How is the love of God described in the Bible?

There are many Scriptures in the Bible that describe the love of God. In fact, the entire Bible is about the love of God for His people and for all of mankind. What follows are only a few of the Scriptures which directly describe the love of God:

•          God is love (1 John 4:8). God is the embodiment of love. Love is the very essence of His being.

•          Love comes from God (1 John 4:7). God created love. Love is a divine attribute, or characteristic, of God. The essence of God’s nature, and of a godly nature, is love. Love is more than a feeling. The love of God is a way of being.

“For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life” (John 3:16).

•          The love of God is inclusive. Almighty God so loved every person in this world that He sacrificed His only Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, so that all who believe on Jesus would not face eternal damnation (an eternity separated from God), but have eternal life with Him.

“Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us, and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins” (1 John 4:10).

“God commendeth His love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8)

•          The love of God is unconditional. He has invited every human being, no matter how much he or she has sinned, to enter into a love relationship with Him by simply believing on the Lord Jesus Christ.

“Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends” (John 15:13).

•          The love of God is sacrificial. Jesus Christ laid down His life so that you and I might have fellowship with God, the Father, by believing on Him. Jesus willingly died at the hands of sinful man because His love for mankind was so great.

“In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him” (1 John 4:9). 

It is The Season to Enter God’s Rest

By Jon Walker

“…There remains, then, a Sabbath-rest for the people of God; for anyone who enters God's rest also rests from his own work, just as God did from his. Let us, therefore, make every effort to enter that rest ….” (Hebrews 4:8b-11)

God invites us to enter the rest of his healing grace, trusting in his power and purpose for our lives. We rest in our Father’s arms, knowing he goes before and goes behind, knowing that his plans for us are good and not evil. (Jeremiah 29:11)

We enter this “let go and let God” rest through faith, where we cease to work and live independently of God (“… anyone who enters God's rest also rests from his own work …”). Instead, we’re to focus our efforts toward entering this Sabbath-trust in God, a restful certainty that God’s got a handle on it all, and that he’s got our best interests in mind.

One writer illustrates this point by telling the story of a man walking down a dusty rural road on a hot, humid day. The man is loaded down with a heavy backpack and carries a duffle bag in each hand. A pick-up truck comes along, and the driver offers the man a ride, telling him to hop in the back.

The driver heads down the road, but when he looks in the rear-view mirror he sees that his new passenger is standing in the bed of the truck – still holding both duffle bags, still wearing the backpack.

The thing is: We stand in the truck of faith, still carrying our burdens, thinking they are independent of the ride we’re taking. Perhaps we think God can carry us, but not our burdens, that we have to keep bearing them ourselves.

What does this mean?

• Rest in God – Rest in God’s power and grace, and work toward confidence (faith) that he is looking out for your best interests. “I believe; Lord, help my unbelief.”

• Rest requires dependence – If you’re working independently of God, then you’re not at rest in God. Possible signs that you’re working independently: worry, a need to control, a crammed-full schedule.

• Our Father’s heart encourages rest – Next time you feel overwhelmed by life, settle in a chair and “be still and know that he is God.” Give him your burdens – your backpack and duffels.

• Faith leads to rest – Then they asked him, “What must we do to do the works God requires?” Jesus answered, “The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent.” (John 6:28-29,)

Facts about Holy Spirit.

Imparts love:

Romans 5:5 

And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.

Romans 15:30 

I urge you, brothers, by our Lord Jesus Christ and by the love of the Spirit, to join me in my struggle by praying to God for me.

Things of Sprit foolish to the natural man:

1 Corinthians 2:14 

The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned.

Dwells in men in the sense of union with, not bodily entrance into the human body:

1 Corinthians 3:16-17

16 Don't you know that you yourselves are God's temple and that God's Spirit lives in you?

17 If anyone destroys God's temple, God will destroy him; for God's temple is sacred, and you are that temple.

1 Corinthians 7:17 

Nevertheless, each one should retain the place in life that the Lord assigned to him and to which God has called him. This is the rule I lay down in all the churches.

Changes lives to image of Christ:

2 Corinthians 3:18 

And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord's glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.

Authentic Friendships

By Rick Warren

But if we live in the light, as God is in the light, we can share fellowship with each other. Then the blood of Jesus, God’s Son, cleanses us from every sin. If we say we have no sin, we are fooling ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 1 John 1:7–8

In Christian fellowship people should experience authenticity.

Authentic fellowship is not superficial, surface-level chit-chat. It’s genuine, heart-to-heart, sometimes gut-level, sharing.

It happens when people get honest about who they are and what is happening in their lives. They share their hurts, reveal their feelings, confess their failures, disclose their doubts, admit their fears, acknowledge their weaknesses, and ask for help and prayer.

Authenticity is the exact opposite of what you find in many churches. Instead of an atmosphere of honesty and humility, there is pretending, role-playing, politicking, superficial politeness, and shallow conversation.

People wear masks, keep their guard up, and act as if everything is rosy in their lives. These attitudes are the death of real friendship.

It’s only as we become open about our lives that we experience authentic fellowship. The Bible says, “If we live in the light, as God is in the light, we can share fellowship with each other. . . . If we say we have no sin, we are fooling ourselves” (1 John 1:7–8).

The world thinks intimacy occurs in the dark, but God says it happens in the light. We tend to use darkness to hide our hurts, faults, fears, failures, and flaws. But in the light, we bring them all out into the open and admit who we really are.

Of course, being authentic requires both courage and humility. It means facing our fear of exposure, rejection, and being hurt again.

Why would anyone take such a risk?

Because it’s the only way to grow spiritually and be emotionally healthy. The Bible says, “Make this your common practice: Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you can live together whole and healed” (James 5:16).

Evangelism

"Revival is torrents of living water flowing out of the individual believer." – James A. Stewart

Good Friday

Theme: The Cross of Jesus

By Rev. Dr. Emmanuel E James

Read: Gal 2:19-21

When people see the cross on our rings or lapels of our coats or as pendant of a chain on our necks, they recognize us as Christians. When we see a cross on a building, we recognize it as a church building where Christians gather together to worship. For many people cross is just an ornament.  The cross gained its place as the symbol of Christianity because our Lord Jesus Christ died on it. But what does it mean to Christians today? What place does it have for us? When we read the Word of God we realize that the Cross of our Lord Jesus Christ is at the heart of the Gospel. Do we realize its meaning?  What are the things that we need to understand when we meditate on the Cross of Christ?  Paul says, “May I never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world” (Gal 6:14).

The Suffering of the Cross of Jesus

Jesus is God who came into this world as a man (John 1:14).  He was pure and holy. He was without sin. He suffered and died on the cross for me and each one of us. It was a painful and excruciating suffering. It was a shameful suffering.

The Revelation of the Cross of Jesus

What does the cross of Christ reveal to us? It reveals His love, grace and faithfulness. It reveals the failure of man, the present depraved condition of man. It reveals that man is helpless to save himself. It reveals that man needs a Savior who is sinless, innocent, able and acceptable to God to provide salvation to us. It reveals Christ’s supreme love and sacrifice for us.

What do we get from the Lord Jesus who died on the Cross?

We receive forgiveness of our sins, salvation and eternal life. The death of Jesus on the cross proves God’s mercy and grace. Lost sinners need God’s mercy and grace to be saved. We too must experience God’s grace and mercy by receiving Jesus as our personal Lord and Saviour. “May I never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me and I to the world” (Gal. 6:14). Jesus poured out Himself as an offering for our sin when He gave His life. The cross is the continuing reminder that we are forgiven sinners. We are saved from our sin in order to live for God and serve Him in unselfish service.

Prayer:

Dear Lord Jesus, as I meditate upon your cross, your suffering and   your love for me, I am deeply humbled. I repent of my sin and trust you fully and accept you Lord Jesus as my personal Lord and Savior. Help me to always remember that I am saved from my sin in order to live for God and serve Him in unselfish service. In Jesus’ dear name, Amen.

Face Reality, Then Choose Faith

By Rick Warren

“Then Jesus got into the boat and started across the lake with his disciples. Suddenly a terrible storm came up, with waves breaking into the boat. But Jesus was sleeping.” Matthew 8:23-24 (NLT)

"The question is how can we keep from worrying when life is overwhelming and it feels like God is slow in answering?"

Today’s devotional is by Tom Holladay, teaching pastor at Saddleback Church and author of ‘The Relationship Principles of Jesus.’

If you are going to deal with worry and anxiety, the first thing you have to do is face reality.

In Matthew 8, we see the reality of the situation that Jesus and the disciples faced. What they went through shows us the reality of what we have to face when life doesn’t go the way we plan.

1.         They faced a sudden storm. This is a picture for us of unexpected problems. We often don’t know what direction a problem is going to come from or where we will be when it hits.

If you build your life around the belief that you’ll be okay this year as long as nothing goes wrong, you’re going to lose. Because something will always go wrong.

2.         They faced waves. Waves in our life are overwhelming circumstances. For the disciples, the waves in the midst of the storm were higher than their boat. They had overwhelming circumstances. And the same thing happens to us. A storm hits our life and the circumstances of it leave us wondering, “How am I going to face that?”

3.         They had a boat. This is a picture for us of inadequate resources. The boat wasn’t big enough to hold the waves that were coming. We face the same situation.

If only we had all the money in the world, then everything would be fine. But we don’t. If only we had all the time in the world, then everything would be fine. But we don’t. That’s just reality, and saying anything else is a lie.

4.         Jesus was asleep in the boat. Here were the disciples in the midst of a storm and almost ready to drown, and Jesus, the one they knew could make a difference, was asleep.

This is a picture of how many of us feel when we are facing a genuine problem in life. We don’t know what to do or where to turn, and we know God knows what we’re going through. The worse it gets, the more we wonder, “God, where are you in all of this? Why don’t you do something to change the situation?”

The question is how can we keep from worrying when life is overwhelming and it feels like God is slow in answering?

Anxiety wears you out and it shortens your life, but if you have no other answers, you are going to keep worrying. Many people think the answer to worry is to somehow pretend that there is nothing to worry about. But the only way to deal with worry effectively is to face reality and then choose to face reality with faith.

I have prayed for you…Luke 22:32

I have prayed for you…Luke 22:32

If you are deeply depressed and your heart is aching, this verse should bless you. “He shall give His angels charge over you, to keep you in all your ways. In their hands they shall bear you up, lest you dash your foot against a stone” (Ps. 91:11-12).

There are times when your faith walks on a slender thread, high above the ways of the world, posing the balancing pole of experience. Faith tries to keep on her feet, but if she slips there is this gracious safety net of Jesus. “I have prayed for you, that your faith should not fail” (Luke 22:32). God’s people will be safe. Satan may try to knock you down, but God will hold you up. Watch your walk as if your perseverance depended entirely on you. Look to Jesus, however, knowing that He alone keeps the feet of His saints. Holiness, strength of faith, and ultimate perfections are our goals.

Yet it is a blessed consolation that if we fail we are not thrown away. “Ihe steps of a good are ordered by the LORD, and He delights in his way. Though he falls, he shall not be utterly cast down; for the LORD upholds him His hand” (Ps. 37:23-24).

Jesus is our Savior

The Bible teaches that Satan is the author of sin. Sin is the reason that we have afflictions, including death. All of our problems and our suffering, including death itself, are a result of man’s rebellion against God. But God has provided a rescue in the Person of His Son, Jesus Christ. That’s why Christ died on the cross. That’s why He rose from the dead.

Wake people up:

 "Many do not recognize the fact as they ought, that Satan has got men fast asleep in sin and that it is his great device to keep them so. He does not care what we do if he can do that. We may sing songs about the sweet by and by, preach sermons and say prayers until doomsday, and he will never concern himself about us, if we don't wake anybody up. But if we awake the sleeping sinner he will gnash on us with his teeth. This is our work - to wake people up." - Catherine Booth

Praise

Give you fame and praise

Zephaniah 3:20 

At that time I will gather you; at that time I will bring you home. I will give you honor and praise among all the peoples of the earth when I restore your fortunes before your very eyes,” says the LORD.

You have perfected praise

Matthew 21:16  

“Do you hear what these children are saying?” they asked him. “Yes,” replied Jesus, “have you never read, “‘From the lips of children and infants you have ordained praise’?”

Of men more than the praise

John 12:43  

For they loved praise from men more than praise from God.

Praise is not from men but..

Romans 2:29  

No, a man is a Jew if he is one inwardly; and circumcision is circumcision of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the written code. Such a man's praise is not from men, but from God.

Then each one’s praise

1 Corinthians 4:5  

Therefore judge nothing before the appointed time; wait till the Lord comes. He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will expose the motives of men's hearts. At that time each will receive his praise from God.

The brother whose praise

2 Corinthians 8:18  

And we are sending along with him the brother who is praised by all the churches for his service to the gospel.

Should be to the praise

Ephesians 1:12

In order that we, who were the first to hope in Christ, might be for the praise of his glory.

To the glory and praise

Philippians 1:11  

Filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ—to the glory and praise of God.

I will sing praise to you

Hebrews 2:12  

He says, “I will declare your name to my brothers; in the presence of the congregation I will sing your praises.”

The sacrifice of praise

Hebrews 13:15  

Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise—the fruit of lips that confess his name.

And for the praise of those..

1 Peter 2:14  

Or to governors, who are sent by him to punish those who do wrong and to commend those who do right.

Our God

Revelation 19:5  

Then a voice came from the throne, saying: “Praise our God, all you his servants, you who fear him, both small and great!”