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Is Love All You Need?
“All You Need Is Love” was a hit pop song by The Beatles in 1967. If it were interpreted strictly according to the biblical definition of love, it would be true. However, people who favor diverse religious preferences believe “all you need is love.” Would they say this if they thoroughly understood what the scriptures teach about the church? The expression necessarily implies there is something else that is not needed. Why state “all you need is love” if they were not trying to imply that some other requirement of God was not important?
Love is by far the most important motive in the life of a Christian (Matthew 22:37-40). Love forms the center point of the New Testament. In 1 Corinthians 13:13, the apostle Paul stated, “And now abideth faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these [is] love.” Does love being the greatest motive disregard all other requirements God has assigned man to follow?
Can we be saved by love only? First of all, when you place the word “only” behind even the noblest of actions or motives, it changes the entire meaning. We are saved by faith, but not by faith ONLY (Ephesians 2:8-10). We are saved by obedience, but not by obedience ONLY (Romans 10:9-10). We are saved by love, but not by love ONLY (John 14:15).
Love is intangible. It is a motive. If love exists as the New Testament teaches it should, then it will manifest itself in outward actions. As with true faith, it cannot exist without works. If all we need is love, who decides what is excluded? What do we not need? If people say, “all you need is love” to the exclusion of other things God has required, then this is not the love as defined by the New Testament.
