22 If any man love not the Lord Jesus Christ, let him be Anathema Maranatha.
This sombre declaration found at the end of the apostle Paul’s first epistle to the Corinthians is a denunciation or a curse. It is presented here as the summary of all that he had been teaching in the epistle. The word “Anathema” means accursed or given up to destruction. The word “Maranatha” is made up of two Aramaic words (maran and atha), meaning “our Lord has come”. It is an exclamation uttered in connection with the approaching judgment when the Lord returns (cf. Jude 1:14, 15).
If one neglects to love Christ, the penalty is that he shall be accursed at His coming. Though the curse will be executed only at His coming, the doom of the one who chooses not to love Christ is certain. Yes, both the lovers of Christ and those who do not love Him continue to live. Yet, “Behold, the Lord cometh”; at His coming, He will separate those who love Him and those who do not love Him. The tares and the wheat grow together till the harvest; we cannot separate the hypocrite from the sincere ones until the Lord on His judgment day incontestably proves their profession is false. Though no government would punish a lack of love for the Lord Jesus, though no church would excommunicate all who do not love Him, those indifferent to Him shall not escape His judgment at His coming. While the coming of the Lord is eternal salvation to those who love Christ, it is doom to those who refuse to love Him. There is not a more fearful denunciation in the Bible. Oh, the awful horrors of an eternal curse! Surely, those who neglect to love Christ shall be condemned. How important it is then to ask whether we have sincere love for Christ. Let us not forget to examine ourselves whether we love the Lord Jesus.
We must love Jesus Christ for He is the sum of the Divine perfections. He is the Son of God; He is God. In Him dwelleth the fullness of God. All His infinite perfections as God deserve our love and devotion. He is worthy! He is worthy of our love. If you would not love Him fully, you would have rejected the One who came to reveal unto us God Himself! If you would not love Christ, you would have neglected the only way of salvation. Not to love Him is to choose the path to eternal damnation. There is no other Saviour for our souls but Christ. We are bound to the necessity of loving Christ, that we may escape the eternal damnation. We must love Him reverently, sincerely, and passionately.