Romans 12:9
Love must be sincere. Detest what is evil; cling to what is good.
*Strong's Ex. Conc. No. 505
Sincere: unhypocritical, unfeigned
From the Greek word 'anupokritos' (pronounced an-oo-pok'-ree-tos): describing sincere behavior free from hidden agendas (selfish motives) – literally, "without hypocrisy".
Used only six times in the New Testament: Romans 12:9; 2 Corinthians 6:6; 1 Timothy 1:5; 1 Peter 1:22; James 3:17.
Sincerity: freedom from hypocrisy, deceit, duplicity; honest intentions; candor, genuineness, truthfulness, reliability, impartiality (fairness, unbiased).
INSINCERE LOVE
While the word "sincere" itself is only used six times in the New Testament, the intent is given throughout the Bible. For instance, in Matthew 23:27-28, Jesus rebukes the scribes and the Pharisees for their appearance of righteousness: visible to those who watched them and heard their words. Their supposed love for others was not sincere. It was a "look at me" cloak, covering the intent of their hearts. This is not Christlike love.
The Pharisee, for us, is the symbol of hypocrisy. Charlie Daniels had a song called, New Pharisees, that describes the word pretty good. It is the gossiper, the malicious intent to destroy, tear down, put down, the bully.
The Pharisee is attention-seeking, self-serving and self-promoting. They are the strict and restrictive religious sects concerned with hollow tradition and empty hearts. While the Pharisaical heart seeks the return of the Messiah, it lives its life according to its own rules and vain beliefs, denying Jesus and His power to forgive sins (Mark 2:1-12).
SINCERE LOVE
Knowing our hearts, we are encouraged throughout the New Testament to be sincere, genuine, real. We remain in Christ and Christ remains in us when we remove the hateful hypocritical attitudes and mores with which we have grown up around.
>Stop lying to each other - Ephesians 4:25
>Remove malice and envy - 1 Peter 2:1
>Get rid of bitterness, anger, rage, - Ephesians 4:31
>Stop slandering one another - James 4:11
>Get rid of all moral filth - James 1:21
>Covet not - Exodus 20:17
IT'S WHAT'S INSIDE THAT COUNTS
Mark 7:21-23 (21) "For from within the hearts of men come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, (22) greed, wickedness, deceit, debauchery, envy, slander, arrogance, and foolishness. (23) All these evils come from within, and these are what defile a man."
We can only change ourselves so much. We can determine to be better people, we can be kinder, more tolerant of differences, and we may actually like each other. But we can't love each other the way God wants us to love each other unless we first love God the way He wants us to love Him.
Jesus says, "Love one another as I have loved you." John 15:12. So, we must ask, How has Jesus loved us?
>With an Everlasting Love - Jeremiah 31:3
>He loves His enemies - Matthew 5:44
>He forgives His enemies - Luke 23:34
>With His prayer for us - John 17:20-26
We need Jesus on the inside, filling us with Himself, His love, that we may grow in His love and be able to live this life in honor, in His righteousness, in His love and through His love. We desire to glorify God in everything we do and everything we say.
If I have hurt you in any way, I ask your forgiveness now. If I have fallen short of your expectations of being Christlike, I ask that you forgive me: every single time. Jesus is Life and I want Him to fully thrive in me, shining His Light of Love into your view of me. I don't want to be a superficial Christian, which is actually an oxymoron because "Christian" means Christ-liver. And if a person says, "I'm a Christian" but they aren't living for Christ, then they really aren't Christians, are they?
The Word says that we are known by our fruits, by what grows in us and on us and through us. Where our root is, there our growth is. It is why we say that we need to be rooted and grounded in the Word.
Colossians 2:6, 7 "Therefore, just as you have received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to walk in Him, rooted and built up in Him, established in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness."
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