Christian Carnival CCXI (211)

The Valentine to God Edition

In preparing a "structure" for this Carnival I was tried to avoid 1 Corinthians 13 - (not that it isn't great); and I decided not to focus on John's (and Christ's) call for Christians to show that they are Christ's followers because of our love for one another.

I settled on the kinds of love we show, and receive, as Christians -- thinking it might make a good way to divide Carnival entries:

First, some housekeeping at the Carnival: We need some new hosts. We occasionally get to the point where the same 5 or so blogs rotate the Carnival. This really isn't good, and hosting the Carnival - while it can be some work - is a good ministry opportunity within the Body of Christ. Go here to jump in - the water is awesome.

The Love of God for Us

"For this is the way God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world should be saved through him. The one who believes in him is not condemned. The one who does not believe has been condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the one and only Son of God. Now this is the basis for judging: that the light has come into the world and people loved the darkness rather than the light, because their deeds were evil." (John 3:16-19, NET)

Jennifer in OR presents "Grapes of Abundance: 13 Thoughts" posted at Diary of 1.

e-Mom presents "Theology: Differences Between West & East" posted at C h r y s a l i s.

Pat & James Taylor presents "Immersion in the Spirit" posted at On the Wings of the Wind.

Sue presents "What are you giving up for Lent?" posted at Abstractions.

Wickle presents “One of Those Humbling Things" posted at A True Believer's Blog.

Amanda presents “Lent: Goodbye TV" posted at Imago Dei.

Our Love of God

"Now one of the experts in the law came and heard them debating. When he saw that Jesus answered them well, he asked him, “Which commandment is the most important of all?” Jesus answered, “The most important is: ‘Listen, Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.’" (Mark 12:28-30, NET)

William Meisheid presents "Lent 2008: Day 2: Death, Purpose & Why Should I?" posted at Beyond The Rim....

FMF presents "The Bible and Money All Around the Web" posted at Free Money Finance.

Jamie McIntosh presents "Go Organic for Lent" posted at Suite101: Organic Gardens blog.

Chuck Jines presents "The Power of God" posted at Thoughts on God.

Rusty Pritchard presents "Environmentalism and fear" posted at CounterCulture.

Shaun Connell presents "The Philosophy of Rational Happiness" posted at Reason and Capitalism.

Our Love of Jesus
(the Word made Flesh)

“If you love me, you will obey my commandments." (John 14:15, NET)

"The person who has my commandments and obeys them is the one who loves me. The one who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and will reveal myself to him.”" (John 14:21, NET)

"If you obey my commandments, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father’s commandments and remain in his love." (John 15:10, NET)

Ariah Fine presents "Open Letter to Anyone Returning from a Missions Trip" posted at Trying to Follow.

Weekend Fisher presents the "Internal evidence and the authorship of the Gospel of John" posted at Heart, Mind, Soul, and Strength.

Chasing the Wind presents "Life Without Limbs" posted at Chasing the Wind.

Richard H. Anderson presents "Rewriting Moses" posted at dokeo kago grapho soi kratistos Theophilos.

John presents "A Matter of Perspective" posted at Light Along the Journey.

Tom Gilson presents "The Not-So-Secret" posted at Thinking Christian.

Henry Neufeld presents "Not Through the Law: Romans 4:13" posted at Participatory Bible Study Blog.

Rey presents "Being a Student" based on John 8 posted at The Bible Archive.

* * * * *

"The second is: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.”" (Mark 12:31, NET)

"Love of neighbor" divides into specific and general revelations:

Our Love of our Spouse
[I think we primarily have a "husband problem" . . . ]

"Husbands, love your wives just as Christ loved the church and gave himself for her to sanctify her by cleansing her with the washing of the water by the word, so that he may present the church to himself as glorious – not having a stain or wrinkle, or any such blemish, but holy and blameless. In the same way husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. For no one has ever hated his own body but he feeds it and takes care of it, just as Christ also does the church, for we are members of his body. For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and will be joined to his wife, and the two will become one flesh. This mystery is great – but I am actually speaking with reference to Christ and the church. Nevertheless, each one of you must also love his own wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband." (Ephesians 5:25-33, NET)

Jeremy Pierce presents "Commanded Sexual Delight" posted at Parableman.

Our Love of our Brethren

"“I give you a new commandment – to love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. Everyone will know by this that you are my disciples – if you have love for one another.”" (John 13:34-35, NET)

"For this is the gospel message that you have heard from the beginning: that we should love one another . . . We know that we have crossed over from death to life because we love our fellow Christians. The one who does not love remains in death. Everyone who hates his fellow Christian is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life residing in him. We have come to know love by this: that Jesus laid down his life for us; thus we ought to lay down our lives for our fellow Christians. But whoever has the world’s possessions and sees his fellow Christian in need and shuts off his compassion against him, how can the love of God reside in such a person? . . . Now this is his commandment: that we believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ and love one another, just as he gave us the commandment." (1 John 3:11-23, NET)

Diane R presents "Are Lack of Social Skills in Churches Sinking Outreach?" posted at Crossroads: Where Faith and Inquiry Meet.

Drew Tatusko presents "The Spectacle of Evangelicalism: Exclusivity and Sectarian Inversion" posted at Notes From Off-Center.

Shaun Connell presents "Organized Religion" posted at Rational Christianity.

ChrisB presents "Politics, Religion, and Brotherly Love" posted at Homeward Bound.

Annette presents "Love each other" posted at Fish and Cans.

Dana presents "A vision for the church" posted at Principled Discovery.

Our Love of our Children and Parents
[. . . and a "father problem".]

"“Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me." (Matthew 10:37, NET)

"honor your father and mother, and love your neighbor as yourself.”" (Matthew 19:19, NET)

"Fathers [or "parents"], do not provoke your children, so they will not become disheartened." (Colossians 3:21, NET)

Dana presents "The measure of a Christian education" posted at Principled Discovery on the question of how Christian parents should educate their children

Laura Beutler presents "Perfect Bodies" posted at Children & Chocolate and Other Paths to God.

Our Love of all People
(even our Enemies)

"“But I say to you who are listening: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. To the person who strikes you on the cheek, offer the other as well, and from the person who takes away your coat, do not withhold your tunic either. Give to everyone who asks you, and do not ask for your possessions back from the person who takes them away. Treat others in the same way that you would want them to treat you. “If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. And if you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners do the same. And if you lend to those from whom you hope to be repaid, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, so that they may be repaid in full. But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, because he is kind to ungrateful and evil people." (Luke 6:27-35, NET)

Doug presents "Can we persuade each other with logic alone?" posted at Bounded Irrationality.

Ron Thomson presents "Britney Spears and her mental health problems" posted at TheCrossCounts.com.

John Hobbins presents "Where does the commandment to love one’s enemies come from?" posted at Ancient Hebrew Poetry.

Heir to Life sends us "The Man in the Smoke Screen" from the Spirited Ink Blog.

Leslie Carbone presents "On his Birthday, Some Words of Encouragement from Ronald Reagan" posted at Leslie Carbone.

Rodney Olsen presents "Extraordinary Forgiveness" posted at RodneyOlsen.net.

Aw heck, how can I leave this out:

"If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but I do not have love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. And if I have prophecy, and know all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith so that I can remove mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. If I give away everything I own, and if I give over my body in order to boast, but do not have love, I receive no benefit. Love is patient, love is kind, it is not envious. Love does not brag, it is not puffed up. It is not rude, it is not self-serving, it is not easily angered or resentful. It is not glad about injustice, but rejoices in the truth. It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never ends. But if there are prophecies, they will be set aside; if there are tongues, they will cease; if there is knowledge, it will be set aside. For we know in part, and we prophesy in part, but when what is perfect comes, the partial will be set aside. When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. But when I became an adult, I set aside childish ways. For now we see in a mirror indirectly, but then we will see face to face. Now I know in part, but then I will know fully, just as I have been fully known. And now these three remain: faith, hope, and love. But the greatest of these is love." (1 Corinthians 13, NET)

All bible quotes are from: Biblical Studies Press. (2006; 2006). The NET Bible First Edition; Bible. English. NET Bible.; The NET Bible. Biblical Studies Press.