But concerning brotherly love you have no need for anyone to write to you, for you yourselves are taught by God to love one another;
Truth to Learn
Brotherly love is the birthmark of a true Christian.
Behind the Words
The words “brotherly love” are from the Greek word philadelphia, which is made up of philos, meaning “a friend” and adelphos, meaning “a brother.” This word refers to the kind of personal fondness that good friends have for one another.
The words “you have” is from the verb echo, meaning “to have” or “to hold.” In some translations this is written as “we have”; however, the best Greek manuscripts have it written in the second person plural form, meaning “you (plural) have.”
“Need” is translated from cheira, which properly means “employment.” By implication, however, it refers to “an occasion, a requirement, or a necessity.”
“Theodidactos” is the Greek adjective translated “taught by God.” This word is made up of theos, meaning “God, or some deity” and a form of the verb didaskō, meaning “to teach.” Thus theodidactos literally means “taught by God.”
The words “to love” are from the infinitive form of agapē, which refers to “a self-sacrificing God-love.”
“One another” is from the Greek plural reciprocal pronoun allēlous, meaning “each other” or “one another.”
Meaning Explained
The Apostle Paul spent the first three chapters of this letter to the Thessalonians assuring them of his love and concern for them. In this fourth chapter he began his doctrinal teaching for the church. Through the first eight verses of this chapter, he taught about avoiding sexual immorality, specifically fornication and, instead, living a life of holiness.
Now he switches his teaching to how we should live our lives both within and outside the church. Within the church we should all exhibit a genuine fondness for our brothers and sisters in the faith. He starts off with “you have no need that anyone should write to you concerning brotherly love.” In other words, the Christians in Thessalonica had already learned and were demonstrating that they had a genuine love for the brothers.
It is also interesting that Paul tells them that they learned this love for each other, not from some preacher of other people in the church, but they learned it from God. So how does God teach us to love one another? God the Father taught us how to love each other when He gave His only begotten Son to die for us. God the Son taught us to love one another when he said, “A new commandment I give unto you, that you love one another” (John 13:34). And the Holy Spirit taught us to love one another when He poured out the love of God in our hearts (Romans 5:5) when we trusted in Christ as our personal Savior. This love for one another is the defining characteristic of a Christian, a mark of the new birth of true Christians (1 John 4:7).
Application
The best way we can demonstrate the genuiness of our new birth is to exhibit the love we have for others in the Church. Can people see how real your faith is in the way you treat other Christians?
In God's service, for His glory,
Copyright © 2016 Will Krause. All rights reserved