Posts Tagged ‘love’

Moved With Compassion

Thursday, 10 June, 2010 16:23 Written by Pastor Bruce 0 Comments

We are called to move toward the unlovely! (not run from them to a place of protection and security)

Now a leper came to Him, imploring Him, kneeling down to Him and saying to Him, “If You are willing, You can make me clean.” Then Jesus, moved with compassion, stretched out His hand and touched him, and said to him, “I am willing; be cleansed.” As soon as He had spoken, immediately the leprosy left him, and he was cleansed. (Mar 1:40-42 NKJV)

Jesus was MOVED with COMPASSION (the love of God in action) toward a leper!

The untouchable man was touched by the Healer! In that instance Jesus displayed for us all that it is God’s will that ALL be healed and whole. He also showed us how we should respond to the untouchable and unlovable…move with the love of God TOWARD them.

If God is going to use us we must go out to where there are hurting people that need a touch. Jesus did not come to earth to be secluded in a cave somewhere only to come out and be crucified when the time was right. The Great Physician came to the wounded ones in order to heal them. We have got to do more moving! Moving toward those who want deliverance and help!

Begin to pray, “Thank you Lord that I am moving with compassion as Jesus did! I see people that are reaching out in faith and move toward them so that you can move through me to meet their need! The love of God moves me to speak to people about their eternal destination. Thank you Lord for using me to bring help, hope and healing to all those around me.”

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I Love My Wife and Pasta

Thursday, 20 May, 2010 13:10 Written by Pastor Bruce 0 Comments

How many things do you love? Or better yet, how many things do you ”SAY” that you love?

Beloved, let us love one another, for love is (springs) from God; and he who loves [his fellowmen] is begotten (born) of God and is coming [progressively] to know and understand God [to perceive and recognize and get a better and clearer knowledge of Him]. 1 John 4:7 AMP

God is love and love comes from (or springs from) God. Without God there is no love. These are absolutes, this is THE TRUTH from the Word of God.

We have weakened the power of love by our nonchalant and overuse use of the word “LOVE”. We love chocolate, cars, vacation, starbuck’s coffee, walking on the beach, sunsets, ice cream, sports teams, (and the list goes on and on)…

We say that we love things that do not have the ability to love us back. Because we use the word love so much we do not have a handle on what we really do love.

The Word of God says that we should love the Lord with all of our heart, soul and strength! (every part of our being!) He is to be Lord and Master of our universe. Then He tells us that we should love people (our neighbor, our brothers, spouse, children, family, friends, co-workers and everyone). People have the ability to love us back. (sidenote: we do not love those that only love us back but everyone that we come in contact with)

We should check up on the way that we use the word LOVE and make sure that we are not overusing it. Instead we should say “like” when we are speaking of an object that we appreciate. Guard your affections and make sure that you are only loving God and people. Begin to use the word love with a new sensitivity of the power in love and new awareness that only God and other people are worth your full affection, attention and admiration!

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Loving the Unlovely

Wednesday, 05 May, 2010 07:25 Written by Pastor Bruce 0 Comments

Ever thought “this world would be great if we could get rid of all the difficult people.”?

“You’re familiar with the old written law, ‘Love your friend,’ and its unwritten companion, ‘Hate your enemy.’ I’m challenging that. I’m telling you to love your enemies. Let them bring out the best in you, not the worst. When someone gives you a hard time, respond with the energies of prayer, for then you are working out of your true selves, your God-created selves. This is what God does. He gives his best—the sun to warm and the rain to nourish—to everyone, regardless: the good and bad, the nice and nasty. If all you do is love the lovable, do you expect a bonus? Anybody can do that. If you simply say hello to those who greet you, do you expect a medal? Any run-of-the-mill sinner does that.” – Matthew 5:43-47 [The Message]

When we are born again we are equipped with all that we need to love every person that we will ever come in contact with. People don’t purposely choose to be difficult, it just happens. The natural course of life without God is to become old and grumpy, difficult and down right mean. In a word, SELFISH.

Without the Word of God operating in your life you will become difficult as well. This is exactly why it is important to practice Matthew 5:43-47 and learn to love the unlovely. When you come in contact with a difficult person decide within yourself that “I am going to show the love of God regardless!” and you have just put yourself in the right place. It is easy to love those that love you, it requires no effort at all. But it is a “big person” (a mature one) that can love someone that is lying about them, cheating on them, stealing from them, etc. You can do it! God made you to act just like Jesus.

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Covered By Love

Monday, 03 May, 2010 08:30 Written by Pastor Bruce 0 Comments

What is greater than all sin?

Above all things have intense and unfailing love for one another, for love covers a multitude of sins [forgives and disregards the offenses of others].  – 1 Peter 4:8 AMP

The love of God is greater than all sin! Jesus’ love for us and in us will conquer any and every wrong.

1 Corinthians 13 says that one aspect of love is that it never fails and never quits (it never gets to a place where it gives up) Sure there are times where we want to give up but instead of giving up we would “tap into” the love of God on the inside of us…we would receive the strength that it takes to love and win!

The opposite of cover is expose. Love does not expose sin. It is not our job or calling in life to go around shining a light on every one’s sin to expose them. (we don’t go to the other extreme and pretend as though sin doesn’t exist either…) By “covering sin” the Bible means that we forgive, forget and look past the sin of others in order that we keep ourselves from judging and criticizing those that we see in sin. Jesus ministered to the woman that was caught in the act of adultery by saying “Neither do I condemn you, go and sin no more.” There is no condemnation in Christ. Operate in the extreme love of God and release people from their sin. Allow the love of God on the inside of you to cover sin not expose it.

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Transforming the Church

Thursday, 29 April, 2010 07:47 Written by Pastor Bruce 0 Comments

What do you think will transform the church?

Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud or rude. It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged. It does not rejoice about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance. – 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 NLT

The love of God manifested through the children of God will transform the Church of God!

“It (love) should be preached from the pulpit until every member of the congregation becomes love conscious, until it would be impossible for them to quarrel or say unkind things to one another.” – E.W. Kenyon

We are ordered to obey the love command by the Head of the Church, Jesus Christ. It is not an option but a holy command that when Jesus obeyed it, it allowed God the Father to restore the relationship between Himself and His most prized possession: mankind.

The Church is in the restoration business. Our job is to restore man to God. But we must be living a life of extreme love in order to accomplish the task that we have been given. We must obey the “love command” to a greater extent in order to see the Harvest come in. The Harvest that Jesus spoke about in Matthew 9:38 will only come in to the degree that the Church is living according to the commandment to love each other AS Jesus has loved us. We must get busy focusing on the love command and quit focusing on the things that do not matter.

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