John 14:31, "But that the world may know that I love the Father; and as the Father gave me commandment, even so I do. Amen, let us go hence."

On July 10, I wrote an article for the bulletin entitled "The Greatest Doctrine", which was the doctrine of love. If we know what the greatest doctrine is, and know we must teach this doctrine, just how do we go about doing it?

Teaching the doctrine of love is much like teaching the other doctrines of the Bible. First, we must let the Bible do its own interpretation. We must read about the love of God and how this love was shown through the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. We must familiarize ourselves with many of the scriptures that talk about love, so we will be able to "rightly divide the scripture".

Secondly, we must apply those scriptures to our lives. This is probably the most important and most difficult part of learning any doctrine. You see, it is possible to understand the doctrine of love yet not have love. We must so understand the doctrine of love that it becomes more than just a doctrine, it becomes a way of life. We must so live by the doctrine of love that others can learn how to love by watching love in action in our lives.

1. Because Christ loved us. Our study of the scriptures concerning the great love of God will humble us beyond measure. We will "...know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge..." Our hearts desire will be to please our heavenly Father because "He first loved us".

2. Because others are watching us. We may not know who they are or why they have chosen us as a guide, but somebody is watching us. Will our actions lead them to God, or away from God? We might say we have love, but show hate and bitterness. Others will see that hatred and bitterness, and also hear us say we have love. They will learn that it is "Christian" to talk about love and act the opposite.