(I wrote this but it speaks to me every day as the Spirit is like a fire causing me to never forget)
Knowing Love
It isn't how much you know but how much you love that ultimately matters to God. For example,
John 14:15 NIV
15 “If you love me, keep my commands.
John 13:34 NIV
34 “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.
1 John 4:7-8 NIV
7 Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. 8 Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.
You can know the Bible front and back, memorize every verse, hold an 8 year degree but without love to keep God's commands or to love others, we will not know God because God in His very essence is love. This isn’t to minimize the importance of studying the Bible but simply to highlight the call for action. We experience love only by our spiritual reflection created in our image of God. This is how we as humans experience the good qualities of life like love, justice, peace, joy, etc. It is in fact the absence of God in Hell where the good qualities of God are withdrawn and a soul fully sees the absence of God. This absence only leaves the qualities of evil. A true place of torment, anger, and pain as their will be no bridal on evil.
Just knowing the Word isn’t enough we must do what is says. (James 1:22) Jesus warned the experts of the law within His day. Notice even though they spent their whole lives memorizing and studying the law, they took most of the criticism from Jesus.
Luke 11:52 NIV
52 “Woe to you experts in the law, because you have taken away the key to knowledge. You yourselves have not entered, and you have hindered those who were entering.”
The Pharisees, Sadducees, and Scribes knew the law but failed to love, they failed to truly know God. God often used the people considered the lowest in cultural standards like Amos in the OT who was merely a shepherd and a farmer. Amos was called from the country to speak the Word of God to the so called experts of his day.
Amos 7:14-15 NIV
14 Amos answered Amaziah, “I was neither a prophet nor the son of a prophet, but I was a shepherd, and I also took care of sycamore-fig trees. 15 But the Lord took me from tending the flock and said to me, ‘Go, prophesy to my people Israel.’
Over half of Jesus's disciples were fishermen. A dirty and back breaking job. A job where the Jews who were not culturally cut out to be a disciple of a Rabbi. Peter is often heard speaking but a few times he let his knowledge get in the way of listening to the Words of God. We see this example below in Matthew 17:4-5. It takes more than hearing as any wife will testify to, it takes listening intently to the words.
Matthew 17:4-5 NIV
4 Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good for us to be here. If you wish, I will put up three shelters—one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah.”
5 While he was still speaking, a bright cloud covered them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!”
Peter later was asked by Jesus 3 times do you love me. Feed my lambs, take care of my sheep, and feed my sheep. It was time for Peter not only hear but to obey. In Acts 4 we see both Peter and John dragged in front of the Sanhedrin or the Jewish governing council for testifying about Jesus Christ and performing a miracle.
The Sanhedrin contained the cultural experts of the law. They were not prepared for the Holy Spirit to speak through these men on that day.
Acts 4:13 NIV
13 When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus.
Realizing that mere fishermen just astonished the council and so much so it testified to the wisdom of Jesus Christ. It highlights the power of the Spirit living in the believer.
It is not about what you know, but who you know. Knowing Jesus Christ as a our Lord and Savior teaches us how to truly love. Jesus was God in the flesh or God incarnate. God is love therefore Jesus is love. Love is an action or a verb. We must do more than hear. Listen and obey the commands of God out of love because it was God who first loved us.
1 John 4:19 NIV
19 We love because he first loved us.
Knowing Love
It isn't how much you know but how much you love that ultimately matters to God. For example,
John 14:15 NIV
15 “If you love me, keep my commands.
John 13:34 NIV
34 “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.
1 John 4:7-8 NIV
7 Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. 8 Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.
You can know the Bible front and back, memorize every verse, hold an 8 year degree but without love to keep God's commands or to love others, we will not know God because God in His very essence is love. This isn’t to minimize the importance of studying the Bible but simply to highlight the call for action. We experience love only by our spiritual reflection created in our image of God. This is how we as humans experience the good qualities of life like love, justice, peace, joy, etc. It is in fact the absence of God in Hell where the good qualities of God are withdrawn and a soul fully sees the absence of God. This absence only leaves the qualities of evil. A true place of torment, anger, and pain as their will be no bridal on evil.
Just knowing the Word isn’t enough we must do what is says. (James 1:22) Jesus warned the experts of the law within His day. Notice even though they spent their whole lives memorizing and studying the law, they took most of the criticism from Jesus.
Luke 11:52 NIV
52 “Woe to you experts in the law, because you have taken away the key to knowledge. You yourselves have not entered, and you have hindered those who were entering.”
The Pharisees, Sadducees, and Scribes knew the law but failed to love, they failed to truly know God. God often used the people considered the lowest in cultural standards like Amos in the OT who was merely a shepherd and a farmer. Amos was called from the country to speak the Word of God to the so called experts of his day.
Amos 7:14-15 NIV
14 Amos answered Amaziah, “I was neither a prophet nor the son of a prophet, but I was a shepherd, and I also took care of sycamore-fig trees. 15 But the Lord took me from tending the flock and said to me, ‘Go, prophesy to my people Israel.’
Over half of Jesus's disciples were fishermen. A dirty and back breaking job. A job where the Jews who were not culturally cut out to be a disciple of a Rabbi. Peter is often heard speaking but a few times he let his knowledge get in the way of listening to the Words of God. We see this example below in Matthew 17:4-5. It takes more than hearing as any wife will testify to, it takes listening intently to the words.
Matthew 17:4-5 NIV
4 Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good for us to be here. If you wish, I will put up three shelters—one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah.”
5 While he was still speaking, a bright cloud covered them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!”
Peter later was asked by Jesus 3 times do you love me. Feed my lambs, take care of my sheep, and feed my sheep. It was time for Peter not only hear but to obey. In Acts 4 we see both Peter and John dragged in front of the Sanhedrin or the Jewish governing council for testifying about Jesus Christ and performing a miracle.
The Sanhedrin contained the cultural experts of the law. They were not prepared for the Holy Spirit to speak through these men on that day.
Acts 4:13 NIV
13 When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus.
Realizing that mere fishermen just astonished the council and so much so it testified to the wisdom of Jesus Christ. It highlights the power of the Spirit living in the believer.
It is not about what you know, but who you know. Knowing Jesus Christ as a our Lord and Savior teaches us how to truly love. Jesus was God in the flesh or God incarnate. God is love therefore Jesus is love. Love is an action or a verb. We must do more than hear. Listen and obey the commands of God out of love because it was God who first loved us.
1 John 4:19 NIV
19 We love because he first loved us.
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