Love that heals not harms

Proverbs 1 and Mark 2:23 - 3:6 (For texts click here and here)

It takes a lot of wisdom to love well. Loving well is like walking a narrow path. On the one side, there is a desire to give to a person you love anything they desire and want, when they want it without question. On the other side, is the desire to protect someone from all harm and make them perfect in all they do. The first side is the side of false freedom which spoils and prevents someone from growing into wisdom themselves - true wisdom that puts the love of God and others alongside themselves. The second side is restrictive and legal, over-protective and does not allow a person the space to take responsibility for their own actions and to develop deeper motives of love and compassion for others; they only learn fear of doing wrong.

Walking this narrow path of wisdom requires the humility to listen to God. We are called to let go of the pride that leads us to believe that we have all the answers immediately. It requires to us relinquish the sloth that wants quick answers and short cuts to avoid spending time considering difficult situations. It requires a peace and a pace of life built on the solid foundation of a clear decision in ourselves to want to do what is right and not what is easy.

Jesus models this wisdom for us in a life of love and compassion. He sees through the narrowness of controlling religion and challenges the false freedom of lives lived solely to satisfy transient passions and demands. The Word living as a person calls us to have our own hearts and minds transformed in such a way that we live as He does, loving in a way that heals not harms.

The sort of "fear of the Lord" that is the beginning of knowledge, is the concern to walk this narrow path with Him. This fear is not based on punishment but on the understanding that we lose so much when we step off God's path - we lose the wisdom to live and love well.