Love that Covers Sins. . .?

I'm a little bumfuzzled about this one. I started out in James 5:19-20:

"My brothers, if one of you should wander from the truth and someone should bring him back, remember this: Whoever turns a sinner from the error of his way will save him from death and cover a multitude of sins."

The multitude of sins is what caught me awkward. I had read that somewhere else before and it didn't make sense to me then either. So I googled it and found it was in 1 Peter 4:7-8:

The end of all things is near. Therefor be clear minded and self-controlled so that you can pray. Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins. "

Ok, to start with I think that he's making a very important point saying to be clear minded and self-controlled so that you can pray. Not so that we can act or lead others or serve, but just to pray. It shows the power behind prayer and that prayer is really the most powerful thing we can do. Hmm... I was just going to mention that but now that I think about it right before the first verses in James he says, "Therefore confess yours sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. THE PRAYER OF A RIGHTEOUS MAN IS POWERFUL AND EFFECTIVE" v16. So it makes me wonder how love covers a multitude of sins is related with prayer, apparently very closely.

But what I couldn't understand is how our love can cover sins? If it was love in general, I think it would be obvious they were talking about Jesus love and how he loved us so much to die on the cross, shedding his blood and "covering a multitude of sins". But in the verses it's talking to us, people, the church. . . .

My footnotes/commentary stuff in James say that it's talking about a Christian backslider, one who's saved, but isn't walking with God. It says "James urges Christians to help backsliders return to God. By taking hte iniative, praying for the person, and activating in love, we can meet the person where he or she is and bing him or her back to God and his forgiveness" - That seems like it's a lot dependent on us, but maybe he was meaning that it's Christ in us, but we have to be that willing vessel to go reach out. God can do a butload of crap through us, but we have to be willing to go.

I'm thinking it's talking about loving them no matter where they're are at and, in love, showing them where they're wrong and how to get back. . . . I think of when Jesus was walking and the deamon possessed man just came up and threw himself down infront of God, or Zacchaeus, he just went to his house and his love and his holiness convicted them of what they did wrong without even having to say anything. He didn't really call them out, his lifestyle just showed them what they were doing wrong. Like you think somethings white until you lay down something really white next to it then you realize how dirty the first thing is. Maybe thats why as we walk in Love and live a life of Love, the righteouness, we will show the world there's something better, something more white. It's not by saying look at us, it's by saying, look in me. Look at whats in me thats better than me. That kind of makes since that we should live a life of Love so that others see where they're wrong. One of the verses it references is Romans 11:13-14

"I am talking to you Gentiles . Inasmuch as I am the apostle to the Gentiles, I make much of my ministry in the hope that I may somehow arouse my own people to envy and save some of them."

I didn't really understand how that fit in to everything until now. In the hope that I may somehow arouse my own people to envy. Looking back Valerie was one of the ones who really got me wanting more out of my religious experience, who helped show me it was a relationship. She had something that I wanted, I didnt' know what it was. She was in-love with God, and was passionate about it, I wanted that. Even last night, Jud said something that he was just talking about himself and how he missed T really bad to where it was hurting him inside, and he said it realized it was because he hadn't been filled by God. Just him living his life of love helped me envy, and realize crap, thats me too. Ok maybe a bad reasoning, but with Valerie definitely. We cause people to envy what we've got so that they can have it to. It's like we remind people how good life was with God and that leads them back to asking for forgiveness. Thats how Love covers sin. It's the big L not the little l. But it's the Love that we show. It is the Christ in us, it's when we walk in Love - so it does kind of require our obedience, but it's still the God, big L, Love thats making a difference in others lives.

The other place that it referenced that stuck out is when Jesus summarizes the Law in Matt 22: 37-40.

"Jesus replied: ' 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with allyour soul and with all your mind' This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself' All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.' "

Interesting that he said the Prophets hang on this stuff too. Hmmm. That with all the wisdom and all the knowledge and their direct communication with God, it's still about Love.

So lesson for Today: Fall in Love with God. Love others outside of your own capability, and walk in Love.