"..........and to godliness, mutual affection......" II Peter 1:7
"Mutual affection" or "brotherly love" is the soil in which seeds of fellowship and discipleship sprout and grow. It should not be a surprise that this great virtue should be included in this description of spiritual maturity.
This love is a frequent theme of the New Testament writers in their admonitions for spiritual maturity. I have listed several of them in this post.
"A new commandment I give unto you,
That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one
another. By this shall all men know that ye
are my disciples, if ye have love one to another." John 13:34-35
Not only is loving one another a command. Not only is it
a sign that we are a Christian. It is also a sign that we are saved.
"We know that we have passed from
death unto life, because we love the brethren. He that loveth not his brother
abideth in death. Whosoever hateth his brother is a
murderer: and ye know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in
him. Hereby perceive we the love of
God, because he laid down his life for us: and we ought to lay down our lives
for the brethren." I John 3:14-16
The love Jesus is talking about here is an act of the
will. It represents not so much an involuntary response to conditions, as it
does a deliberate choice, a calculated set of the mind. Love is not an emotion.
It’s a policy.
Aristotle said, "a man cannot expect to be loved unless
he is deserving of love." But the kind of love that Jesus teaches us to have
says: "I love you -- with no strings attached." It is a love that is the result
of being devoted to one another.
"Be devoted to one another in
brotherly love. Honor one another above yourselves." Rom 12:10 (NIV)
This kind of love should be nurtured so that it will
grow.
"May the Lord make your love
increase and overflow for each other and for everyone else, just as ours does
for you." 1Thes 3:12 (NIV)
Paul’s admonition to the church is that brotherly love is
a given. It is a part of Christian living. It is a lesson that God himself
teaches us.
"But as touching brotherly love ye
need not that I write unto you: for ye yourselves are taught of God to love one
another." 1Thes 4:9
Paul’s description of love in I Corinthians is not just
for marriages. It is the Bible description for real love.
When we truly love others, No laws will need to govern
our behavior or conduct, for love goes above and beyond any
law.
"The entire law is summed up in a
single command: "Love your neighbor as yourself." If you keep on biting and
devouring each other, watch out or you will be destroyed by each other.
Gal 5:14-15 (NIV)"
"Seeing ye have purified your
souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned love of the
brethren, see that ye love one another with a pure heart
fervently:" 1 Pet 1:22
"This is my commandment, That ye
love one another, as I have loved you. Greater love hath no man than
this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. Ye are my friends, if ye do
whatsoever I command you." John 15:12-14
"These things I command you, that
ye love one another." John 15:17
"In this the children of God are
manifest, and the children of the devil: whosoever doeth not righteousness is
not of God, neither he that loveth not his brother. For this is the message that ye
heard from the beginning, that we should love one another. Not as Cain, who was of that
wicked one, and slew his brother. And wherefore slew he him? Because his own
works were evil, and his brother's righteous." I Jn 3:10-12
You've got to love it!