Whispers Amidst the Shadows

Falling in love with Jesus is such an awesome feeling. When you choose Jesus as your everything, you will come to realize that you don’t need as much as you thought. He is the all-sufficient one!

2 John 4:7-10
Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. This is how God showed his love among us:

I John3:16
For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son, that whosoever believeth shall not perish but have everlasting life.
He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him.

This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers. If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need but has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him?

John 15:9-10 As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father's commands and remain in his love.

Love is the fabric of life: Throughout the Old & New Testament God demonstrates 2 things:
1. God Love me first
2. God loves me unconditional so much that He died and rose again for me.

Gen 1:26-27 26And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth. 27So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.

Love requires a response that indicates we either are in love with God or we are not.

God sent Jesus into the world as His ultimate message of love.... Faith and hope surely do motivate us, but love motivates us more dramatically and quickly than anything, we know of. Because Christ loved us, we love Him and the people around us. He came to His own people and His own world, but they did not receive Him. However, He gives power to those who do receive Him, the power to be children of God. He came to make God known to us, so we would love Him as our Father.

It's not good to be a mere spectator and critic. Jesus said, "From everyone who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked" and "to everyone who has, more will be given." This is for our own good, for our own benefit, but we also benefit God when we are productive. We glorify Him by our productivity. We help bring others into His kingdom. Jesus told His disciples (John 13:34) 34"A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.

Paul put top priority on love just as Jesus did: "Love is kind and patient, never jealous, boastful, proud, or rude. Love isn't selfish or quick tempered. It doesn't keep a record of wrongs that others do. Love rejoices in the truth, but not in evil. Love is always supportive, loyal, hopeful, and trusting. Love never fails... For now there are faith, hope, and love. But of these three, the greatest is love." (1 Corinthians 13:4-13

THE ESSENTIAL TEACHING OF JESUS IS, "LOVE ALL PEOPLE AS YOURSELF." AND THE WAY WE DO THIS IS TO TREAT OTHERS AS WE WOULD LIKE TO BE TREATED.