1 John 4:10
“This is love: not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.”
I once heard about a couple who made an appointment with a marriage counselor. They had been married for forty years and the counselor wondered why they would want to talk to him.
The wife started out by saying that she didn’t think her husband loved her. He just never said he loved her. When the counselor asked the husband if this were true, he readily agreed. He said, “I told forty years ago I loved her and I have not withdrawn that statement—it’s still in effect!” (I think the counselor wanted to bang his head on the desk!)
It is seldom, if ever, that we choose up sides and talk about the meaning of the word, “love.’ Many of us think we have a grasp of its meaning, but do we really? Can we honestly claim that we have plumbed love’s true meaning?
Here is my candid observation—love is an emotion, that while being a command, begs for some type of positive response. We are prone to love only as long as the person loves us in return. Take that response away and we quickly lose the desire to continue loving.
Like it or not, we humans are self centered and preoccupied with ourselves. If you want an example of this just stop and listen to someone’s conversation. Note the way they focus on their own interests and welfare.
According to God’s precious Word we are to love with a love that is like the love Jesus has for us. That means we are to love even when the other person is not loveable.
When you stop to think about it, that is the way God loves us—when we are the most unlovable. It is while we were unlovable sinners that Christ loved us, and it is the unlovable people around us who need us to love them—with Christ’s transforming love.
Blessings dear hearts. Draw near to God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing!
— Pastor Cecil