THE WILL TO LOVE - Vital Christianity

70Love is the most durable power in the world.Dietrich Bonhoeffer gave up the safety of a professorship at Union Theological Seminaryin new York City to return to his native Germany and suffer under the Nazi dictatorship. He waswilling to risk the love of his fiancee and even life itself to be faithful to the Gospel. Even thoughhe loved life, his meditations upon Christ’s love for him on the cross gave him the grace to facedeath and even to forgive those who were about to murder him. In his book The Cost ofDiscipleship he boldly affirmed that the love of Christ conquers:“How then does love conquer? By asking not how the enemy treats her but onlyhow Jesus treated her. The love for our enemies takes us along the way of thecross and into fellowship with the Crucified. The more we are driven along thisroad, the more certain is the victory of love over the enemy’s hatred. For then itis not the disciple’s own love, but the love of Jesus Christ alone, who for thesake of his enemies went to the cross and prayed for them as he hung there.” 8This creative force of love was most beautifully exemplified in the life of Christ. And it isthe most potent instrument available in mankind’s quest for peace and security. NapoleonBonaparte, the great military genius, looking back over his years of conquest, is reported to havesaid:“Alexander, Caesar, Charlemagne and I have built great empires. But upon whatdid they depend? They depended on force. But centuries ago Jesus started anempire that was built on love, and even to this day millions will die for Him.” 9Who can doubt the authenticity of these words? The great military leaders of the past aregone. Their empires have crumbled and burned to ashes. But the empire of Jesus, built on thefoundation of love, is still growing. While that empire started with a small group of twelvecommitted men it has powerfully expanded into all the world. May we, in this crucial twentiethcentury, be channels of that redemptive love. May we manifest by our lives that we are true sonsof our heavenly Father who showed us in the Person of His Son Jesus Christ what it means tolove our enemies and pray for those who persecute us.