You are a people set apart as holy to God, your God. God, your God, chose you out of all the people on Earth for himself as a cherished, personal treasure. 7-10 God wasn’t attracted to you and didn’t choose you because you were big and important—the fact is, there was almost nothing to you. He did it out of sheer love, keeping the promise he made to your ancestors. Know this: God, your God, is God indeed, a God you can depend upon. He keeps his covenant of loyal love with those who love him and observe his commandments for a thousand generations. Deuteronomy 7:6-9
Facet #1 The Cross
God’s love is more then sentiment and romance, it is much deeper than the worldly view point of love. The cross is the facsimile of a kingdom perspective of God’s love. God’s love is not merely emotional, it is a God willed choice, fueled by a passionate desire to know us, to be in relationship with us. There is nothing stronger than the will of God, therefore there is no stronger love than God’s love. God’s love supported Jesus’ obedience even to the point of self sacrifice, the kind that said: Not My Will But Yours”. The announcement to the world about God’s kingdom kind of love, was the cross of His Son, Jesus Christ. God’s love has not changed, and it was a very radical love that He sent His Son to die for us. The facet of love seen in the cross assures us God is not going to stop loving us anytime soon! The cross speaks of a forever love.
“God has liberated me from the slavery of my enemy, from the slavery of my human condition. God chose me and I choose Him. I want to live for Him, it is my passion, it is my heart’s desire to love God Well and to love others well.” Kimberly Mac
Facet #2 Creation
God’s love has many faces. God’s Great Love is always on display in His Creation. Everywhere you look, everything you are experiencing, you see the evidence of God’s Love. This more than enough love, has been abundantly and visually gifted to us in ways we could not even begin to imagine or hope for. I love so imperfectly, but God loves perfectly, as we saw in the seven days of creation, where He spoke the world into perfect being. God is perfect in all of His ways. I guess I don’t have to be perfect, I probably will never be. I have this human condition, we all do, and we don’t always love well. But, the cool thing is that in Christ Jesus, we have the ability to love like He loves, and finish well. We have creative love flowing in us and we can love creatively well.
Facet #3 Faith
We are wired by God, shaped, designed and created to need the Love of God which is written on our heart by God, the very art of loving others well by faith. Our imperfect offerings of love are made perfect by God’s unfailing love in us. No human being will ever be enough for us. Human beings can’t meet each other’s needs fully, we were created to need God this is why we need to activate our faith, and walk with God’s love by faith. My legitimacy as God’s child is strengthened as I intermingle His love with my active faith. I don’t have to be afraid of God’s love leaving me when I am unlovable and “growing through” hard times, by faith, I know God loves me unconditionally. By faith I know the Grace of God is for me. God has given me the gift of faith, and I believe I can be assured that this special love, this unique love of God, will stick with me, never leave me, never forsake me, and this is my courage to face my weak, imperfect flesh, knowing that I have the room to grow in faith. By faith, I yield to God allowing God “flesh me out” cleansing my soul and grow me through by the power of His enduring love in me. I may not see it, but by faith, I can love well, just like Jesus did. Jesus loves us perfectly, we love each other imperfectly, but by faith, we can love well, like Jesus does.
Facet #4 Enduring
No matter what, love endures. No matter what, love believes the best. This is how God has loved me, but I do not love Him back this way all the time, I want to. True love is never self-absorbed and being selfish in my thoughts, motives and deeds makes for a one way love, a self-love first. My self-love must decrease, my God love must increase. How? I believe in God, yes, but do I “believe” God no matter what? My love waivers because I do not believe the best of God. When the the trials hit my life in a negative way, my love does not always endure. I stop believing in the best of God. I doubt God’s intentions toward me. When I only see in part, and that part is not good, that part is not understandable, I waiver in my love for God, and I follow my feelings instead of staying in followship of the truth I know. God’s love must increase in me. I must have an enduring love like Jesus had as He went to the cross for us, and like He has now for us, a merciful love.
Immeasurable – Incalculable love! We can’t figure it out, we can’t out spend it, we can’t calculate the inestimable fathomless value of it. The Bridegroom’s Voice
Facet #5 Humility
When we are postured in our human condition, and life is all about us, this does not turn out well for us, or the other people in our lives. It is kind of cool though, that when we posture ourselves in humility, like Jesus did, there is power in the way we love others, it is transforming, and wonderful, and adds value to their lives. As we let God have the control of all of our lives, as we yield to Him, and love Him with all our heart, humility is the outgrowth of our love relationship with Him. Humility expresses itself in love, as all we do and say, we do as a love act of worship unto God. Being humble in heart, we will love others well. I must remember that the love of God does not disassociate with anything, it is not afraid of pain, and it embraces suffering, and I too must be willing to be the same, and this will take humility of soul.
“Bride Of Christ, As a Bridegroom, when I think of our love relationship, I have these questions for My bride: Are you genuinely devoted to Me? Will you cherish and respect Me, even when I admonish you and we disagree? Will My affection still inspire you when your life-path is sprinkled with adversity? When things do not go as you plan, will you still believe in Me? Will your heart still soar with faith and believe there is nothing impossible with My love? When persecution touches your life because of Me, will this in any way modify your love for Me? Will you believe that My love for you remains constant and sure, when everything else is changing?”The Bridegroom’s Voice
Facet #6 Willed
The truth about our worldly viewpoint of love is that it is not complete. The lie is that it is based on our soul emotions alone. God shaped in us a body, soul, will, mind, spirit, and the whole of us can experience and walk out of His love. I don’t have to wait for my soul feelings to be wholly-holy aligned with God, before I obey Him. The will of God loved us, therefore my will can love God too, through obedience to Him, even though my soul feelings have not lined up with my will to please God. Love is just as valid acted out of the will, as it is acted out of the body, mind, spirit and soul. God wants me to love Him with all of me, including my will. I have made bad choices to follow after my soul, instead of letting my will lead me to obedience, the type of obedience the Lord requires, where from every moment to every choice I obey Him, immediately. I cannot have this kind of obedience if my will is not engaged with the love of God. I must love God with all of me, not just the easy part, the soul where my feelings are, but also the will that God uses to discipline me and grow me up. God shapes my will, and this too is a part of His love for me. I must love Him with my willful obedience, even though it does not feel good. Growth is not a feel good thing, it is a willful love. If I want to grow in Christ, I must yield everything about me to His love, which has a disciplining, corrective training nature to it.
“When I cling to the Infinite love of God, I have in my inner spirit an endless force of courage that goes before me with peace, and leaves a backsplash of peace upon my soul like that of living water that quenches your spirit at all times.” The Bridegroom’s Voice
Loving Others Well
It is awesome to have the heart desire that from every moment into every choice, we can be aware of being people whose actions are full of God’s love and founded upon the truth of His Word. This kind of living, loving and serving others, is Awe-GOD wonderful. So let’s connect with God, heart to heart today, and make it a day where we love other well. Enjoy the Great God Adventure of being kind, gracious, forbearing, and patient with others and loving them well.
Thank you for stopping into The Bridegroom’s Cafe. We hope you enjoyed your Spiritual Meal on the Smorgasbord Table. We are thankful for The Bridegroom, Jesus’ Voice which is always heard in this cafe. Please make sure you check out our Rumble Channel: https://rumble.com/c/KimberlyMac 1 Minute Encouragement Video. God bless you, KimberlyMac