One thing that we need to be sure and understand is that the love of God is totally different from what we think is love. As we will see, love is not just altruistic, it is much more than that.
Love is part of the character of Christ, this is what Paul wrote to Timothy, “1Tim. 1:14 The grace of our Lord was poured out on me abundantly, along with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus.” and this love He shared with us. This is why the first aspect of the Fruit of the Spirit is love, Galatians 5: 22-23.
Let us see two other aspects of that love:
2 – A Sacrificial Love
It is a love that is willing to sacrifice. Because it is an altruistic love, it is also a sacrificial love. This love is willing to serve others and even sacrifice for others. Most of the time that the word love appears with Jesus we have the words, give, sacrifice, die, and serve around it. Let me show just a few:
“1John 3:16 This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers.”
“Gal. 2:20 I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.”
3 – A Perennial Love
Finally, this love is not for some season in our lives. This is not a mission trip kind of love. This is not a Sunday morning love. This love is to be present in our lives all the time all the way to the end. This is what we learn with Jesus:
“John 13:1 Now before the Feast of the Passover, when Jesus knew that his hour had come to depart out of this world to the Father, having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end.”
“Rom. 8:35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword?”
“Rom. 8:39 neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
When we became a Christian, when we believe in Christ, the Holy Spirit put the seed of Christ inside of us. This seed has love in it, this is why it is so important to nurture that seed so we can start demonstrating that kind of love.
How can we start?
We start with prayer. This is what Paul did for the Ephesian church.
“Eph. 3:16 I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being,
Eph. 3:17 so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love,
Eph. 3:18 may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ,
Eph. 3:19 and to know this love that surpasses knowledge — that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.”
Pray that the Spirit will help you to express the love of Christ to people around you. Pray also for your brothers and sisters.
Have a blessed week,
Pastor Lucas