God is love. Love comes from God.
God's Love Demonstrated
| “God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” Romans 5:8
Jesus Christ died for our sins, to restore our original relationship with God that we lost through Adam and Eve’s rebellion in the Garden of Eden. God gives His love to us freely, as a gift, through our Lord Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross. He demonstrated, showed, proved, His love to us in this way. His love was an action, a verb. His love moved Him to action – to die for us, to save us from our sins and the penalty for our sins which is death and separation from God, but now offers us a way to salvation, to be forgiven and restored in right relationship with God the Father through Jesus Christ by believing Jesus is the Son of God and that He died for our sins on the cross and God raised Him from the dead.
| "In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins." 1 John 4:10
Jesus did what had to be done to save us. His love for the Father and for us, is what moved Him to carry the suffering He endured on the cross. That cost was extremely high but He did it out of His GREAT Love! This kind of God love is a kind of love we humans can not fully understand. God’s love, His thoughts, His ways are way higher than ours. That’s why He is God – God of god’s.
Lean Not on Your own Understanding But Renew your Mind and Heart to God's Truth. Pray for Wisdom and Understanding.
| "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and do not lean on your own understanding" Proverbs 3:5
| "And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect." Romans 12:2
| "But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all generously and without reproach, and it will be given to him." James 1:5
We can not lean on our own understanding. Our understanding is nothing capared to God’s. That’s why we must follow Him, learn from Him, focus on Him, trust in Him, abide in Him, renew our minds and hearts to Him and his truth and His ways. We do this by praying, worshiping, studing his word, and connecting with other believers in community.
| "Then He opened their minds to understand the scriptures" Luke 24:45
We pray for wisdom and understanding from God. Wisdom and understanding comes from God. All good things come from God. This is our life’s journey; our life’s purpose. And as we keep our focus on Him and follow Him, we grow in Him spiritually and our minds and hearts are renewed more and more as we continue our journey with Him.
As We Grow in Christ's Love, We Become a Reflection of Christ's Love to Those Around Us
| "So that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; and that you, being rooted and grounded in love" Ephesians 3:17
| "Beloved, let's love one another; for love is from God, and everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God." 1 John 4:7
As we learn to accept His love for us and gradually come to a greater awareness and understanding of this love and it roots deeper within us, we come to have a greater belief in His love and that changes us from the inside out. And that love from God that is continually growing within us will spill over and out of us to others, naturally.
| "And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go, therefore, and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to follow all that I commanded you; and behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age." Matthew 28:18-20
That is the great commission Jesus gave his followers and it is a natural occurrence and response from the inward spiritual change that Jesus produces within us.
Let's try to keep our focus on Jesus in this world full of distractions. It helps me to remind myself that taking my focus off Jesus only hurts myself. There is nothing or no one in this world that can satisfy us in every way we need, like He can. In Him we get everything we need. I know I'm not the only one who needs God's love, peace and joy in this world of anxiety and depression we live in today. And God's word is LIFE GIVING. So, let's focus, anchor ourselves in Him and grow deep roots. He will change us from the inside out.
| "And you will seek Me and find Me when you search for me with all your heart." Jeremiah 29:13
| Jesus said, "I am the vine, you are the branches; the one who remains in Me, and I in him bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing."
| "Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes out of the mouth of the Lord" Matthew 4:4
| "For the word of God is living and active, and sharper than any two edged sword," Hebrews 4:12
| "Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path." Psalm 119:105
| "Your words were found and I ate them, and Your words became a joy to me and the delight of my heart; for I have been called by your name, Lord God of armies." Jeremiah 15:16
| "Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and pleading with thanksgiving let your requests be known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and minds in Jesus Christ." Philippians 4:6-7
Focus on Jesus
*All bible verses taken from NASB translation (New American Standard Bible 2020)