“And this is his commandment, that we believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ and love one another, just as he has commanded us. And this is his commandment, that we believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ and love one another, just as he has commanded us. Whoever keeps his commandments abides in God, and God in him. And by this we know that he abides in us, by the Spirit whom he has given us.” (1 John 3:22-24).
The relativism of our world sees truth as subjective. This is based on the philosophical ideals of Friedrich Nietzsche who said “You have your way. I have my way. As for the right way, the correct way, and the only way, it does not exist.”
The one who has faith in Jesus knows that such a guiding principle is a lie from Satan for it indicates that individuals can determine their own truth. Each is his or her own god. Any one can worship any god they choose, (or none), follow any philosophy, religion, or ideology that suits their fancy. This is strange. The major religions of the world claim to teach about love, yet only Christianity has us a God who is love, and who grants mercy and grace to undeserving people. Every other religion prescribes the performance of good works or the attainment of inner purity or self-awareness by means of good deeds or meditation. Thus, most religions, even some sects of Christianity, teach that the good deeds human beings perform will make them righteous, holy, and one with God, or the universe or universal spirit.
The Word of God maintains that no one enters the Kingdom of God by doing good works. Every human being is a sinner, incapable of pleasing God apart from Jesus. No human is inherently righteous or holy. No human can perfectly or consistently perform good acts and deeds with unfailingly pure motives. At best even the most altruistic of human deeds stem from mixed motives.
God gives righteousness and holiness to those men and women who have faith in Him. And whom does God choose to grant His favor to? To those who are famous, rich and powerful, or those who do good things to appear righteous, religious, rich, or famous? No, He grants His favor to sinners, to the weak, the despised, and the humble for only they realize their need for God. And why does He grant His favor to anyone at all? Because He loves us.
Jesus calls us to follow in His footsteps. He calls us to love Him by loving our brethren in thought, word, and deeds. In Jesus, God has shown His love for all mankind. He gave Himself up for us. We ought to do the same for Him and all those He loves, not out of obligation, guilt or the desire to be liked or to do enough good to make it to heaven, but out of thankfulness for all He has done for us and in obedience to Him.