Love, for one another explains with verses our relationship between ourselves from God’s point of view.

Why we love our Christian brethren

The sincere, unfeigned love of others is the essence of God (God is love) dwelling within us.

– 1 John 4:12 No man hath seen God at any time. If we love one another, God dwelleth in us, and his love is perfected in us.
– 1 John 4:20 If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen?
– 1 John 4:16 And we have known and believed the love that God hath to us. God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him.

Part of our salvation is the essence of God, specifically the love of God, “dwells within us.” By this, God says that our practice of love one to another, especially among our brethren in Christ, the other members of the body of Christ, the redeemed (1 Corinthians 12:27), and our love relationship with them is a direct evidence and sign of our true salvation. Nobody has visibly seen God in His true form and glory. But even though we cannot see God, God sees us, and He considers our true attitude towards God as being how we treat our fellow man (made in the image of God), our carnal family, but more importantly, how we deal with and treat our spiritual family, those remade spiritually through salvation in the image of Christ.

The principle behind these one another verses, commandments, and relationships is that getting along with your brethren is a spiritual activity which “stretches” or exercises the soul. It is a spiritual activity which somehow causes you to have a better life before God, to please God by this getting along, harmony, unity, with other people. At the heart of the concept is that of peace. Peace with God, peace with others. Mark 9:50 “have peace one with another”. One of the deep marks of the sinfulness of man´s soul is aggression (the opposite of peace) with others, and displeasing God. The active commitment of “getting along” with others pleases God, because that only happens when a person successfully exercises self-control.

– Genesis 2:18 And the LORD God said, It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him. The lack of human to human relationships causes spiritual harm. The correct interaction between humans meets a spiritual need that exists in man.
– Genesis 4:9 where is Abel thy brother? and he (Cain) said, I know not: Am I my brother’s keeper? 10 What has thou done?…
– Philippians 2:4 Look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others. This is not a contradiction of Exodus 20:17, but rather than coveting that of your neighbor or brother, you “look on” in order to be a blessing to him.
– Romans 14:7 For none of us liveth to himself, and no man dieth to himself. While God is always omnipresent and an ever present help, God uses obedient Christians to fulfill His attention towards those in need.
– Romans 15:1 We then that are strong ought to bear the infirmities of the weak, and not to please ourselves. God commands us to have an relationship among ourselves such that we really are responsible for our neighbors. This is more intense towards our brethren in Christ. To understand this, it is both a command and an integrated spiritual relationship which causes us to both be blessed by other people, and to be eternally rewarded for our energies spent in these relationships.

Apparently, Cain did have a responsibility for the welfare of his brother. Notice that God indirectly indicated that Cain also had a responsibility to keep in touch and aware of his brother’s situation. For the New Testament Christian, this has a great impact. Within the locality of where one lives, each Christian has a responsibility to be aware and responsible for their Christian brethren. We understand that in the times after Christ, Christians organized themselves into local churches. This is the specific area of responsibility.

Commands to Love one Another

– John 13:34 you love one another, even as I have loved you.
– John 15:12 you love one another as I have loved you. John 15:17 love ye one another.
– 1 John 4:19 We love him, because he first loved us.
– 1 John 4:21 he who loveth God love his brother also.
– Romans 12:10 Be kindly affectioned one to another with brotherly love; in honour preferring one another;
– Romans 13:8 Owe (nothing but to)… love one (to) another.
– 1 Corinthians 16:14 Let all things be done with charity (love).
– Philippians 1:9 that you love may abound yet more and more in knowledge and in all judgment.
– Ephesians 4:2 with all lowliness and meekness, with longsuffering forbearing one another in love.
– 1 Thessalonians 3:12 And the Lord make you to increase and abound in love one toward another, and toward all men, even as we do toward you: 1 Thess 4:9.
– 1 John 3:16 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. If you comply with the love to your brethren in Christ to this degree, willing to die for them if necessary, then how can you possibly ignore, despise, hate, and in general, not be interested in them? The minimum here is to participate in weekly fellowship with them and commune with them before, during, and after the church service. That is a minimum.
– Loving one another includes being forgiving to each other. Eph 4:32. This is worked out by not taking offense, but overlooking any offense.
– 1 Peter 3:8 Finally, be ye all of one mind, having compassion one of another, love as brethren, be pitiful, be courteous:
– Philippians 2:2 Fulfil ye my joy, that ye be likeminded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind.
– 2 Corinthians 13:11 Finally, brethren, farewell. Be perfect, be of good comfort, be of one mind, live in peace; and the God of love and peace shall be with you.
– Galatians 5:13 by love serve one another. (Ephesians 4:12) Another spiritual exercise that edifies us and makes us more like the image of God is service, specifically service of the body of Christ.
– John 15:17; 1 John 4:7, 11; Heb 13:1; Rom 12:10; 13:8; 1 John 3:11, 23; 2 Jn 1:5; Gal 5:14.

How that Christian love manifests itself

– John 6:43 Murmur not among yourselves.
– Luke 6:37 Judge not, and ye shall not be judged: condemn not, and ye shall not be condemned: forgive, and ye shall be forgiven: Romans 14:13 We should judge all things, because what we see, we will with constant exposure to that thing, be tempted to imitate it. If we discern (judge – which is though logical comparison of the activity or attitude to the Word of God) that the thing is sinful or wrong, or makes us not redeem our time, we will be protected from falling into that conduct or attitude. But these present verses speak of judging in the sense of condemning or assigning public shame, of assigning guilt and the penalty that should be cast upon the guilty. We are not other men’s judges, but God is. We only discern what others do and reject or accept it for our own lives.
– Romans 12:15 Rejoice with them that do rejoice, and weep with them that weep. Psalm 32:11; 37:4 Proverbs 17:22;
– Romans 12:16 Be of the same mind one toward another Romans 15:5 to be likeminded one toward another.
– 1 Corinthians 12:26 And whether one member suffer, all the members suffer with it; or one member be honoured, all the members rejoice with it. When brotherly love exists, there is a perception of unity as in a physical body. When one part suffers, the entire body aches with it. When one part is in pleasure, the entire body rejoices. The concept is that we are one, and what hurts or benefits the other members does the same to us. Therefore it is completely logical Hebrews 10:24-25.
– Galatians 6:2 Bear ye one another’s burdens, and so fulfil the law of Christ.
– Ephesians 4:2 with all lowliness and meekness, with longsuffering, forbearing one another in love.
– Ephesians 4:25 speak truth one to another. Proverbs 12:17; Ephesians 4:15; John 8:32.
– Colossians 3:9 don’t lie, or misrepresent, reality one to another.
– Ephesians 4:32 And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you.
– Colossians 3:13 Forbearing one another, and forgiving one another, if any man have a quarrel against any: even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye. Ephesians 4:2
– Galatians 5:26 Let us not be desirous of vain glory, provoking one another, envying one another. Exodus 20:17 one of the ten commandments forbids us to covet or envy what other people have. When the love of God fills the child of God, they relate with others without coveting, excessively desiring what others have. The sin here is either of two things, desiring to take away what somebody else has and appropriate it for one’s self, or just destroy what somebody else has so that they can no longer enjoy it.
– 1 Thessalonians 5:15 See that none render evil for evil unto any man; but ever follow that which is good, both among yourselves, and to all men.
– 1 Thessalonians 4:18 wherefore comfort one another with these words (about the return of the Lord, and what happens to the dead in Christ).
– 1 Thessalonians 5:11 comfort yourselves together, edify one another, even as also ye do.
– Hebrews 10:24 And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works: Hebrews 10:25 Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching. Activity and events that edify other members of the body, of the unity or union, have an indirect but real effect on one’s own self. Therefore effort is put forth to benefit, bless, edify, comfort, console, etc. the other members. Paul showed this concept in Phil 1:3-5. His joy was a fellowship with other believers. He thus prayed fervently for their blessing and edification.
– Colossians 3:16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. Really, this commandment can only be fulfilled within the local church service, when we sing, praise, teach, and exhort one another. Every Christian that does not come to church each Sunday is sinning by ignoring this commandment. Obeying God’s commandments causes us spiritual blessing, and ignoring or worse, doing the opposite of a commandment causes us spiritual harm.
– Matthew 28:19 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Matthew 28:20 Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen. The church and the individuals Christians have the responsibility to teach others the Word of God.
– Proverbs 27:17 Iron sharpeneth iron; so a man sharpeneth the countenance of his friend. The spiritual principle involved is that with interaction between two people (interaction that is according to God’s principles and purposes) said interaction can benefit both parties. He that imparts spiritual blessing with the love interaction will receive blessing from God in eternity. The giver of love fulfills his divine responsibility to be the keeper of his brother (the Cain principle). He who is blessed receives a spiritual blessing at that moment and for eternity.
– James 5:16 pray one for another, that ye may be healed. Bad relationships with other Christian brethren, or even the absence of that relationship causes physical sickness that God will not heal because the person refuses to interact correctly with the body of Christ. Romans 15:30 that ye strive together with me in your prayers to God for me.
– 1 Peter 4:9 Use hospitality one to another without grudging. Proverbs 22:9 He that hath a bountiful eye shall be blessed; for he giveth of his bread to the poor. Hebrews 13:16; Luke 6:38 Give and it shall be given unto you.

What loving one another does spiritually

Service Requires and Produces Humility

Galatians 5:13 by love serve one another.

The point of God commanding us to serve one another is that true service requires humility, self lowering of one’s self in the person own view of himself. A great person does not serve a lowly person in the concepts of the world. Yet Christ being fully God came to earth to break this erroneous concept, teaching us to be humble, and serve one another. Proud Christians rarely serve others except to glory in their authority and greatness over others, to shine their wonderfulness before others so that the lowly can glory and praise them (the proud and arrogant).

– John 13:14 ye ought to wash one another’s feet.
– Romans 12:10 Give preference one to another in honor.
– Romans 12:16 Be of the same mind one toward another. Be not wise in your own conceits.
– Ephesians 5:21 Submitting yourselves one to another in the fear of God.
– Philippians 2:3 Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves.
– 1 Peter 5:5 be clothed with humility; for God resisteth the proud and giveth grace to the humble. 1 Peter 5:6 Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time: Eternal glory comes through present humility. God fights against the proud and for the humble. Luke 14:11 For whosoever exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted. Proverbs 11:2 When pride cometh, then cometh shame: but with the lowly is wisdom.
– Hebrews 13:16 But to do good and to communicate forget not: for with such sacrifices God is well pleased. Serving others by giving towards their needs (not necessarily their wants) is a spiritual activity just like in the Old Testament when an Israelite would take a sacrifice from his goods to the temple and offer it to the Lord. God is well pleased with this spiritual activity. But God does not want this to be done through compulsion, by willingly.

Produces Empathy in Us for others in the Body of Christ

– 1 Peter 1:22 ye have purified your souls in obeying… through unfeigned love of the brethren see that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently. (unfeigned is purely, sincerely, no hypocrisy 1 Jn 3:18)
– 1 Thessalonians 5:14 Now we exhort you, brethren, warn them that are unruly, comfort the feebleminded, support the weak, be patient toward all men. Again, we should understand that the Cain principle, that we are responsible for our brethren. We are responsible for teaching and exhorting them in the way that they should go in order to please God.

Identification with Christ, as being one of God’s disciples

– John 13:35 all men shall know that ye are my disciples if ye have love one to another.
– 1 John 3:14 We know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren. He that loveth not his brother abideth in death. There can be no bypassing this point. The outward sign of salvation is the love you have and show to your brethren in Christ.

As giving spiritual power

– Romans 15:4 For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope. Having the one another relationship with our Christian brethren focuses on the local church and its interaction between the brethren (one to another) during the Sunday services. The correct Bible service on the Lord’s day focuses on the teaching of Scripture. This endows those Christians present (and attentive to the teaching, understanding and applying the principles to their own lives) to receive spiritual power over sin in their lives. This gives us perseverance and encouragement in following Christ (not getting depressed), and it gives us hope of heaven, of glory in the afterlife.
– James 5:16 Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much. Conflict with others is spiritually damaging to all involved, whether right or wrong before God, the contention is a sin and displeases God. A good Christian can disagree with others, and indeed must disagree with Satan, but he also sees contention as a spiritual problem that he seeks to avoid if at all possible. Paul instructs his younger fellow ministers to avoid contention, arguments, debates, especially over issues that are not crucial.
1 Timothy 3:3 “not a brawler”; Titus 3:2 “be no brawlers, but gentle, showing all meekness unto all men.” Paul is imitating Christ Matthew 11:29 “for I am gentle and humble in heart”. 2 Timothy 2:24 And the servant of the Lord must not strive; but be gentle unto all men, apt to teach, patient, 2 Timothy 2:25 In meekness instructing those that oppose themselves; if God peradventure will give them repentance to the acknowledging of the truth. The form of ministering is just as important as the doctrinal content of any ministry.
– Hebrews 3:13 But exhort one another daily, while it is called To day; lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin. By participating and attending church services where teaching and admonition is done, the Christian will have strength to resist sin in his life. Isaiah 41:6 Each one helps his neighbor and says to his brother, Be strong!

Forgiveness between the members of the Body of Christ.

Ephesians 4:32 “forgiving one another” The existence of differences between brethren is a feature of Christianity designed by God. 1 Corinthians 11:19 For there must be also heresies among you, that they which are approved may be made manifest among you. The divisions that present themselves test everyone involved, or even remotely knowledgeable of the matter. Opinions are instantly formed and sides are taken. But how each one handles these divisive issues is the point. God uses these as tests to prove his true children, and to distinguish those who are the children of Satan, false prophets that would seek to destroy through division the body of Christ. The matter resolves into spiritual discernment between the issue being essential to the Christian faith, or not. Christians cannot accept what is not biblical, and they must fight for (contend Jude 1:3) for their faith, but at the same time, avoid divisiveness and contentiousness, especially among Christian brethren.

Getting along with one another is a testimony of being saved.

Forgiveness between brethren acknowledges and is caused by being forgiven by Christ.

– Matthew 6:14 For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you:
– Romans 15:7 Wherefore receive ye one another, as Christ also received us to the glory of God. (receive is λαμβανω in Greek, which means to take to oneself, i.e. to admit to friendship or hospitality)
– Romans 12:16 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. “Being of the same mind one toward another” means that there is harmony between the two people. They are not at cross purposes, and even when they differ, they give preference and courtesy towards the other person. “Condescending” to a lower or the lowest common denominator would be seen in two people who are Christians admitting that they have differences, different views, practices, etc., but even with those differences, the harmony of both being saved doesn’t overpower and ruin the fellowship they can have one with another. Each respects the other’s views, not necessarily submitting to those views, but respecting them anyway.
– “Be not wise in your own conceits” The idea is to be lofty holding one’s own self and understanding as the maximum and only truth, and despising or holding as inferior anybody’s idea or practice that is different from one’s own self. This is the simple concept of humility and produces meekness in dealing with others. Romans 11:25; Proverbs 3:7. The humility that produces tolerance is based on our understanding of the imperfection of our own understanding of God´s Word and principles at times. This is only possible when we have a comprehension of our own sinful and weak spiritual frailties. Ignorant people often recognize their own ignorance and are “simple,” i.e. not haughty and arrogant. This is the idea. Humility is to understand one’s own spiritual weakness, or even the possibility of one’s own spiritual weakness and misunderstanding or ignorance of Scripture, and therefore they are hesitant to impose their views on others, i.e. they are humble and meek like Christ. Christ, being God, all omniscience and all wise, all powerful, being completely in His own right as God to impose unilaterally His view on things, didn’t take this haughty and arrogant quality, but He presents himself as humble and meek. This point should not pass by us as unimportant.
– Mark 12:31 And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these. The point here is Christian deference. Although you may be a genius, a spiritual giant, you are not that if you flaunt and abuse others with that genius, that spiritual power that you have. The true spiritual person is always humble like Christ. He is the most spiritual human ever to walk the face of the earth, and He presents himself to us as our example in terms of humility and meekness.
– 1 Peter 4:8 for charity (love) shall cover the multitude of sins.

What does not loving your brethren demonstrate about you

– 1 John 4:8 He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love.
– 1 John 4:20 If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen?
– 1 John 2:9-11 He that saith he is in the light, and hateth his brother, is in darkness even until now. If a person hates instead of loves, then he doesn’t have salvation.
– 1 John 3:17 But whoso hath this world’s good, and seeth his brother have need, and shutteth up his bowels of compassion from him, how dwelleth the love of God in him?
– Matthew 24:12 And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold. There is an inverse relationship between sin and love. When sin abounds, love is scarce. When love abounds, sin diminishes.
– Galatians 6:3 For if a man think himself to be something, when he is nothing, he deceiveth himself.
– Galatians 5:15 but if ye bite and devour one another, take heed that ye be not consumed one of another.
– 1 Corinthians 13 – Even though a person can proclaim great spiritual power, yet if he doesn’t have love, he is nothing in God’s sight.
– Matthew 25:31-46 Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of these, ye did it not to me, and these shall go away into everlasting punishment; but the righteous into life eternal. Jesus set the contrast of people who interact correctly with the body of Christ as this demonstrating the reality of their salvation, and those who do not interact correctly or ignore their Christian brethren, this is evidence God will use on judgment day to convict them of not having true saving faith, thus barring them from entering into heaven.