This
week, Michael writes: When you chose a grateful heart, God will give you
joy. In this world, joy is a difficult thing to come by. Christmas
reminds us of all that we have to be grateful for. The things of this
world will steal our joy. However, Joy is not the absence of
pain. Rather Joy is the presence of the Lord. The greatest Christmas
present is the presence of the Lord. The birth of Jesus reminds us that “unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given”.
As Mary said, "My soul doth magnify
the Lord and my spirit doth rejoice in God my Savior." Christ is
the greatest gift of God's love.
John
3:16 “For God so loved
the world that he sent his only begotten son so that whosoever believes on him
should not perish but have everlasting life.”
The
love that our Father gave us is radical and revolutionary. The love of God
is designed to remove the root of the disease of sin. Sin causes
separation from God. Sin is the root of the problem. God removed the “stain
of sin” through our Lord Jesus Christ ... For
though your sins be as scarlet, you shall be as white as snow. A
heart of awe and gratitude is rooted in the knowledge of our Lord.
The
love of God is outrageous. It is love that exceeds the limits of the usual. “Agape”, the love of God is unlike any
other type of love. It's different from love of family. Broken
relationships are normal in immediate and extended families. Other types
of love are conditional on the other party's response. However, the love
of God does not love because of our response. He loves because of His
nature, not ours. God loves because He is gracious and
merciful.
The
outrageous love of God says “turn the
other cheek”. It says, first humble yourself, forsake your pride, and then
you can approach the throne of grace with a humble and a contrite
heart. This type of love lacks reason and logic, yet is perfect love. Love
begins with surrendering our rights and looking unto the Lord. The love of
God lives in the grace and mercy of His divine nature.
Psalm 1:1-3 “Blessed is the man whose delight is in the
law of the Lord and in his law doth he meditate day and night”. He shall
be like a tree planted by the rivers of water. His leaf also shall not
wither and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.”
The
love of God is genuine and spontaneous. Love bears all things, hopes all things, endures all things...love
never fails. Love is the heart's response when our Joy is in the
Lord. The love of God is dangerous. This type of love is illogical
and crazy according to the world's standards. The love of God rejoices in
the Lord, not in the works of man and the power of pride. The love of God
frees us from seeking our own "human rights." As Jesus said, "Blessed are you when men shall revile you
and persecute you and say all manner of evil against you falsely for my sake,
for great is your reward in heaven."
The
love of God is to love the unlovable. It is the pure act of giving from a
heart that is grateful for God's grace and mercy. This is the love that
Jesus Christ himself had for us. He
humbled himself and became obedient even unto death on the cross.
Therefore God has highly exalted him and given him a name that is above all
names...that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow and every tongue
confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father.
“Agape”
love makes no sense according to the world's standards. Because of the love
that our Savior had for us, even while we
were yet sinners, Christ died for the ungodly. Even though we were dead in trespasses and sins, He paid in
full our debt of sin. He for the joy
that was set before him endured the cross and is set upon the right hand of
God. His joy was your salvation and mine.
The
love of God is the greatest love of all. The best Christmas present is the
presence of God, in Christ, in us, the hope of Glory. He gave us His Son and
the “good news” of reconciliation, so that we can give it away. May our prayer
be according to 2 Corinthians 5, “We pray
you in Christ's stead, be ye reconciled to God. For he who was without
sin, became the perfect sacrifice for sin on our behalf that we may be made the
righteousness of God in Him.” This is the radical love of God.
May
God richly bless you!
Your
brother in Christ, Michael
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