Perfect Love

My last article was on fear and after some reflection I felt that I needed to add a few more thoughts on the subject. No one likes fear and certainly no Christian should suffer from fear or allow it any place in their life.
Jesus said "fear not" and that is as much a commandment as "do not steal or commit adultery".  Why? Because is shows a lack of faith, plain and simple. Faith is not as complex or unattainable as some would think because it is a gift and it is freely given those who diligently seek the Lord. Faith in it's simplest description is the ability to truly believe the promises of the Promisor. Usually the promise goes like this; "You do this and I will do this in return". It is nearly always a two way street. While you cannot save yourself with your efforts you can obtain eternal life through obedience and love. He has already done His part but you have a part to do to access what is already made available. I have often used the term "passionate pursuit" to describe how our relationship with Him should be and here is a scripture;

Hebrews 11:6

New King James Version (NKJV)
6 But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.


Jeremiah 29:13

New King James Version (NKJV)
13 And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart.

Now here is a scripture that is the opposite and is the condition of many Christians today;

Matthew 15:8

New King James Version (NKJV)
8 ‘These people draw near to Me with their mouth,
And honor Me with their lips,
But their heart is far from Me.

Those who are in the second category are those who have fear of something unless they are too blind or arrogant to fear anything.

Much of the blame for this condition rests on the shoulders of those who are supposed to be our spiritual leaders and should be pointing out these matters. Some may tread around the edges but are afraid to speak plainly for fear of offending anyone. Better to offend I say than to do nothing to stop folks from a headlong plunge into hell or even living a life that is like hell. I have often heard it said that "He didn't promise you a rose garden" and I would argue that point. The abundant life that Jesus came to give us is better than a rose garden. It is simply that few enjoy it to it's fullest because they will not comply with the requirements. All the dark clouds are the result of outright sin or made necessary for a course correction. God will micromanage your life if you will let Him and He can do a much better job than you can because He can see everything and you cannot. Main problem is that most people don't want someone else making decisions for them even when the outcome is for their benefit or else the effort to come into that intimate relationship with Him is just too much effort.

I titled this "perfect love" and that is from this scripture;

1 John 4:18

New King James Version (NKJV)
18 There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment. But he who fears has not been made perfect in love.

God's love is always perfect but it is not complete or perfect for me until it is returned. It must be reciprocated to be complete. The word "perfect" that is used in scripture means "mature or complete" so While God's love is awesome and even beyond comprehension it is not of much benefit to me until I love Him in return and there is plenty of scripture that defines how my love should be and here's one;

Deuteronomy 6:5

New King James Version (NKJV)
5 You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength.

This does not sound like the sort of love that many Christians have for Him because I set in many meetings and it is simply amazing to me how few even have a working knowledge of the Bible which is His eternal word. They not only do not know what is in it but can't even find a book or chapter. This does not sound like a heart that is on fire for Him. Nor does it sound like a soul that is seeking Him, the soul is our mind, our will and our emotions combined. To me this scripture says that I should love Him and seek Him with every faculty in me without reservation. Believe me, the benefits outweigh the costs by a huge margin. God gives incentives but we must work to discover them.

Be blessed in your efforts to renew and increase your love for Him.
john

email;justjohn@eoni.com