Let love be without dissimulation. Abhor that which is evil; cleave to that which is good. Romans 12:9
When was the last time you heard somebody use the word ‘dissimulation’ in a sentence, or when was the last time you used that word yourself? This word is one of a surprisingly small number of antiquated words in the King James version of our Bibles that we can’t easily figure out the meaning without searching in a dictionary or at least sneaking a peek at the Bible’s centre reference. The phrase ‘let love be without dissimulation’ is one of a few phrases that is much more easily understood in several other versions of the Bible. In the New Living Translation, for example, this phrase is rendered ‘Don’t just pretend to love others. Really love them.’ In the English Standard Version, the phrase is rendered ‘Let love be genuine’; in the Holman Christian Standard Bible, it is ‘Love must be without hypocrisy’; in the Weymouth New Testament, it is ‘Let your love be perfectly sincere’; and in the Aramaic Bible in Plain English, it is ‘And be not deceitful in your love’. By now, we should have a pretty good idea of what loving without dissimulation is all about. But how do we put it into practice?
A heart-warming story is told of a woman who was going to approach her employer for a badly-needed and much-deserved raise. She confided in her husband how worried she was about it. To her delight, her employer agreed to the raise. When she returned home, she was met by her husband who had prepared a lavish supper with candles and the best dishes. Beside her plate, she found a beautiful card that read, ‘Congratulations! I knew you would get the raise. I prepared this special meal to show that I love you.’ After supper, she discovered another card that had fallen from his pocket, which read ‘Don’t worry about not getting the raise! You deserve it anyway! I prepared this special meal to show that I love you.’ Regardless of the outcome, he was prepared to celebrate and display his love for her. That is love without dissimulation: love that does not make a difference between success or failure, between happy or sad, between gleeful or grumpy, between rich or poor, between enjoyment or misery. When it comes to those we love, nothing should matter but that we love them and that we express that love in word and in deed.
Without question, our love to our families should be without dissimulation. Of course, there will be disappointments and disputes, but these should never interfere with the reality and expression of our love. The same applies to those within the fellowship of the Assembly in which God has placed us. Sincere affection takes precedence over clashing personalities. When our love for lost souls is without dissimulation, we will invite, pray for, and witness to everyone God places in our path, regardless of anything that they are or say, desiring only that they would come to know the Saviour’s love.
Loving without dissimulation – now there’s a life-changing challenge for us to take up today! -Jim MacIntosh