Christlike Love

In “Ministering“, Elder Gerrit W. Gong states, “Followers of Jesus Christ ‘minister one to another’.” In this post, I look at ministering from the angle of Christlike love.

Examples in My Life

The examples of Christlike love that I have been either the recipient of or the observer of, have guided me in my ministering efforts. The first example comes from my parents.

My mother and father grew up in homes where family was the most important. They instilled that same feeling into us. They also taught us to have Christlike love. One of the many examples that comes to mind is when a family we knew went through a job loss which also caused them to lose their living arrangements. Mom and Dad worked with them so that they could live in our house until they were able to get their feet under them. Looking back on the event, I can see how this arrangement would have been difficult for my parents. I know it was difficult for me as a teenager. They never complained, nor did they ever express one word of regret for having helped this family.

An example of Christlike love that I received happened during my Junior year in High School. I tried out and made the varsity soccer team. It was an exciting year where we thought we had a good chance to make the playoffs and actually progress. We were confident in our abilities to the point that, for the first time in the soccer program’s history, we ordered jerseys with our names on them.

My favorite number then was four. I gave the information as asked and didn’t think about it again. However, there was a Senior, Paul, who was a good player who was out of town for the tryouts. A couple of the other players on the team approached me and mentioned that four was Paul’s number and asked if I would relinquish it.

I have mentioned before that I was bullied in High School. I was bitter and defensive towards others. I acted this way when those teammates asked about the number. I refused to give it up. I ended up with the number four on my back. Paul never once complained, never mentioned it to me, nor to anyone else that I know of. He accepted another number and played the season as my teammate.

This was not the end of the story, however. I turned 16 later that year and started looking for a job. Paul heard I was looking and offered to put in a word at the Hallmark store he worked at. I was grateful, but it wasn’t until years later that I realized Paul had every right to NOT offer me this chance. He could have held my refusing him his number against me. Instead, he talked with the store manager and I ended up working there. Paul was an example of Christlike love in my life.

Showing Christlike Love

One of the great examples from the New Testament is found in Acts 3:1-8. It reads:

Now Peter and John went up together into the temple at the hour of prayer, being the ninth hour. And a certain man lame from his mother’s womb was carried, whom they laid daily at the gate of the temple which is called Beautiful, to ask alms of them that entered into the temple; Who seeing Peter and John about to go into the temple asked an alms. And Peter, fastening his eyes upon him with John, said, Look on us. And he gave heed unto them, expecting to receive something of them. Then Peter said, Silver and gold have I none; but such as I have give I thee: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth rise up and walk. And he took him by the right hand, and lifted him up: and immediately his feet and ankle bones received strength. And he leaping up stood, and walked, and entered with them into the temple, walking, and leaping, and praising God.

Acts 3:1-8

The phrase “Silver and gold have I none; but such as I have give I thee” sums up what Christlike love is. It doesn’t matter how much we have, or even the things that we don’t have. What matters is that we give what we can.

A few years after moving to Arizona, there was a house in the neighborhood that burned down. This family was not of our faith, but they were our neighbors. We were asked by our Bishop to donate to the family anything we may have the same night as the fire. Families in the ward donated what they could. Our family also donated. We didn’t have enough to replace their house or their belongings, but we did have some things that we could give them. We parted with those items cheerfully and with the knowledge that they would be of some help to this family who had just lost everything.

Ministering

As part of our membership in the Church, we are given the opportunity to minister to others. These assignments allow us to show Christlike love to God’s children. As I’ve tried to be a good minister, there are times when I have been inspired to do something. I’ve always made the effort to take action on that inspiration and try to be a good ministering brother.

Recently, one of the families I’m assigned to has three children heading off to college. I wondered and pondered what I could do as their ministering brother to help them. The answer I got was to give them a gift they could use at college. But what would help them? As I pondered on it, I remembered something I learned from a mentor about always having a small notebook or journal where I could write down thoughts that popped into my mind during the day. I decided that this would be an ideal gift for these three young adults. I purchased the journals and delivered them to the home with a little message about how they could be used and some of the benefits it might bring. I hope that these small gifts serve them well and that they also know that there is a God who is looking out for them.

Conclusion

The second great commandment is to “Love thy neighbour as thyself” (Matthew 22:35-40). This is the essence of ministering. Ministering in its rawest form is showing Christlike love to others. As we minister and show this love, God reinforces His love to His children.

Tips for Teaching

When teaching on this topic, you may want to consider:

1. Ask what it means to show Christlike love. Have the class give examples of times when they have either shown this love or been a recipient.
2. Define “ministering”. Ask the class how they can be ministers based on the definition.
3. Discuss the story found in Acts 3:1-8. Why is it important that we give what we can?