God is Love
God is the embodiment of love.
He is the purest form of love ever manifested in the world. He demonstrates his uncorrupted love towards us daily through His word and actions. He provides free oxygen to both the just and unjust and He gives the sun and rain to everyone indiscriminately.
God is perfect.
He is everything that man is not. The Bible puts the threshold of knowing God in the capacity to love.
“He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love” 1 John 4:8 (KJV).
God Identifies Himself with Those Who Love
Can you imagine the joy of God identifying Himself with you? He associates with those who love.
“Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God, and every one that loveth is born of God and knoweth God” 1 John 4:7 (KJV).
We express our love to God through love because He first loved us before we were conscious of ourselves. God loves us unconditionally and expects us to reciprocate His love by walking in His perfect will. Our love for Him is measured against how much we obey Him.
We can love beyond limits as God has taught us through the following ways:
1. Being filled with the Holy Spirit
“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance: against such there is no law” Galatians 5:22-23 (KJV).
Love is the first fruit of the Holy Ghost.
Everything God does for man is out of love, and so should what we do for Him be founded on love. You are capable of demonstrating love only when you are filled by the Holy Spirit.
Upon being filled with the Holy Spirit, all His fruits will gradually be found within you. You will love more effortlessly than unbelievers who are yet to know God.
You first have to get saved to receive the Holy Spirit. God promised to liberally pour out His Spirit on all men. With His Spirit, we can manifest unconditional love as He does.
“And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, and your young men shall see visions” Joel 2:28 (KJV).
The Holy Spirit of the Lord gives us the power to bear His fruits and connect with Him more.
2. Overcoming the World
We first identify as people of God before we are of the world.
It is difficult to manifest the fruits of the Holy Spirit while we still belong to the world. Jesus clarified this when He was praying in the garden of Gethsemane before His arrest.
“They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world” John 17:16 (KJV).
He was speaking of His disciples and those who will believe in the gospel. The world does not know love. Instead, it recognizes revenge. There is no love in vengeance.
We can overcome the world and not indulge in worldly pleasures. What difference will there be between born-again Christians and the gentiles if all of us do the same things?
Overcoming the world is possible for Christians because Christ did it.
“These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world, you will have tribulation, but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world” John 16:33 (NKJV).
We overcome the world by living a Godly life because our origin is not of the world. Upon salvation, we are new creation free from the sinful nature of the old man.
3. Helping the Poor and the Needy
We demonstrate love to God by helping the less fortunate in our midst.
How can we claim to love God who is invisible yet we do not love our brothers? True love is caring and showing concern for others. It is selfless the way Christ loved us even unto death for our salvation.
The Bible is clear on how to love God.
“If someone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar, for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen, how can he love God whom he has not seen?” 1 John 4:20 (NKJV).
Acts of love like charity should not be discriminative. It is not meant to benefit only a section of the poor and leave out others. Love abounds when it is akin to God’s love towards humanity. Salvation is for as many as those who receive Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior of their lives.
There is no limit on how you can help others. God associates Himself with those who show love to the vulnerable.
“He who pities the poor lends to the Lord, and He will pay back what He has given.” Proverbs 19:17 (NKJV).
God promises to repay those who lend to Him when they give to the poor.
4. Spreading the Gospel
True love is sharing the good news with those who are yet to receive them.
Love is not selfish but considerate and mindful of others. Do not keep the good news of the gospel to yourself but share it with those yet to receive it.
Love is generous beyond our comprehension. We show love by inviting the world into the light as Christ commanded before His ascension to heaven.
“Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and the Holy Spirit.” Mathew 28:19 (NKJV).
Jesus taught that it would profit a man nothing if he gained the whole world and lost his soul. We show love for the world by telling them about Jesus Christ.
He is the way, the truth, and the life.
In conclusion, Love is the greatest gift from God. Everything is possible through love.
The Bible writes on the power of love, “And above all things have fervent love for one another, for “love will cover a multitude of sins.” 1 Peter 4:8 (NKJV).
