In 1 John 4:19 we read, “We love, because He first loved us.” God loves us and has blessed all of us. How is our love for Him? Is it strong or going cold? Apostle John is the apostle of love. He speaks a lot about God’s love. Each day, our love for God must be increasing knowing that He gave His son for us. We were sinners, and God has lifted us up to the higher ground.
In Luke 7 (verse 36 to 50) we read of the woman who anointed Jesus with alabaster oil. She was a prostitute and she bought alabaster perfume with her earnings. In the Old Covenant, any earning received through prostitution was not to be made as an offering. And so, the Pharisees were grumbling and questioning Jesus as to why He accepted this woman’s offerings. We see that Jesus tells them the parable of the debtors. In verse 47 we read, “For this reason I say to you, her sins, which are many, have been forgiven, for she loved much; but he who is forgiven little, loves little.”” If we realize how much God has forgiven us, we will love Him more. We need to realize that we are sinners and the depth from which God has saved us. Jesus forgave the woman’s sins. This woman completely submitted to Jesus. She bought everything she had and poured it at the feet of Jesus. She loved Jesus. Are we doing things out of love for Jesus? Cain and Abel offered sacrifices to God, but God looked at their hearts and then accepted Abel’s offering. God sees your motives. In Luke 14:26,27 Jesus explains the conditions to be fulfilled to be His disciple. “If anyone comes to Me, and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be My disciple. Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple.” If anything else is more important than Jesus, you cannot be His disciple. We have to die to our will and desires to be His disciples. In verse 33 we read, “So then, none of you can be My disciple who does not give up all his own possessions.”
Many times we have looked at the parable of the lost sheep. After the conditions of discipleship, Jesus tells the parable of the lost sheep. This parable shows the love and compassion of the Father. This sheep goes astray by accident. The shepherd goes after this lost one to bring it back to the flock. This is the unconditional love of God. After this we read of the parable of the lost son. The younger son had a very comfortable secure home, but he wanted to go out to explore the world. In the church we are secure and safe and we want to explore and taste the world we are putting ourselves in danger. There is a security when we are under the headship of Christ. This young man went out into the world; he had enough wealth to enjoy the glittering world. Our wealth may be a hindrance for us to love God if we give higher importance to it. The young man’s wealth finally ran out and then he came to his senses. We see a picture of a complete repentance in the young man. We see the great love of the Father when his son returns with a repentant heart. The Father gave him the best robe, a ring, and even the fattened calf. We can sense the happiness of the Father. Let us repent from our lack of love and return to the flock. Are we still seeking to explore the world and seeking to fulfill the desires of our flesh? We also see the reaction of the elder son when his brother returns. In verse 30 he says, “but when this son of yours came, who has devoured your wealth with prostitutes, you killed the fattened calf for him.” How did the elder brother know that the younger brother had used up his money on prostitutes? It was his assumption. He was judgmental. But look at the Father’s reply, “Son, you have always been with me, and all that is mine is yours.” What great love the Father has! Are we willing to repent today? Or are we judgmental. Which attitude will you choose to have?
Let us always have this repentant heart knowing that we are in no way worthy of all the love that God showers on us. If we repent, God is there to accept you with open arms and take you to the body of Christ. In 1 John 4:20 we read, “If someone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for the one who does not love his brother whom he has seen, cannot love God whom he has not seen.” Whatever is preventing me to love my brother should be put to death and I should ask God for help. In 1 John 4:7 we read, “Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God.” Love is from God. We can love only through God. Is your love growing cold to your brothers? God manifested His love for us by sending Jesus to die for us. And since God loves us, we also ought to love our brothers. In verse 12 we read, “No one has seen God at any time; if we love one another, God abides in us, and His love is perfected in us.” In John 1:18 we read that Jesus explained God’s love. When I can love my brothers, I can know that God abides in me. We can love our brethren only through God and with the Holy Spirit. When we confess that Jesus is the son of God, God will abide in us and us in God. In verse 17 we read, “By this, love is perfected with us, so that we may have confidence in the day of judgment; because as He is, so also are we in this world.”
In Ephesians 1 we read Paul’s prayer for the Ephesian Christians. We read in verse 15-18, “For this reason I too, having heard of the faith in the Lord Jesus which exists among you and your love for all the saints, do not cease giving thanks for you, while making mention of you in my prayers; that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you a spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of Him. I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you will know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints” In chapter 3:16-19 we read, “that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with power through His Spirit in the inner man, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; and that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled up to all the fullness of God.” Paul prays that they may understand the love of Christ. Christ’s love is revealed with all saints; through the body of Christ.
In Revelation 2:4 we read the instruction to the elder of the church of Ephesus, “But I have this against you, that you have left your first love.” God warns that he will remove the lamp-stand unless there is repentance. Let us ask God to keep ourselves humble and to have a heart of repentance and love for God. May God help all of us!
