Love - 1 John 4:7-21

Love - 1 John 4:7-21 (ESV)

7 Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. 8 Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love. 9 In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. 10 In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. 11 Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. 12 No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us and his love is perfected in us.

13 By this we know that we abide in him and he in us, because he has given us of his Spirit. 14 And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world. 15 Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. 16 So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him. 17 By this is love perfected with us, so that we may have confidence for the day of judgment, because as he is so also are we in this world. 18 There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love. 19 We love because he first loved us. 20 If anyone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot[a] love God whom he has not seen. 21 And this commandment we have from him: whoever loves God must also love his brother.

What kind of person sacrifices His only son out of Love? Abraham, maybe? God also? God did. Abraham did, but God stopped him and made a new way. Would you do what Abraham did?  Abraham did it out of obedience and trust in God.  I'm sorry but nothing is more important to me after God then my family. God first, Family Second, Others and myself last. I won't sacrifice my family or my only Son. He is that important to me. Same as my wife. But look at the fullness of Love that God the Father had for us in those verses. They are for the world and also individually. It's not because we loved God, on the contrary, it's because God loved us first and made the decision to love us so much that He sacrificed His only Son for us. Jesus said that no one has more love than this to lay down their life for another (I'm paraphrasing here). But is says in John 15:13 Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends. That says the same thing that I said, so God is showing us the greatest of all of love in that He sent His Son to show us the greatest love by laying down His life for us all.

These verses really explain Love, especially God's love and how we can as Christians know love and how we should show love.  But is that enough?  No it's not.  The Holy Spirit directed the use of the word Agape for this section and many others.  Why, because the Spirit needed to redefine the word and make it even more powerful.  It took Agape to a whole new level.  Agape became a stronger word that also helps us understand our place within God.  God has preferential love towards us and towards His creation.  Remember when I said in a previous lesson that God is jealous over the spirit He put within us.  It bears repeating, even to me.  He is showing us preferential love not because of anything we did or our worth, but because He is Love.  It's based solely on the fact that God wants to show us His love.  These verse explains that and help us to recognize it so we can show it to others.

  God is Love and Love comes from God.  To understand Love you need to understand God, to understand God you need to understand Love.  Love is such an unusual concept that people sometimes can't comprehend it, is it chemical, emotional, or just something we came up with.  Well God the great creator is the one who created Love and is the perfection of Love.

Which leads us to the next verse in line about God's Love.  How much more can God love us or the world than to send His only Son as a sacrifice for us and for our very salvation.  John 3:16-18 is very clear on this.  “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. 18 Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.  God sent Jesus to save, to rescue, to free the world from it's Sin and shame and corruption.  Jesus doesn't need to judge us, that's not his job as the Son of God, His job is to show us the Love of God.  He does that very clearly.  Jesus came to be Love for us not condemnation or judgment, but to help us experience and understand God's love better.  Without an example the Jews and Gentiles would have nothing to model after and would therefore continue to live by the Law and not by Love.  It's a new way of life based on Jesus living that example for us while He was here. 

You want to know Love look at Jesus example in the Gospel and how He treated individuals and communities.  Jesus was always caring, compassionate and never judgmental or demanding of people, it was always to show Love and Paul, who knew Jesus later on in life after Jesus was gone from the world understood and was able to describe Love in a way that everyone understands.  Paul was trying to help the Corinthians understand in his first letter to them what they needed to do in regards to a lot of things that were making their church have issues.  If you notice that is mainly what Paul was doing in his letters, instructing the intended audience on how to deal with the issues they were facing.  In 1 Corinthians 13 he was showing them Love and God simultaneously.  Lets look at an excerpt from 1 Corinthians 13, specifically verses 4-8 and 13  4 Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant 5 or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; 6 it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. 7 Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. 8 Love never ends. 

13 So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love.

  All that is defining love and it's importance.  Now back in 1 John 4:8 says 8 Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love.  So now read over the verses in 1 Corinthians 13:4-8 again.

4 God is patient and kind; God does not envy or boast; God is not arrogant 5 or rude. God does not insist on His own way; God is not irritable or resentful; 6 God does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. 7 God bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. 8 God never ends.  Just take a look at that.  And in regards to believes all things, it also translates to have faith in.  So God has trust or faith in all things, why not He created it all.  From every atom to every object God trusts his creation and all that is in it.

To further emphasize my previous point in 1 John, these verses looked at in conjunction to the earlier ones explain God's character since God is Love. God exudes all these attributes of Love and Himself simultaneously. God the creator of Love and the epitome of Love is more than we can handle. He does all things in Love, because He Himself is Love. He shows preferential Love.

He is jealous to be near us, yet we push Him away. We take the world and it's things, things He created, and choose them over Him. We who were made in Love, don't show our creator and His creation, including ourselves, the Love we should. We are blinded by the world. But the Bible opens our eyes to what we are missing. It makes us aware that there is more outside ourselves, our selfish selves. That there is a Love beyond all reasoning and that we can attain it, show it and be a part of it.  We can see the beauty of Love from these verses taken all together. We are not more aware of our worth in God and our privileges as His children. God shows us His Love daily through His creation and through His words.

In summary, let me make three points clear from all this.

1. God and Love are one and the same. They epitomize each other and compliment each other.  To truly know Love you need to know God, to fully know God you need to know Love.  Knowing one will assist you to and help you know the other.

2.  God’s Love is unconditional.  It’s not based on anything we do and it’s available to the whole world.  If they wish to know it.  It’s available, but they need to accept it to truly know it.  And I’m not saying there aren’t loving people out there, but they don’t fully know Love unless they know God.

3.  God’s Love is preferential, meaning it’s directed toward His creation, just because. Nothing we did can make God more jealous over our souls and knowing us and being near us.  He Loves and desires us jealously to be near Him.  Yet, we decide to chase after other things.

So God’s Love is directed toward us because He Loves us not because of anything we did and Love and God are one and the same.

References: 1 John 4:7-21, John 3:16, John 15:13, 1 Corinthians 13:4-8,13

Jesus vs. Christ

This might seem odd, but I feel that society/satan/the world are trying to minimize Jesus.  If you really think about it we know for a fact that his name is Jesus.  J-E-S-U-S!  It's not Christ, which is his title, and His last name is not Christ.  We honor Jesus at this time of the year by taking an old pagan holiday and Christianizing it and calling it Christmas.  Mass for the Christ.  It's a mass for the only Savior (Christ), Messiah of the world.  It's His title, not a part of His name.  It would be like calling me Marc Network Administrator.  Or calling me Network Administrator.  We do give people honorary titles, do show respect sometimes, like boss, chief, chef, mother, father, pastor, brother, sister, friend, but why do we not call them by their title all the time.  We have names and sometimes we take the time to not use people's names so much to the point that we forget their real name.

We are slowly replacing Jesus with Christ in a lot of our speech.  We say "come to know Christ", "Christ came to set us free", "the only way to heaven is through Christ", and many other ways.  It just feels like we are trying to cover up Jesus with a title so we don't say His name any more.  The only way it's said no a ways is with irreverence or as a curse or in a derogatory way.  We can't seem to keep Jesus in Christmas, because we are to busy trying to keep "Christ" in Christmas.  Jesus is the reason for the season, not Christ.  We took Jesus out of Christmas before we got into trying to take "Christ" out of Christmas and wishing everyone a Happy Holiday.  You can keep Christ out of Christmas for all I care.  I want to keep Jesus in Christmas and keep it that way.  I will continue to say Merry Christmas, because this is the reason we have Dec. 25th.   It's not about Boxing day or Kwanzaa, both are not as old as Christmas which dates back to 336AD.  We are talking about the opportunity to celebrate the birth of the Savior of the World and we bicker about His title more than what the day is about.  Atheists want to remove it from the calendar along with Easter.  What are they so afraid of?  That's it right and they are wrong?  You can't remove the celebrations to fix your feelings.  It will always be there no matter what and it will always be the only way to be free and live.  Jesus is the Way the Truth and the Life.  There is no other way.  The sooner you learn that and live by it the better.

My point is just this.  Jesus is the person to worship.  The one who is part of the great Three In One of Father, Son and Holy Spirit.  Not His title of Savior, Messiah or Christ.  We are here to show the Love of Jesus, not Christ.  We are Brothers and Sisters of Jesus, Children of the Living God.  Why can't we use his name with respect instead of degradation?  It's with respect that we call others by their name.  We need to do the same with Jesus and not keep using His title.

Healing Our Image of God and Ourselves

This is from Chapter 1 of "The Relentless Tenderness of Jesus", by Brennan Manning.

"Religion is a matter not of learning how to think about God, but of actually encountering Him."

"Don't Put God in a Box"

To encounter God we must strip off all allusions of God that have been purported onto us.  We can't grasp the infinite that is God with our human finite minds.  God is the one and only God.  He is Love and so much more.  When we think about God we need to think outside our boxes.  Outside the box we try to put Him in.  We need to think big.  We need to know that our ideas aren't anything that God is, but He is so much more and bigger.

Look at the parable of the farmer and the workers.  It's in Matthew chapter 20.  Their is a crazy farmer hiring workers and it doesn't matter what time of day they start working for him, they all got the same wage.  All got a full days pay, it was "divine generosity".  Do we grumble when others get a break?  Why do we say "it's not fair" or someone "got a lucky break" when something good happens?

What about the parable of the prodigal son?  It's about a reckless, spendthrift who is a wasteful person.  Those are definitions of the word prodigal.  Yet the Father is also a prodigal.  Instead of treating the returning son the way we expect him to be treated, the father acts as a prodigal and is wasteful, reckless and a spendthrift in welcoming a disgraceful son back.  I think a more appropriate title would be "The Wayward Son and the Prodigal Father".

This is how our image of ourselves and of God need to change.  God is that farmer giving everyone the same pay and He is the father of the prodigal, welcoming home the wayward son.  We are that wayward child and we are the workers for the farmer.  We are getting what God wants us to have regardless of our lives or our actions as long as we come to God, He will take care of the rest.

Our images of God and ourselves change when we see Him as merciful, caring and more importantly loving.  Then we can we see ourselves as worth God's time and in need of His Salvation.  Try to look at things a little different.  You might surprise yourself.

The Pioneers Life

I started reading a book that I received for Christmas.  I think that the book was only fitting to receive at Christmas since it's about Jesus and that's the whole reason for the season.  It is called "The Relentless Tenderness of Jesus" by Brennan Manning.  I have only gotten to the third chapter so far.  Not that it's a long book or a difficult book, it's just full of a lot of information.  Each chapter is packed full of ideas that make me think that the life I'm leading isn't necessarily the one that God wants me to lead.

For instance, I shouldn't be leading my life, I should be letting God lead and I should follow.  Also that I should be more of the Pioneer type and not the Settler type.  Settlers live by the law and their works alone and keeping in line with all the town dictates.  Whereas Pioneers adventure out into the wilderness and the wild and forge new paths on the way to the Kingdom, the final stop.

I want to be that type of person.  The pioneer who lives in the covered wagon, follows the Jesus (the Scout), eats what the Holy Spirit (the Buffalo Hunter) provides to the the Clergyman (the Cook), all while keeping my Covered Wagon (the Church) with me where ever I go, while I follow God (the Trail Boss) to a future and a hope and a life worth leading, living and participating with my Family and for my Father God.  That is the life I want.  I don't want to settle for any thing and I don't want to settle on the rules and regulations, I want to live and just just survive.  That is the life that God wants for each of us and I want it too.

I'm going to try and post about my readings in this book and what I get from it.  My different feelings and also just in general what it means and hopefully how it can help any one who is interested.  This will be my Pioneer year into the future that God wants me to live.  I want to see what God wants of me.  How I can be a blessing to others and how I can learn more about loving God.  My life is not my own any more.  It belongs to God and I want to live it that way.  One step at a time.  One day at a time.  One hour at a time and sometimes each second that is available to me.

Dear Father in Heaven,
     I wish to know you more and the love you have for me.  I want to take each day and allow you to lead me through it.  Take and be your follower and not a fan.  Give you the permission and the rights to my life and allow you to show me what you want me to do.  To follow your guidance and direction and be a Pioneer on the trail that you lead and establish.

     Amen.

Let the Adventure Begin and let it Begin with me and Begin Here!

Plunge or not...

Have you ever wanted to jump over the side? You know take a plunge?  Just do something that may seem irrational to some, but quite logical to others.  I sometimes have moments where I want to do something like that.  I know someone else who did a plunge, a leap over the side, someone who fell and lived to tell us all about it.  His name?  Well you might already know the name depending on your outlook on life.  Let me tell you a little about this person before I give out their name.

He fell in love.  He fell in regards to that love.  He took a leap off the highest point ever.  He was older than anyone here now, before now and in the future.  Took a lot of flack from others who could not understand the reason for what he did.  You know what that is like don't you?  Doing something because you know its right, but getting put down by others about it.  Others just don't understand.  Well a long time ago that is exactly what happened to this man.  He did what others did not expect and was ridiculed for it.  They wanted one thing and he gave them another.  Just like a politician.  The only difference was he was no politician, at least not in the usual sense.

He understood people better than any else has ever.  I don't mean like con artists or anyone else who is into understanding people to get something from them, like a politician or a lawyer or con artists, and the like.  I mean he really understands what makes people tick, what we are all about, what we want, what we need.  He knows us better than ourselves.  He could have been anyone, he could have made himself into being famous, rich, ruler of all, you name it.  Nothing was withheld from him.  Yet he did not aspire to greatness like we know it.  He had a different view and he shared that with us too.

Do you have a clue yet?  He is famous.  Really, Honest, not kidding!

I mean for him to fall, to take that leap, to plunge in meant to be vulnerable.  Vulnerable to lots of thinks including pain and it hurt for him to fall.  It hurt him all his life in ways we can never understand.  I can not imagine hurting all my life.  I know there are some people that all they can remember of their life is pain, either physical or emotional.  I have had some pain and hurt in my life and I can still remember the good times and the bad with equal difference.  

He is Jesus.  And he fell in love with mankind and with each and everyone of us.  So much so that he fell from heaven and came to earth to feel what we feel and to live out life here like we do.  He experienced it all and yet He still loved us enough to die for us, to sacrifice Himself for us.  With all the choices He could have made He made the one that we would not have made.  Everyone at that time thought that the Messiah should come in strength and fight.  But Jesus came in Love instead.  A much more powerful ally and a much more powerful way to accomplish for all what could not be accomplished any other way.


I praise the name of Jesus, because without Him I would have no future.  Because of Him I have a future and a hope and a life that will never end.  It will end on this earth, but I will be in Heaven forever after.  


Thank you Jesus for taking the plunge, the fall, the dive that none of us could make and for rescuing us in that act of Love.

Truths and Change

I had some interesting truths splash my way yesterday.  Try these on for size:

GOD wants us to want things!

GOD wants us to be happy!

Now in the case of the first one.  It is not like wanting a new car or a new hair style or a trophy or an apple fritter.  It is in wanting things for ourselves.  Like a career we have been interested in.  Or getting a place of your own.  Wanting the best for your child, your spouse or yourself.  And like eating right, brushing your teeth and taking your vitamins.  You know what I mean.  Not the wants in life that everyone strives for mindlessly because we think that it is what we are supposed to want, like more money, a new computer, or to be famous.  But wanting things for yourself that would bring a sense of accomplishment to your life.  Like wanting a child, a dog, a place of your own, or a job helping others or that dream job.

Many people go through life doing what others want them to do or what they think others expect from them.  Like being perfect and not wanting anything.  We need to encourage others to grab life and their dreams and not let go until all their avenues of trying are used up.  We need to encourage others to want to change and grow and be come their own person.  No one should be living life like others want them to live it, they should be living their own life.  They need to find their "one thing" in life that makes them happy.  If it means flying an airplane, fixing computers, helping others, learning about GOD, being a friend, encouraging others, being a secretary, police person, firefighter, nurse, teacher, driver, etc.  What is it that makes you Happy?

That brings me to the second truth, which has an joint statement:  Not only does GOD want us to be content, but he also wants us to be happy.  You can not stress it enough and some people have stressed it too much.  At least the part about being content.  But that only means to be content in situations that you can not change.  It does not mean being content to be a door mat or to be something or someone that has no aspirations.  I never really got it like I did yesterday.  GOD wants us to be happy, not just content.  We can be content with out meal sometimes, we can be content with the weather or the time of day or sometimes the situations we are in, like waiting in line or following a slow driver down a narrow road.  Look at the Serenity Prayer in its fullness:


God grant me the serenity
to accept the things I cannot change;
courage to change the things I can;
and wisdom to know the difference.


Living one day at a time;
Enjoying one moment at a time;
Accepting hardships as the pathway to peace;
Taking, as He did, this sinful world
as it is, not as I would have it;
Trusting that He will make all things right
if I surrender to His Will;
That I may be reasonably happy in this life
and supremely happy with Him
Forever in the next.
Amen.

--Reinhold Niebuhr

Look at just a few of the main points, "courage to change the things I can; and wisdom to know the difference."  Also this section at the end, "That I may be reasonably happy in this life and supremely happy with Him Forever in the next."  Change things that we can and the courage that we need to accomplish that task.  Why not change what we can?  Why do we have to accept everything that happens and just let it be?  Why not change the things we can and know the difference between those things that we can change and those things we need to be content with.  So many people think that just because things are the way they are that they need to accept it and just stuff it down and be content with it.  Instead of changing the things that they can change.  I know because I have been there myself.  There were things in my life that I allowed to be just the way they were for too long and some of those things I am changing.

So can you grasp these two truths: GOD wants us to be Happy and to Want things for our lives.

So what are you holding back on because you think you can't have it?  What can you aspire to that would make you happy?  What can you change in life that you just need a little more courage to change?  What do you want to become?  What area of your life have you thought that you needed to leave alone because it would "rock the boat" or be different and others might not have thought you capable of doing?  Remember this "Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don't matter and those who matter don't mind."  - Dr. Seuss

Honesty and Truth - Give and Take

Well today is National Honesty Day.  It was put in place to end the month after beginning the month with April Fool's Day.  Sort of a balance between the beginning of the month and the end.  I think that all people should strive for Honesty in all things.

Did you know that honesty is a two way street.  The one way is the person that speaks the truth, speaks in honesty.  The other way is the person who is receiving the truth and the spoken honesty.

The giver needs to give in love, compassion and be understanding to the other person and their feelings.

The receiver needs to be open to what they are receiving.  Whether it is criticism (given with tack), or just the response to a question.

So we not only need to be open to honesty and truth, but we need to give it in understanding and love.

Next time you are asked a question give in love your honest and truthful response.  And next time you ask a question keep open and receive with the best intent.

Living By The Spirit's Power or Doing What's Right

The Lent Reading for today came from Galatians 5:16-26.  It talked about how we can let the Holy Spirit guide our actions and how we can learn to listen to GOD and HIS voice.  That way we can do the right things the things of GOD instead of the things of the world.  Everyone wants to follow their own way and do what they want to do.  It is none other than what we call human nature.  But do you know what GOD's nature is? HIS nature is written there clear as day in verses 22-23.
Let me quote: "  ²² But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, ²³ gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things! Galatians 5:22-23 (NLT) "  That is pretty clear to me.  If we listen to GOD and follow HIS word and obey what HE directs us to instead of listening to our selves and take the time to distinguish the two voices and follow after GOD's then we are Alive in the Spirit of GOD.

Being in the Spirit means doing what is right and that has many implications.  I know that there are times in my life alone that I don't always want to do what is right.  I can fall down and not want to get up.  Or choose to do what I want despite knowing that what I want to do is wrong.  I am far from prefect, yet I keep trying to do what is right each and every day.  I go to work, I try to be polite and patient with people.  I try to get my work done and do the best I can.  But I do not always feel like doing that.  Sometimes it is a bit of struggle.  Sometimes I have to take a walk just to keep my patience.  We should all try to do what is right for GOD, for ourselves and for others.

It's a basic principal that goes back to Adam and Eve, Cain and Abel, being your Brother's Keeper.  And Rich Mullins put it well in his song with the same title.  To do what is right is to look after your brother and your sister, your neighbors.  Jesus said it well when he requoted the first two of the Ten Commandments.  Love the LORD your GOD and Love Your Neighbor as Yourself.

I understand that some people have a hard time loving themselves, let alone others.  And still others can love their neighbor and not love themselves.  The world is made up of all types of people and it is not and easy job to love others and sometimes it is not an easy job to love yourself.  GOD's Holy Spirit is there to help us listen to HIS voice so we can do what is right.  So we can love ourselves and our neighbors.  We have the gift of HIS Spirit to do what is right if we can only find time to listen.

So here I am still trying to listen and do the right things.  Even if I sometimes fall down and have to pick myself up and try again.  I am a Work In Progress and GOD is still working on me.  Try to do what is right and listen to GOD.  GOD has all the answers.