To the foolish idealist, it may be frustrating to accept the truth. To those who do not live by truth, it may seem inappropriate to work with facts. And to the world, it may seem difficult to accept that no one truly loves the LGBTQ more than a Christian, even though we preach against their deeds.

I have observed that some individuals criticise faithful Christian teachers and preachers, claiming they fail to embody the love they preach simply because they firmly oppose the LGBTQ+ community and its practices. Many challenge us with the phrase “JUST LOVE.”

I want to clarify that we are not hypocrites; we genuinely practice what we preach. The issue is that the people we address in the LGBTQ community hold idealistic views about love.

What is the word love?

Love is a deep affection and feeling for a person that compels our heart to show kindness, respect, and desire for them. Because of this love, we genuinely wish for the best for the individual we care about and would do anything to protect them from harm. This remains true as long as the love persists.

So that true love is in action and not in words. Sincere love is practical and not idealistic. If I watch someone I claim to love enter into a ditch, I do not know what love is. A mother who truly loves and seeks the well-being of her toddler would never watch him play with a risk of getting harmed. That the child will cry when scolded or reprimanded will not stop a loving mother from deterring the child from error.

The LGBTQ definition of love emphasizes acceptance and respect for individual choices. However, I believe this perspective doesn’t fully capture what love truly is. If I allow my brother to fall into a ditch out of respect for his choices, can that really be considered love? If he insists on proceeding and falls into the ditch, becoming blind in the process, and I foresee even greater disaster but do not warn him—failing to try to open his eyes and prevent further harm—can that be called love?

If I see my sister standing by the road with a heavy load from the seeds she sowed and do not move to save her from destruction, is this love?

The Bible teaches us how to love sinners in John 3:16. It says, “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.”

God, having loved us, was not willing to accept our sinful journey into destruction, sent Christ to open our eyes, bring us forgiveness and save us from the ultimate destruction in hell. Herein is true love shown by God, that while we were yet sinners Christ died for us.

We were deeply immersed in unrighteousness and completely embraced our own ways. However, God took action to save us from a path that leads to eternal death. His love was not judgmental, but it also did not allow us to remain in error or bound for hell. This is known as redemptive love—a type of love that refuses to let the soul of man stay trapped in Satan’s pit or walk into eternal flames. This is God’s model of love.

Now, this wholesome love is what Christ, through his Spirit, has implanted into us faithful Christians who keep his commands. As long as that love is in us, we cannot but labour for our brothers and sisters whom Satan has blinded and demons have held hostage, to see if by grace they also can have liberty as we also have received from God. The love of God in us compels us to preach the gospel.

For we are not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believeth, to the Jew first, and also to the Greek. And when we preach this gospel, they say we are hateful. But the fact is that no one truly loves the LGBTQ community like we do. For we seek their redemption and salvation.

Depth of Love

There is also what we call ‘depths of love’ or ‘heights of love’. This is about how much love we have for someone. The more we love, the more we are willing to make sacrifices for the betterment of those we love.

Jesus serves as our role model in the reality of love. His love for humanity reached great heights, to the point where his own life meant little to him compared to the importance of offering us forgiveness and redemption. What he embodied and accomplished, he has also instilled in our hearts and spirits, inspiring us to be and to do the same.

Sometimes the world does not understand why we are able to take the risk of being called hateful names, hated, persecuted, and shamed for the sake of the gospel. People do not know why we abandon pleasure and other things for evangelism and mission. It is love in our hearts; love propelled by the Spirit of Christ in us. It teaches us to love men even as Christ loved us, and to labour for their redemption even at great expense and personal costs.

This is why I say that no one loves the LGBTQ+ community more sincerely than Christians. Not the government, not the supportive society that hesitates to tell them they need a saviour, not their peers, nor their supportive mothers and fathers, and not their friends.