I’ve never understood how you can love someone “too much”, or “this much, but no further”.
For me, and my limited understanding - You either love them, or you don’t. It’s binary, not a graduated scale.
If it ain’t love, it’s like.
I guess that depends on how you define “love”. I can understand levels of “love”, I suppose, when questioning what I am willing to sacrifice.
There are a very limited number of people/scenarios that I will intentionally sacrifice my life for (i.e. lay on a grenade) ... the Almighty, my wife, my kids, some other immediate family, groups of innocent people (”the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the one”), etc. If I were in the military (which I am not), for a brother in arms. I’d rather be killed than see them killed. I will intentionally risk (as opposed to sacrifice) my life for quite a few more ... any family, innocent children not my own, my country, saving an innocent, etc.
There is simply no one I would sacrifice my wife or kids for. I’d sooner give my own life.
If the Almighty asked this sacrifice of me, I honestly don’t know what I’d do. I am asked to love my wife/family as Christ loved the church ... would Christ have sacrificed His church for anything? God and Christ gave everything for the Salvation of His Church -= and I would give everything for the salvation of my family.
I do not understand how to square the concept of wife/family idolatry with the mandate to love my family as Christ loves the Church. Does Christ idolize the Church? If I am willing to sacrifice my family to God, can it really be said that I love them as Christ loves the church? It is a confusing mandate, to be sure.
SnakeDoc