Love Jumps All Barriers
God created us for relationships! In fact, God’s nature in himself is that of a relational being. The Trinity is perfect communion between God the Father, God the Son and the Holy Spirit. In his book, The Four Loves, C.S. Lewis writes this about friendship, “Friendship arises out of mere Companionship when two or more of the companions discover that they have in common some insight or interest or even taste which the others do not share and which, till that moment, each believed to be his own unique treasure (or burden). The typical expression of opening Friendship would be something like, "What? You too? I thought I was the only one."
Even though it may seem like we have lots of differences with our brothers and sisters around the world, you may be surprised that we have more in common than you might think!
Genesis 11:1-9 tells the story of the Tower of Babel. In the beginning, the whole world had one language and common speech. People decided they wanted to build a tower to reach all the way up to Heaven so they could be on the same level as God and make themselves famous. God scattered the people, and from then on, everyone spoke different languages.
How beautiful to think that one day every tribe, tongue and nation will bow before the God of the Universe! Believers in Christ will all unite and worship God together in Heaven. Oh glorious day! In the meantime, how can we love our brothers and sisters around the world who speak different languages? How do we love those who live in very different cultures, have different customs, and with whom we cannot communicate with through our words? We must remember that there’s a universal language - even if there's a language barrier – the language of love. Love jumps all barriers. It exceeds all differences. Love never fails.
Paul writes, “Greater love has no one than this, than to lay one’s life for his friends.” (John 15:13) The most effective way to communicate is through our love and by serving one another! We can communicate with a smile, a hug, a song, laughter, or even playing a game together. We can communicate and speak volumes through our actions and through our love!
So whether you are at school, work, in your neighborhood or in a different country, remember to be intentional with how you communicate. Each person is created in God’s image, has an eternal soul, and is created by God to bring him glory. This is something we all have in common! So rather than getting caught up in our differences, let’s celebrate what we have in common with one another. We are all His children. Seek to love one another as Christ has loved us. Fully. Freely. Forever.
