SIMPLIFIED

 
January 8, 2018                          SIMPLIFIED
John 14:21,24 “He who has My commandments and keeps them, he it is who loves Me; and he who loves Me shall be loved by My Father, and I will love him, and will disclose Myself to him.      He who does not love Me does not keep My words; and the word which you hear is not Mine, but the Fathers who sent Me.
The truth found in these two verses is liberating, freeing us from the subtle lie that says that we must be diligent to obey the word of God so that He will love us and be pleased with us. It is at this point that many believers err in their understanding of the gospel, and this error robs them of the life that God has made available to them. The idea of earning, and doing what is necessary in order to get what we want, is something that is built into human nature; if we want something, even a good relationship with God, then we must do whatever it is we think we must do to get it. But many have gotten the ‘cart before the horse’ so to speak. The point in this verse that liberates us is often missed or overlooked. The ‘wow’ of this verse is that if love Him, we will thirst and long for, and will keep His commandments. Loving God makes the keeping of His words a natural response on our part-it is a part of our new nature. It’s not too extreme to say that as believers, we do not have to fret over whether or not we are keeping His word, BECAUSE, keeping His word and walking in His ways is what we do WHEN we love Him. If there is anything clear in the word of God, it is that even though we were undeserving, He loved us in our lost condition; He demonstrated this love by sending His Son to be the sacrifice for our sins that we might be born again. The center piece of this new birth is that of God making us new, giving us a new nature. Being given a new nature is no small thing; it is indeed a miracle. With this new nature, we are no longer limited or bound to mere human nature. You could put all people alive today in one of three groups: those who do not know God as Savior and thus are limited to living according to human nature; those who know God as Savior and live out of their new nature; and those who know God as Savior, but continue to live according to their flesh, or human nature. Those that make up this last group do not live according to their new nature because they are either ignorant of the blessing of the new birth, or they simply choose to be disobedient to the words of God-a tragic way to live. The good news is that it is the love of God that makes all the difference. Once we experience, once we taste, once we come to know the love of God for us individually, our desires and motivations change, our thinking changes, our responses change; the power of His love changes us from the inside out. (How do we encounter this love of God? A good question. All I can say is that starts with a desire to know Him. Then you may ask, how does one get this desire to know Him. Again, all I can say is to make a conscience choice to think about God; simply ask God to begin to reveal Himself to you; and most importantly, view the written word of God as just that-the written word of God in which He reveals Himself. Develop a hunger for God. Confess that you need Him.) Simply said, according to this verse, if we find that we pay little or no attention to His words or if we are not keeping His words, then we do not love Him-even though we may say we do. I know that is a painful truth for some-but it is not a condemning word. The word for us today is for us to probe our own heart to determine if our love for Him is evidenced by our keeping His words.
Ephesians 2:4-5: “But because of His great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions-it is by grace you have been saved.”
Blessings,
Buddy