Our God of Love

We all know life can be harsh. Consequently, it may be difficult to look at our circumstances and conclude that God is a god of love. Perhaps you grew up in a broken home with little evidence of love -- possibly even abuse -- from your earthly father. You may have lost loved ones to illness, accident or war. In some areas of the world, poverty and famine are daily realities. Where is God's love in all this?

I believe God's heart aches more than we can ever know at the pain, suffering, injustice and difficulties all His children encounter, especially when you understand that most of it is the result of mankind turning away from Him. Sin's entrance into the world brought severe consequences. Yet from the onset of sin and its ravages, God had the remedy in m...ind.

That remedy was Jesus. While we were still caught up in sin, God sent His own Son to buy us back -- to "redeem" us. Here is the way Jesus describes the love of God:

God so loved the world that He gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life (John 3:16 NIV).

The Apostle John also focused on God's love:

God is love. This is how God showed His love among us: He sent His one and only Son into the world that we might live through Him (1 John 4:8,9 NIV).

Oswald Chambers sums up the linkage between the cross and God's love:

The bedrock of our Christian faith is the unmerited, fathomless marvel of the love of God exhibited on the Cross of Calvary, a love we never can and never shall merit (March 7).

Billy Graham, in his recent book, The Journey, says, "The more I read the Bible, the more I realize that love is God's supreme attribute" (p. 22).

When you yielded your life to God and were born again, you came face to face with your heavenly Father's love. Now, as you continue your Christian journey, lean into that love, drawing deeply upon it. Immerse yourself in His love and care.

Here is a prayer, penned to the early church in Ephesus by the Apostle Paul, who wrote several letters to new believers that are recorded in the New Testament. You can make this prayer your own: "(that you may) know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God" (Ephesians 3:19).

Author: Stephen Zac

Prayer is not a ritualized mumbling of words,

but a song of thanksgiving or a dance of praise;

it is anguished cries or pleas from a yearning heart.

If your prayer has no emotion, it has no power.

God wants to know how you feel.

God wants to hear what's in your heart.

How do I handle tough times and temptations???

Some people falsely think that when a person becomes a follower of Christ, he or she is free from difficulties & problems. This idea doesn't align with scripture or our experience. Jesus said, "In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world" (John 16:33NIV). I don't know one region of the world today where God's people are not beset by trouble (including severe persecution in some nations). Even though I've been a Christian for many years, I still face difficulties, wrestle with temptations, and encounter family and work-related challenges -- at times, intense.
Here is the encouraging news. Through your faith in Christ, you are equipped to confront and work through trouble in a whole new way, so much so that Paul said that in Christ, "We are more than conquerors" (Romans 8:37).
There are various aspects of the daily battle you encounter. Today's topic is the "old self," or the old nature. (Fasten your seat belt. These concepts are weighty, but very important.)
In Romans Chapter 6, a masterful summary of who we are in Christ, Paul says, "We were therefore buried with Him (Christ) through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life" (v.4 NIV).
Just what was buried? Verse 6 says, "Our old self was crucified with Him." This old self is the flawed human nature we inherited as the result of Adam's sin. Thankfully that is not the end of the matter. You put that nature to death with your commitment to Christ and your daily actions. Paul continues, "In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus" (v.11 NIV). In other words, you have to walk out what was accomplished when you identified with Christ in His death. (Note that baptism -- immersion in water -- is the outward evidence of your old self being buried with Christ. The water in baptism literally represents a burial vault for that "old nature.")
Walking out the new life in Christ is a lifelong journey. In writing to the Galatians, Paul describes it:
So I say, live by the Spirit and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature. For the sinful nature desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the sinful nature. They are in conflict with each other (Galatians 5:16,17 NIV).
He goes on to describe various aspects of the sinful nature -- all of which degrade human character and damage interpersonal relationships. Then Paul explains what the "fruit of the Spirit" looks like -- qualities such as love, joy, peace and faithfulness -- which reflect the nature of God Himself. Don't you want your life to produce that kind of fruit?
Here's the bottom line: You were given a "new nature" when you committed yourself to Christ. But you must walk out the implications. How? By "walking in the Spirit." That means you allow the Holy Spirit Who lives in you to shape your thoughts, guide your steps, govern your reactions and correct you when you stray. The old nature is real. The warfare is real. But God has made it possible for you to walk in victory.
Take off the old self with its practices ... and put on the new self (Colossians 3:9,10 NIV). Through God’s Spirit I can walk in daily victory

Author: Stephen Zac