October 16, 2018
Good Morning Fellow Travelers,
Read: John 14:5-25
“If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen?” I John 4:20
Do I love God? Our eternal destiny hangs on this question. The awesome grandeur and power of God as Creator and Sustainer of everything causes us to feel like God is elusive and hard to know. We ponder this question in light of the command to love God with all our heart, soul, mind and strength. God wants our love. How do we love God?
We love God by loving Jesus. We see this clearly in the answer Jesus gave to Philip (verse 9). If we know Jesus, we know the Father. God is in Christ, reconciling the world unto Himself. Our love for Christ is our love for God. We should no longer be in doubt about our love for God. Commit yourself to a growing love for the Wonderful, the Counsellor, the Mighty God, the everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace, King of Kings, and Lord of Lords; our loving Saviour, Jesus Christ.
We also love God by loving people. Jesus told a lawyer who challenged him, that upon the commandments to love God and your neighbor hang the entire law and the prophets. We are commanded to love everyone (John 15:12-13). Do you love everyone? Are there those within your family that you do not love? If there is even one person that you do not love, then your love for God is void. We need to choose to love. God will dwell in a loving heart.
We show our love for God through our obedience to His commandments. Consider verses 20-23. He who loves Christ keeps His commandments. Through this we enter into God’s love. The promise that follows is profound. Christ and the Father will dwell with us.
– James Baer