All that lasts IS HOW WE LOVE

Posted on March 24, 2023 by Elizabeth Welte in Freedom Fighters

The last few words Aunt Jane spoke to me before she died were, “you know I love you?”  She did not have to say it, for my mind was already flooded with memories in which she took center stage. From the day I was born Aunt Jane had held me, prayed for me, encouraged and supported me with all she had… it was in her that I learned the Love of Jesus.

We put so much emphasis on what we do, how much we have, and what we control; that ‘how we love’ becomes ‘what we purchase or obtain’ instead of ‘what we give’, and the most important thing that can be is the ‘giving of ourselves.’ Jesus emphasized this when He told His disciples;

“So now I am giving you a new commandment: Love each other. Just as I have loved you, you should love each other. Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples” (John 13:34-35).

How Jesus loved us was by willingly and graciously giving His life; sacrificially covering over our sin with His blood and being the Way by which each of us is able to come through Him to boldly enter into the presence of God.

He described the height of this Love, as well as the way into enjoying it when He said,

“This is my commandment: Love each other in the same way I have loved you. There is no greater love than to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. You are my friends if you do what I command” (John 15:12-14).

Jesus did not just tell us to love through obedience, He manifested the truth of these statements when He obeyed God’s Word, ‘emptying himself of all His rights, and being found in the appearance of a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on the cross’ (Phil 2:5-8).

It’s this same love that enabled Paul to ‘not lose heart’ in living a life in obedience to God’s Word, for He said,

“All of this is for your benefit. And as God’s grace reaches more and more people, there will be great thanksgiving, and God will receive more and more glory. That is why we never give up. Though our bodies are dying, our spirits are being renewed every day. For our present troubles are small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever! So we don’t look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever” (2 Corinthians 4:15-18).

The things we ‘can’t see’ and ‘vastly outweighs all else’ are ‘how we loved.’

Aunt Jane was a clay vessel that was decaying, yet she never stopped allowing the light of Jesus’ Love spill out of her to others. Though she was dying, her last thoughts were of her Savior and how His light so shined into a world of darkness. I carry that light onward, I pray you do as well.

Choose wisely….

“This is real love… not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins. Dear friends, since God loved us that much, we surely ought to love each other. No one has ever seen God. But if we love each other, God lives in us, and his love is brought to full expression in us.” (1 John 4:10-12)

Praying you choose Christ today

 

 

 

Written by David Brown: David Brown is a husband, father, grandfather, Pastor with a Masters of Religious Studies and a Professor of Philosophy and Comparative Religions. Dave is the Associate Pastor of Pemberton’s First Baptist Church. He is the author of two devotional books, “From a Chair by the Window.” And “#PrayerWinsThe Day”.


Think About This:  “Give God your weakness and He’ll give you His strength.” –Unknown Author

The Daily Bible Reading: Joshua 7-8. You can download our 2023 Daily Bible Reading Plan by clicking here. 

This Week’s Verse to Memorize: “I will betroth you to Me forever; Yes, I will betroth you to Me In righteousness and justice, In lovingkindness and mercy; 20 I will betroth you to Me in faithfulness, And you shall know the Lord.” Hosea 2:19-20

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