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God’s Love

Only With Love

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Philippians 2:11-13

[11] And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
[12] Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.
[13] For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.

Matthew 7:1-2

[1] Judge not, that ye be not judged.
[2] For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again.

I have thought of a million ways to approach this topic, but I can only speak from my heart and tell you how I feel led to say what I am about to say. There were a lot of times in my own life where I felt like that people looked at me and condemned me before they ever knew me. Sure my lifestyle wasn’t the best at the time, and perhaps they may have been right. One thing that was not present though was a single person coming to me out of love to see if I needed help. They just assumed I was heading for destruction and did not want any part of helping me. Looking back on that now, it breaks my heart at the thought that out of all of my peers, no one really went above and beyond to show that true love of God. I did not say that to start ranting and raving about how no one cares anymore. I know that there are people that care about me, but sometimes me believing to myself that they do isn’t enough.

Where do we come in as Christians in all of this? As always, we need to apply ourselves in the word of God. If we begin to think about certain instances of the bible, there were several instances of people being upset about others receiving love while they thought they didn’t deserve the blessing they got. The story of the prodigal son showed that the brother that had been with his father the whole time was not pleased with the way that his father welcomed his other brother back after all he had done. The story of Zacchaeus also shows the people around him being upset that Christ chose to go to his house.

And as I think in the days we live in, I see this kind of attitude rise up every day in people that are supposed to be servants of the Lord. We live in a society where there is a system in place that judges people daily and gives them a sentence of how they must be punished for their actions. We as people of God work by a different system. We were not placed here to be the judge of anyone (Matthew 7:1-2). Everyone has their own price to pay for what they have done. How can we cast out others when we were first cast out? People will not think what you have inside of you is real unless love is wrapped all around it. Be that person that goes to someone in trouble and invites them to come to church, to pray, anything that would lead them to God!

People have to accept and admit that their lifestyle may be wrong in the eyes of God. As it says above, we are to work out our own salvation with fear and trembling. I can’t make someone live the way I want them to, this is something that God reveals to each individual about what needs to change. But we as a people who put on the mind of Christ that needs to love people beyond recognition. So what am I saying today?   I am saying that we need to put our gavels down, and open up our hands to lead people to have a better life through Christ. Remember this the next time you walk into a conversation where someone is making fun of someone else. Instead of joining them, say something positive through faith. Be the one that cares. Be the one that looks beyond their mistakes, for that is what God has done for you!

I’ll end this with a scripture; it says it better than I can:

Luke 6:35-38

[35] But love ye your enemies, and do good, and lend, hoping for nothing again; and your reward shall be great, and ye shall be the children of the Highest: for he is kind unto the unthankful and to the evil.
[36] Be ye therefore merciful, as your Father also is merciful.
[37] Judge not, and ye shall not be judged: condemn not, and ye shall not be condemned: forgive, and ye shall be forgiven:
[38] Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again.

The Love Of God

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Can anyone really comprehend “unconditional” love? It seems the love that parents have for their children is as close to unconditional love as we can get without the help of God’s love in our lives. We continue to love our children through good times and bad, and we don’t stop loving them if they don’t meet the expectations we may have for them. We make a choice to love our children even when we consider them unlovable; our love doesn’t stop when we don’t “feel” love for them. This is similar to God’s love for us, but as we shall see, God’s love transcends the human definition of love to a point that is hard for us to comprehend.

The Bible tells us that “God is Love” (1 John 4:8). But how can we even begin to understand that truth?  There are many passages in the bible that give us God’s definition of love. The most well known verse is John 3:16, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” So one way God defines love is in the act of giving. However, what God gave (or should we say, “who” God gave) was not a mere gift-wrapped present; God sacrificed His only Son so that we, who put our faith in His Son, will not spend eternity separated from Him. This is an amazing love, because we are the ones who choose to be separated from God through our sin, yet it’s God who mends the separation through His intense personal sacrifice, and all we have to do is accept His gift.

Another great verse about God’s love is found in Romans 5:8. “But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” In this verse and in John 3:16, we find no conditions placed on God’s love for us. God doesn’t say, “as soon as you clean up your act, I’ll love you;” nor does He say, “I’ll sacrifice my Son if you promise to love Me.” In fact, in Romans 5:8, we find just the opposite. God wants us to know that His love is unconditional, so He sent His Son, Jesus Christ, to die for us while we were still unlovable sinners. We didn’t have to get clean, and we didn’t have to make any promises to God before we could experience His love. His love for us has always existed, and because of that, He did all the giving and sacrificing long before we were even aware that we needed His love. I know a sister in Christ who makes this statement almost every time she gives her testimony; He loves me Just As I Am. This is such a true statement.

God is Love, and His love is very different from human love. God’s love is unconditional, and it’s not based on feelings or emotions. He doesn’t love us because we’re lovable or because we make Him feel good; He loves us because He is love. He created us to have a loving relationship with Him, and He sacrificed His own Son (who also willingly died for us) to restore that relationship.

God is Love! As such, true love — God’s love – can be summed up in this passage of scripture:  “Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God.  He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love. In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him. Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.  Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another.”  (1 John 4:7-11)

What Do I Do Now?

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It seems like now more than ever that people are dealing with trials that are far bigger than they ever imagined, and along with that bears the sole fact that we have to go through things practically alone. In the days we live in, you can literally see the frustration and toil that these kinds of things have on others, and it makes you wonder what they are going to do to get out of the tough situations.

Everywhere that I turn my eyes, I continually see defeat and discouragement. Everyone that I listen to only seems to speak of how bad things are. Every action that I see taken around me always seems to be only for being able to just get by. All the while I wonder where the joy of people has gone. All the more questioning why things are the way that they are, as well as why things have to be so hard on others.

Ultimately, I find that when you and I are in these difficult places that it is THEN that we need to recognize who it is we put our trust in. Several verses from the bible come to mind when I try to think of things that inspire me about my difficult trials.

Acts 2:36-39 reads:

[36] Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly, that God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ.
[37] Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart, and said unto Peter and to the rest of the apostles, Men and brethren, what shall we do?
[38] Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.
[39] For the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call.

John 6:28-29 says:

[28] Then said they unto him, What shall we do, that we might work the works of God?
[29] Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent.

After reading these verses, this tells me to believe in Jesus, for it is the works of God. All the blessings can come and be unlocked in your life, when you start it all with the belief that you can reach them. Then, you won’t find yourself saying, “What do I do now?”, and instead you can say with faith and belief that “I’m doing God’s work, and I know that I am going to make it from what I am going through!” Don’t let the enemy persuade you to be idle and still, nor to let anything hinder you from speaking to all of the things that you want to change. I share with you today, quite possibly my personal favorite bible verse of all time.

Philippians 3:13-15 tells us:

[13] Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before,
[14] I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.
[15] Let us therefore, as many as be perfect, be thus minded: and if in any thing ye be otherwise minded, God shall reveal even this unto you.

It is in reading these lines that remind me so often that where I am in God that there is no stopping place. The trials of life do not stop for anyone, or anything. God does not stop moving in your life either. He is in a constant motion, always ahead of you, going out and making your way blessed. If we can just strive and be determined to have the question “What do I do now” change to “What can I do for you, God?”, I can guarantee that you are on your way to the best outcome for your life, for the promises of God are yea and amen.

Take what we have said today, and rise out of your own ashes. Get up out of your discouragement, and take back charge of your life again. Encourage yourself daily, with simply just knowing that the victory is ahead of you. You might not see it, nor feel it close by, but just have the faith to know its coming! I encourage each and every one of you this day! God Bless all of you!