Above All part 1
I quote that memory verse about setting your affection on things above, and not the things on the earth, a lot. Because I think its vitally important that we have our priorities in order. Its so easy to get lost in our own mess that we miss the message of the gospel. Which, as simply as I can put it, is: God is love and He loves you... so love Him back by loving people. Receive and release the gift you've been given, and in that way experience the gift you've been given. But for today I want to quote 1 Peter 4:8, "And above all things have fervent charity among yourselves: for charity shall cover the multitude of sins." And there are a couple of things I want to hit here (and for the next few days). The first is "fervent charity." And according to Strong's Greek Concordance "fervent" is number 1618 and it means, "without ceasing." Which is the phrase from my favorite Bible verse of all time, "Pray without ceasing" (1 Thessalonians 5:17). Pray fervently. Love fervently. Live fervently. And, of course, "charity" is number 26 and it means, "love, that is, affection or benevolence; specifically a love feast: - feast of charity." And to me "charity" has always meant, "love in action." Not the idea of love, but the acts of love. EATING that love feast, and in so doing filling ourselves to overflowing with what we've already been filled with. SHARING that love feast, and in so doing experiencing that gift of God which is eternal life. Which is knowing the only true God, and the One whom He sent, knowing God as heavenly Father and yourself as His beloved Son in whom He is well pleased. See, if you want to feel love... love somebody. Its that simple. And, as always, I didn't say its that EASY. Because sometimes the snakes at your feet that are nipping at your heels are hard to ignore. Sometimes--even though we KNOW we need to look and live, look up the heavens so we can see things in Divine Order--we get stuck with our heads bowed. Like the woman in Luke 13 who was bowed to the earth and could in no way lift herself up. And that's the point: YOU can't lift YOURSELF up. But Jesus DID lift you up. He seated you with Himself (IN Himself) at the right hand of the Father. The seat of power, by the way. Kind of another way of saying, "But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible" (Matthew 19:26). You can't do it yourself. And that's ok. You're not supposed to. Nobody can live Jesus' life... except Jesus. Its HIM living HIS OWN abundant, everlasting, eternal, Resurrection Life in you, and through you, and as you. His life... of love. That's what its all about. To live is to love and to love is to live. They aren't just connected, they are the same thing. So all of this stuff that we get caught up in--and this is the second thing I want to focus on--gets covered under the umbrella of love. Love covers THE multitude of sins. Which doesn't mean "a bunch of sins." It means, "all sin." Where sin abounded (past tense, before the cross), grace did much more abound. My point is: When you're setting your affection on things above, make sure you set it the thing that is above all. The fervent, unceasing acts of love that make everything else unimportant. If you want to live... you have to love. That's the bottom line. Or, as Logan would say, that's the top line. Because its the most important!