Your Love For All God's People

 Paul had heard of the Ephesians "love for all God's people."  We can have a brotherly love of the brethren. But there is agape or godly love expressed by faith. "All that counts is faith expressing itself through love." Gal. 5:6  The problem with most Christians is that they don't love those they don't like or have no respect for or even offend them. Loving and liking are mutually exclusive.  You can do one without the other.  We are to love, not necessarily "like," someone and this love is not a touchy-feely type or emotive love, but expressions of love by action: Do not love in word and speech but in action and truth." 1 John 3:19  

Yes, we can love those that are offensive, this is tough love and a challenge to our senses. God may be calling us to love the most unlovable or unlovely!  We are called to love our neighbor as ourselves and to be good Samaritans as the epitome of that.  Be friendly then!  Show yourself a neighbor when the need presents itself.  We must have a special bond and love for our brethren for Jesus said, that that would be how they will know we are Christians (by our love for one another). It isn't necessarily a sin to not like someone or to be offended but to act on it in a biased and unfair or unfriendly manner. 

We may not feel love but that mean we cannot show love by doing the right thing or doing things in love or out of love as a motive. Watch your conduct and the feelings will follow!  The divine order must be fact, faith, feeling .. never go by feelings, even in your faith. Just because you don't feel love for someone doesn't mean you don't love them or cannot show and live in love. Soli Deo Gloria!

What's The Power Of Love?

 

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I found your question difficult to decipher but these are my thoughts:

“Now, these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.” “Love bears all, believes all, hopes all, endures all.” Perfect love also casts out fear! (stronger than the enemy of fear!). I dont’ think it says love conquers all in so many words. But love never fails! (very good to know). Love is simply a stronger and longer-lasting emotion than hate and a better motivator: “Many waters cannot quench love.” “Love covers a multitude of sins.” “Let all you do, do in love.” Note: it was Christ’s love that kept Him on the cross, not the nails!

It is God’s defining trait and describes His relationship with us. Love needs a recipient, a person to express it with! I would say love is strong because it’s God’s will and He is with us as we fulfill Christ’s command to love another even as He has loved us. I believe love is stronger than hate because God is love and one avails himself of godliness and God’s nature. When we are obedient to God, we spread His love and love one another to fulfill the Law. Jesus did sum up the whole Law in the act of love: loving our neighbor as ourselves.

We are to know the love of God in Christ whose love surpasses understanding. We are to be motivated by love and this is not sentimentality or touchy-feely love but the right attitude towards one and not just in words but in deeds and truth. We can do great things but if we have not love they amount to nothing; love is the determining factor of their value.

God conquers all because He is omnipotent (having all power over creation) and the Almighty or El Shaddai, not because He is love. God also hates and has other emotions, He loathes sin and evil and must judge it in His wrath. But this does not define His deity or nature. For instance, God doesn’t let the emotion of hate force Him to immediately cast people into hell; He is also patient with the sinner and desires them to repent and takes no pleasure in their death.

Note: Some think that just because their motive is love (and I do not mean being a people person) that this is all that matters to God. God sees the methods as well as the end results. We cannot get by saying, “O, I meant well!” Christians have no excuse since love is the fruit of the Spirit and should be our calling card to our neighbor. Soli Deo Gloria!

The Obedient Believer Part II

 "And we are witnesses to these things, and so is the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey him"  (Acts 5:32, ESV).

"[T]eaching them to observe all that I have commanded you..." (Matt. 28:20, ESV). 
"And being made perfect, he became the source of eternal [not temporary, probationary, nor provisional!] salvation to all who obey him" (Heb. 5:9, ESV).  
"For they have not all obeyed the gospel..." (Rom. 10:16, ESV).
"[I]n flaming fire, inflicting vengeance on those who do not know God and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus"  (2 Thess. 1:8, ESV).

"... [A]nd a great many of the priests became obedient to the faith"  (Acts 6:7, ESV).  Unbelievers are called "sons of disobedience" in Eph. 2:2 and God delights in obedience:  "To obey is better than sacrifice..." (cf. 1 Sam. 15:22).  Jesus said that you cannot love Him and be disobedient, for if we love Him we will obey Him as the proof of the pudding.  Christ doesn't give suggestions, hints, or good advice, but commands!  He instituted two ordinances to be done in His name and memory (baptism and communion).  Jesus said, "Whoever has my commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves me..."  (John 14:21, ESV).  What are these commands that are so pivotal to our salvation being fulfilled?

Jesus did say that His yoke is easy and His burden is light in Matt. 11:30, and John said in 1 John 5:3 that His "commands are not burdensome."  "And this is his commandment, that we believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ and love one another, just as he has commanded us"  (1 John 3:23, ESV). Note that in the Upper Room Jesus instigated a new command:  to love one another as Christ has loved us.  He who loves another has fulfilled the Law!  Paul says in Gal. 5:6 (NIV) that the only thing that matters is "faith expressing itself through love."

At the Bema or tribunal of Christ, our works will be judged, not our shortcomings and mistakes or sins, because they were judged at the cross, and this includes sins of omission.  If Jesus commanded us to do something and we fail, it's a sin of omission.  He is not going to inquire as to what school of theology or denomination we subscribed to, but will be interested in granting us rewards for the deeds done in the Spirit--the ones done in the energy of the flesh will be burned as wood, hay, and stubble in a fire (cf. 1 Cor. 3:10-13).  Sin can be defined as knowing the right thing to do and falling short or not doing it.  There is a legitimate place for ignorance if it's not willful.

There is a danger in sectarian pride and bias, such as feeling you're right and everyone else is wrong or disobedient to the Word of Truth.  Churches aren't saved en masse, but members individually as if going through a turnstile one at a time.  A good believing and faithful Lutheran has the edge over a disobedient Baptist because churches don't save and aren't necessary for salvation, as Roman Catholics espouse, Christ alone is the Savior.  However, it is important to remain faithful to the faith you were taught and to abide in the truth without apostasy or heresy.  A church is a cult when they get exclusive and think they have a monopoly on the truth, or think they are superior to other churches or denominations.

The real reason we get baptized is that we are disciples who desire to follow our Lord and His example in baptism to inaugurate or make our testimony official and public.  We should never feel that it is just a hurdle to jump over or test to pass to get accepted and that we "have to do it for salvation."  Grace-oriented believers never feel they "have to" but that they "get to" or "want to" obey their Lord and do as He did, following in His steps.  Baptism is a chance in a lifetime to get on track and give your testimony in public in order to be welcomed with "the right hand of fellowship" per Gal. 2:9 (ESV).

There are many measures and standards of obedience, and Dietrich Bonhoeffer said that only he who believes is obedient, and only he who is obedient believes: "And we are witnesses to these things, and so is the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey him"  (Acts 5:32, ESV).   Whether we pray regularly and walk in the Spirit, abide in the Word, witness and fellowship and worship through association with the body of Christ are also crucial factors to weigh and consider.

You cannot say that Baptists are the obedient believers because they are correct in this ordinance (i.e., baptism), while Lutherans are disobedient.   There are way too many aspects of obedience to just label believers like that due to sectarian bias.  As Paul says in Rom. 1:5 that he wants to "bring about the obedience of the faith," he is primarily concerned with the entirety of the person's walk--the whole package, net effect, or sum total and result.

The church needs to fulfill the Great Commission to be obedient as a body, though individuals can do it, it's usually a joint and cooperative effort to evangelize, preach, teach, baptize, and disciple.   As Jesus said, "To whom much is given, much is required."    But teachers are especially responsible for disseminating sound doctrine and being good examples to the flock.  Soli Deo Gloria!

Liking Someone On One's Spiritual Book

"And I pray this:  that your love will keep on growing in knowledge and every kind of discernment" (Eph. 1:9, HCSB).
"... People without discernment are doomed [ruined]" (Hosea 4:14, HCSB).

We don't just "like" someone on Facebook, but also in everyday life as we choose for ourselves who we want to look up to and emulate or even just feel a natural affection for.  We don't have to "like" anyone, not even on Facebook!  Of course, this doesn't mean we don't have to love our enemies, our neighbors, and brethren in Christ, but this is agape love from God and is a choice of the will, not a matter of feelings.  Loving and liking are not synonymous! 

It has been pointed out that we must love our enemies (I believe this means personal ones, not enemies of the state, for example) as well as our neighbors (those in our orbit or association and those who need us) and even friends because often we cannot tell the difference; they may be the same person!  We cannot always control our feelings and have the God-given right to exercise affection to whom we will. There is usually a natural affection for our family and kin and this isn't something demanded or commanded either.  We must love with all discernment and insight and not without discrimination.

Note that the Bible doesn't command us to like our parents nor for wives to like their husbands, but to respect and honor them which is different.  The point is that you can love someone without liking them and you may not feel much affection toward a baby who needs changing, but your love doesn't waver. Love is basically a choice and an attitude, not a warm, touchy-feely, fuzzy feeling.   Love takes many forms and I do not mean to over-generalize and make it seem like it's natural or okay to dislike everyone like we're everyone's judge and critic.

But practically speaking, one may not like one's political leaders though one believes in rendering respect and honor to whom it is due; but when a politician is evil and corrupt that entitlement may be precarious and lost because of our higher allegiances to principles and God.  That doesn't mean we don't obey our leaders when giving a law or legitimate order or command, but even in the military one may dislike one's commanding officer and yet show due respect by obeying, saluting, and even saying "Yes, sir!" when necessary.

There is redeeming social value in everyone due to the image of God in them, though this image is tarnished but being renewed after salvation. The point is that no one is totally evil nor utterly corrupt, but they are radically corrupt before salvation (we are as bad off as can be but not as bad as we can be due to God's restraints) and every aspect of their character and person is affected by the fall.   But overall, we have a right to like whom we choose to like! We all must have standards and not "like" indiscriminately without discernment. 

However, even if my enemy needed me, I would respond in a loving manner no matter what I thought of his personality or character.  I think that there is more danger in saying one really likes a perceived evil ruler rather than saying he doesn't--I would wonder if he's taken leave of his senses and lacks any discernment.  Likewise, we don't have to show respect or deference to everyone either, besides not violating their person or as being fellow human beings in the image of God with personal rights and dignity--we show respect to whom it's due!

In summation, we may feel we like certain people especially and befriend them--this is an honor, not a demand--we have a right to choose our friends but not our relatives whom we must accept and tolerate, not necessarily even like.  We aren't everyone's friend either!

NB:  The terminology of liking and loving someone is overused and misused in the English language and often we need to define terms or elaborate on what exactly we intend to say like Voltaire said, "If you want to discourse with me, define your terms."   Soli Deo Gloria!

Defining God's Love

Love has been defined as doing what's in the best interest of another, and it doesn't necessitate the presence of emotion or passion but an attitude.  God's love is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Spirit (cf. Rom. 5:5) and as believers, we desire to pass it on and express it in a brotherly manner.

The Bible says twice in 1 John 4 (vv. 8, 16) that "God is love."  I might add, "God is love, period."  That is God's essence and what defines Him.  He knows only how to be loving and wants to express it towards a stubborn, rebellious world.  That doesn't mean He doesn't get angry at sin but His love never wavers.  But man confuses this with the expression, "Love is God," which means that as long as love is involved, it's merited and approved by God.  Note that today's New Morality defines anything as right or moral that has a good motive--that one meant well or had the intention of a loving heart.  In God's economy, something is only right if the motive, the method, and the end result or goal is pure and right in God's eyes.

We truly don't limit love to God, for love is part of the image of God He has bestowed on us, but God is the One who delimits what it is.  Love is to be consistent with God's character and essence.  And God defines how we should express our love; for instance, hugs for brotherly love, discipline can be its expression for wrongdoing, and sex the expression of marital love.  There is the natural and unnatural expression of love:  love for children, parents, siblings, friends, and others not having sexual relations with is natural; however when there is pedophilia or lust of any kind, which is unnatural desire, it's not an appropriate expression of love.

Homosexuals believe they have a right to express their love their own way; however, no one has the right to do their own thing--which is the essence of sin. There's nothing wrong when a man loves a man, but when sex is involved it becomes perverted and wrong.  Sex is reserved for the marital state and its fulfillment can only be by God's design.  Any perversion of God's standards is breaking faith with the Designer.  God is no celestial killjoy just trying to stop us from having fun either, but this is for our own good and we are hard-wired this way and can only find true fulfillment and meaning following God's will.

We are not to define ourselves or who we are by our sexual identity either.  Saying "I was born this way," or "I am just who I am," or "You must accept me," all are misleading and fail the truth test. They are implying that God made a mistake and made other expressions of sex besides in the marriage of a man and a woman, as Jesus endorsed.  God made man male and female and defined two states of bliss:  marriage and celibacy.  There is no excuse in saying we are born this way because we are all born sinners and must confess and repent of our sins, even heterosexual ones such as adultery and fornication and sexual immorality of any kind.  We cannot say that we just cannot help ourselves any more than a liar saying he cannot help but lie and is therefore justified, or a rapist in raping.

Another thing about transcendent law or objective, moral law is that it never changes:  what Moses said was wrong is still valid and times may change but morals don't in God's economy.  Common law is usually based on historical precedent such as the Bible.  Just because a society has accepted something as moral, doesn't mean God has put His stamp of approval on it when it's condemned in Scripture.  The Bible deals in absolutes and there is no changing His mind on the issues from the giving of the Law.

Such expressions as "love is love," "make love, not war," and "free love" are not biblical and against the Christian worldview that love is a gift of God to be cherished and nurtured in the state of matrimony in its sexual expression.  We wouldn't have known love had not God sent His Son and the point is that we didn't love Him but He loved us!  If we love not we know not God for God is love and He who loves fulfills the law for there is no law against love.

We must never accuse God or the Bible of being wrong and leave the applications and definitions of love to man.  The Bible was not written by merely fallible authors but was God-breathed or inspired by God.  People think they are in a position to judge God, but don't realize that on Judgment Day they will be the ones judged by God. We are not His judge, He is our judge!   In sum, to oppose God's definition of love is a form of hatred, and should be called a hate crime; i.e., not to oppose man's convention, traditions, or laws; God's not against love, just how it's expressed within the boundaries and rules He has made.       Soli Deo Gloria!

What Really Counts Is Love In Action

"Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for whoever loves others has fulfilled the law" (Rom. 13:8, NIV).  "For the entire law is fulfilled in keeping this one command:  'Love your neighbor as yourself'" (Gal. 5:14, NIV).
  
Christians are to be God's voice of love in the world, where communication has broken down, and even where there is a failure to communicate.  As Bertrand Russell said,  "[W]hat the world needs is Christian love or compassion."  We have a good message to share: one that transforms and offers genuine, in-real-time hope.  There is so much disinformation, outright lies, propaganda, fake news, and mudslinging out there that a believer can hardly discern good from evil and truth from falsehood.  The mature Christian knows good from evil and "hates evil," a definition for fearing the Lord. We live in a day and age when "the powers that be" are those of the most clout by virtue of donations and PAC money, almost unlimited spending on behalf of special interests--power is bought!

The so-called Evangelical Right has hijacked the Christian faith claiming to stand for it and going against its agenda labels you a "liberal." The Evangelical Right isn't always right though it presumes to speak in God's name!  There are many believers they don't speak for.  God doesn't approve of using labels for people because that is a way of judging them or putting them in a box or analyzing them.  People are complicated and in God's image and deserve the benefit of the doubt on disagreements--don't be an extremist or absolutist.  We shouldn't quarrel about mere differences of opinion (cf. Rom. 14:1).  The world sees no love lost which is tragic.

 It seems like the ones who make the most noise make the biggest impact on politics without regard to right and wrong--people lose rationality when their emotions get the best of them.  You can be sure the most terrible sign of our times is that there is a rampant demonizing going on, where people think of their "tribe" as being all right, and the other "tribes" as being evil or all wrong. "My party, right or wrong!"  There is much so-called "groupthink" but this is when a group isn't thinking at all in reality.  Much could be accomplished if parents simply taught their children a little respect to whom respect is due (this doesn't mean agreeing with everything!).

There is a grain of truth in all political views and sometimes it's the ones that get the biggest rise out of people that are focused on.  The Christian virtue of tolerance is quite different from the world's view.  We respect a person's dignity and self-worth and the right to disagree with us, but we don't think their views are equally valid or they must accept our political views.  In fact, the only thing we are to be dogmatic on is Bible doctrine, not our political persuasions--leave room for disagreement--mere differences of opinion.  We can disagree without being disagreeable and agree to disagree on some issues that the Bible isn't clear about or is open to interpretation.

It's all about putting love into action and living out our faith so that others can see we are true to our colors.   As Paul said in Gal. 5:6 that "the only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love" (cf. NIV).  We are to win people over by example!  This means applying the Bible to political movements and issues.  It is a compliment when believers are known by their love.  That is the telltale sign and mark of a true Christian, who simply wants to pass on the experience of love in Christ he has known.  We ought to win them over by our example of love in action expressing our faith through good deeds.  It is far more important to God that the believer's heart be in the right place than he belongs to the right party.  God is not a member of a party since that would be putting Him in a box or labeling Him!  It so vitally important to know that God will not ask us what party we belonged to, but whether we loved the brethren.

We ought not to be known as the Evangelical Right but as the "Evangelical."  But there has been a cleavage in politics today!  There are people who actually despise Christians because of the appalling fruit of the Evangelical Right!   When will they learn that not all problems are political and politics is not always the answer?  (WHAT ABOUT INTERCESSION?)  Hasn't God commissioned us to transform the culture and persons by example, evangelizing, and by doing good deeds with reforms such as ending slavery, not to take over the government in the name of Christ, and hijack the faith to be revolutionists in the name of God?

NB:  There are no certain types of government though that God endorses;  one thing they ought to be dedicated to is the rule of law, separation of powers, equality under the law, liberty for all without exception, respect for human dignity, natural law, and human rights conferred by God and secured by government--all are biblical and can be summed up with justice for all ("all men are created equal"), and God is opposed to the perversion of justice.  CAVEAT:  WE ARE KNOWN BY OUR FRUITS AND IT'S EVIL TO SOW DISCORD AND FOSTER DIVISION AMONG BROTHERS, SINCE THE STRATEGY OF THE DEVIL IS TO DIVIDE AND CONQUER.  Soli Deo Gloria!  

Oh, Theophilus (Lover Of God)!

Jesus said that if we love Him, we will keep His commandments.  Our love is contingent upon obedience, not feeling or maudlin sentimentality, which can fluctuate like a weather vane in a whirlwind.   Some believers are more demonstrative than others, while some timid or inhibited believers are sometimes stoical, even with secular matters they show restraint at showing motion publicly--they may be too self-conscious or don't want people to notice them or deflect attention off Christ.  The focus of our worship and love should be Christ and not how we express it--there is a no-size-fits-all way to worship!  We're all hard-wired uniquely to complement the body!

The measure of faith is our obedience and its only yardstick. "Only he who believes is obedient; only he who is obedient believes" (Bonhoeffer).  Love is not merely a sentiment or getting a spiritual high or intoxication on Jesus--though it may be a preoccupation!  We don't walk in the glow of some religious experience all our lives. It's not about walking on Cloud Nine all day!  We have to have our valleys to test our faith, as God withdrew from Hezekiah to see what was really on his heart (2 Chron. 32:3not 1).

God wants to know how we will act by faith, not feeling!  (not paying "lip service," Isa. 29:13; Jer. 12:2).   For we walk by faith, not by sight! (cf. 2 Cor. 5:17).  It is faith that pleases God (cf. Heb. 11:6)--He will not say to us, "How great awesome your feelings!"  Some people just have no control over their feelings and give full vent to them regardless of them being good or bad.  Jesus commended the Canaanite woman for her faith!  The Roman centurion was also commended for his faith!

What does it mean then to love God with all our hearts?  It means all that we are:  our wills or volition; our emotion or sentiment; and, of course, our intellect or mind.  Everyone seems to be strong in some areas and weak in others--for we all fall short and are works in progress.  The point is that we are sincere in our love and worship and don't feign love or try to be someone or something we are not to impress others.

Our faith isn't how much we believe, but how well we obey.   Our obedience is measured by how we love with our volition and submit to God's will; our emotions may be expressed by outbursts and feelings shared with others, and loving with our intellect measured by how we use or don't use our God-given brains and talents.  We cannot say that someone is an intellectual and is just wired that way to be insensitive and impassive in other ways, no more than we can say one is emotive and foolish and reckless in expression.

We must seek to love God with our full and complete personality--all that we are and strive to be in Christ (OUR SOUL, MAKEUP, OR PERSONHOOD--WHAT DEFINES US!).  That's why Scripture says to love God with all our soul, all our mind, all our strength, and all our heart!  That just about covers all the bases and shows that we all have room for improvement and growth, for God isn't finished with us yet and we all must enroll in His school of love!

Christians are in love with Jesus (not just the idea of Jesus) and He is the Great Lover of our soul, who loves us for who we are and accepts us with baggage, flaws, and blemishes, and all!   The believer's walk is a romance with God and we grow in our love by means of obedience and communion or fellowship on a daily basis.

We are to grow in our love of the Lord and it's a thrill meant to last a lifetime.  All believers have a different strong suit or forte of how they express their love for God--we might do it through our spiritual gift and in our service to Christ either in our mission to the unsaved or in ministry to the body.  At the Bema of Christ, we all await the final verdict:  "Well done, thou good and faithful servant!"  And we must never divorce faith and faithfulness!

The important lesson to glean is that we should never compare ourselves to others and get jealous of their gift or abilities, talents, responsibilities, or opportunities.  There are two common errors in the body:  gift projection, whereby we expect others to be like us; and gift envy, whereby we wish we had someone else's gift--we will all be judged individually and personally!  CAVEAT:  Don't let someone belittle your gift!   Christians are lovers in essence and what the world needs is more Christian love (our primary gift), according to Bertrand Russell, British mathematician, and an atheist philosopher.

Christ didn't found an empire on war or the sword, but by being the Emperor of Love, according to Napoleon Bonaparte.  NB:  Christ never asks us to do anything He didn't do--He gave all for us and we must return the favor by denying ourselves, taking up our cross, and following Him, as our expression of love.  The expression of love is self-sacrifice, the opposite of being selfish and living for oneself--love gives of oneself sacrificially!  Remember who gave the ultimate sacrifice for us--His all!

A measure of our love for God can be seen in how we love our neighbor and especially the brethren too!   This is love in action and love applied!   He who loves another has fulfilled the law, according to Romans 13:8.  "For the entire law is fulfilled in keeping this one command:  "Love your neighbor as yourself.'" (Gal. 5:14, NIV).  "Love does no harm to a neighbor.  Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law" (Rom. 13:10, NIV).  We have no right to claim a love of God if we do not love one another, for love is the fruit of the Spirit in all believers, which is shed abroad in our hearts (cf. Rom. 5:5).  The institution of matrimony is meant to be the image of Christ's love for the church and this is one vehicle for learning and applying the love we experience in Christ.  Soli Deo Gloria!

Love Is Our Biggest Asset To Share

"What the world needs now, is love, sweet love; it's the only thing that there's just too little of..." -- a folk song of the 60s
"All you need is love .. Spread the word, the word is love!" --song lyric from The Beatles
"How these Christians love one another." --Celsus, second-century Greek philosopher
"Love makes the world go round." --song lyric from 1961 Broadway play Carnival!
"By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another" (John 13:35, NIV).
"We love because he first loved us" (1 John 4:19, NIV).
"But children, let us not love with words or speech but with action and truth" (1 John 3:18, NIV).
"Once you've experienced it [the love of God], you want to pass it on!" --famous gospel song

Atheist philosopher Bertrand Russell said that "... what the world needs is more Christian love."  He was right that only Christianity is the faith with compassion.  How many hospitals and relief organizations have been founded by infidels?  It was the Christians who came to the rescue at the "killing fields" of Cambodia during the Khmer Rouge persecutions and atrocities post-Viet Nam.  The Eastern faiths recognize only karma as justice and believe people are to work out their own problems and suffer the results of their own evil and sin, which is some iron-clad law known as karma, working like cause and effect.  Mother Teresa Calcutta, now canonized by Rome and who received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1979, was only allowed to work with the "untouchables" of India because the elite or upper castes didn't care about them and had written them off.

There are basically three religions thriving in India (Islam, Hinduism, and Buddhism), with only a minority of Christians, who face persecution most everywhere, though the apostle Thomas founded a church there that still exists.  The best way to reach out to these pagans is to show them what they lack and what Christ has to offer: love.  Only Christianity is a faith of love and believes God is love; Muslims reject this kind of deity and the consequence is that the Golden Rule is also rejected because there is no reason to love the "infidel" or non-Muslim. 

The church needs believers filled with the Spirit and with the love of Christ to show what Christ can do in transforming souls.  Love is the first of the fruits of the Spirit and this means all Christians know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge through the Spirit. " It costs so little to teach one to love, and so much to teach them to hate," according to Father Flanagan, founder of Boys Town in Omaha, NE.

The point is that missionaries must start young, reaching out to the youth, who represent the future, and are not so committed to the traditions of the ancestors, but are impressionable and teachable.  If you want to change a nation for Christ, the younger generation must be reached and seeds planted. God's Word will not come back void (cf. Isa. 55:11).  Mother Teresa was right in her devotion:  Christ has no hands but ours to do His work, no voice but ours to speak up for Him, no ears but ours to listen for Him, and no feet but ours to go for Him.  We also have the mind of Christ to implement His will and to out-think the enemy. 

God wants to do a mighty work but He has chosen to use the church, not angels.  If we cannot go, we must be committed to sending and preparing, and even supporting those who will go.  Truly "God's love has been poured out into our hearts" and we are Christ's "ambassadors" and representatives of it on earth in real time 24/7.  (Cf. Rom. 5:5).

When we realize that the harvest is ready (cf. Matt. 9:37-38) and abundant like Jesus promised and predicted, we are all the more committed to the cause of the Great Commission.  The Lord of the Harvest is reaping and sending and calling missionaries to the mission field.  All Christians are given a part in this commission and must spread the Word to the best of their abilities, with their spiritual gift--we are all men and women on a mission!   The point is to start where we are--bloom where we are planted and let God promote us--and He will if we are willing.  I've heard it said that we should be willing to go anywhere, as long as it's forward to manifest this love--the greatest expression of love we can share is to preach the gospel in Jesus' name.  

Discipleship entails following Jesus wherever He leads us and no one knows the will of God for his entire life ahead of time, or where God may send him.  Look at Abraham, not knowing where he was going, but stepping out in faith.   The Christian life takes faith and walking in the Spirit on a daily basis through all life has to offer.  Christ's love has no ebb and flow like ours does, and we are given this agape or divine love in Christ in order to share with the world. The point is that no one knows where Christ will lead him if he's obedient to the heavenly calling.  One may join the military not knowing where he'll be deployed and God will use him, or his occupation may force moving to new locals to plant seeds.  All God asks is for us to be willing and obedient. As Mother Teresa said so eloquently: "It's not what you do, but how much love you put into it that matters."

But we must set our hearts upon finishing the mission given us ("my only aim is to finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me--the task of testifying to the good news of God's grace," (Acts 20:24, NIV).  We must not pawn the mission off on our brother, but seek the gift we have and be faithful to it, so the Lord will indeed say, "Well done, thou good and faithful servant."  We all have a part in this great work and no believer is diminished.   God doesn't want our achievements; He wants our obedience; to obey is better than sacrifice per 1 Sam. 15:22.  We must not disparage some one's gift or look down on him for we all must be faithful to what we are given.  We all share in the mission:  some go; some send; some prepare; some teach; some support;  some pray!   Soli Deo Gloria!

Sacrificial Love Displayed At Calvary Extraordinaire

It is said that the biological father makes a so-called contribution to the pregnancy--his seed--but the mother makes the sacrifice!  Her whole life is changed--sometimes ruined--while to him it's just a minor inconvenience or interruption!  She can't really get out of it, but often the man escapes and divorces or abandons the woman, even with the kids.  Most men see their sole role as being the basic breadwinner, provider, or the one charged to bring home the bacon, while the wife is to raise the kids and do all the legwork as it were.  This is because love is oft spelled T-I-M-E!  As they say: a woman's work is never done.  Parents have a lot invested in their children and the more investment, the deeper love; you can give without love, but you cannot love without giving. 

True sacrifice is when you suffer or give up something, not when you do something you would've done despite the benefits.  The ultimate sacrifice is really only done in the line of duty when a soldier gets killed in action, for example.  This compares to Christ making the ultimate sacrifice on our behalf at the cross because He didn't have to die at all if He hadn't chosen to save us by His substitutionary death.  The sacrificial type of living is when we live for others and not ourselves, and think of others first and what we can do for them, not what they can do for us.

Christ's atonement on the cross has been rightly termed the "mother of all sacrifices," in that it costs the most and also accomplished the most as a result--it was the infinite worth of the death of the Lamb of God and it accomplished our priceless, eternal redemption, propitiation, reconciliation, justification, and complete salvation.  To elaborate on the multifaceted atonement:  we were redeemed from the slave market of sin--the penalty was paid; we were justified in the court of God's law--becoming righteous; we were reconciled back into God's family with the relationship restored, and we have been propitiated in God's temple in that God paid the price to set us free and avert us from His wrath.

We behold, therefore, God's love manifested and in full display at the cross, whereby He gave all of Himself till it literally hurt and He actually did bleed on our behalf--we must likewise give of ourselves--noting God wants us, not our achievements, and not just what God gives us to be stewards of, as we go about "contributing to the needs of the saints."  Christ gave it all for us, and our crosses pale in comparison to His, as He doesn't ask us to give of anything He didn't accomplish Himself in exempting Himself of no pain nor suffering, we could possibly imagine. 

In sum, true love is always sacrificial, some people have never made any sacrifice for anything, especially the offering of our blood, sweat, and tears and we ought to challenge ourselves with the question of whether our love is inherently sacrificial--having something to lose--or is it just contributory, but going above and beyond the call of duty:  this means we ought to give till it hurts, not just what we can afford, for it to be sacrificial, and that necessities not giving God our leftovers of time, resources, energy, opportunities, money, interests, passions, abilities, experiences, talents, gifts, relationships, and what not, but putting Him in first place amongst our priorities--rearranging everything to His agenda!   Soli Deo Gloria! 

"Many Waters Cannot Quench Love" (Compare SOS 8:7, KJV)

"This is how we have come to know love:  He laid down His life for us..." (1 John 3:16, HCSB).
"God's love was revealed among us in this way:  God sent His One and Only Son into the world so that we might live through Him" (1 John 4:9, HCSB).
"Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits"  (Psalm 103:2, ESV).
"What shall I render to the LORD for all his benefits to me?" (Psalm 116:12, ESV).
"I am the good shepherd.  The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep" (John 10:11, HCSB).

When we survey the cross of Christ we see the unbounded, unrestricted love of Christ to the max, both human and divine intermingled, cooperative, and coexisting to full expression.  Oh, to know the love of God manifest in sending His Son:  "to know this love that surpasses understanding" (Eph. 3:19, NIV).  The concept of God's love must be seen in light of the fact that Jesus laid down His life for us, and it was not only sacrificial but generous.  God truly offers His love to a wayward world (cf. Titus 2:11) through the substitutionary death of His Son on the cross.  While we were enemies, He died for us (cf. Rom. 5:8)!

We often think that we merit God's love, but we don't and we are unworthy. The more unworthy our self-appraisal, the closer we are to God.  It is said that "love that reaches up is worship, love that extends outward is affection, but love that stoops is grace" and God condescended to us in reaching out and down to us when we didn't deserve it.  We have no claim on God's love and friendship, yet He offers it freely.  It is free, but not cheap!  God expects us to offer ourselves as living sacrifices; i.e., living our lives to His glory and service.  We must surrender to God's love, and the refusal of the love of God is the epitome of Sin, according to Karl Menninger, M.D.

When we resist God's love, we become callous or hardened in our souls and insensitive to His ministry in our hearts and cannot love others: God wants to love others through us!   The extent of God's love is demonstrated by all the people He can reach through us--no ethnicity, category, or class of man is excluded.  In this day and age politics plays a vital role in our social life and we must realize that God loves Democrats as well as Republicans, even if they are wrong--God doesn't love us because we are right or moral or decent, respectable and distinguished citizens who have achieved the American dream, God loves the have-nots as well as the haves; the proletariat as well as the bourgeoisie!

Financial prosperity is not the litmus test of God's love and approval--the wicked also prospers, if they are wise and play by the rules.  But we believers must realize that our reward is not in this life and the unbeliever's reward ["portion" in ESV] is in this life (cf. Psalm 17:14).  Prosperity theology, or that God guarantees and promises financial gain as a result of piety is heresy, and we are not to think of godliness as a means of gain in this life (cf. 1 Tim. 6:5).  "But godliness with contentment is great gain" (1 Tim. 6:6, NIV).

The uniqueness of God's love is that we cannot escape it: no matter where we go it follows us; angels and demons cannot separate us from it; the stars have no power over us; death and hell cannot divide us from it; we ourselves cannot outlast it or negate its power over us.  The Hound of Heaven chases us down and dogs us till He finds us!  God is in love with us and is determined to express it through Jesus living in us!

We can find out for ourselves by experience as we know the love of God (2 Cor. 13:14).  The proof is in the pudding and we are challenged to invite Christ into our hearts so we can know it for ourselves.  Indeed, the love of God is shed into our hearts according to Rom. 5:5.  The primary fruit of the Spirit is love (cf. Gal. 5:22), and the "only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love" (cf. Gal. 5:6, NIV). The point is not that we loved God, but that He loved us and "we love Him because He first loved us" (1 John 4:19).  That's why Karl Barth was asked what was the most profound truth in Scripture:  "Jesus loves me!"

God's love must be seen characteristically and can be qualified:  it's universal, in that it applies to all without discrimination, favoritism, or partiality--God is no respecter of persons; it's gracious, in that we don't deserve it, can't earn it, nor ever be able to pay it back; it's sacrificial, in that it cost Christ His death on the cross on our behalf; and it's beneficial, in that we receive multifold bounties and blessings by virtue of being reconciled to God and recipients of the love, that has fringe benefits or perks--it pays to know God!  The wonderful news is that God loves us despite ourselves, and knew all about us before we were born, so He is never surprised by our behavior and can love us eternally--God loves us anyway.

Realizing our unworthiness and being grateful for God's love is the first step to finding God in Christ through the substitutionary death of Christ on the cross by virtue of grace via a personal exercise of faith in the person and work of God's Son.  In effect, at the crucifixion, Christ was reaching out His hands and saying, "This is how much I love you!"  It was not the nails that kept Him on the cross, but His eternal love!  And this is the crux of the matter:  Once you've experienced it, you want to pass it on! God saves us to be in turn a blessing (cf. Zech. 8:13)!

In the final analysis, there's no one God cannot love or reach out to through us when He lives in us by the Holy Spirit's anointing. The heart of the matter, it's said, is that its a matter of the heart!  In sum, the essence of God's nature is love, and to know God is to know the love of God; love defines Him and it is written thus: "God is love" (1 John 4:8, 16).

   Soli Deo Gloria!

Our God Of Love

"[And] to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God"  (Ephesians 3:19, ESV).

"This is how we know what love is:  Jesus Christ laid down his life for us..." (1 John 3:16, NIV).

"This is real love--not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins" (1 John 4:10, NLT).

God expressed His love in giving us His Son to die on our behalf--there isn't any greater love than to lay down your life for another.--God did it for us while we were His enemies!  Muslims, on the other hand, deny that God is a God of love, or specifically, that God is love, meaning that the essence of God is love, i.e., His defining attribute.  What do you say to someone who doesn't believe in love? The Word says that he who loves another has fulfilled the law, and we ought to love the brethren like Jesus loved us--sacrificially and faithfully.  Muslims believe that it's okay to hate people and even to murder in the name of Allah--the concept of love being the gift of God is foreign to them and their dogma.

This is how we know we are believers: by the love, we have toward one another, and the New Commandment Jesus gave was to love another like He loved us (cf. John 13:35).  As it is written:  "Herein in love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us!" (Cf. 1 John 4:10).   We cannot limit this love, for Jesus' love is beyond comprehension.--the finite cannot contain the infinite!  The love God showed to us can never be repaid, and we don't deserve it and didn't earn it--that's grace or love that condescends to our level.

This is how we know that we belong to Christ: by love, we have for one another.  Spread the word; the word is love!  Mother Teresa was right:  It doesn't matter what you do, but how much love you put into it!  Even Bertrand Russell, the famed British atheist philosopher-mathematician said,  "... What the world needs is more Christian love."  "We love because he first loved us" (1 John 4:19, NIV).  In fact, we only know what love is because God chose to reveal it in the giving of His Son, who laid down His life for us! (Cf. 1 John 3:16).  What expression of love in the Father calling us His children (cf. 1 John 3:1)!  It's not that we loved God, but that He loved us!

What we know from Scripture is that he who loves knows God--and love is the fruit of the Spirit--in fact the fruit (the other eight winsome graces of Gal. 5:22-23 are just manifestations of love in action).  Once you've experienced the love of God, you want to pass it on!  Just like you cannot disprove God, because it's irrational to prove a universal negative, you cannot prove there is no love in the universe, even if you say you don't believe in love!  Poor souls who've never experienced love and are therefore skeptics!  Love still objectively exists, regardless of whether one agrees with it or not--it just exists! The soul to be pitied is the one that is unloved by his fellow man or who never finds true love in life!  This is the ultimate sign that we are born again:  We have experienced love and know what love is on a personal level, not just second-hand.   The bottom line is that the worst insult one can receive is that the love of the Father does not dwell in him.

God, nevertheless, exists whether we affirm His existence or deny it as unbelievers.  The infidel has blind faith, not the believer because the believer has sound reasons to believe, and not knowing why you don't believe, or having no legitimate reason is blind faith.  There is ample evidence for those willing to do God's will, while there's never enough evidence for the hardened heart and stubborn skeptic. God and love can be distinguished, but not separated, since God is a God of love and God is love.  As Paul says in Gal. 5:6, NIV, "... The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love." Beloved, as John says, "... [Let] us not love [merely] with words or tongue, but with actions and in truth" (1 John 2:18, NIV).  In conclusion, I cannot but recall the cherished song by The Beatles:  "All You Need Is Love."    Soli Deo Gloria!