Christians are called to be people of love, but I sometimes wonder if we believe that love means the absence of hate. “I don’t hate or have hard feelings toward my brother, so that must mean I love him.” Love is an action word; it gives, shares, and sacrifices. It acts on behalf of the one who is loved.

By this we know love, because He laid down His life for us. And we also ought to lay down our lives for the brethren. But whoever has this world’s goods, and sees his brother in need, and shuts up his heart from him, how does the love of God abide in him? My little children, let us not love in word or in tongue, but in deed and in truth. (1 John 3:16-18 NKJV)

It’s easy to try to love others in word from a distance. We hear about a difficult situation, such as an illness or death, and so we send an encouraging message or a praying hands emoji. These things are good and right in some instances, but they can tempt us to use them instead of engaging with a difficult situation in real life. “I did my duty, now I can move on with my busy day.”

I’m as guilty as anyone in saying that I love others but not showing love by my actions. I say I love my fellow man, but how often do I stop to assist someone broken down beside the road or reach out and sacrifice time or energy to care for another? I like to identify with the Good Samaritan, but it shames me to admit that I usually either literally or figuratively “pass by on the other side.”

Love in action requires that we reach out in the real world and engage in situations that slow us down, make us late to work, or result in a financial loss. I must admit that I too often love in word, but not in deed and in truth. Am I, are we, willing to love as Christ loved?