrote, “Perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment.  But he who fear has not been made perfect in love.”  If we say we love the Lord, we must cast out fear.

As proverbs tells us, we must stop following in the path of the wicked.  The wicked is moving down a path that claims to be love but is far from it.  As Paul told Timothy, we must flee from what is unrighteous and pursue what is righteous and true. What is true is that there is a problem with the world’s idea of love.  Many have made their choice today to follow in the manner of wickedness.  WE must choose to do otherwise!