August 28, 2018 LOVE
1 John 4:16 “And we have come to know and have believed the love which God has for us. God is love, and the one who abides in love abides in God, and God abides in Him.
Romans 5:5 “and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us.”
In our culture, the word ‘love’ has many meanings, is often over-used and misused as well. In reading 1 John, we get a true understanding of where love originates as well as seeing how real love is expressed. 1 Corinthians 13 is known as the ‘love chapter’ and as we read that chapter, we find a clear picture of genuine love. The message that rings clear in 1 John is that genuine, real love is found only in God, for God is love. God’s love is a totally unselfish love, whereas all other ‘love’ is based on self. One may say he loves someone, but what they are saying is that they like the way that person makes them feel, or one may do acts of kindness because it causes them to feel good about themselves, etc. It may come as a shock to us when realize that so often, what we call love is actually not genuine love at all. Rather than feeling guilty about our love being of a selfish nature, let us become aware of what it means to experience and express the love of God. If there is a secret-if there is good news for believers, it is this- when we come to know the love of God personally, when we realize that He has poured out His love in our hearts, everything changes. When God’s love is manifest or made real to us in a personal way and we abide in His love, the keeping of His commandments and doing the things that please Him becomes natural! No longer do we have to ‘try’ to do what He commands, and no longer are his commandments burdensome. His love frees us to be all that He wants us to be, and now we see His words as the way to life. His love being active in us, transforming us, is part of the new nature that He has given us. No longer do we have to labor under trying to keep His word-now His commandments become our desire and our delight. Psalm 19 describes the ways and words of God as being sweeter than honey. Now, we can read 1 Corinthians 13 and feel no guilt-but say ‘amen’ to the picture of the love of God and we can be living expressions of that love. It was God’s love that caused Him to send His Son to be the Savior, to redeem His people who had lost their way, who had turned from Him. Let us be people who by our actions, express the unselfish love of God-there is no higher call or more fulfilling life than that of demonstrating the love of God. “We love because He first loved us.” 1 John 4:19. Someone has said: “If we are not loving well, we are not living well.”
1 Corinthians 13:1 “If I speak with the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal.”
1 John 4:16 “And we have come to know and have believed the love which God has for us. God is love, and the one who abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him.”
Blessings,
Buddy
1 John 4:16 “And we have come to know and have believed the love which God has for us. God is love, and the one who abides in love abides in God, and God abides in Him.
Romans 5:5 “and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us.”
In our culture, the word ‘love’ has many meanings, is often over-used and misused as well. In reading 1 John, we get a true understanding of where love originates as well as seeing how real love is expressed. 1 Corinthians 13 is known as the ‘love chapter’ and as we read that chapter, we find a clear picture of genuine love. The message that rings clear in 1 John is that genuine, real love is found only in God, for God is love. God’s love is a totally unselfish love, whereas all other ‘love’ is based on self. One may say he loves someone, but what they are saying is that they like the way that person makes them feel, or one may do acts of kindness because it causes them to feel good about themselves, etc. It may come as a shock to us when realize that so often, what we call love is actually not genuine love at all. Rather than feeling guilty about our love being of a selfish nature, let us become aware of what it means to experience and express the love of God. If there is a secret-if there is good news for believers, it is this- when we come to know the love of God personally, when we realize that He has poured out His love in our hearts, everything changes. When God’s love is manifest or made real to us in a personal way and we abide in His love, the keeping of His commandments and doing the things that please Him becomes natural! No longer do we have to ‘try’ to do what He commands, and no longer are his commandments burdensome. His love frees us to be all that He wants us to be, and now we see His words as the way to life. His love being active in us, transforming us, is part of the new nature that He has given us. No longer do we have to labor under trying to keep His word-now His commandments become our desire and our delight. Psalm 19 describes the ways and words of God as being sweeter than honey. Now, we can read 1 Corinthians 13 and feel no guilt-but say ‘amen’ to the picture of the love of God and we can be living expressions of that love. It was God’s love that caused Him to send His Son to be the Savior, to redeem His people who had lost their way, who had turned from Him. Let us be people who by our actions, express the unselfish love of God-there is no higher call or more fulfilling life than that of demonstrating the love of God. “We love because He first loved us.” 1 John 4:19. Someone has said: “If we are not loving well, we are not living well.”
1 Corinthians 13:1 “If I speak with the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal.”
1 John 4:16 “And we have come to know and have believed the love which God has for us. God is love, and the one who abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him.”
Blessings,
Buddy
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