To understand human love we must understand humans. The religious among us would argue that unless you know God you do not understand love, because love comes from God. The religious also believe Atheist are incapable of loving and acting morally but only understand the basic human need to preserve the human species. Again, many of religious people hold beliefs that God is the source of true morality and humans in their fallen condition are in capable of love and only act to escape feelings of loneliness.
To date our many human sub cultures have proven that love is easily extended people within their cultures and is withheld from people foreign to their culture. These cultures have demonstrated that fear of outsiders is common among all cultures. Cultures with homogeneous communities display natural tendencies toward internal cooperation. Only during times when cultures share a mutual threat does cross cultural cooperation take place.
For this discussion, let us define love as the removal of separation between humans. We must also recognize that cultural identity is one of the main forces that justify the need for separation. With our world population nearing 7.5 billion people, human subcultural definitions are constantly shifting. Communications technology and transportation are just two major factors that redefine culture in today’s human experience. Probably the biggest threat to any culture is the loose of its identity.
The main reason love is more easily given to those internal to the culture has more to do with the preservation of that culture. In order to maintain a strong cultural identity there must be a balance between internal and external influences. That is why political-correctness and immigration are such flash point issues in modern culture. All healthy cultures will have forces that want to maintain the status quo and resists internal redefinition’s and the external influences from other cultures.
It has always been the tactic within human subcultures to use fear of death or the loss of identity to motivate the members within to resist change. And if you hold to the notion that true love comes from without you can see the apparent conflict between the forces of love and fear. However, there is always forces of those from within that choose to love the “others” on the outside. Sometimes they are known as sympathizers and sometimes they are called traitors.
Revelation 5:9-10 (NLT) And they all sang a new song to the Lamb: “You are worthy to take the scroll and to open its seals, because you were killed, and with the blood of your death you bought people for God from every tribe, language, people, and nation. 10 You made them to be a kingdom of priests for our God, and they will rule on the earth.”
Originally, human culture extended from family relationship and birth was the entry point for most cultures. On that rare occasion when people married outside of their culture was there a provision made to change cultures. Ultimately, when human evolution has completed its path, there will be one culture with equity and love for each individual.
After Adam and Eve, human history records the results of separated subcultural identity. Today each human individual see themselves as separate, almost a cultural island of their own making. If humanity has an evolution goal for unity between all, it is a concept far removed from the mindset most. Today however we do see the emergence of concepts such as the global citizen, but is this a true form of love?
There are two questions arising before us. The first asks, is human experience on the path to arriving at a single culture with equality for all as it relates to love? The second question ask will this love be a natural expression from within the individuals of humanity or will it be an external moral code that goes against our human nature but one that is adopted because it is the most efficient way to live and survive? Is love a product of nature or nurture?
If enough members of the human culture begin to live in the identity that they we are children of God and that they have inherited God’s loved as individuals and understand God loved all His children equally, then there will be hope for the human culture. If each human could know God’s love and entertain internally His presence of peace, then the external voices that declare fear, doubt, and lack would find limited space in the hearts of the daughters and sons of God.
Inherited by each human at a level beyond our basic understanding of DNA is the capability to exist as loving entities. Today, all the human subcultures nurture fear of other cultures and view them as a threat to their existence. As cultures grow large, they bring an appearance of stability but the cost is always at the expense of the “others”. As the “others” grow, they are forced to retaliate for their survival. If one culture is intolerant and unwilling to embrace external cultures and if the “other” culture is unwilling to compromise and merge itself into the other culture then survival dictates that only one culture can survive or the two cultures remain as enemies in a state of perpetual war.
Genesis 2:24 (NKJV) Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh.
As an example of what is possible, take two family photos at or before a wedding of the immediate and extended family the two individuals getting married. Then look at a photo of that family four generations later you would see because of love the two have removed separation and become one.
At the core of our being is the true nature of who we are. God’s sending of Jesus in flesh to earth awakens the reality of a truth that God’s DNA is infused into every human. Jesus is a human who many recognize that He is both a son of man and a son of God. He is considered the first-fruit because what is true for the nature of Jesus is also true for us. Jesus is an example of what is possible when we ignore fearful tendencies and focus on the love (God) that dwells within us. Below is a list of what Jesus says is at the core of our being.
Attitudes of being human (Matthew 5:3-10)
- Blessed are the poor in spirit
- Blessed are the meek
- Blessed are they who mourn
- Blessed are they that hunger and thirst after justice
- Blessed are the merciful
- Blessed are the clean of heart
- Blessed are the peacemakers
- Blessed are they that suffer persecution for justice’ sake
EVidence LOCKER 