Good morning,
"I give you a new commandment: that you should love one another. Just as I have loved you, so you too should love one another. By this shall all [men] know that you are My disciples, if you love one another [if you keep on showing love among yourselves]." (John 13:34-35)
As we meditate on this verse, especially as we approach some refining
days and moments concerning our love walk, let's talk about the word
commandment. Commandment means an order, command, charge, precept, injunction; a directive by One in authority. So
walking in love with one another is something that we must do, as
a born-again Christian, it is not a choice. We will encounter
some days ahead that will challenge our love walk, so we must be
diligent and consistent since loving the Family of God is important as
it would be to any father. If there are issues in our hearts towards our
brothers or sisters in the Family we must do whatever is needed to
come up to the level of God's love for us. He said, "just as I have loved you so you too love". Just as denotes according as; just as; even as; in proportion as; in the degree that. We
are to love our brothers and sisters in Christ to the degree and in the
proportion that Christ loves us in. Now that is no small feat, but we
are up to it, otherwise God would be unjust and unfair to require
something of us that He knows we could never do. I keep mentioning love
because we are in the days where all around us we can see the Bible in
high definition. "You should know this, that in the last days there will be very difficult times. For people will love only themselves and their money. They will be boastful and proud, scoffers at God, disobedient to their
parents and ungrateful. They will consider nothing sacred. They will be unloving and unforgiving;
they will slander others and have no self control. They will be cruel
and hate what is good. They will betray their friends, be reckless, be
puffed up with pride, and love pleasure rather than God." (2 Timothy
3:1-4) I am sure that you have experienced
for yourself an abnormal amount of indifference to loving others in the
Body of Christ. Oh, we all have those moments when a catastrophe hits
our community that people will rise up and put forth that burst of
compassion, but God wants His children to develop an enduring love and
compassion. It is that 70×70 forgiveness that we must master.
As we meditate on this verse, especially as we approach some refining
days and moments concerning our love walk, let's talk about the word
commandment. Commandment means an order, command, charge, precept, injunction; a directive by One in authority. So
walking in love with one another is something that we must do, as
a born-again Christian, it is not a choice. We will encounter
some days ahead that will challenge our love walk, so we must be
diligent and consistent since loving the Family of God is important as
it would be to any father. If there are issues in our hearts towards our
brothers or sisters in the Family we must do whatever is needed to
come up to the level of God's love for us. He said, "just as I have loved you so you too love". Just as denotes according as; just as; even as; in proportion as; in the degree that. We
are to love our brothers and sisters in Christ to the degree and in the
proportion that Christ loves us in. Now that is no small feat, but we
are up to it, otherwise God would be unjust and unfair to require
something of us that He knows we could never do. I keep mentioning love
because we are in the days where all around us we can see the Bible in
high definition. "You should know this, that in the last days there will be very difficult times. For people will love only themselves and their money. They will be boastful and proud, scoffers at God, disobedient to their
parents and ungrateful. They will consider nothing sacred. They will be unloving and unforgiving;
they will slander others and have no self control. They will be cruel
and hate what is good. They will betray their friends, be reckless, be
puffed up with pride, and love pleasure rather than God." (2 Timothy
3:1-4) I am sure that you have experienced
for yourself an abnormal amount of indifference to loving others in the
Body of Christ. Oh, we all have those moments when a catastrophe hits
our community that people will rise up and put forth that burst of
compassion, but God wants His children to develop an enduring love and
compassion. It is that 70×70 forgiveness that we must master.
Lighten
up family, it's not that hard. Why? Because we have the expert Lover
inside of us. Holy Spirit is the greatest Teacher and all we have to do
is fill ourselves up with the Word of love, pay attention, and follow
His lead, He will show us how. Let's look at it as the next great
adventure in our lives. Do you have a list of things that you would like
to do before you go Home to be with the Father? Well I do, and at the
top of my list is to be like Father God, to love like He does. I really
think that He is out of this world, number One in loving people, don't
you? So listen, as we come closer to the return of our Lord, many people of
God will lose their love walk because of sin and lawlessness. Pay
attention, this is where we are heading, but our Lord will come for us
before we faint. Look at these verses and highlight the love and the
loss of it;
"And then many will be offended and repelled and will begin to distrust and desert [Him Whom they ought to trust and obey] and will stumble and fall away and betray one another and pursue one another with hatred… And the love of the great body of people will grow cold because of the multiplied lawlessness and iniquity. (Mtt. 24:10-12) Remember
this, where sin abounds, grace much more abounds. God's ability upon
your inability to love will be upon you and you will have enduring
love. [He who endures to the end shall be saved; Mtt. 24:13]. When our Lord comes he will find a loving, faithful family, not just talking about it but
being about it!
up family, it's not that hard. Why? Because we have the expert Lover
inside of us. Holy Spirit is the greatest Teacher and all we have to do
is fill ourselves up with the Word of love, pay attention, and follow
His lead, He will show us how. Let's look at it as the next great
adventure in our lives. Do you have a list of things that you would like
to do before you go Home to be with the Father? Well I do, and at the
top of my list is to be like Father God, to love like He does. I really
think that He is out of this world, number One in loving people, don't
you? So listen, as we come closer to the return of our Lord, many people of
God will lose their love walk because of sin and lawlessness. Pay
attention, this is where we are heading, but our Lord will come for us
before we faint. Look at these verses and highlight the love and the
loss of it;
"And then many will be offended and repelled and will begin to distrust and desert [Him Whom they ought to trust and obey] and will stumble and fall away and betray one another and pursue one another with hatred… And the love of the great body of people will grow cold because of the multiplied lawlessness and iniquity. (Mtt. 24:10-12) Remember
this, where sin abounds, grace much more abounds. God's ability upon
your inability to love will be upon you and you will have enduring
love. [He who endures to the end shall be saved; Mtt. 24:13]. When our Lord comes he will find a loving, faithful family, not just talking about it but
being about it!
Love,
Pastor D.
Daughters of Z 