LOVE MATTERS MOST IN OUR RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD AND MAN!

 EVERYDAY IN THE WORD!

TUESDAY AUGUST 23, 2022.

SUBJECT: LOVE MATTERS MOST IN OUR RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD AND MAN!

Memory verse: "By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another." (John 13 vs 35.)

READ: John 14 vs 15 - 18 & 21; First John 4 vs 7 - 8 & 12 - 13:

John 14:15: “If you love Me, keep My commandments.

14:16: And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever—

14:17: the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you.

14:18: I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you.

14:21: He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him.

First John 4:7: Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God.

4:8: He who does not love does not know God, for God is love.

4:12: No one has seen God at any time. If we love one another, God abides in us, and His love has been perfected in us. 

4:13: By this we know we abide in Him, and He in us, because He has given us His Spirit.

INTIMATION:

In leading a life of intimacy with God, love is what matters most. God is love, and to know God is to know how to love. God is invisible, and a Spirit. How then do you develop intimate relationship with Him when you can’t see Him? You only draw closer to Him if we love one another whom you see. 

God is the source of our love. He loved us enough to sacrifice His Son for us. Jesus is our example of what it means to love; everything He did in life and death was supremely loving. In death He gave us the Holy Spirit who gives us the power to love, He lives in our hearts and makes us more and more like Christ. Consequently, the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us (Romans 5 vs 5).

Because God is love, the most important lesson He wants us to learn on earth is how to love. It is in loving that we are most like Him, so love is the foundation of every command He has given us. The Bible, in Galatians 5 vs 14, says, "For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this: "you shall love your neighbor as yourself." The Ten Commandments of God center on relationships; the first four are on our relationship with God, and the other six is on our relationship with others.

It is in keeping His commandments that you show you love Him, and your love is returned even in greater magnitude. When we live by God’s standards, He will not leave us, He will be in us, and He will plainly show Himself to us. 

Love is more than lovely words; it is commitment and conduct. It’s much more than simply warm feelings. It is an attitude that reveals itself in action. If you love Him, then you prove it by your action of obeying what He says in His Word. How can we love others as Jesus loved us? By helping when it is not convenient, by giving when it hurts, by devoting energy to others' welfare rather than our own, by absorbing hurts from others without complaining or fighting back. This kind of loving is hard to do. That is why people notice when you do it and know you are empowered by a supernatural source.

Learning to love unselfishly is not an easy task. It runs counter to our self-centered nature. That's why we are given a lifetime to learn it. Of course, God wants us to love everyone, but He is particularly concerned that we learn to love others in His family. 

One of the purposes, and God’s greatest commandment for your life is to love God, and one another. The apostle Peter, in First Peter 2 vs 17, tells us, "Love the brotherhood." He says we should show special love for God's people, that is 'other believers in Christ.' The apostle Paul echoes this sentiment in Galatians 6 vs 10 that says, "Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all, especially to those who are of the household of faith."

Why does God insist that we give special love and attention to other believers? Why do they get priority in loving? Because God wants His family to be known for its love more than anything else. In our memory verse, Jesus said our love for each other is not our doctrinal beliefs, rather it is our greatest witness to the world that we are His people. 

In heaven we will enjoy God's family forever, but first we have some tough work to do here on earth to prepare ourselves for an eternity of loving. When we are not motivated by love we become critical of others. We stop looking for good in them and see only their faults. Have you talked behind someone's back? Have you focused on others' shortcomings instead of their strengths? When you begin to feel critical of someone, make a list of that person's positive qualities. If there are problems that need to be addressed, it is better to confront in love than in hate or to gossip.

God trains us by giving us “family responsibilities," and the foremost of these is to practice loving each other. God wants you to be in regular, close, fellowship with other believers so you can develop the skill of loving. Love cannot be learned in isolation. You have to be around people—imperfect, frustrating, irritating, people of all manner—to learn how to love in action, and as Jesus loved.

Prayer: Abba Father, You loved me first, and it’s only in keeping Your commandments that will prove My love for You. My utmost heart desire is to lovingly obey You in all things. Endue me with the spirit of raw obedience in love for You, in Jesus’ Name I have prayed, Amen.

PRAISE THE LORD!