It is the glory of God to conceal a thing: but the honour of kings is to search out a matter. Proverbs 25:2

Posts tagged ‘Love’

Perfect Love Casts Out Fear

The Holy Spirit living in us will teach us how to cast out fear and how to not allow it to linger. Love is a fruit of the Spirit, as with any fruit it must be attached to its source, watered and nourished for it to mature into a fully developed harvest. Fear is a natural response of fallen mankind to difficult situations and perfect love is a supernatural response by the Holy Spirit. The word did not say that we would not fear but through His love we can cast it out.  

When we rest in the faithfulness of God and His perfect love for us that is shown in His compassion, mercy, forgiveness and grace, we can choose to not allow anxiety and fear to stay and take root in our minds. We are persuaded and taught to know, by the Holy Spirt, that nothing can separate us from the love of God. No matter what we may go through, God sees and foresees our solutions. We are able to remove doubt and worry based on His word and our understanding of His love, compassion, mercy and grace for us. 

Romans 8:38 For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. NKJ

1 John 4:18 There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment. But he who fears has not been made perfect in love. NKJ 

It is maturity, growth and fellowship with the Holy Spirit that gives followers of Christ the ability to stand on the faithfulness of God and His perfect love. We understand trouble is a part of life but we trust God in the midst of it. We can refuse to adopt fear as a personal possession, like a pet, and will not become comfortable with having it in our minds and souls to linger around and taunt us. The Holy Spirit enables us to trust God’s love even in hard and chaotic times realizing that nothing will happen to us that God already foreknew the problem and prepared a solution. 

Isaiah 26:3 You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You. NKJ

1 Corinthians 10:13  No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it. NKJ

Romans 8:29 For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren. NKJ

During these times of social, physical, mental and spiritual unrest, the people of God must learn to walk in the power of the Holy Spirit. Resting and trusting in the perfect love of God is what helps us to throw out the fear the world is trying to produce and instill in us. Every believer of Christ has the abilityto walk in the Spirit of this perfect love and to display God’s traits of compassion, mercy, forgiveness and grace.  This is done through a close relationship and a mature knowledge of God the Father and Jesus Christ whom He sent. 

John 17:3 And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent. NKJ

Psalms 27:14 Wait on the LORD; Be of good courage, and He shall strengthen your heart; Wait, I say, on the Lord! NKJ

When we know who God is and who we are in Him, then the things of this world will not produce that paralyzing fear in us because we trust in our heritage as children of the Most-High King. Many weapons may be formed and many tongues may speak against us but they will not succeed and will be reproved and denounced in the end.  Perfect love casts out fear because itrests in the protection and generosity of God and His inheritance. 

Isaiah 54:17 ​No weapon formed against you shall prosper, and every tongue which rises against you in judgment you shall condemn. This is the heritage of the servant of the LORD, and their righteousness is of Me,” Says the LORD. NKJ

Isaiah 54:14 ​In righteousness you shall be established; You shall be far from oppression for you shall not fear; And from terror, for it shall not come near you. NKJ

To say we have faith in God and live in fear is an oxymoron. These are two polar opposites and cannot coexist because light and darkness cannot occupy the same space at the same time.We are told to think on the things that are pure, just and of good report and not things that cause confusion, hatred and fear.  We all will choose what we allow to stay in our minds and what we will fix our thoughts on, but we are told to let the mind of Christ be in us. Our hope is rooted in the perfect love of God for us and not we ourselves. 

Philippians 2:5-6 Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, who being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men. NKJ

Philippians 4:8 Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy- meditate on these things. 

Fear is a natural reaction but faith is a supernatural action that we are empowered with and it is spiritually understood and perceived through the knowledge of God’s perfect love for us. This world is fixated on going after love in all its various forms and are desperate to be connected and to receive love, whether it is to be a parent, to have a spouse or to be in a good family. Some people believe these love relationships are the most important thing in life and if they fail to have a spouse, child, family or friends they are seen as failures. This is not God’s truth because His love gives with no need of replication.  

Psalms 27: 5   For in the time of trouble He shall hide me in His pavilion; In the secret place of His tabernacle He shall hide me; He shall set me high upon a rock. NKJ

The fear of failure in life, career and relationships has hinderedsome people from knowing the true expression of God’s unconditional love, which gives love with an open hand. They lose sight of the joy of giving without looking for anything in return. No matter who we are or where we live there are people around us who are in need of love, be it a child longing for the love of a parent or a person who wishes they had a friend, we can be that love. We can learn to work without complaint and trust God with our life and our future. It may be difficult and challenging because people are messy and hard to approach and please, but so were we in our mess before Christ.

Psalms 27:1,    The LORD is the light of my salvation whom shall I fear? The LORD is the strength of my life; Of whom shall I be afraid? NKJ 

As mature followers of Christ we are to give the perfect love of God as He loved us, with an open hand and a generous heart.  God has feely given to every person His love through Christ, to accept or reject.  When we give His love to others it takes our mind off of ourselves and our lack and we become givers of love and not in desperate need of love.   We can learn how to walk in the chaos of this world without holding on to the fear that comes at us by knowing God’s word is true. 

2 Corinthians 4:8-10 We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair, persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down but not destroyed: Always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body. KJV

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Love God by Loving Others

Respect- to esteem or regard favorably, to give a sense of worth or value to a person- to hold in honor- to refrain from intruding upon or interfering with…

We are to respect God, to think highly and favorably of Him. We honor God because He is worthy as the Creator of the universe. We value God and honor God when we honor and respect those who are created in His image. Respect by definition comes from a place of love and value for a person. This is why we cannot be disrespectful to a person and then say we love them.

We are to respect people because they were formed by God for the express purpose of carrying Him image. To disrespect people who are created in the image of God is to disrespect God! People may say they respect or love a person but hate their children or family, this cannot be. Either they will love them and their children or hate them, but they cannot do both in truth. They may need that person or want them, but they love themselves more. Some may speak words of love and respect, but in their heart there is animosity. Some may even deceive themselves into believing they can love God while hating and disrespecting their brothers, but God’s word says this cannot be so.

How can we say we love God whom we have not seen and hate our brother whom we have seen? The answer is we cannot. Someone who has hatred in their heart for anyone, no matter the reason, the love for God is not in them.

1 john 4:20-21    If someone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen, how can he love God whom he has not seen? 21 And this commandment we have from Him: that he who loves God must love his brother also.

This is not to say we have not been wronged. It is these painful and cruel things that Satan would use to tempt us with the thought that we have every right to hate. People are blinded by Satan to the truth of God’s word and many even live in self-deception. Sometimes we deceive ourselves into believing we are either justified in our hate or God understands what we have been through and He would not require us to forgive these people. This too is a tactic of the enemy, to get the people of God to deny God’s truth and live a lie that is rooted in Satan’s hatred of God.

2 Corinthians 4: 3-4   But even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing, 4 whose minds the god of this age has blinded, who do not believe, lest the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine on them.

Those who decide to go their own way and refuse to love they refuse the truth of God’s word and are perishing. They may not realize their minds are being blinded by Satan, the prince of this world system, and their life is headed for destruction. Self-deception is one of the hardest lies to overcome, because we have trained our minds to believe we are right and therefore close our minds to the truth. The only way to come out of this darkness is to let the light of God’s word shine into our hearts and minds.

 1 John 3: 10-11                     In this the children of God and the children of the devil are manifest: Whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is he who does not love his brother. 11 For this is the message that you heard from the beginning, that we should love one another,

We must practice the righteousness of God which is faith in Jesus’ completed work for our salvation. This is not our works of attending church, visiting the sick or just reading our Bibles. It is a relationship with God through the life of Jesus. It is accepting God’s love for us through faith in Jesus and the understanding of His Word. True faith gives us the love we need for others by the power of the Holy Spirit. This is not a thing that can be done by the natural man. This love for others is how the children of God will be known. Because they show love they are distinguished from the children of the devil and people of this world.   The love we show to the undeserving displays the God in us.

1 John 3: 14-17          We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love the brethren. He who does not love his brother abides in death. 15 Whoever hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him. 16 By this we know love, because He laid down His life for us. And we also ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.

It is when we show love to all those who are created in the image of God we give witness to the love of God that is in us. If we hate others, Jesus says we have committed murder. This is a hard but powerful statement and it is the truth of God’s word. Jesus came and saved us out of our sinful state, while we were looking and acting like Satan. Jesus died the death on the cross to redeem us back as children of God. As children of God we are to lay down the hurt, pain and injustices we have received from others just as Jesus did for us.

Jesus did not want to die. He even asked the Father to take that cup away from Him and yet He submitted Himself to God’s will. We too, in our flesh do not want go through the process of forgiving others who misuse and abuse us.   We also, must submit our will to God just as Jesus did and ask Him to give us the love we need for those who have wronged us. In this God will be glorified in that situation.

1 John 3: 18    My little children let us not love in word or in tongue, but in deed and in truth

We are told to show the love of God in our actions not just in words. Many can talk a good game, saying all manner of lovely things, but God tells us to demonstrate this love by our actions. Love gives of itself. God so loved the world He gave His only Son. When we see someone with a need we are to take from our abundance and help those who are without.

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