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Love
Blessed Are The Peacemakers
Wednesday, March 04, 2015Jesus taught, “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God” (Matt. 5.8).
Since the gospel of Jesus Christ creates peace in a world where there is none (Col. 1.13-23; Rom. 5.1; James 4.4), Christians are called to be peacemakers (Matt. 28.18-20; 2 Tim. 2.2; Acts 8.4).
Sharing the peace Christ offers with others is exclusively accomplished through the spreading of the gospel. Therefore, we must not hinder the gospel by our lack of love or peace God has called us to exemplify (Rom. 12.18; Phil. 4.7-9; Heb. 12.14). If we do not love peace, how can we expect others to obtain such? – Bryan Garlock
Love Is Sacrificial
Friday, February 27, 2015
John penned, “In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins” (1 John 4.9-10).
God gave us the Bible through inspired men to reveal the love He has for all mankind. Within its pages, the apostles show the cross of Christ as our focal point of faith. Therefore, the love God made known is the love we must reciprocate in order to be His children. We accomplish this through obedience and faithfulness to Him (John 14.15).
John continued, “Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us and his love is perfected in us” (4.11-12). The reason we are to love one another is because God loved us. Further, we are to love the Father because, “…he first loved us” (19).
The Father’s love was sacrificial. He sent His Son to die on a cross for our sins (John 3.16). Thus, if His love for us cost Him something, our love for Him ought to cost us something. His sacrifice teaches us that love is not selfish, but looks out for the interest of others (1 Cor. 13.5; Phil. 2.4). Are we willing to count the cost of being a disciple of Jesus Christ? We must forsake the world and forsake sin. We must love the Father and love one another. This will take sacrifice on our part! – Bryan Garlock