When Does Love Begin?
Romans 5:8 "But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us."
Do your ever think of yourself as a sinner? Oh, I know we mentally acknowledge that we are sinners but does the reality of what that means ever hit us? Subconsciously we look around us and compare ourselves to those we consider "bad" people and come away feeling rather smug. God is holy, pure, in Him is no shadow or darkness. His pureness is so pure that we cannot really comprehend it. Saul on his journey to Damascus experienced that pureness, which resulted in his falling to earth and becoming blind. God in His holiness cannot look on sin. Yes, He is aware of it, knows our sins, but He cannot look on it in the sense of accepting any of it or excusing it. Any sin is a total affront to Him and is diametrically opposed to Him.
This great and holy God loved us (loves us) and sent His Son in a human body to pay the price for our sin, even though He was perfectly sinless. You know what? He did this when we hated Him. Love doesn't wait until someone is worthy of love to love. Verse six intimates that when we incapable of loving, God loved us. "For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly."
It would do us (me anyway) good to dwell on the above and let the reality of the truth of my sinfulness, of God's pure holiness, and His unfailing love for me in my helplessness sink deep into my soul. That is one of greatest things that would deepen my fervency of love and devotion to God.
What is the practical outworking of that? The apostle Paul said that he was the chiefest of sinners and he hazarded his physical life in order to tell others of the love of God. It would change our relationships, our motivation, our view of other people. It would be the love of God in us loving where we could not of ourselves love. It is the power of God flowing through us to those around us exalting and glorifying the Lord Jesus Christ.
How thankful I am that God loved/loves me and brought me to Himself. He loves you too!
Keep looking up!
Ron
Do your ever think of yourself as a sinner? Oh, I know we mentally acknowledge that we are sinners but does the reality of what that means ever hit us? Subconsciously we look around us and compare ourselves to those we consider "bad" people and come away feeling rather smug. God is holy, pure, in Him is no shadow or darkness. His pureness is so pure that we cannot really comprehend it. Saul on his journey to Damascus experienced that pureness, which resulted in his falling to earth and becoming blind. God in His holiness cannot look on sin. Yes, He is aware of it, knows our sins, but He cannot look on it in the sense of accepting any of it or excusing it. Any sin is a total affront to Him and is diametrically opposed to Him.
This great and holy God loved us (loves us) and sent His Son in a human body to pay the price for our sin, even though He was perfectly sinless. You know what? He did this when we hated Him. Love doesn't wait until someone is worthy of love to love. Verse six intimates that when we incapable of loving, God loved us. "For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly."
It would do us (me anyway) good to dwell on the above and let the reality of the truth of my sinfulness, of God's pure holiness, and His unfailing love for me in my helplessness sink deep into my soul. That is one of greatest things that would deepen my fervency of love and devotion to God.
What is the practical outworking of that? The apostle Paul said that he was the chiefest of sinners and he hazarded his physical life in order to tell others of the love of God. It would change our relationships, our motivation, our view of other people. It would be the love of God in us loving where we could not of ourselves love. It is the power of God flowing through us to those around us exalting and glorifying the Lord Jesus Christ.
How thankful I am that God loved/loves me and brought me to Himself. He loves you too!
Keep looking up!
Ron
posted by Ron | 10:01 AM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home