Stop me if you don't agree with what I'm saying. God doesn't love me because of all the great things I've done; He doesn't love me because I've earned his love; He doesn't even love me because of the gooderer songs I sing in worship. God just loves me because that's who He is; He is Love. Ok, so that makes sense to me fine.
Now we use God's love as an example for our love right? So we don't love Him because of what he did, we love him because of who he is? So... if I understand correctly, I don't love my God because of what He did on the cross for me? I don't love Him because He forgave all of my transgressions? Why do I love Him then? After all these years, I've heard preachers preach about all the great reasons that mean we should love our amazing God. Summer camp after summer camp has convinced me that it's only fair for me to love Him because he died for me. What does this all mean then?
A good husband doesn't love his wife because he gives her flowers. A good wife doesn't love her husband because he gave her flowers. That's a language of love, not love itself. God's language of love was death on a cross. But we can't use that as a crutch. God loves us because He is love and not because of what we've done. He even loved Hitler, and I hope it wasn't because of what he did. How do I live in love? Do I become love? How can I love like God loves, when he is love and I'm not? I don't even know... Any ideas anyone?
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A little part of my heart that I think is worth sharing
3 comments:
That all makes perfect sense. And those are good questions. So, I decided to look in my hand book to life, and it doesn't answer any questions from what I can tell. But in 1 John it says 'We love because he first loved us'. But, if I try toput in context...It's so full of stuff. You know what? I'm gonna steal it and put it all here so you can see.
"Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because 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. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.
We know that we live in him and he in us, because he has given us of his Spirit. And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world. If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in him and he in God. And so we know and rely on the love God has for us.
God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him. In this way, love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment, because in this world we are like him. There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.
We love because he first loved us. If anyone says, "I love God," yet hates his brother, he is a liar. For anyone who does not love his brother, whom he has seen, cannot love God, whom he has not seen. And he has given us this command: Whoever loves God must also love his brother."
So that's that. Maybe we aren't meant to love like God. Maybe we are just meant to love God, and it will come through with everything else. Faith without action is nothing, so maybe love is the same way? All I know is God wouldn't tell us to do something we can't do. We can continually reach for an unreachable goal. How will that help? I don't know. But it's worth a try.
graham - i miss our ridiculously long and drawn out conversations about things like the ingenuity of ingenius. and other related topics. so in short, i miss you ! it was nice to stumble upon your blog site. make sure you go to mine ! (www.xanga.com/shrah) altho i update it with intellectual things far less than you. oh well. it's a good way to stay in touch !
Wow... trying to comprehend that is like trying to imagine that God never "wasn't".. he always "was" :)
I think there's much wisdom is asking these questions, even if the answer is not known fully this side of heaven. It's funny you bring this up.. because I realized about a year ago that I really don't have a clue what His love means to me (I "get it" regarding the cross but..), or...what it looks/feels like. 1 John 4:9 is clear enough, but I want to "feel" and "know" his love experiencially! Mystery... part of something I love about Him!
And hey..I had no idea you had a blog! Stop by mine sometime if you get a sec.. haven't updated it in a while.. but should give you something to read :)
Bless ya!
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