Walk in Love part 1
We all probably know about walking by faith, and not by sight. That's a pretty popular memory verse. We hear it all the time. But what does it really mean to walk by faith? Well, look at Mark 11:22 (NLT), "Then Jesus said to the disciples, "Have faith in God."" And then add Galatians 5:7 (NLT), "For when we place our faith in Christ Jesus, there is no benefit in being circumcised or being uncircumcised. What is important is faith expressing itself in love." It all starts with God. Jesus is the Alpha and the Omega. The begining and the end. Walking by faith means walking by God. Letting your heavenly Father hold your hand and lead you, guide you, direct you, and protect you. Which means walking by love. Because faith works by love, or expresses itself in love. Of course it does. Have faith in God. God is love. Have faith in love. Express your faith by expressing your love. Now look at Ephesians 5:2, "And walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweetsmelling savour." In the NLT, "Live a life filled with love, following the example of Chirst. He loved us and offered himself as a sacrifice for us, a pleasing aroma to God." Walking in love is living a life full of love. Receiving and releasing the love of God. Letting God love us and loving Him back by loving each other. Filling ourselves to overflowing with what we've already been filled with so that it can come out of us... naturally... with every breath we take and every move we make. Jesus came that we might have life, and have it more abudantly. Love is what makes the abundant life... abundant. Love is what makes life worth living. Love is what makes life possible to live. Because to live is to love and to love is to live. But here's the key--you can't walk by faith... without walking. A lot of time in the King James Version of the Bible the word "charity" is used for "love." And I didn't really understand that for a long time. Seemed abitrary and weird. But then the Lord told me that charity is love in action. It's more than just an idea. It's the act of love. The sacrifice of love. Because love is giving. You can give without loving, but you can't love without giving. Charity is where the rubber meets the road. Laying your life down for your friends--which is what Jesus described as the greatest love a man can have. And, by the way, He put His money where His mouth was on that one. He literally went to the cross and laid His life down for us. Gave His life for us, and gave His life to us. His abundant, everlasting, eternal, Resurrection Life of Love! He didn't just talk the talk, He walked the walk. He didn't just tell us what love is. He showed us. He gave us everything He has and everything He is--so that we can have it. So that we can experience it. He walked the walk and now we can too. Not by trying to follow in His foot steps, but simply by letting HIm make His own foot steps with our feet. Living in Him by letting Him live in us. Living in LOVE by letting LOVE live in us. It's in there. All we have to do is let it come out by knowing and believing that it's in there. Let it come out by filling ourselves to overflowing with what we've already been filled with. Let it come out with every breath we take and every move we make. Let it come out by walking in it. Living a life full of love. Letting God love us and loving Him back by loving the people we come into contact with!