“Wondering”. . .Fascinated By God, and By His Truth

(Friends: during this series, the messages may frequently be longer than usual due to the subject matter.  Thanks for your patience, and I think you will find the considerations interesting, and hopefully, helpful in our walk with the Lord.  Glen)

Part 11 – “To Know the Love of God”

    When positing that love comprises the very essence of the character, nature and way of God, we must be careful to define love in terms of the Divine, rather than the human.

    “To be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace” (Romans 8:6).

    No reality is more misunderstood, or not understood, than love.  The world’s definition, doubtless originated and perpetuated by Satan, involves more selfish lust than unselfish devotion to the genuine needs of others.  “If therefore the light that is in thee be darkness, how great is that darkness!” (Matthew 6:23).  Billions of times a day, humanity thinks of love, speaks of love, and seeks to act in love.  Sadly, however, much of our thought, word and deed fails to meet the only true standard of love, namely, God’s definition and application.

     Born again believers can devote ourselves to no greater or more sanctifying light than the quest to know the love of God.  The Apostle Paul prayed accordingly for the Ephesians believers.

     “For this cause I bow my knees unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, of whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named, that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might by His Spirit in the inner man; that Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height; and to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fullness of God” (Ephesians 3:14-19).

     We do well to pray in similar fashion for each other, and for ourselves.  Indeed, regardless of how long we have known the Lord, we can be sure that our understanding and experience of His love stands in much need of growth.  “As touching brotherly love ye need not that I write unto you: for ye yourselves are taught of God to love one another.  And indeed ye do it toward all the brethren which are in all Macedonia: but we beseech you, brethren, that ye increase more and more” (I Thessalonians 4:9-10).  As we begin our consideration of the nature and characteristics of Divine love, we can do no better than to pray for each other that we might “know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge.”  Our Heavenly Father will surely respond to such a vital request, and we discover love in its truest and most sublime reality, as revealed by the One who is love in its truest and most sublime reality.

“And the Lord direct your hearts into the love of God.”

(II Thessalonians 3:5)