The Love of Christ part 5
It boils down to this: "This is real love--not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins. Dear friends, since God loved us that much, we surely ought to love each other" (1 John 4:10-11 NLT). That's what the love of Christ is all about--He died for us. Laid His life down. And by doing so He showed us how much we are loved... and He showed us HOW to love. How to love Him, and how to love each other. How to love Him BY loving each other. And that, by the way, is the New Commandment; loving each other AS He loved us. Since He loved us that much, we surely ought to love each other that much. See, it's not just God's love filling us up. Because scientically speaking, in order to truly be full something has to be filled to overflowing. So it's God's love filling us up, and flowing out of us. It's not the light of the world simply shining ON us, it's the light shining IN us. Shining THROUGH us. Coming OUT of us. The love of God filling us up and then flowing out of us. Which is what Jesus spoke of in John 7:38 (NLT), "Anyone who believes in me may come and drink! For the Scriptures declare, 'Rivers of living water will flow from his heart.'" Did you see the key there? Believing in Him. Knowing and believing. Knowing how we are loved equips and empowers us to love. And it doesn't come FROM us. It comes from Him. It comes THROUGH us. Out of us. When we know and believe it's in us. When we receive it, we can release it. When we release it... that's HOW we receive it. We experience the gift we've been given by giving it away. As we are loved... we love. We let God love us, and then--because it's so big, and so good--it comes out all on it's own and gets all over everybody we come into contact with. It's not something we produce, or need to find, or can possibly earn. It is something freely given from Father to Son. The unstoppable, unconditional RELATIONSHIP of love between Father and Son. The Son knows His heavenly Father loves Him, and because of that He can live an abundant, everlasting, eternal, Resurrection Life. Because Jesus laid His life down for us (and took it back up), we can lay our lives down for each other. Because He gave us everything--everything He has and everything He is--we can give everything to each other. And, like I always say, that's what love IS: giving everything you have and everything you are. Laying your life down for your friends. Esteeming others higher than yourself. Not worrying about getting... but focusing on giving. And I know I've mentioned this before, but I don't think anyone ever went broke by being generous. I think the more you try to get, the less you end up having. But the more you give... the more you experience. Guys. That's HOW you experience love. You give it away. You share it. And in sharing it, it becomes even more real. If you know it... throw it. If you've got it... give it away. "Heal the sick, raise the dead, cure those with leprosy, and cast out demons. Give as freely as you have received!" (Matthew 10:8 NLT). That's what love is all about: Seeing and need and meeting it. Giving what you've got. Freely. As a gift. Not expecting anything in return. Not trying to get... but joyfully giving!