Disciples part 2
The question is: What does it really mean to be a disciple of Christ? I think we've all heard that term bandied about quite a bit. But it seems to me that it is used ambiguously for the most part. Well, I'd like to change that. So let's look at John 13:35, "By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another." And the word "disciples" is number 3101 in Strong's Greek concordance and it means, "a learner, that is, pupil: - disciple." A follower of Christ. A learner of Christ. Learning who we are by learning who HE is. And, with the connotation of love being so strong and prevalent... a disciple is a student of love. Learning how to love by learning how we are loved. Learning how to BE who we already ARE by learning of WHO we already are. Letting what's inside come out by knowing and believing that it's in there. That's the key--it's not "getting" anything. We already have it. It's LEARNING. Learning what we have. Learning what it means to be who we already are. And that's why this abundant, everlasting, eternal, Resurrection Life of love is really just a journey into the heart of the matter--which is the heart. God's heart beating with love in our chests. Listening to that still, small voice deep inside that says, "I love you" with every beat of God's heart in our chests. Receiving that love of God... and then releasing it. And that, friends, is the Divine Order of things--receiving and releasing. Because you can't give what you don't have, and you can only give what you do have. You have to receive it first. We love because He first loved us. He gave us something, and because He gave it to us we can give it back to Him by giving it to each other. Because we have something, we can give something. But, again, it's a process. A learning process. A maturation process. It is God showing us who we are by showing us who HE is. It is us filling ourselves up to overflowing with what we've already been filled with. It is the God who is love living in us, and through us, and as us so that we can experience that love. And, since love is giving, it is experienced when we give it away. Love is never about getting. If you're trying to get something... that's not love. If you're giving what you've got--what God has already given you--that's when you are receiving and releasing. Releasing is every bit as important as receiving. It only comes second because, again, you can't give what you don't have. And you can only give what you do have. So what I'm trying to say today is this: If you focus on love, your focus is in the right place. It may "seem" selfish to focus on God's love for you... but when you understand that filling yourself up to overflowing with that love that He has filled you with leads to that love inside you coming out... then it's not selfish at all. It's like an athlete practicing. He's getting ready for the big game. The more we know and understand that we are loved... the more we can love others with that same love. Which, by the way, is the New Commandment that Jesus set forth in John 13:34, "A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another." Receive it and release it. Learn how to love by learning how you are loved. Let what's inside come out by knowing and believing that it's in there. A disciple of Christ is a student of love. A never-ending life-long journey into the heart of the matter--which is the heart. God's heart beating with love in our chests!