“This is my
commandment,
That you love
one another
Just as I have
loved you.” (John15:12)
If you can speak in the
tongues of men
And even of the angels,
But you do not love with the
love of God for and in you,
You are only a noisy gong, a
clanging cymbal. (1)
For God Is Love
“I am the
Lord, Who practices loving-kindness,
Judgment and
righteousness in the earth,
For in these
things I delight, says the Lord.” (Jeremiah 9:24)
“The earth is
full of the loving kindness of the Lord.” (Psalm 33:5)
“And now,
Israel, what does the Lord your God
Require you
but (reverently) to fear the Lord, your God,
That is to
walk in all His ways
And to love
Him
And to serve
the Lord your God with your mind, and your heart,
And with your entire
being.” (Deuteronomy 10:12)
For God Is Love
“…Moses the
servant of the Lord charged you
To love the
Lord your God
And walk in
all His ways…” Joshua 22:5
If you have prophetic powers
–
The gift of interpreting the
divine,
And understand all the secret
truths and mysteries,
And possess all knowledge,
And have the faith to remove
mountains,
But do not possess God’s
love in you,
You are nothing – a nobody.
You are useless - of no
consequence in the kingdom of God. ( 2)
“If one loves
God truly,
He is known by
God.” (1Cointhians. 2:3)
“Love one
another fervently
From a pure
heart.” 1Peter 1:22)
Let your love
be sincere.” (Romans 12:9)
“If anyone
says, I love God, and hates his brother, is a liar.
If he cannot
love his brother…he cannot love God.” (1John 4:10)
“Whoever loves
God must also love his brother.” (1John 4:21)
Even if you dole out all
that you have to the poor;
If you surrender your body
to be burned,
But do not suffer God’s love
in you,
You gain nothing – you can
claim no rewards in God. ( 3)
“He who does
not love, abides in spiritual death.”
(1John 3:14)
“God Is
Love.
Whoever lives
in love lives in God,
And God in
him.
In this way,
love is made complete among us…”
And we know
and believe the love God cherishes for us.” (1John 4:16)
“Though
mountains should depart
And the hills
be shaken or removed,
Yet My Love
and kindness shall not depart from you.
…says the
Lord.” (Isaiah 54:10)
Love endures long;
It is patient and kind.
Love is never envious,
Nor boils over with jealous.
It is not boastful or
haughty and proud.
It is not self-seeking -
God’s Love in us does not insist on its own rights
Or its own way.
It is not quick-tempered or petulant
or resentful;
It takes no account of the evil done to it.
(Or when someone offends or
slights you).
Love pays no attention to a
suffered wrong.* (4,5)
“Love your
enemies
And pray for those who persecute you.” (Matthew
5:44)
God’s Love is “Agape” -
Unconditional
“Be gentle and
forbearing with one another,
If one has a
difference, or complaint against another,
Readily
pardoning each;
Even as the
Lord has freely forgiven you,
So you also
forgive and above all these,
Put on love…”
(Colossians 3:13-14)
God’s Love
“There is no
fear in love.
But perfect
love casts out fear.
Because fear
brings with it the thought of punishment.
The one who
fears has not reached the full maturity of love.” 1John 4:18)
“Yes, He loves His people…” (Deut. 33:3)
“The Lord
takes pleasure in His people…”(Psalm 149:4)
“He is
gracious and merciful, slow to anger,
And abounding
in loving-kindness.” (Joel 2:13)
“All the paths of the Lord are mercy and
steadfast love…” (Psalm 25:10)
Love does not rejoice at
injustice and unrighteousness,
But rejoices when right and
truth prevail.
Love bears up under anything and everything that comes;
It is ever ready to believe
the best of every person.
(Its hopes are fadeless
under all circumstances,
And it endures everything).
It always protects
It always trusts
Always hopes
Always perseveres. (6,7)
“With complete
lowliness of mind (unselfishness and gentleness)
With patience,
bearing with one another
And making
allowance because you love one another.” (Ephesians 4:2)
“ God is not
unrighteous to forget or overlook your labor
And the love which
you have shown for His name sake.” (Hebrews 6:10)
“To have unfailing
love for one another covers a multitude of sins.”
(1Peter 4:8)
“To love one’s
neighbor as oneself,
Is much more
than all the whole burnt offerings and sacrifices.” (Mark 12:33)
“In Christ
Jesus
Neither
circumcision nor uncircumcision counts for anything,
But only faith
Activated and
energized and expressed
And working
through love.” (Galatians 5:6)
“Not by
might, nor by power,
But by My
Spirit, says the Lord of hosts.” (Zechariah
4:6)
God’s Love Is
The Love that never fails,
The love that will never
fade out or become obsolete, or come to and end.
( 8)
“His mercy and
kindness and His steadfast love
Endures
forever…” (Jeremiah 33:11)
God’s Love
Is unchanging,
Eternal
It is timeless, never-ending
“Yes, I have
loved you with an everlasting love…” (Jeremiah 31:3)
“His Love
endures forever.” (2Chronicles 5:13)
As for prophecy – the gift
of interpreting the divine will and purpose -
It will be “fulfilled”
And pass away – it will no
longer coexist.
It will no longer be
relevant. (8)
As for tongues – they will
be stilled.
They will be destroyed and
cease. ( 8)
As for knowledge –
It will pass away.
It will lose its value and
be superseded by Truth.
For our knowledge is
fragmentary, incomplete and imperfect.
And our prophecy (our
teaching) is fragmentary. (8,9)
(Knowledge is also binding;
Truth always sets you free.)
“Jesus said –
I have loved you,
Just as the
Father has loved me; abide in My love.” (John 15:9)
“Who forever
loves us and has once (for all)
Loosed and
freed us
From our sins
by “His own” blood.” (Revelation 1:5)
“And we should
love one another
Just as Jesus
commanded us.” (Romans 12:9)
“God’s Love
Has been
poured out in our hearts
Through the
Holy Spirit
Who has been
given to us.” (Romans. 5:5)
“In Love
He predestined us
To be adopted
as His sons through Jesus Christ,
In accordance
with His pleasure and will.” (Ephesians 1:5)
“(He planned)
for the maturity of the times
And the climax
of the ages to unify all things
And head them
up and consummate them in Christ.
Both things in
heaven and things on the earth.” Ephesians 1:10)
We know in part;
We prophesy in part.
But when the complete and
perfect comes,
The incomplete and imperfect
will just vanish away –
When perfection comes, the
imperfect disappears.
It will become antiquated,
void, and superseded! (10)
“His Love
endures forever.” (2Chronicles 20:21)
“He that does
not love
Has not become
acquainted with God
For God is
love.
In this love
of God
Was made
manifest His Son
The only
begotten Son
(The
propitiation (conciliation) for the sins of the whole world)
Who was sent
into the world
That we might
love through Him.
And if we love
one another,
God abides in
us
And God’s love
is brought to completion,
To its full
maturity.
And it is
perfected in us.” (1John 4:8-16, 2:2)
When you were a child,
You talked like a child, you
thought like a child,
You reasoned like a child
(Not able to see into the
complexities).
When you become a man
(Having gained wisdom and
insight),
You are done with childish
ways, and have put them aside. (11)
“For whom the
Lord loves
He corrects,
Even as a
father corrects the son in whom he delights.” (Proverbs 3:12)
For God is Love
“His Love endures
forever.” (1Chronicles 16:34)
God’s Word says:
“I am
persuaded beyond doubt (I am sure)
That neither
death nor life, nor angels
Nor
principalities, nor things impending and threatening
Nor things to
come, nor powers
Nor heights
nor depth, nor anything else
In all
creation will be able to separate us
From the Love
of God.
Which is in
Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 8:38-39)
“What then
shall we say to this?
If God be for
us, who can be against us?
(Who can be
our foe, if God is on our side)” (Roman 8:31)
God’s Love never fails
For now we are looking in a
mirror that gives only a dim reflection
Of reality – our existence -
as in a riddle or enigma,
But when perfection comes,
We shall see in-to reality
face to face! – (12)
The Glory of God’s Love!
“I always pray
to the God of our Lord Jesus Christ,
The Father of
glory
That He may
grant us a spirit of wisdom and revelation
(Of insight
into mysteries and secrets)
In the deep
and intimate knowledge of Him.” (Ephesians 1:17)
As of now, we know in part
(imperfectly)
But then we shall know and
understand freely and clearly,
Even in the same manner as we
have been fully and clearly known
And understood
By the Love that is God
– (12)
“For God so
greatly loved the world
That He gave
His only Begotten Son
So that
whosoever believes in Him
Shall not
perish, but have everlasting (eternal) life.” (John 3:16)
“The Father
loves the Son
And has given
everything into His hand.” (John 3:35)
“And we love God
Because He
first loved us.” (1John 4:19)
And so faith - conviction
and belief,
Hope – confident
expectation,
Love – true affection for
God and man,
These three abide. (13)
But the greatest of
these Is love. (13)
I pray…
“That (you),
and I may have the power to be strong
To apprehend
and grasp what is the breadth, and length
And height and
depth of God’ Love.
That we may
really come to know,
Practically,
through experience for oneself,
The love of
Christ which far surpasses mere knowledge.
That you and I
may be filled through all the fullness of God
(To have the
richest measure of the divine Presence).” (Ephesians 3:18-19)
“May the grace
of the Lord Jesus Christ and
The Love of
God
And the
Presence and fellowship in the Holy Spirit
Be with us
all. Amen (So be it) (2Corinthians 13:14)
Side Note:
It’s easy to
say “I know God loves me”
When He meets your every need.
The challenge
is knowing God loves you
When you don’t
“feel” God
In your everyday trials and tribulations;
When you don’t see God around and about you
Protecting you
from pain and suffering;
When you feel overwhelmed;
When storms come in and toss you to and fro;
When God seems far far away - off in the distance;
When God doesn’t answer your prayers;
When God doesn’t seem to come through in times of
trouble;
When you’re cast down, depressed and stressed out.
Because you
lost your house, lost your car, lost your job,
Lost your husband, your wife, your heart, your mind.
Lost your way.
When you feel
unworthy, unacceptable, undesirable;
When you’re
sad and alone and feel nobody cares.
That’s when
blind faith is needed;
When you gotta trust the process;
When you just gotta believe God loves you
In spite of all that rages around you,
Because God
says so, and you just gotta take God at His Word.
Sometimes you
have “to be still and know that He is
God.”
(Psalm 46:10)
“…And know that all things work together for good
And for those who love God and are called according
to
His design and purpose…
To be molded into the image of His Son…” (Romans
8:28-29)
“And we know that the Son of God has come to this
world
And has given us understanding and insight
So that we may know more clearly Him Who is true;
And we are in Him Who is true – in His Son Jesus
Christ.
He is the true God and eternal life.” (1John 5:20)
Praise the
Lord God.
“The Lord is good to all,
And His tender mercies are over all His works
(The entirety of things created).” (Psalm
144:9) Amen
(The Amplified and NIV Bible Translations)
Special
Note:
The only
persons I know who ever rose to this standard of love were
Dr. Martin Luther King,
and Pastor and friend Ezra Nehemiah Williams
