January 9, 2021 THE SECRET
John 14:21,23 “He who has My commandments and keeps them is the one who loves Me; and he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and will reveal Myself to him.” “If a man love me, he will keep My words: and My Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.”
Proverbs 8:17 “I love those who love Me, and those who seek find Me.”
It is a two sided coin. In a general sense, God reveals Himself and makes Himself known to everyone everywhere. Also true, God hides Himself; it may seem that He is hard to find or to experience. It may sound reasonable, and it is a common perception, that if we keep His commandments and do the things He wants us to do, we will ‘find’ Him and He will be pleased with us. This perception leads to a spiritual roller-coaster ride and to discouragement because it is impossible for us by our own efforts and best intentions to keep the ways of God. Our journey with the Lord and our spiritual well-being must be grounded in love. We must understand that walking in the ways of the Lord and keeping His commandments and doing the things that please Him IS A RESULT OF loving Him. Our love for Him is evidenced by our thought life, our desire to know Him, our heart to know Him, and our actions. Only when He is our greatest desire will we discover Him in the more intimate ways. The wonderful, simplifying truth is that loving God results in a life pleasing to the Lord. It is only natural; when we love Him, we desire to do the things that please Him. When we love Him, keeping His commandments is not burdensome or sacrificial, but rather a pleasure. All of His commandments are good and they lead to life. We also must know that we cannot take credit for loving Him because God first loved us and it is God who draws us to Himself. God demonstrated His love for us and opened to door for us to love Him. Human love fails; however, God has poured out His love into our hearts and now we can love Him, and others, with a God kind of love-a love that does not fail. When we love God, wonderful things happen; He reveals Himself to us and He and the Father make their abode with us. Wow! Loving God and having Him abode with us is the ultimate blessing in life; it brings peace, contentment, joy, and it is the power that make us overcomers in life. Letting us find Him, and having Him make His abode in us, does not mean that we will have no trials and difficulties in this life, but it does mean that we will know His comfort and His provision during such times.
1 John 4:16 “We know and have believed the love which God hath in us. God is love; and he that abideth in love abideth in God, and God abideth in him.”
Jeremiah 29:13 “And you will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart.”
Blessings,
Buddy
RSS Feed