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Why don’t Christians make it their primary struggle, like Paul did, to understand and live this new Royal Law?

Don’t just pretend to love others. Really love them! - Romans 12:9

And this I pray, that your love may abound still more and more in real knowledge and all discernment, - Philippians 1:9

constantly bearing in mind your work of faith and labor of love - 1 Thessalonians 1:3

We ought always to give thanks to God for you, brethren, as is only fitting, because your faith is greatly enlarged, and the love of each one of you toward one another grows ever greater; - 2 Thessalonians 1:3

What energy, what effort and drive he calls for! We’ve already seen how the Work Sub throws energy and drive into work. Throughout Paul’s writings he urges his churches again and again to throw that same Herculean effort into the Royal Law, and he sounds like a driven American capitalist, but without the cold heart:

Indeed, you already show your love for all the believers throughout Macedonia. Even so, dear brothers and sisters, we urge you to love them even more. - 1 Thessalonians 4:10

Is it possible we surpassed those churches and don’t share their struggle? I’m just kidding of course.

Here’s an interesting experiment: ask a Christian, “What is your greatest struggle right now?” You’ll get the most dazzling replies:

“To become more Christ-like…to be more holy…to stand for Him! …to mortify the flesh…quit sinning…to grow more devoted… to grow… believe more… to love Him more dearly… to become His disciple… to know Him… to learn the Bible… my ministry…”

None of which are wrong, and many are very cool, some are important. Others are vague and unattainable. Still, these aren’t unbiblical pursuits. But they are simple-minded pursuits compared to advanced Christianity. They don’t reflect God’s picture of the mature, victorious Christian life.

Unfortunately, these pursuits share a common focus we should call Defensive Spirituality. It’s me-building-me, which is woefully incomplete and will ultimately fail like Greg’s faith failed, because it’s stuck and it grows increasingly stagnant.

We all sense the need to get strengthened, which me-building-me is all about. It’s not an inconsequential need, because life in this world saps our spiritual strength. But American Christianity takes this into a strange world where Sunday morning is a pit-stop at the local Worship Service to get fueled-up and repaired for more laps in the workplace rat race. Everything in the Worship Service is geared towards building-up the individual Christian, and it’s the extent of Christian living for many. It’s a self-improvement method, like so many secular philosophies.

There’s also many less-spectacular answers for “What’s your greatest struggle?”

“My finances… job… girlfriend… my credit cards… school… my budget… the car…”

Again, not inconsequential issues, but again, what’s the difference here with secular society? Isn’t it the same for everyone at work? Sometimes Christians don’t consider themselves materialists, even though their greatest concerns are secular concerns. Ok, fine: maybe it isn’t a purely materialistic life, but a Christian consumed with secular concerns is certainly drifting into spiritual carnality, Jesus says:

“Do not worry then, saying, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear for clothing?’ For the Gentiles eagerly seek all these things; for your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. - Matthew 6:31–33

A Christian in Defensive Spirituality may begin with spiritual quests like the first set of answers above, and will certainly experience the joy of Christian growth. But the growth will not continue. If left unchecked, the me-building-me focus degenerates into an unspiritual lifestyle, and joy fades away.

Here’s the point: we should hear more often, “I’m struggling to learn what love means!”

Some people are struggling with concerns closely related to what Paul called a “burden of love”, but they still miss the point:

“My parents… my son… my wife… my family… my girlfriend…”

To struggle with personal family matters is not unique to Christians, and even Christ said these concerns miss the point:

“If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them.” - Luke 6:32

Christians are famous advocates of family values, and who can criticize goals like these?

Family-building is a wonderful, rewarding aspect of our faith which seems to be disappearing in modern culture, and since Christians have access to our Creator’s blueprints, they can build truly loving families. Who would dare criticize a Christian focused on the family? Jesus criticizes it!

“If anyone comes to Me, and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be My disciple.” - Luke 14:26

Something is wrong here, because Christ’s statement doesn’t describe popular American Christianity. Possibly it’s the increasing secular pressures tearing families apart that drives so many Christian homes into the extremely ingrown, almost underground, survivalist lifestyle. When Christians become singularly-focused on personal family life, it’s the pinnacle of Defensive Spirituality, and the Christian home becomes a fortress against the world rather than a base camp from where everyone launches into a victorious love relationships in the real world!

James was clear with that early Christian church: “if you show partiality, you are committing sin and are convicted by the law as transgressors!” (James 2:9) Where in this family-building paradigm is there room to obey the Royal Law: “YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF!”

It’s so sad, because so many Christians are finding the family-building paradigm is a self-defeating substitute for the Royal Law. It’s a shallow and reactionary substitute for real Christian spirituality. The family is not the highest value in life—the Kingdom of God is. The family is there to serve God’s will (Matthew 6:33), not the other way around.

A Christian family must be plugged into vital, thriving relationships outside their haven, and certainly this must include a community of Christians growing together in love. Despite their best efforts, loving parents who create loving homes lose their children to this unloving world. The research proves it:

“In situations where children became mature Christians we usually found a symbiotic partnership between their parents and their church. The church encouraged parents to prioritize the spiritual development of their children and worked hard to equip them for that challenge. Parents, for their part, raised their children in the context of a faith-based community that provided security, belonging, spiritual and moral education, and accountability. Neither the parents nor the church could have done it alone” - Barna Research

The problem with merely learning to “love those who love you” is simple: we never learn spiritual maturity! It’s an important point. When things go well with those who love us and when that becomes the end-point of Christian growth, it’s fragile ground with fissures and cracks unable to bear the full weight of our trust.

What’s your greatest struggle right now? What bothers you the most? What do you worry about? What is the greatest failure you need to turnaround right now?

Since the Bible says our greatest virtue is to love by God’s definition of love, shouldn’t this also be our greatest struggle and our greatest pursuit? Shouldn’t we leave behind a lifestyle of Defensive Spirituality, and pick up a victorious Christian life instead?

Consider this: is it even possible to have faith that doesn’t involve the Royal Law?

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