Does Love Save?

Romans 13:8

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Does love save? Will love get me to heaven? Back in the 60s, there was a popular song entitled All You Need Is Love. It’s an idea that still is around today. It’s very popular. You know it’s all about love. Follow your heart. If you love those around you, that is the ultimate good. And so it makes sense that love saves. Love gets us to heaven. That’s the standard by which God judges us. Even Romans 13, verse eight, it says,

Do not owe anyone anything except to love one another, for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law. (Romans 13:8)

So will my love save me?

Well, Jesus told an interesting parable about this. (Luke 10:25-37) It’s well known as the account of the Good Samaritan. There was a man, he was traveling on a wilderness road in Israel, and he was attacked by robbers, and they stripped him and beat him and left him half dead. There were a couple of religious leaders that passed by separately, but they each passed by, didn’t pay him any attention. And then there was a Samaritan who passed by. And Samaritans and Jews were arch enemies. They hated each other. But the Samaritan, he did tend to the man. He poured oil and wine on the man’s wounds. He put the man on his own animal, took him to an inn. He offered to pay for him for that night and beyond, and any care that had to be given, he was going to provide for it. And that’s the love that Jesus holds up and says, this is true love, love even for your enemies.

Now, there are a lot of things we can learn from that account, but the one I want to focus on is that God wants us to love our enemies and love all those around us.

Will love save us?

Unfortunately, we haven’t reached that standard of perfection that God requires. We have not loved God with our heart, soul, and mind, much less our neighbor, those around us, our friends, our enemies. Not perfectly. So, no my love won’t save me. Your love won’t save you.

But Jesus’ love does and will.

Jesus saw the mess that we made of the world. He saw that we are beaten down and broken by sin. And left half dead. We’re dead in sin. And even while we were still his enemies. Even while we were still sinners. He came to this world. And he lived a perfect life of love toward all those around him. And then he especially showed his love as he died on the cross for the sins of the world, for your sins, for my sins, for all sins. By his love we are saved.

In his sacrifice he paid for the sins, he bought his membership in his royal family. He won us heaven, eternal life in heaven. So are we saved by love? Yes, by Jesus’ love. And as those who know Jesus’ love as shown on the cross, we want to live in that love as baptized believers we’re rooted in that love. And we want to show a love to all those around us friends, enemies, everyone, because Jesus died for them as well.

We want them to know the love of our Lord. Praise be to our Lord of love. Praise be to our Savior, Jesus Christ. Amen.