Stand Firm part 5
The way to stand firm, and be courageous, is to know what you're standing on, and what you're standing for. To know that God's love will keep you from falling. Which isn't preached very often, but is EXACTLY what Jude 1:24 says, "Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy." In the NKJ it reads, "Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling, And to present you faultless Before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy." Falling... or even stumbling! Because we're walking by faith and not by sight, perhaps? Because we know that everything is under our feet? And even though we don't always SEE everything under our feet... we see Jesus? That's some powerful stuff, man. That's some blessed assurance stuff. That's God letting know that we don't have to DO anything in order to BE what He has created us to be. HE is the one keeping us from falling or even from stumbling. HE is the one holding us up. When we're at the end of our rope and we tie a knot in it and we think we're holding on for dear life... we need to always remember that, in reality, it is God holding us. And He will never let us go. He has sworn never to leave us nor forsake us. One preacher said, "God's a stalker." It doesn't matter what you've done, He loves you and He can't stop loving you. Because love isn't just what He does... love is WHO HE IS. That's the ultimate truth of the universe: God is love and He loves you. The Father loveth the Son and hath given all things into His hands. God created you in order to express Himself--His love--in you, and through you, and as you! God has not given you a Spirit of fear, but of power, love, and a sound mind. If you can't be courageous with power, love, and a sound mind... how can you? If you can't let His strength be perfect in your weakness... how can you be strong? Because it's not by might, and it's not by power. It's by the Spirit of God. It's by His love inside you coming out of you. That's what keeps you from falling. The way to life is straight and narrow. That's not a bad thing, that's not a scary thing, that's a good thing. That keeps you from even stumbling. He has brought every mountain low and every valley high. He has made the way straight. All we have to do is let His Word (which is Jesus, which is love) be a lamp unto our feet and a light unto our path. All we have to do is let love guide the way. Follow your heart. And that doesn't mean try to get what you want. Because love is never about getting. Because love IS giving. If you want to feel love... love somebody. Give them what THEY need without worrying about what YOU need. Paul said, "My God shall supply all YOUR need" (Emphasis mine). He wasn't even worried about HIS need. Because he knew he was covered. He was encouraging us to know that WE are covered to. Standing firm doesn't mean not doing anything. It simply means doing the RIGHT thing. It means filling yourself to overflowing with what you've already been filled with so that what's inside comes out as you know and believe it's in there. Letting God love you (which is what keeps you from stumbling or falling) and loving Him back by loving the people in your life (which is how you help THEM from stumbling and falling). Life is about relationship. It is about connection. Because life IS love. To live is to love and to love is to live. They aren't just connected, they are the same thing. And because they are the same thing, we can help each other live by loving each other. We can help each other stand firm by giving what we've got--the love of God!