They'll know we are Christians by our love,
by our love.
They will know we are Christians by our love.
I used to sing those words with my friends back in the seventies when I was a senior in high school, and the Jesus Movement was still in full swing. We really believed that love was the hallmark of a Christian, despite what the culture around us might say. Jesus, of course, said the same thing: "By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another" (John 13:35).
When I was a kid—a Christian kid—I knew quite clearly what the prevailing culture thought of us. Christians were known for what they were against: no movies, no gambling, no drinking. No fun. I knew this caricature to be untrue because I had loads of fun. I enjoyed singing hymns, studying the bible, praying, and listening to sermons. I didn't know why my friends didn't enjoy these activities too. Christians were widely regarded as backwards but otherwise harmless killjoys.
Christians are still known for what we are against. Only now the list is more serious. Christians are anti-gay, anti-abortion, anti-sex, and anti-science. And we are still anti-fun.
Of course, we have all kinds of caveats and explanations for anyone who will listen about why we are not anti- this or that, but the fact is the culture regards Christians as narrow-minded, irrational bigots. We are not known for our love. Quite the opposite. We are known for our hatred.
How has this come to pass? Back in the seventies, I expected a revolution. The Jesus Movement was going to transform the church and unite it. That didn't happen. Instead, the Jesus People were seduced by consumerism, transmuting it into a prosperity gospel. Your assets attested to God's blessing; the greater your net worth, the holier you were. The excesses from that era brought down Jim and Tammy Faye Bakker and reinforced a cultural stereotype that the only thing churches want is your money. Love lost out again.
Now it seems that Christians are a Republican political action committee. Christians are mobilized to protect their rights, driven by fears that preaching the gospel will come to be regarded as hate speech, that rampant immorality will destroy our country, and that science—particularly evolution—will make the bible unbelievable. Fear is a great motivator. It brings in money for conservative lobbyists. It prompts people to write or call their Senators and Representatives. It moves people to defend themselves. But fear isn't the hallmark of a Christian; love is.
I don't advocate political passivity, nor do I think that Christians can transform the culture just by being sweet, harmless folks who never put up a fight about anything. But we need to recover love as the defining characteristic of those who follow Christ. Jesus' love was not wishy-washy; it was bold and decisive. He proclaimed forgiveness to sinners and upended conventional religious notions about who was righteous and who was not. Jesus was known not for what he was against but for what he was for. He was for the poor, the sick, the oppressed, the outcast, the hopeless. He was for sinners while remaining implacably against sin. He was even for the Pharisees and hypocrites, could they have seen it, because he told them the truth about themselves, and you don't let people you love go on believing a harmful lie. Above all, Jesus' love prompted him to respect the rights of those he loved to make wrong decisions.
We need to recover that kind of love.
Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. (I Corinthians 13:4–7)
What if Christians became known for their patience, kindness, and humility? What if they became known for the respect they show others and the way they make others look good even when they themselves don't look so good? What if they became known as peacemakers, forgiving those who have wronged them and not even allowing those wrongs to be mentioned? What if Christians were the ones who always protect, always trust, always hope without ever quitting or giving up? What if they engaged in thoughtful debate without rancor or gave more money than anyone else to relieve suffering around the world? What if they worked tirelessly to end sex trafficking, eradicate hunger, cure diseases, help the poor help themselves, build schools and hospitals, and pursue justice for society's outcasts? What if Christians became known for their love?
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