Once we make the decision to dedicate and commit ourselves to the living God, we can no longer act is if obeying Him is N/A (John 14:15). Simple commands such as ceasing iniquity, keeping the Sabbath day and not mingling and conspiring with active sinners become as much of a reality as giving to the poor does. Jesus did eat with sinners, but he ate with them so that he might minister to them to repent and accept life. He did not continue to sit with sinners who blatantly told him that they were not going to follow him or do any of his commandments. He moved on.

We are to love other people to the best of our ability, and ask God for help loving the ones that we can’t. The way we express our love depends on the situation and the person with whom we are dealing. God doesn’t always give us what we want because it doesn’t always fit his plan or will. Therefore, we may not give every person every thing that he or she wants just because we follow Christ and have to “love” them. People have to be careful that they do not try to abuse the term “love.”

Furthermore, we don’t always have what someone asks us for. The poor are not very good at giving to the poor, for example. A poor person’s donation ends up looking very small to the naked eye, but in heaven it means a lot because it comes from the heart.

The best way that we can show people that we love them is to shed a light on sin and share the gospel message. If they reject that love because it isn’t false “feel good” love, then they weren’t looking for any integrity or truth at all.

See the consequences of disobedience.