(continued from meditation 64)
b.) Another thing a local church needs is Spirit-guided people who are the bearers of a ‘Spirit-given vision’ for corporate, Christlike love for God.
Last week we wrote that God’s Word [the Bible] requires of a healthy local church to have a ‘Spirit-given vision’ of corporate, Christlike love for God, shared by the entire congregation.
Today we will see that God’s Word also shows that God appoints Spirit-guided people in the local church who bear that vision and blaze the trail.
The apostle Paul reminds the followers of Jesus in Ephesus (modern Turkey) of the fact that all fundamental initiatives in a healthy local church are taken and executed by our triune God - Father, Son and Spirit:
“He [Jesus Messiah] is the one who gave these gifts to the church: the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, and the pastors and teachers. Their responsibility is to equip God's people to do his work and build up the church, the body of Christ, until...” (Ephesians 4:11-13)
In the 7th century B.C., God had already promised His wayward people that a Messianic age would arrive. Through His prophet Jeremiah, He assures them that He will make a new (Messianic) covenant with His people. Then He will appoint Spirit-guided teachers who will lead God’s people in God’s way and according to God’s Word [the Bible]:
“And I will give you leaders after my own heart, who will guide you with (God’s) knowledge and understanding.” (Jeremiah 3:15)
Also through the prophet Isaiah, God promised Spirit-guided teachers to His people for that Messianic age of the new covenant: “Although the Lord gives you the bread of adversity and the water of affliction, your teachers will be hidden no more; with your own eyes you will see them. Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, « This is the way; walk in it. » ” (Isaiah 30:20-21)
Once more, God promises His people that under that new covenant He will actually lead them Himself, supposedly through His servants, the prophets, teachers and shepherds [pastors]:
“I will lead blind Israel down a new path, guiding them along an unfamiliar way. I will make the darkness bright before them and smooth out the road ahead of them. Yes, I will indeed do these things; I will not forsake them.” (Isaiah 42:16)
The apostle Paul shows the followers of Jesus in Corinth, that the great promise of the new (Messianic) covenant has been fulfilled in the death and resurrection of Jesus Messiah and the gift of God’s Spirit.
Over the centuries, God has given His church again and again Spirit-guided teachers to teach the church the knowledge of God and to lead God’s people according to His will. Paul testifies to the Corinthian church: “God has actually given us his Spirit (not the world's spirit) so we can know the wonderful things God has freely given us.
When we tell you this, we do not use words of human wisdom. We speak words given to us by the Spirit, using the Spirit's words to explain spiritual truths.” (1 Corinthians 2:12-13)
Again, Paul tells the same great truth to the Ephesian Christians. It is now - in these new testament times – that God’s Spirit teaches the teachers, chosen by Him, how to teach God’s Word and God’s Will to God’s people:
“God did not reveal it to previous generations, but now he has revealed it by the Holy Spirit to his holy apostles and prophets...” (Ephesians 3:5)
In the book of Acts, the evangelist Luke gives us an example of how God’s Spirit can use prophets and teachers to reveal God’s will to a local church:
“Among the prophets and teachers of the church at Antioch of Syria were Barnabas, Simeon (called "the black man"), Lucius (from Cyrene), Manaen (the childhood companion of King Herod Antipas), and Saul.
One day as these men were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, "Dedicate Barnabas and Saul for the special work I have for them. So after more fasting and prayer, the men laid their hands on them and sent them on their way.” (Acts 13:1-2)
The apostle Paul reflects on the same link between the commissioner (God), the message (God’s Word and God’s Will) and the messenger (God’s servant) when he writes to the Roman Christians: “...And how can they hear about him [Jesus Messiah] unless someone tells them? And how will anyone go and tell them without being sent?” (Romans 10:14-15)
Here are some closing questions for reflection:
--- Is my church eager to be empowered by God’s Spirit to grow into corporate, Christlike love for God in such a way that it fulfills God’s first and greatest commandment: "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind." (Matthew 22:37)?
--- Does my church have Spirit-guided people whom God appointed to bear His Spirit-given vision of corporate, Christlike love for God?
--- Who are those people in my church?
--- Are they assigned by my church to act as trail-blazers for growing into corporate, Christlike love for God?
(to be continued)
Isaiah 30:20-21 is a quotes of the New International Version. The other texts are quoted from the New Living Translation.
Friday, September 23, 2011
Saturday, September 17, 2011
64. CORPORATE, CHRISTLIKE LOVE FOR THE FATHER AND HIS SON ( b ) : a common Spirit-given vision
We concluded last week’s meditation with the question: how does God’s Spirit empower my church to grow into mature, Christlike love for God. How does He accomplish that in such a way that my church fulfills God’s first and greatest commandment: "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind."
We also saw that God longs for the love of His church and addresses her as ‘His bride’. In that connection we mentioned Jeremiah 2:2 and Revelation 2:4!
In his last book, the apostle John writes about the global church (which includes my local church!) and calls her the ‘Bride of the Lamb’:
“Let us be glad and rejoice and honor him [God]. For the time has come for the wedding feast of the Lamb [the Messiah], and his bride has prepared herself.”(Revelation 19:7)
If my local church is meant to love our triune God – Father, Son and Spirit - in a mature, Christlike way, how does God’s Spirit carry out such a miraculous project?
I think there is no easy answer to that important question. My church is an amalgamation of Christians from different cultures, different denominations, different milieus, different upbringings and education, different ages, different walks of life, different ‘pre-Christian histories’, different theological views and convictions, etc.
Looking at my church from another angle, it comprises Christians at all stages of faith from young converts to Christlike, mature men and women. Besides, it is ‘encompassed’ by people who are interested in ‘the faith’, but have not yet made a commitment to Christ.
How does such a multifarious community ever grow into mature, Christlike love for God?
a.) I think that one of the first things a church needs is
a common ‘Spirit-given vision’ for Christlike love for God.
Again and again God’s Word [the Bible] presses home the paramount requirement for His people to have a common ‘Spirit-given vision’ for knowing His will.
In the 10th century B.C., wise king Solomon warns that “where there is no vision, the people perish: but he that keepeth the Law (of God), happy is he.” (Proverbs 29:18).
The New Living Translation translates this text as follows: “When people do not accept divine guidance, they run wild. But whoever obeys the Law (of God) is happy.”
The author of 1 Samuel describes the traumatic situation of God’s people in the days of young Samuel: “The Word of the LORD was rare in those days; there was no widespread revelation.”
(1 Samuel 3:1)
In the 8th century B.C. God spoke to His wayward, prosperous and complacent people by the mouth of His servant Hosea: “Hear the Word of the LORD, O people of Israel! The LORD has filed a lawsuit against you, saying: "There is no faithfulness, no kindness, no knowledge of God in your land.” (Hosea 4:1)
God then continues to stress the point of lacking knowledge of Him by saying: “My people are destroyed for lack of (God-given) knowledge. Because you have rejected knowledge, I also will reject you from being priests for Me; because you have forgotten the Law of your God, I also will forget your children.” (Hosea 4:6)
The prophet Amos ministered alongside Hosea. God used him to warn His people for a time of complete absence of divine knowledge: “"The time is surely coming," says the Sovereign LORD, "when I will send a famine on the land-- not a famine of bread or water but of hearing the Words of the LORD. People will stagger everywhere from sea to sea, searching for the Word of the LORD, running here and going there, but they will not find it.” (Amos 8:11-12)
The evangelist Mark describes how Jesus responded when He saw the mystified crowd:
“When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd. So he began teaching them many things.” (Mark 6:34)
Without a Spirit-given vision on a certain matter, based on the knowledge of God’s Word and shared by the whole the church, there is no Spirit-given unity on that matter, even if there are plenty of Bibles around.
And without Spirit-given unity, the church will lack the precon-
dition for divine guidance on that specific matter and ‘run wild’ as Salomon says. Then will happen wat also took place in the time of the Judges: "...the people did whatever seemed right in their own eyes." (Judges 17:6)
The apostle Paul explains to the Christians in Ephesus (modern Turkey) why a shared Spirit-given vision based on the knowledge of God’s Word is of the highest importance for any local church:
“... until we come to such unity in our faith and knowledge of God's Son that we will be mature and full grown in the Lord, measuring up to the full stature of Christ.
Then we will no longer be like children, forever changing our minds about what we believe because someone has told us something different or because someone has cleverly lied to us and made the lie sound like the truth.
Instead, we will hold to the truth in love, becoming more and more in every way like Christ, who is the head of his body, the church.
Under his [Christ’s] direction, the whole body is fitted together perfectly.
As each part does its own special work, it helps the other parts grow, so that the whole body is healthy and growing and full of love.” (Ephesians 4:13-16)
Does my church have a common Spirit-given vision for mature, Christlike love for God?
(to be continued)
The Bible verse KJV Proverbs 29:18 is a quote from the King James Version, NKJ 1 Samuel 3:1 is quoted from the New King James Version, NIB Mark 6:34 is a quote from the New International Version. The other texts are quoted from the New Living Translation.
We also saw that God longs for the love of His church and addresses her as ‘His bride’. In that connection we mentioned Jeremiah 2:2 and Revelation 2:4!
In his last book, the apostle John writes about the global church (which includes my local church!) and calls her the ‘Bride of the Lamb’:
“Let us be glad and rejoice and honor him [God]. For the time has come for the wedding feast of the Lamb [the Messiah], and his bride has prepared herself.”(Revelation 19:7)
If my local church is meant to love our triune God – Father, Son and Spirit - in a mature, Christlike way, how does God’s Spirit carry out such a miraculous project?
I think there is no easy answer to that important question. My church is an amalgamation of Christians from different cultures, different denominations, different milieus, different upbringings and education, different ages, different walks of life, different ‘pre-Christian histories’, different theological views and convictions, etc.
Looking at my church from another angle, it comprises Christians at all stages of faith from young converts to Christlike, mature men and women. Besides, it is ‘encompassed’ by people who are interested in ‘the faith’, but have not yet made a commitment to Christ.
How does such a multifarious community ever grow into mature, Christlike love for God?
a.) I think that one of the first things a church needs is
a common ‘Spirit-given vision’ for Christlike love for God.
Again and again God’s Word [the Bible] presses home the paramount requirement for His people to have a common ‘Spirit-given vision’ for knowing His will.
In the 10th century B.C., wise king Solomon warns that “where there is no vision, the people perish: but he that keepeth the Law (of God), happy is he.” (Proverbs 29:18).
The New Living Translation translates this text as follows: “When people do not accept divine guidance, they run wild. But whoever obeys the Law (of God) is happy.”
The author of 1 Samuel describes the traumatic situation of God’s people in the days of young Samuel: “The Word of the LORD was rare in those days; there was no widespread revelation.”
(1 Samuel 3:1)
In the 8th century B.C. God spoke to His wayward, prosperous and complacent people by the mouth of His servant Hosea: “Hear the Word of the LORD, O people of Israel! The LORD has filed a lawsuit against you, saying: "There is no faithfulness, no kindness, no knowledge of God in your land.” (Hosea 4:1)
God then continues to stress the point of lacking knowledge of Him by saying: “My people are destroyed for lack of (God-given) knowledge. Because you have rejected knowledge, I also will reject you from being priests for Me; because you have forgotten the Law of your God, I also will forget your children.” (Hosea 4:6)
The prophet Amos ministered alongside Hosea. God used him to warn His people for a time of complete absence of divine knowledge: “"The time is surely coming," says the Sovereign LORD, "when I will send a famine on the land-- not a famine of bread or water but of hearing the Words of the LORD. People will stagger everywhere from sea to sea, searching for the Word of the LORD, running here and going there, but they will not find it.” (Amos 8:11-12)
The evangelist Mark describes how Jesus responded when He saw the mystified crowd:
“When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd. So he began teaching them many things.” (Mark 6:34)
Without a Spirit-given vision on a certain matter, based on the knowledge of God’s Word and shared by the whole the church, there is no Spirit-given unity on that matter, even if there are plenty of Bibles around.
And without Spirit-given unity, the church will lack the precon-
dition for divine guidance on that specific matter and ‘run wild’ as Salomon says. Then will happen wat also took place in the time of the Judges: "...the people did whatever seemed right in their own eyes." (Judges 17:6)
The apostle Paul explains to the Christians in Ephesus (modern Turkey) why a shared Spirit-given vision based on the knowledge of God’s Word is of the highest importance for any local church:
“... until we come to such unity in our faith and knowledge of God's Son that we will be mature and full grown in the Lord, measuring up to the full stature of Christ.
Then we will no longer be like children, forever changing our minds about what we believe because someone has told us something different or because someone has cleverly lied to us and made the lie sound like the truth.
Instead, we will hold to the truth in love, becoming more and more in every way like Christ, who is the head of his body, the church.
Under his [Christ’s] direction, the whole body is fitted together perfectly.
As each part does its own special work, it helps the other parts grow, so that the whole body is healthy and growing and full of love.” (Ephesians 4:13-16)
Does my church have a common Spirit-given vision for mature, Christlike love for God?
(to be continued)
The Bible verse KJV Proverbs 29:18 is a quote from the King James Version, NKJ 1 Samuel 3:1 is quoted from the New King James Version, NIB Mark 6:34 is a quote from the New International Version. The other texts are quoted from the New Living Translation.
Friday, September 9, 2011
63. CORPORATE, CHRISTLIKE LOVE FOR THE FATHER AND HIS SON ( a ) : the church as 'corporate personality'
In meditations 56 to 62, we saw that God’s Spirit wants to empower us individually to achieve mature, Christlike love for God. We realised that the Holy Spirit wants to do that in such a way that we fulfill God’s first and greatest commandment: "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind."(Matthew 22:37)
But what about the earlier mentioned 'second track'?
(see meditation 47). How does God’s Spirit develop my church, as the local Body of Christ, into a mature loving community that fulfils God’s first and greatest commandment?
The first question to ask ourselves is, if there is a difference between my personal love for God and my church’s corporate love for Him. Does the local church not only exist of individual believers? I think that God’s Word [the Bible] makes a difference here.
The entire temple and its single stones
The apostle Peter reminds his fellow Christians in what is now Turkey: “...God is building you, as living stones, into his spiritual temple...” (1 Peter 2:5)
The significance of the entire temple stands for so much more than one single stone. Yet, a temple consists of many single stones!
The one body and its many parts
The apostle Paul lectures the followers of Jesus in Rome, explaining: “Just as our bodies have many parts and each part has a special function, so it is with Christ's body. We are all parts of his one body, and each of us has different work to do. And since we are all one body in Christ, we belong to each other, and each of us needs all the others.” (Romans 12:4-5)
Again, we understand that a human body stands for so much more than its individual parts. Yet, it consists of many individual parts together!
The entire people and its individual citizens, the entire family and its respective members
Here are two other examples in one verse. The apostle Paul addresses non-Jewish followers of Jesus Messiah as belonging to God, saying: “... now you Gentiles are no longer strangers and foreigners. You are citizens along with all of God's holy people. You are members of God's family.” (Ephesians 2:19)
Without doubt, the importance of an entire nation stands for so much more than its individual citizens, and an entire family for so much more than its respective members. However, in our individualistic, Western society this biblical concept might well be challenged.
My local church and its individual members
It is the same with the local church. The apostle Paul depicts all individual reborn members of the local church together as the
« Temple of God’s Spirit ». He writes to the local church in Corinth: “Don't you realize that all of you together are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God lives in you?”
(1 Corinthians 3:16)
And again, Paul defines all individual, reborn members of that same church together as the « Body of Christ » : “... we have all been baptized into Christ's body by one Spirit, and we have all received the same Spirit.” (1 Corinthians 12:13)
Once more, the apostle Peter calls all individual reborn members of the church together as « People of God » : “... you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.” (1 Peter 2:9)
Finally, in the first letter to his co-worker Timothy, the apostle Paul describes all the individual members of the local church together as « God’s Family » : “... so that if I can't come for a while, you will know how people must conduct themselves in the household of God. This is the church of the living God...”
(1 Timothy 3:15)
Reflecting on these Bible verses, we realize that God looks at my local church as the ‘Temple of His Spirit’, as the ‘Body of Christ’, and as the ‘People and Family of God’.
In God’s eyes the role and significance of my local church is so different from that of me as an individual Christian. In God’s view my church is ‘a corporate personality’ with its own life, its own function and its own dynamics.
I think that the most beautiful picture of the church as ‘corporate personality’ we find in Paul’s second letter to the Corinthian Christians: “I am jealous for you with the jealousy of God himself. For I promised you as a pure bride to one husband, Christ.”
(2 Corinthians 11:2)
Of course, this is not the first and only time in the Bible that God’s people are depicted as a ‘corporate personality’. The Old and the New Testament pictures God’s people often as ‘servant of God’, ‘son of God’, ‘wife of God’, ‘Daughter of Zion’, 'Virgin Israel’, ‘bride of the Messiah’, etc.
Two Bible verses might specially illustrate God’s longing for the love of His people. In both verses God’s people are addressed as a ‘young bride’.
In the seventh century B.C., God speaks through the prophet Jeremiah and cries out to His unfaithful people, saying: “Go and shout in Jerusalem's streets: This what the LORD says: I remember how eager you were to please me as a young bride long ago, how you loved me and followed me even through the barren wilderness.” (Jeremiah 2:2)
In the same way, the risen Messiah reproves His people in Ephesus (modern Turkey). Through the apostle John, the Lord speaks to them in the 2nd person singular (!), declaring: “... I hold this against you: You have forsaken your first love.” (Revelation 2:4)
All these Bible verses require serious consideration:
Indeed, God does loves me personally, but He loves my church as well! God desires my personal love for Him, but He longs also for the corporate love of my church, as it is ‘the Bride of Christ’!
So, how does God’s Spirit empower my church (as ‘the Bride of Christ’) to grow into mature Christlike love for God. How does He accomplish that in such a way that my church fulfills God’s first and greatest commandment: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind."
That will be the theme of the next meditation. So, hold on!
(to be continued)
The Bible verses Matthew 22:37, 1 Peter 2:9 and Revelation 2:4 are quotes of the New International Version. The other texts are quoted from the New Living Translation.
But what about the earlier mentioned 'second track'?
(see meditation 47). How does God’s Spirit develop my church, as the local Body of Christ, into a mature loving community that fulfils God’s first and greatest commandment?
The first question to ask ourselves is, if there is a difference between my personal love for God and my church’s corporate love for Him. Does the local church not only exist of individual believers? I think that God’s Word [the Bible] makes a difference here.
The entire temple and its single stones
The apostle Peter reminds his fellow Christians in what is now Turkey: “...God is building you, as living stones, into his spiritual temple...” (1 Peter 2:5)
The significance of the entire temple stands for so much more than one single stone. Yet, a temple consists of many single stones!
The one body and its many parts
The apostle Paul lectures the followers of Jesus in Rome, explaining: “Just as our bodies have many parts and each part has a special function, so it is with Christ's body. We are all parts of his one body, and each of us has different work to do. And since we are all one body in Christ, we belong to each other, and each of us needs all the others.” (Romans 12:4-5)
Again, we understand that a human body stands for so much more than its individual parts. Yet, it consists of many individual parts together!
The entire people and its individual citizens, the entire family and its respective members
Here are two other examples in one verse. The apostle Paul addresses non-Jewish followers of Jesus Messiah as belonging to God, saying: “... now you Gentiles are no longer strangers and foreigners. You are citizens along with all of God's holy people. You are members of God's family.” (Ephesians 2:19)
Without doubt, the importance of an entire nation stands for so much more than its individual citizens, and an entire family for so much more than its respective members. However, in our individualistic, Western society this biblical concept might well be challenged.
My local church and its individual members
It is the same with the local church. The apostle Paul depicts all individual reborn members of the local church together as the
« Temple of God’s Spirit ». He writes to the local church in Corinth: “Don't you realize that all of you together are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God lives in you?”
(1 Corinthians 3:16)
And again, Paul defines all individual, reborn members of that same church together as the « Body of Christ » : “... we have all been baptized into Christ's body by one Spirit, and we have all received the same Spirit.” (1 Corinthians 12:13)
Once more, the apostle Peter calls all individual reborn members of the church together as « People of God » : “... you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.” (1 Peter 2:9)
Finally, in the first letter to his co-worker Timothy, the apostle Paul describes all the individual members of the local church together as « God’s Family » : “... so that if I can't come for a while, you will know how people must conduct themselves in the household of God. This is the church of the living God...”
(1 Timothy 3:15)
Reflecting on these Bible verses, we realize that God looks at my local church as the ‘Temple of His Spirit’, as the ‘Body of Christ’, and as the ‘People and Family of God’.
In God’s eyes the role and significance of my local church is so different from that of me as an individual Christian. In God’s view my church is ‘a corporate personality’ with its own life, its own function and its own dynamics.
I think that the most beautiful picture of the church as ‘corporate personality’ we find in Paul’s second letter to the Corinthian Christians: “I am jealous for you with the jealousy of God himself. For I promised you as a pure bride to one husband, Christ.”
(2 Corinthians 11:2)
Of course, this is not the first and only time in the Bible that God’s people are depicted as a ‘corporate personality’. The Old and the New Testament pictures God’s people often as ‘servant of God’, ‘son of God’, ‘wife of God’, ‘Daughter of Zion’, 'Virgin Israel’, ‘bride of the Messiah’, etc.
Two Bible verses might specially illustrate God’s longing for the love of His people. In both verses God’s people are addressed as a ‘young bride’.
In the seventh century B.C., God speaks through the prophet Jeremiah and cries out to His unfaithful people, saying: “Go and shout in Jerusalem's streets: This what the LORD says: I remember how eager you were to please me as a young bride long ago, how you loved me and followed me even through the barren wilderness.” (Jeremiah 2:2)
In the same way, the risen Messiah reproves His people in Ephesus (modern Turkey). Through the apostle John, the Lord speaks to them in the 2nd person singular (!), declaring: “... I hold this against you: You have forsaken your first love.” (Revelation 2:4)
All these Bible verses require serious consideration:
Indeed, God does loves me personally, but He loves my church as well! God desires my personal love for Him, but He longs also for the corporate love of my church, as it is ‘the Bride of Christ’!
So, how does God’s Spirit empower my church (as ‘the Bride of Christ’) to grow into mature Christlike love for God. How does He accomplish that in such a way that my church fulfills God’s first and greatest commandment: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind."
That will be the theme of the next meditation. So, hold on!
(to be continued)
The Bible verses Matthew 22:37, 1 Peter 2:9 and Revelation 2:4 are quotes of the New International Version. The other texts are quoted from the New Living Translation.
Friday, September 2, 2011
62. PERSONAL, CHRISTLIKE LOVE FOR THE FATHER AND HIS SON ( g ) : children, youngsters, adults
With meditation 56, we started our journey in search of the characteristics of Christlike transformation. We found out that 'love' is the predominant trait in the character of our triune God – Father, Son and Spirit.
We also saw that God’s Spirit wants to produce God’s love in our hearts and restore His image (i.e. Jesus’ image) in us. We realised that this work of God’s Spirit takes place after the process of conversion and rebirth.
We understood from God’s Word [the Bible] and from the example of Jesus’ life that true and pure love is expressed in a double relationship: love for God and love for our fellow man.
We also realised that this love, which only God’s Spirit is able to produce in us, is the fulfilment of God’s most important commands for human life:
“’Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest command-
ment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbour as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets [i.e. the entire Old Testament] hang on these two commandments.” (Matthew 22:37-40)
From meditation 57 onwards we concentrated on the first and greatest commandment: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind." We saw how Jesus and his apostles describe such God-given love that fulfills this first commandment.
And again, we repeat that only God’s Spirit is able to empower us to such love as was shown by the way Jesus lived on earth. The apostle John states in his first letter: “Those who say they live in God should live their lives as Christ did.” (1 John 2:6)
So how could we summarise that God-given love that fulfills this first commandment?
It is a sacrificial love for God the Father and for His Son Jesus Christ that expresses itself in:
• wholehearted devotion to them.
(see meditation 57)
• wholehearted and unconditional obedience to them.
(see meditation 58)
• living in uninterrupted fellowship with them.
(see meditation 58)
• honouring them equally.
(see meditation 58)
• being devoted to the truth, especially the truth of God’s Word. (see meditation 60)
• having a pure heart, a clear conscience, and sincere faith.
(see meditation 61)
The more God’s Spirit empowers us to live such sacrificial lives of love for God the Father and for His Son Jesus Christ, the more we grow in Christlike maturity.
In his first letter the apostle John describes Christlike maturity as 'knowing Christ'.
In fact, he addresses three stages of Christian life:
“I am writing to you, my dear children, because your sins have been forgiven because of Jesus.
I am writing to you who are mature because you know Christ, the one who is from the beginning.
I am writing to you who are young because you have won your battle with Satan.
I have written to you, children, because you have known the Father.
I have written to you who are mature because you know Christ, the one who is from the beginning.
I have written to you who are young because you are strong with God's word living in your hearts, and you have won your battle with Satan.” (1 John 2:12-14)
Beyond doubt, when the (Jewish) apostle speaks here about knowing Christ, he doesn’t speak about knowledge in terms of intelligence. In the context of the Jewish understanding of the Bible, knowing Christ means knowing Him personally and loving Him intimately. It means living in close and mature fellowship with Him.
In the above-mentioned text, John says that we start our Christian life after our conversion and rebirth as 'children'.
And for such 'children', the most important thing is that they know the love of God the Father and the fact that their sins are forgiven because of Jesus!
Then the apostle shows that the next stage in our Christian live is being 'youngsters'. Characteristic for 'youngsters' is that, empowered by God’s Spirit and in obedience to God’s Word [the Bible], they have won the battle with Satan. They are strong, with God's Word living in their hearts.
John writes that it is God’s aim that we grow to 'maturity'. Characteristic for such (Christlike) maturity is that we truly know Christ, the one who has existed since the very beginning.
Last but not least, for the entire process of growing from rebirth to Christlike maturity, we need to be controlled by God’s Spirit. He started the process and He will finish it as well! That’s why the apostle Paul commands the followers of Jesus in Ephesus (modern Turkey): “... let the Holy Spirit fill and control you.”
(Ephesians 5:18)
We finished meditation 47 with the following words:
"By now we understand that not only the universal Body of Christ, but also every local community of Jesus’ followers is birthed by God’s Spirit. It is also God’s Spirit who directs the ongoing transformation process into Christ-likeness, so that Christ’s entire Body, spanning all ages, will be prepared for the glorious celebration of the wedding of the Lamb.
In the meditations 45 till 47 we saw that God’s Spirit aims at changing our individual lives as well as our communal life into Christ-likeness.
As ‘maturing in Christ-likeness’ is the theme of our meditations, we need to focus in the future on both tracks: our individual lives as followers of Jesus and our communal lives as local Body of Christ.
So, join me as we soon will start to follow both tracks.”
In the meditations 56 to 62 we saw that God’s Spirit wants to empower me personally to mature Christlike love for God. We realised that He wants to do that in such a way that I learn to fulfill God’s first and greatest commandment: "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind."
But what about the ‘second track’ which we mentioned in Meditation 47? How does God’s Spirit develop my church, as the local Body of Christ, into a mature, loving community that fulfils God’s first and greatest commandment?
That will be the theme for the coming meditations.
(to be continued)
Matthew 22:37-40 is a quote from the New International Version. The other texts are quoted from the New Living Translation.
About being made in God’s image, see meditations 13-16 and 18.
About conversion, see meditations 19-26.
About rebirth or baptism in God’s Spirit, see meditations 27-34, 37 and 44.
We also saw that God’s Spirit wants to produce God’s love in our hearts and restore His image (i.e. Jesus’ image) in us. We realised that this work of God’s Spirit takes place after the process of conversion and rebirth.
We understood from God’s Word [the Bible] and from the example of Jesus’ life that true and pure love is expressed in a double relationship: love for God and love for our fellow man.
We also realised that this love, which only God’s Spirit is able to produce in us, is the fulfilment of God’s most important commands for human life:
“’Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest command-
ment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbour as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets [i.e. the entire Old Testament] hang on these two commandments.” (Matthew 22:37-40)
From meditation 57 onwards we concentrated on the first and greatest commandment: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind." We saw how Jesus and his apostles describe such God-given love that fulfills this first commandment.
And again, we repeat that only God’s Spirit is able to empower us to such love as was shown by the way Jesus lived on earth. The apostle John states in his first letter: “Those who say they live in God should live their lives as Christ did.” (1 John 2:6)
So how could we summarise that God-given love that fulfills this first commandment?
It is a sacrificial love for God the Father and for His Son Jesus Christ that expresses itself in:
• wholehearted devotion to them.
(see meditation 57)
• wholehearted and unconditional obedience to them.
(see meditation 58)
• living in uninterrupted fellowship with them.
(see meditation 58)
• honouring them equally.
(see meditation 58)
• being devoted to the truth, especially the truth of God’s Word. (see meditation 60)
• having a pure heart, a clear conscience, and sincere faith.
(see meditation 61)
The more God’s Spirit empowers us to live such sacrificial lives of love for God the Father and for His Son Jesus Christ, the more we grow in Christlike maturity.
In his first letter the apostle John describes Christlike maturity as 'knowing Christ'.
In fact, he addresses three stages of Christian life:
“I am writing to you, my dear children, because your sins have been forgiven because of Jesus.
I am writing to you who are mature because you know Christ, the one who is from the beginning.
I am writing to you who are young because you have won your battle with Satan.
I have written to you, children, because you have known the Father.
I have written to you who are mature because you know Christ, the one who is from the beginning.
I have written to you who are young because you are strong with God's word living in your hearts, and you have won your battle with Satan.” (1 John 2:12-14)
Beyond doubt, when the (Jewish) apostle speaks here about knowing Christ, he doesn’t speak about knowledge in terms of intelligence. In the context of the Jewish understanding of the Bible, knowing Christ means knowing Him personally and loving Him intimately. It means living in close and mature fellowship with Him.
In the above-mentioned text, John says that we start our Christian life after our conversion and rebirth as 'children'.
And for such 'children', the most important thing is that they know the love of God the Father and the fact that their sins are forgiven because of Jesus!
Then the apostle shows that the next stage in our Christian live is being 'youngsters'. Characteristic for 'youngsters' is that, empowered by God’s Spirit and in obedience to God’s Word [the Bible], they have won the battle with Satan. They are strong, with God's Word living in their hearts.
John writes that it is God’s aim that we grow to 'maturity'. Characteristic for such (Christlike) maturity is that we truly know Christ, the one who has existed since the very beginning.
Last but not least, for the entire process of growing from rebirth to Christlike maturity, we need to be controlled by God’s Spirit. He started the process and He will finish it as well! That’s why the apostle Paul commands the followers of Jesus in Ephesus (modern Turkey): “... let the Holy Spirit fill and control you.”
(Ephesians 5:18)
We finished meditation 47 with the following words:
"By now we understand that not only the universal Body of Christ, but also every local community of Jesus’ followers is birthed by God’s Spirit. It is also God’s Spirit who directs the ongoing transformation process into Christ-likeness, so that Christ’s entire Body, spanning all ages, will be prepared for the glorious celebration of the wedding of the Lamb.
In the meditations 45 till 47 we saw that God’s Spirit aims at changing our individual lives as well as our communal life into Christ-likeness.
As ‘maturing in Christ-likeness’ is the theme of our meditations, we need to focus in the future on both tracks: our individual lives as followers of Jesus and our communal lives as local Body of Christ.
So, join me as we soon will start to follow both tracks.”
In the meditations 56 to 62 we saw that God’s Spirit wants to empower me personally to mature Christlike love for God. We realised that He wants to do that in such a way that I learn to fulfill God’s first and greatest commandment: "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind."
But what about the ‘second track’ which we mentioned in Meditation 47? How does God’s Spirit develop my church, as the local Body of Christ, into a mature, loving community that fulfils God’s first and greatest commandment?
That will be the theme for the coming meditations.
(to be continued)
Matthew 22:37-40 is a quote from the New International Version. The other texts are quoted from the New Living Translation.
About being made in God’s image, see meditations 13-16 and 18.
About conversion, see meditations 19-26.
About rebirth or baptism in God’s Spirit, see meditations 27-34, 37 and 44.
Friday, August 26, 2011
61. PERSONAL, CHRISTLIKE LOVE FOR THE FATHER AND HIS SON ( e ) : a pure heart, a clear conscience and a sincere faith
What else did the apostles write about pure and Christlike love for God?
e.) Wholehearted love for God the Father and His Son Jesus Christ comes from a pure heart, a clear conscience and sincere faith.
1.) A pure heart
Amongst the first Christians the question was raised if non-Jewish male followers of Jesus Messiah should be circumcised like the Jewish disciples of Jesus. That would then be the sign that they had also entered into the new (Messianic) covenant that God had made with the Jewish followers of Jesus.
There was a further dispute about the question if non-Jewish believers should be required to obey the Law of Moses, given by God under the Sinai covenant.
The apostles and elders met in Jerusalem to consider these questions. During that meeting the apostle Peter addressed the congregation and said:
“God, who knows people's hearts, confirmed that he accepts Gentiles [non-Jews] by giving them the Holy Spirit, just as he gave him to us [Jews]. He made no distinction between us and them, for he also cleansed their hearts through faith.”
(Acts 15:8-9)
As Peter said, God gives His Spirit to all who are saved through His Son Jesus Messiah. It is our faith in the Lord Jesus (including the process of conversion and rebirth) that washes our hearts clean from our sinful past.
The apostle Paul explains to his young co-worker Timothy that wholehearted love for God is the goal of his teaching:
“The purpose of my instruction is that all the Christians there would be filled with love that comes from a pure heart, a clear conscience, and sincere faith.” (1 Timothy 1:5)
In his second letter to Timothy, Paul encourages his co-worker to steer clear of anything that would defile his mind, heart and actions:
“Run from anything that stimulates youthful lust. Follow anything that makes you want to do right. Pursue faith and love and peace, and enjoy the companionship of those who call on the Lord with pure hearts." (2 Timothy 2:22)
The apostle James urges half-hearted and quarrelling Christians to return to God in repentance and to ‘cleanse’ their relationship with God and their fellowmen:
“Draw close to God, and God will draw close to you. Wash your hands, you sinners; purify your hearts, you hypocrites.”
(James 4:8)
The apostle Peter explains in his first letter how true purification of the heart takes place: “... you have purified yourselves by obeying the truth...” (1 Peter 1:22)
In his first letter, John shows that controlling our evil desires and keeping away from all sorts of sin and worldliness is not only necessary to sustain a Christlike relationship with God and our fellow Christians. It is also an indispensable preparation for the great moment when we will meet Jesus personally:
“Yes, dear friends, we are already God's children, and we can't even imagine what we will be like when Christ returns. But we do know that when he comes we will be like him, for we will see him as he really is. And all who believe this will keep themselves pure, just as Christ is pure.” (1 John 3:2-3)
2.) A clear conscience
The author of the letter to the Hebrews shows that Jesus’ sacrifice for our sins purifies our guilt-laden conscience:
“How much more, then, will the blood of Christ ... cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God!” (Hebrews 9:14)
The same letter encourages us to approach God with wholehearted love now that we have a clear conscience:
“... let us go right into the presence of God, with true hearts fully trusting him. For our evil consciences have been sprinkled with Christ's blood to make us clean...” (Hebrews 10:22)
The apostle Paul writes to his co-worker: “Timothy, I thank God for you. He is the God I serve with a clear conscience...”
(2 Timothy 1:3)
Paul testifies before Felix, the Roman governor, regarding his way of life: “I strive always to keep my conscience clear before God...” (Acts 24:16)
3.) Sincere faith and love
The apostle Paul speaks in his second letter to Timothy of the ‘sincere faith’ of his young co-worker: “I have been reminded of your sincere faith, which first lived in your grandmother Lois and in your mother Eunice and, I am persuaded, now lives in you also.” (2 Timothy 1:5)
The Greek word that we translate here with ‘sincere’ originally wanted to express that Timothy’s trust in God is genuine and wholehearted, pure and unfeigned, undivided and without reservation.
Paul suses the same word ‘sincere’ for Christlike love. He declares to the Christians in Rome: “Love must be sincere...”
(Romans 12:9).
Paul shows the Corinthian Christians that sincerity is a gift from God, because sincere love is typical for the character of God – Father, Son and Spirit:
"Now this is our boast: Our conscience testifies that we have conducted ourselves in the world, and especially in our relations with you, in the holiness and sincerity that are from God. We have done so not according to worldly wisdom but according to God's grace." (2 Corinthians 1:12)
The apostle Peter uses the same expression in his first letter. He says that ‘sincere love’ is a gift of God’s Spirit and the fruit of conversion and rebirth:
“Now that you have purified yourselves by obeying the truth so that you have sincere love...” (1 Peter 1:22)
The apostle Paul reminds the followers of Jesus in Corinth that he is a true servant of God. Among other things he points to his ‘sincere love’ for God (and fellow men) as a distinguishing feature of a true servant of Jesus Christ. He writes:
“We have proved ourselves by our purity, our understanding, our patience, our kindness, our sincere love, and the power of the Holy Spirit.” (2 Corinthians 6:6)
In all these verses the apostles remind us over and over again that wholehearted, Christlike love for God is the fruit of God’s Spirit in our hearts. Such God-given love is pure, sincere and unadulter-
ated, and results from the strength of a forgiven heart and a good conscience.
(to be continued)
The Bible verses 1 Peter 1:22, Hebrews 9:14, Acts 24:16, 2 Timothy 1:5, Romans 12:9, 2 Corinthians 1:12 and 1 Peter 1:22 are quotes of the New International Version. The other texts are quoted from the New Living Translation.
About the Sinai Covenant and the New (Messianic) Covenant, see meditation 33.
About conversion, see meditations 19-26.
About rebirth or baptism in God’s Spirit, see meditations 27-34, 37 and 44.
e.) Wholehearted love for God the Father and His Son Jesus Christ comes from a pure heart, a clear conscience and sincere faith.
1.) A pure heart
Amongst the first Christians the question was raised if non-Jewish male followers of Jesus Messiah should be circumcised like the Jewish disciples of Jesus. That would then be the sign that they had also entered into the new (Messianic) covenant that God had made with the Jewish followers of Jesus.
There was a further dispute about the question if non-Jewish believers should be required to obey the Law of Moses, given by God under the Sinai covenant.
The apostles and elders met in Jerusalem to consider these questions. During that meeting the apostle Peter addressed the congregation and said:
“God, who knows people's hearts, confirmed that he accepts Gentiles [non-Jews] by giving them the Holy Spirit, just as he gave him to us [Jews]. He made no distinction between us and them, for he also cleansed their hearts through faith.”
(Acts 15:8-9)
As Peter said, God gives His Spirit to all who are saved through His Son Jesus Messiah. It is our faith in the Lord Jesus (including the process of conversion and rebirth) that washes our hearts clean from our sinful past.
The apostle Paul explains to his young co-worker Timothy that wholehearted love for God is the goal of his teaching:
“The purpose of my instruction is that all the Christians there would be filled with love that comes from a pure heart, a clear conscience, and sincere faith.” (1 Timothy 1:5)
In his second letter to Timothy, Paul encourages his co-worker to steer clear of anything that would defile his mind, heart and actions:
“Run from anything that stimulates youthful lust. Follow anything that makes you want to do right. Pursue faith and love and peace, and enjoy the companionship of those who call on the Lord with pure hearts." (2 Timothy 2:22)
The apostle James urges half-hearted and quarrelling Christians to return to God in repentance and to ‘cleanse’ their relationship with God and their fellowmen:
“Draw close to God, and God will draw close to you. Wash your hands, you sinners; purify your hearts, you hypocrites.”
(James 4:8)
The apostle Peter explains in his first letter how true purification of the heart takes place: “... you have purified yourselves by obeying the truth...” (1 Peter 1:22)
In his first letter, John shows that controlling our evil desires and keeping away from all sorts of sin and worldliness is not only necessary to sustain a Christlike relationship with God and our fellow Christians. It is also an indispensable preparation for the great moment when we will meet Jesus personally:
“Yes, dear friends, we are already God's children, and we can't even imagine what we will be like when Christ returns. But we do know that when he comes we will be like him, for we will see him as he really is. And all who believe this will keep themselves pure, just as Christ is pure.” (1 John 3:2-3)
2.) A clear conscience
The author of the letter to the Hebrews shows that Jesus’ sacrifice for our sins purifies our guilt-laden conscience:
“How much more, then, will the blood of Christ ... cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God!” (Hebrews 9:14)
The same letter encourages us to approach God with wholehearted love now that we have a clear conscience:
“... let us go right into the presence of God, with true hearts fully trusting him. For our evil consciences have been sprinkled with Christ's blood to make us clean...” (Hebrews 10:22)
The apostle Paul writes to his co-worker: “Timothy, I thank God for you. He is the God I serve with a clear conscience...”
(2 Timothy 1:3)
Paul testifies before Felix, the Roman governor, regarding his way of life: “I strive always to keep my conscience clear before God...” (Acts 24:16)
3.) Sincere faith and love
The apostle Paul speaks in his second letter to Timothy of the ‘sincere faith’ of his young co-worker: “I have been reminded of your sincere faith, which first lived in your grandmother Lois and in your mother Eunice and, I am persuaded, now lives in you also.” (2 Timothy 1:5)
The Greek word that we translate here with ‘sincere’ originally wanted to express that Timothy’s trust in God is genuine and wholehearted, pure and unfeigned, undivided and without reservation.
Paul suses the same word ‘sincere’ for Christlike love. He declares to the Christians in Rome: “Love must be sincere...”
(Romans 12:9).
Paul shows the Corinthian Christians that sincerity is a gift from God, because sincere love is typical for the character of God – Father, Son and Spirit:
"Now this is our boast: Our conscience testifies that we have conducted ourselves in the world, and especially in our relations with you, in the holiness and sincerity that are from God. We have done so not according to worldly wisdom but according to God's grace." (2 Corinthians 1:12)
The apostle Peter uses the same expression in his first letter. He says that ‘sincere love’ is a gift of God’s Spirit and the fruit of conversion and rebirth:
“Now that you have purified yourselves by obeying the truth so that you have sincere love...” (1 Peter 1:22)
The apostle Paul reminds the followers of Jesus in Corinth that he is a true servant of God. Among other things he points to his ‘sincere love’ for God (and fellow men) as a distinguishing feature of a true servant of Jesus Christ. He writes:
“We have proved ourselves by our purity, our understanding, our patience, our kindness, our sincere love, and the power of the Holy Spirit.” (2 Corinthians 6:6)
In all these verses the apostles remind us over and over again that wholehearted, Christlike love for God is the fruit of God’s Spirit in our hearts. Such God-given love is pure, sincere and unadulter-
ated, and results from the strength of a forgiven heart and a good conscience.
(to be continued)
The Bible verses 1 Peter 1:22, Hebrews 9:14, Acts 24:16, 2 Timothy 1:5, Romans 12:9, 2 Corinthians 1:12 and 1 Peter 1:22 are quotes of the New International Version. The other texts are quoted from the New Living Translation.
About the Sinai Covenant and the New (Messianic) Covenant, see meditation 33.
About conversion, see meditations 19-26.
About rebirth or baptism in God’s Spirit, see meditations 27-34, 37 and 44.
Friday, August 19, 2011
60. PERSONAL, CHRISTLIKE LOVE FOR THE FATHER AND HIS SON ( d ) : following the Spirit of Truth and obeying God's Word
Today we want to continue finding out what else the apostles wrote about pure and Christlike love for God.
b.) To love God the Father and His Son Jesus Christ wholeheartedly means to love the truth, especially the truth of God’s Word.
In chapter 13 of his first letter to the Christians in Corinth, Paul shows them that love is “the most excellent way” of life.
Although this passage is often read at wedding ceremonies, it is clear from all Paul’s letters that he does not speak here of human love in general or of love between husband and wife.
The apostle speaks of divine or Christlike love, given to us by our rebirth through God’s Spirit. Consider the way Paul speaks about love in his final greetings to the followers of Jesus in Corinth:
“May ... the love of God ... be with you all.”
(2 Corinthians 13:14)
In his first letter to the Corinthian Christians, the apostle Paul spurs them on to keep on the right path, saying: “Follow the way of love...” (1 Corinthians 14:1)
In the same letter Paul characterises pure and divine love by saying: “Love ... rejoices with the truth.” (1 Corinthians 13:6)
Jesus showed his disciples in the night before his death that God’s Spirit is ‘the Spirit of truth’: “I will send you the Counselor-- the Spirit of truth. He will come to you from the Father and will tell you all about me.” (John 15:26)
Furthermore, Jesus said about God’s Spirit: “When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not be presenting his own ideas; he will be telling you what he has heard (from God the Father and from His Son Jesus Messiah).”
(John 16:13)
To his fellow Christians in Ephesus (modern Turkey) the apostle Paul makes clear what will happen to us when we follow the guidance of the Spirit of truth on the path of love: “We will hold to the truth in love, becoming more and more in every way like Christ...” (Ephesians 4:15)
To the followers of Jesus in Thessalonica (Greece), Paul explains the link between love and truth. He shows them what will happen to people who don’t love the truth of God’s message about Jesus Messiah: “They perish because they refused to love the truth and so be saved.” (2 Thessalonians 2:10)
The apostle Peter points to the fact that followers of Jesus have undergone a complete change of lifestyle. When they accept Jesus Christ as their Saviour and Lord, they drop their former rebellious way of life and start to follow the Spirit of truth and learn to live a Christlike life.
Peter writes to his fellow Christians: “Now that you have purified yourselves by obeying the truth so that you have sincere love...” (1 Peter 1:22)
The apostle John warns all Jesus’ followers of hypocrisy by saying: “Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth.” (1 John 3:18)
On the other hand, John is glad when Christians abide by God’s Word. He writes: “It gave me great joy to have some brothers come and tell about your faithfulness to the truth and how you continue to walk in the truth.” (3 John 1:3)
John finishes his second letter to all God’s reborn children with the greeting: “May grace, mercy, and peace, which come from God our Father and from Jesus Christ his Son, be with us who live in truth and love.” (2 John 1:3)
The Bible is full of stories of men and women who loved God the Father and His Son Jesus Messiah. They had decided to obey God’s Word and ‘walk in the truth’. Especially in the Psalms, we meet people who long for God, rejoice in His love, and abide by His Word.
Why is it that worldwide, a growing number of today’s church leaders are concerned about the fact that so many followers of Jesus seek ‘spiritual experiences’, but hardly have any in-depth knowledge of God’s Word?
How easily do such Christians fall into the trap of false teaching. The apostle Paul calls such people: “... infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of men in their deceitful scheming.” (Ephesians 4:14).
Rather, Paul wants us to grow in Christlike love, in the knowledge of God’s Word and in obedience to God’s Will. He continues: “Instead, we will hold to the truth in love, becoming more and more in every way like Christ...” (Ephesians 4:15)
Since Jesus’ death and resurrection, following the Spirit of truth, obeying God’s Word [the Bible], and growing into wholehearted Christlike love for God has become a real possibility.
Have you embraced that multiple offer of salvation?
(to be continued)
The Bible verses 2 Corinthians 13:14, 1 Corinthians 14:1, 1 Corinthians 13:6, Ephesians 4:14, 2 Thessalonians 2:10, 1 Peter 1:22, 1 John 3:18 and 3 John 1:3 are quotes of the New International Version. The other texts are quoted from the New Living Translation.
b.) To love God the Father and His Son Jesus Christ wholeheartedly means to love the truth, especially the truth of God’s Word.
In chapter 13 of his first letter to the Christians in Corinth, Paul shows them that love is “the most excellent way” of life.
Although this passage is often read at wedding ceremonies, it is clear from all Paul’s letters that he does not speak here of human love in general or of love between husband and wife.
The apostle speaks of divine or Christlike love, given to us by our rebirth through God’s Spirit. Consider the way Paul speaks about love in his final greetings to the followers of Jesus in Corinth:
“May ... the love of God ... be with you all.”
(2 Corinthians 13:14)
In his first letter to the Corinthian Christians, the apostle Paul spurs them on to keep on the right path, saying: “Follow the way of love...” (1 Corinthians 14:1)
In the same letter Paul characterises pure and divine love by saying: “Love ... rejoices with the truth.” (1 Corinthians 13:6)
Jesus showed his disciples in the night before his death that God’s Spirit is ‘the Spirit of truth’: “I will send you the Counselor-- the Spirit of truth. He will come to you from the Father and will tell you all about me.” (John 15:26)
Furthermore, Jesus said about God’s Spirit: “When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not be presenting his own ideas; he will be telling you what he has heard (from God the Father and from His Son Jesus Messiah).”
(John 16:13)
To his fellow Christians in Ephesus (modern Turkey) the apostle Paul makes clear what will happen to us when we follow the guidance of the Spirit of truth on the path of love: “We will hold to the truth in love, becoming more and more in every way like Christ...” (Ephesians 4:15)
To the followers of Jesus in Thessalonica (Greece), Paul explains the link between love and truth. He shows them what will happen to people who don’t love the truth of God’s message about Jesus Messiah: “They perish because they refused to love the truth and so be saved.” (2 Thessalonians 2:10)
The apostle Peter points to the fact that followers of Jesus have undergone a complete change of lifestyle. When they accept Jesus Christ as their Saviour and Lord, they drop their former rebellious way of life and start to follow the Spirit of truth and learn to live a Christlike life.
Peter writes to his fellow Christians: “Now that you have purified yourselves by obeying the truth so that you have sincere love...” (1 Peter 1:22)
The apostle John warns all Jesus’ followers of hypocrisy by saying: “Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth.” (1 John 3:18)
On the other hand, John is glad when Christians abide by God’s Word. He writes: “It gave me great joy to have some brothers come and tell about your faithfulness to the truth and how you continue to walk in the truth.” (3 John 1:3)
John finishes his second letter to all God’s reborn children with the greeting: “May grace, mercy, and peace, which come from God our Father and from Jesus Christ his Son, be with us who live in truth and love.” (2 John 1:3)
The Bible is full of stories of men and women who loved God the Father and His Son Jesus Messiah. They had decided to obey God’s Word and ‘walk in the truth’. Especially in the Psalms, we meet people who long for God, rejoice in His love, and abide by His Word.
Why is it that worldwide, a growing number of today’s church leaders are concerned about the fact that so many followers of Jesus seek ‘spiritual experiences’, but hardly have any in-depth knowledge of God’s Word?
How easily do such Christians fall into the trap of false teaching. The apostle Paul calls such people: “... infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of men in their deceitful scheming.” (Ephesians 4:14).
Rather, Paul wants us to grow in Christlike love, in the knowledge of God’s Word and in obedience to God’s Will. He continues: “Instead, we will hold to the truth in love, becoming more and more in every way like Christ...” (Ephesians 4:15)
Since Jesus’ death and resurrection, following the Spirit of truth, obeying God’s Word [the Bible], and growing into wholehearted Christlike love for God has become a real possibility.
Have you embraced that multiple offer of salvation?
(to be continued)
The Bible verses 2 Corinthians 13:14, 1 Corinthians 14:1, 1 Corinthians 13:6, Ephesians 4:14, 2 Thessalonians 2:10, 1 Peter 1:22, 1 John 3:18 and 3 John 1:3 are quotes of the New International Version. The other texts are quoted from the New Living Translation.
Friday, August 12, 2011
59. PERSONAL, CHRISTLIKE LOVE FOR THE FATHER AND HIS SON ( c ) : a gift from God's Spirit
In the last two meditations we saw what Jesus told us about divine love for God the Father and God the Son. We also looked at the ways the apostles echoed Jesus’ teaching on divine love.
This time we want to see what else the apostles wrote about Christlike love for God.
a.) Christlike love for God is a gift from God’s Spirit. It also fulfils the first and greatest command of God’s Law.
First of all the apostle Pauls states clearly that it is God’s Spirit who produces true and pure Christlike love in our hearts. It is a divine gift we receive after conversion and through rebirth.
The apostle Paul reminds the followers of Jesus in Rome of the start of their walk with Christ: “God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.” (Romans 5:2)
The apostle stresses to the Christians in the province of Galatia (modern Turkey) that “The fruit of the Spirit is love...”
(Galatians 5:22)
For the followers of Jesus in Ephesus (modern Turkey) Paul prays: “... Out of his [God’s] glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith.
And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ...”
(Ephesians 3:16-18)
Here the apostle speaks in one sentence about the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives, resulting in the presence of Christ and his love in our hearts.
Having received God’s Spirit and his love, Paul encourages his fellow Christians: “Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.” (Ephesians 5:1-2)
In his first letter the apostle John points out: “... love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God.
Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.....
We know that we live in him and he in us, because he has given us of his Spirit.....
If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in him and he in God. And so we know and rely on the love God has for us.
God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him.”
(1 John 4:7-8. 13.15. 16).
In all these texts we see that Jesus’ atoning sacrifice for our sins, the gift of God’s Spirit, and the outpouring of God’s love in our hearts through His Spirit, are all part and parcel of God’s saving grace.
So, what about God’s first and greatest command in the Sinai Covenant to love Him “with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind” (Matthew 22:37).
As I have by nature a selfish and rebellious heart, how could I ever fulfil this command by myself?
Indeed, as Paul writes to the Christians in Rome: “Love is the fulfilment of the Law (of God).” (NIV Romans 13:10)
It is only the Spirit of Christ in me who makes me able to fulfil God’s Law. Paul writes to the followers of Jesus in Galatia:
“I advise you to live according to your new life in the Holy Spirit. Then you won't be doing what your sinful nature craves.
The old sinful nature loves to do evil, which is just opposite from what the Holy Spirit wants.
And the Spirit gives us desires that are opposite from what the sinful nature desires.
These two forces are constantly fighting each other, and your choices are never free from this conflict.
But when you are directed by the Holy Spirit, you are no longer subject to the Law (of God)” (Galatians 5:16-18)
Again Paul stresses the same truth some verses later:
“When the Holy Spirit controls our lives, he will produce this kind of fruit in us: love .....
Here there is no conflict with the Law (of God).
Those who belong to Christ Jesus have nailed the passions and desires of their sinful nature to his cross and crucified them there.
If we are living now by the Holy Spirit, let us follow the Holy Spirit's leading in every part of our lives.” (Galatians 5:22-25)
(to be continued)
The Bible verses Galatians 5:16-18 and Galatians 5:22-25 are quotes of the New Living Translation. The other texts are quoted from the New International Version.
About the Sinai Covenant and the New (Messianic) Covenant, see meditation 33.
About Jesus' love for God the Father, see meditation 15.
About conversion, see meditations 19-26.
About rebirth or baptism in God’s Spirit, see meditations 27-34, 37 and 44.
This time we want to see what else the apostles wrote about Christlike love for God.
a.) Christlike love for God is a gift from God’s Spirit. It also fulfils the first and greatest command of God’s Law.
First of all the apostle Pauls states clearly that it is God’s Spirit who produces true and pure Christlike love in our hearts. It is a divine gift we receive after conversion and through rebirth.
The apostle Paul reminds the followers of Jesus in Rome of the start of their walk with Christ: “God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.” (Romans 5:2)
The apostle stresses to the Christians in the province of Galatia (modern Turkey) that “The fruit of the Spirit is love...”
(Galatians 5:22)
For the followers of Jesus in Ephesus (modern Turkey) Paul prays: “... Out of his [God’s] glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith.
And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ...”
(Ephesians 3:16-18)
Here the apostle speaks in one sentence about the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives, resulting in the presence of Christ and his love in our hearts.
Having received God’s Spirit and his love, Paul encourages his fellow Christians: “Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.” (Ephesians 5:1-2)
In his first letter the apostle John points out: “... love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God.
Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.....
We know that we live in him and he in us, because he has given us of his Spirit.....
If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in him and he in God. And so we know and rely on the love God has for us.
God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him.”
(1 John 4:7-8. 13.15. 16).
In all these texts we see that Jesus’ atoning sacrifice for our sins, the gift of God’s Spirit, and the outpouring of God’s love in our hearts through His Spirit, are all part and parcel of God’s saving grace.
So, what about God’s first and greatest command in the Sinai Covenant to love Him “with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind” (Matthew 22:37).
As I have by nature a selfish and rebellious heart, how could I ever fulfil this command by myself?
Indeed, as Paul writes to the Christians in Rome: “Love is the fulfilment of the Law (of God).” (NIV Romans 13:10)
It is only the Spirit of Christ in me who makes me able to fulfil God’s Law. Paul writes to the followers of Jesus in Galatia:
“I advise you to live according to your new life in the Holy Spirit. Then you won't be doing what your sinful nature craves.
The old sinful nature loves to do evil, which is just opposite from what the Holy Spirit wants.
And the Spirit gives us desires that are opposite from what the sinful nature desires.
These two forces are constantly fighting each other, and your choices are never free from this conflict.
But when you are directed by the Holy Spirit, you are no longer subject to the Law (of God)” (Galatians 5:16-18)
Again Paul stresses the same truth some verses later:
“When the Holy Spirit controls our lives, he will produce this kind of fruit in us: love .....
Here there is no conflict with the Law (of God).
Those who belong to Christ Jesus have nailed the passions and desires of their sinful nature to his cross and crucified them there.
If we are living now by the Holy Spirit, let us follow the Holy Spirit's leading in every part of our lives.” (Galatians 5:22-25)
(to be continued)
The Bible verses Galatians 5:16-18 and Galatians 5:22-25 are quotes of the New Living Translation. The other texts are quoted from the New International Version.
About the Sinai Covenant and the New (Messianic) Covenant, see meditation 33.
About Jesus' love for God the Father, see meditation 15.
About conversion, see meditations 19-26.
About rebirth or baptism in God’s Spirit, see meditations 27-34, 37 and 44.
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