Fruit of the spirit part 2 (love)

Mark 12:30-31, “And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment. And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these.” I am going to start with the second commandment, brotherly love.
Romans 12:9-21, “Let love be without dissimulation. Abhor that which is evil; cleave to that which is good. Be kindly affectioned one to another with brotherly love; in honour preferring one another; Not slothful in business; fervent in spirit; serving the Lord; Rejoicing in hope; patient in tribulation; continuing instant in prayer; Distributing to the necessity of saints; given to hospitality. Bless them which persecute you: bless, and curse not. Rejoice with them that do rejoice, and weep with them that weep. Be of the same mind one toward another. Mind not high things, but condescend to men of low estate. Be not wise in your own conceits. Recompense to no man evil for evil. Provide things honest in the sight of all men. If it be possible, as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men. Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord. Therefore if thine enemy hunger, feed him; if he thirst, give him drink: for in so doing thou shalt heap coals of fire on his head. Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good.”
I found a long list of the qualities of love. There are probably many more but these are the ones I have been able to come up with so far. Love is not jealous, prideful or selfish (1 Cor 13). Love is work (1 Thess 1:3), patient, kind, slow to anger (1 Cor 13), better than wealth (Prov 15:17), forgiving (Col 3:13), and sincere (1 John 3:18, Rom 12:9). Love does not gossip (Prov 17:9), rejoice in iniquity, behave unseemingly, think evil, or fail (1 Cor 13). Love does hold accountable (Heb 12:11), meet needs (1 John 3:17), sacrifice liberty (Gal 5:13), rejoice in the truth, beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, and endureth all things (1 Cor 13)
So who are we directed to love? Luke 6:31-35, “And as ye would that men should do to you, do ye also to them likewise. For if ye love them which love you, what thank have ye? for sinners also love those that love them. And if ye do good to them which do good to you, what thank have ye? for sinners also do even the same. And if ye lend to them of whom ye hope to receive, what thank have ye? for sinners also lend to sinners, to receive as much again. But love ye your enemies, and do good, and lend, hoping for nothing again; and your reward shall be great, and ye shall be the children of the Highest: for he is kind unto the unthankful and to the evil.”
Doesn’t that seem almost impossible at times? I have found four things to remember that will help me to accomplish this sometimes difficult task. The first one is pretty self-explanatory Leviticus 19:18, “thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself: I am the LORD.” Luke 6:31, “And as ye would that men should do to you, do ye also to them likewise.” The second is to put yourself in their shoes. Deuteronomy 10:19, “Love ye therefore the stranger: for ye were strangers in the land of Egypt.” Thirdly, submit it to the Lord. Philippians 4:13, “I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.” Since bitterness is my struggle I have had to put 2 Corinthians 10:5 to good use in my life, “bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;” If I am to truly love even those who seek to destroy me, I must first rid my thoughts of anger and replace them with forgiveness.
The last tool for brotherly love is to think eternal. Matthew 25:34-40, “Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: For I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in: Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me. Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, and fed thee? or thirsty, and gave thee drink? When saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in? or naked, and clothed thee? Or when saw we thee sick, or in prison, and came unto thee? And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.” Look forward to this day with Christ when your efforts will be rewarded by being put with the sheep.
This last scripture reference brings us right to love part 2. Brotherly love is an important aspect of loving God.