Ben Stroup - Unconditional Love: Radical Stories, Real People

Unconditional Love, Digital Edition

Based on Print Edition

Copyright 2013 B&H Publishing Group

All rights reserved.

Printed in the United States of America

978-1-4336-7971-1

Published by B&H Publishing Group

Nashville, Tennessee

Developmental EditorBen StroupGreenbrier, TNBenStroup.com

Dewey Decimal Classification: 361.2

Subject Heading: LOVE \ GENEROSITY \ CHRISTIAN LIFE

Scripture is taken from Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB), copyright 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2009 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Dedication

To those with a desire to change the world:

May you find the courage to share love
unconditionallywith those to who have
been given and who have been given to.

Contents

People and Organizations That Show Unconditional Love

This is My command:

Love one another as I have loved you.

No one has greater love than this,

That someone would lay down his life for his friends.

Jesus (John 15:1213)

The King will say to those on His right,

Come, you who are blessed by My Father,

Inherit the kingdom prepared for you

From the foundation of the world.

For I was hungry and you gave Me something to eat;

I was thirsty and you gave Me something to drink;

I was a stranger and you took Me in;

I was naked and you clothed Me;

I was sick and you took care of Me;

I was in prison and you visited Me.

And the King will answer them, I assure you:

Whatever you did for one of the

Least of these brothers of Mine,

You did for Me.

Jesus (Matt. 25:3436, 40)

Prayer of St. Francis of Assisi

Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.

Where there is hatred, let me sow love.

Where there is injury, pardon.

Where there is doubt, faith.

Where there is despair, hope.

Where there is darkness, light.

And where there is sadness, joy.

O Divine Master,

Grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled, as to console;

To be understood, as to understand;

To be loved, as to love.

For it is in giving that we receive.

It is in pardoning that we are pardoned.

And it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.

Amen.

Introduction

Unconditional Love Is Uncommon, Not Impossible

Love seems to hang in the balance of fairy tales and tragedies. It is one of the most misunderstood and misapplied words in our vocabulary. Love is so fluid that it can apply to your favorite ice cream flavor or in the next sentence refer to the feelings we have for another human being. Its easy to understand how so many find themselves confused when it comes to the subject of love.

This word rarely is received in its purest form. Instead, it comes with a tremendous amount of conditions, baggage, and confusion. Psychology tells us that the act of receiving, or not receiving, love can make or break a person emotionally and spiritually. It can propel us toward greatness or limit us in our capacity to find fulfillment, satisfaction, and purpose.

A church may be the only place you have ever heard the two words unconditional and love used together in the same sentence. We hear it most often talked about when we remember and reflect on the voluntary sacrifice of Gods Son on the cross to pay the penalty of our sin. In turn, everyone has the ability to reconnect and have an ongoing, dynamic relationship with God. This is the ultimate expression of love without condition.

The idea that love might be unconditional is perplexing. Is that even possible? And who actually has the capacity to act in that way toward another human being? Most people have never experienced unconditional love. Too often, the affection of others comes at too high a price to even consider the possibility that love might be unconditional.

This notion of unconditional love dissipates in our attempt to act in this way toward others. We try with the best of intentions but end up projecting our expectations on others, only showing them favor and love when they satisfy our needs and follow through with our requests. We dont mean to act like this or behave in this way. It is just so part of our nature that we cant help ourselves.

Most of our life experiences, if we are honest with ourselves and others, teach us that we must do something to earn the love of others. We must do what our parents tell us to do. We must meet societys expectations for our level of education, personal achievement, financial success, etc. We must be the ideal spouse. We must be the prettiest, drive the fastest cars, work from corner offices in high-rise buildings, and be someone no one can live without. If we can achieve the right things and avoid the fatal pitfalls, then we have a shot at truly experiencing love, right?

The problem with this approach to love is that it sets us up for defeat. Sooner or later, because of something we have or have not done, we lose the love of someone or something and our world unravels. We disappoint our parents, our spouse, or our children. We experience financial difficulty or fail to get the promotion. Who is left to show us love? Sometimes, it is no one.

Worse, what if we are born into the wrong neighborhood? What if we never get access to quality health care and have to live with a disability or maligned body that might easily have been prevented, cured, or fixed? And what if our education is minimal at best? If we apply societys standards, who will love these people, not to mention what can they possibly do to receive the type of love that comes without condition?

The good news is that unconditional love is available to everyone. If God lives within us, then we have the capacity to show unconditional love toward others, even to the least of these. We know the pain of letting other people down, and we are aware of the pressure of constantly trying to earn the affection of others by doing things they will admire, acknowledge, and affirm. What if we decided to live life differently?

The way to receive unconditional love is to give it away. Unconditional love doesnt come with any expectations or strings attached. It is present whether or not we succeed or fail and isnt attached to what we do but to who we are.

That kind of love is unconditional. When we see it, experience it, or give it away, people take notice. And we have the capacity to show this love toward others because God has loved us in the same way.

Unconditional love is uncommon. Uncommon doesnt mean impossible; it just means uncommon. But Gods plan has been uncommon from the beginning, so this isnt exactly new. When we break ranks with our culture and embrace an uncommon approach to love, we invite the opportunities into our everyday lives where we can extend unconditional love to others.

You dont have to start an international relief organization or have billions of dollars to give away to change the world. The reality is you can do that right where you are. You dont change cultures by influencing groups of people in masses. You change the world one person at a time.

It could be as simple as a handshake and a smile or as complex as raising funds to accomplish something specific. Whatever it is, we must recognize that we have the capacity to show unconditional love to others. And in doing so, we are transformed into agents of change.

Jesus could have fought an earthly battle and waged war on Rome. There were plenty of people, even some of His disciples, who would have preferred He take that approach. But when Jesus talked about the kingdom of God, He was clear that Gods way of living is different from our way of living. Our clearest picture of this uncommon, unconditional love comes when Jesus is willing to die on our behalf, for our sins, that we might have life forever.