Strong Words of Warning!
Note from Jesus Dear Disciple, The verses you will read today contain strong warnings and harsh language for false teachers. These false teachers were leading My followers astray. They were creating havoc in the fellowship meals (“love feasts”) and gatherings of My disciples. These false teachers were self-absorbed and had perverted grace to justify their sinful lifestyles. The first set of verses you read comes from the first part of Jude. These verses are so similar to 2 Peter chapter 2 that I include only Jude’s words for today’s reading. The second set of verses comes from 2 Peter chapter 3. The third set comes from the end of Jude’s short letter. He concludes his letter with praise for the Father. He reminds My disciples that the Father is the only One Who can save them and He will do just that! The short little letter called Jude is best understood more like a “tract for troubled times.” It is an emergency note written with urgency. The second chapter of 2 Peter contains very similar wording: Depraved souls who stand condemned have made a mockery of the grace given to you, using it as a pretext for a life of sinful excess, lived without any thought of God. Both Peter and Jude used images from the Old Testament and also reminded their readers of the punishment the Father brought on rebellious and wanton sinners. These images were written as warnings to My disciples so that they would recognize the gravity of the false teaching and the false teachers who spread it. These false teachers were “dreamers who have slipped in and defiled your community, rejected those in charge, and insulted the glorious majesty of the heavenly messengers.” Jude had intended to send a much happier letter of encouragement centered on the salvation the disciples shared. However, his heart was so troubled by these false teachers that he sent his short message about them instead. Peter had a very similar strong teaching that paralleled Jude’s message as he addressed similar problems. He followed his warning about these false teachers with teaching about the judgment coming on those who are godless and make life difficult for My disciples and lead them astray. He described that coming judgment in terms consistent with the fate of the false teachers described in Jude’s note. I want you to notice the strong language used for those who perverted grace into an excuse for immorality and who “lived without any thought of God.” I also want you to recognize that both of these writers ended their messages with encouragement. They were confident that the Father would continue to work in the lives of My disciples and bring them complete salvation. Until the time they fully experienced salvation, Jude reminded My followers to care for each other. They were to deal with those who had been influenced by the false teachers based on their need and what led them to fall away: [Y]ou must show mercy to those whose faith is wavering. Rescue others by snatching them from the flames of judgment. Show mercy to still others, but do so with great caution, hating the sins that contaminate their lives. (Jude 1:22-23 NLT) Jude’s last words are especially encouraging and helpful. Carefully notice the third set of verses below. They are beautiful, reliable, and very practical. Remember, you cannot save yourself; your salvation depends on the Father’s grace and your trust in Him. Your Father is good. He can and will transform you and bring you to Himself as His pure and holy child. Verses to Live Please read straight through these verses as one continuous reading. I want you to get the flow of the message. Look for the strong language that Peter and Jude used to describe the false teachers. Also, look for the encouragement offered at the end of the second and third sets of verses. I AM confident in good things with you and your faith. But I also want you to be aware that there are false teachers who will try to lead you away from Me. So keep your focus on the Father, walk with Me in the Spirit. Jude, a slave of Jesus the Anointed and a brother of James, to you, the ones whom God our Father loves and has called and whom Jesus, the Anointed One, has kept. Kindness, peace, love — may they never stop blooming in you and from you. Friends, I have been trying to write you about our common salvation. But these days my heart is troubled, and I am compelled to write to you and encourage you to continue struggling for the faith that was entrusted to the saints once and for all. Vile men have slithered in among us. Depraved souls who stand condemned have made a mockery of the grace given to us, using it as a pretext for a life of excess, lived without any thought of God. These poor fools have denied Jesus the Anointed, our one Lord and Master. You have heard the stories many times, and the Spirit has enlightened you about their meaning, but you still need to be reminded. Remember when the Lord saved our ancestors from the land in Egypt? He breathed life into their earthen lungs and took back the life from those who did not believe. And God has kept the rebellious heavenly messengers bound and chained in utter darkness — shadowy gloom — until the time when His judgment arrives, because they failed to keep their rightful positions and abandoned their appointed realms. Sodom and Gomorrah and all their neighbors were defeated by their own sexual perversions as they pursued the strange and unnatural impulses of the flesh. Let these who went their own way and are experiencing the eternal heat of God’s vengeance — a punishment by fire — be a warning to you. These stories are examples to help you understand the fate of those dreamers who have slipped
Today’s Verse – Deuteronomy 11:8
Observe therefore all the commands I am giving you today, so that you may have the strength to go in and take over the land that you are crossing the Jordan to possess… —Deuteronomy 11:8 Thoughts on Today’s Verse… God desires that we obey his will, and that will is not arbitrary, impulsive, or unfair. Our Father wants us to reflect his character, rest in his blessing, and receive his strength to restore our freedom as he delivers us from bondage. Let’s not look at his call for us to obey him as merely something we must do but as our opportunity to step into the life of blessing that we discover in God’s grace. God commands us to obey him so that we can find the new frontiers of grace where he longs to lead us. Video Commentary… ToGather Worship Guide | More ToGather Videos My Prayer… LORD and Father, thank you for revealing your will and calling me to obey it. I know you desire to share your blessings with me and bring me into your eternal presence. I choose to obey so I can have the strength to step into the life you long to give me as your obedient child. In Jesus’ name, I thank you. Amen. All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION. © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House.
Peter’s Parting Exhortations
Note from Jesus Dear Precious Disciple, Much as 2 Timothy serves as a farewell message for Paul as he nears the end of his life, 2 Peter plays a similar role for the apostle Peter. He writes this letter to help churches to be able to resist false teachers and to know how to live productive lives of service and faithfulness after he is gone: I want to be certain you will be able to call these things to mind anytime you need them even after I am gone. Your verses today emphasize continued growth — adding this virtue to that virtue and to that virtue another virtue and to another virtue yet one more virtue… As Peter states, continued growth is necessary so that: [Y]ou will never be ineffective or unproductive in your relationship with our Lord Jesus. [Y]ou will never fall along the way; and you can be sure that you will be richly welcomed into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus the Anointed, our Liberating King. While each of these virtues from the verses below is important, the commitment to continued growth is especially important, and these virtues that Peter charges the disciples to have will then be byproducts of that continued growth. The Holy Spirit is at work transforming you to become ever more like Me (2 Corinthians 3:18), producing the character and compassion in you that you know as the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23). Paul talked about not having arrived to full maturity, but pressing on to reach it personally (Philippians 3:12-16). Here Peter makes a similar point with My disciples in their own walk toward becoming conformed fully to My “divine nature.” The goal, as Peter states it, is this: [T]o reflect God’s true nature through the knowledge of the One Who called us by His glory and virtue. Through these things, we have received God’s great and valuable promises, so we might escape the corruption of worldly desires and share in the divine nature. So as long as Peter can “draw breath,” he will “keep on stirring you [My disciples] up with these reminders”! As you read these verses, I hope you will feel the urgency in Peter’s words and recognize the importance of not losing your passion for growing to be more and more like Me. The “eternal kingdom” awaits you, so pursue My character and compassion — “the divine nature” — and know with assurance that My glory awaits you! Verses to Live The last words of people before they die are often etched into the memories of their loved ones. Peter is hoping that is exactly what happens with the words of this letter he is sending to My disciples. I have preserved these words for you so that their message can be etched into your memory and displayed in your lives. Their theme is simple and clear: “[G]row in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord.” Simon Peter, a servant and emissary of Jesus the Anointed One, to those who have received the same precious faith we share through the righteousness of our God and Savior, Jesus the Anointed. I wish you a full measure of grace and peace as you grow in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord. His divine power has given us everything we need to experience life and to reflect God’s true nature through the knowledge of the One Who called us by His glory and virtue. Through these things, we have received God’s great and valuable promises, so we might escape the corruption of worldly desires and share in the divine nature. To achieve this, you will need to add virtue to your faith, and then knowledge to your virtue; to knowledge, add discipline; to discipline, add endurance; to endurance, add godliness; to godliness, add affection for others as sisters and brothers; and to affection, at last, add love. For if you possess these traits and multiply them, then you will never be ineffective or unproductive in your relationship with our Lord Jesus the Anointed; but if you don’t have these qualities, then you will be nearsighted and blind, forgetting that your past sins have been washed away. Therefore, brothers and sisters, work that much harder to confirm that God has called you and claimed you. If you do this, then you will never fall along the way; and you can be sure that you will be richly welcomed into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus the Anointed, our Liberating King. That is why I will keep reminding you of these things, even though I know that you believe them and have made these truths a part of your lives; as long as I draw breath, I know it is right for me to keep on stirring you up with these reminders. I know that soon I must die and lay down this old body that’s been my home — our Lord Jesus the Anointed has told me so. But before my exodus from this life, I want to be certain you will be able to call these things to mind anytime you need them even after I am gone. (2 Peter 1:1-15) Response in Prayer Father, life can wear me down and distract me. I can become bored and chase after things that don’t matter much, but that fascinate me. So I thank You for Peter’s words today that urge me to keep growing and pursuing a life that seeks to share in Your “divine nature” by growing in knowledge and in the experience of Your presence and nature. I offer myself afresh today, to be molded and conformed to Jesus, in Whose name I pray. Amen. ‘A Year with Jesus’ is written by Phil Ware. © 1998-2024, Heartlight, Inc. ‘A Year with Jesus‘ is part of the Heartlight Network.All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission.
Today’s Verse – Psalm 11:7
For the LORD is righteous, he loves justice; the upright will see his face. —Psalm 11:7 Thoughts on Today’s Verse… Can you think of any more blessed promise for those who seek to be righteous and long to honor God and his character? We will see God face-to-face! What a blessing! What a future! What an incredible Father! So let’s seek our Abba Father, the LORD God, with all heart, soul, mind, and strength until we get to see him as he is, face-to-face with God in all his glory (1 John 3:1-3). Why? Because we love our God who is righteous and are thankful he loves justice. My Prayer… Dear Father, Almighty King of the ages, thank you for your great and precious promises. Thank you for your righteousness. Thank you for your love of justice. Thank you for your mercy and grace. I genuinely look forward to the day I get to see you face-to-face with Jesus, in all your glory, sharing in your eternal presence forever! In Jesus’ name, I praise and thank you. Amen. All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION. © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House.
Your Broken World
Note from Jesus Dear Disciple, The beloved elder John wrote to My disciples because he deeply loved them and wanted them to find eternal life in me. His words to begin 3 John beautifully reveal this part of his heart: I, the elder, to Gaius, who is much loved by all and loved in truth by me. My beloved friend, I pray that everything is going well for you and that your body is as healthy as your soul is prosperous. I was thrilled when the brothers and sisters came and told me stories of your faithfulness as you continue to walk in the truth. The greatest joy in my life is hearing how my children are walking in the truth. (3 John 1:1-4) Each of John’s three letters at almost the end of your Bibles is short, yet full of practical truth filled with John’s genuine emotional connection to My disciples. John knew that his time was short. He knew the power of the “diabolical one”. He knew that the allure of the corrupted world was pervasive. Like Paul and Peter before him, John left words for My precious disciples urging them to stay on the right path. He warned them about being a stumbling block to others. He wanted them to demonstrate their love for Me in the way they lived. He wanted My disciples to follow My example of obedient love for the Father, compassion for those around Me, and moral purity in My dealings with all people. John urges these disciples to live faithfully through a series of encouragements and warnings that he repeated throughout his short letter of 1 John. As his chosen themes combine and repeat, working their way through his short letter, My beloved disciple gives you the truth on how to live in any age. His simple words serve as a necessary warning about the dangers of falling in love with the broken and sinful world. They remind My disciples of the importance of loving the truth, loving Me, and loving their brothers and sisters. Today you finish your readings in 1, 2, and 3 John. Hear John’s simple but powerful message as My will expressed through this faithful old apostle. Recognize this message as an important reminder preparing you for our coming journey into the book of Revelation. The world around you is broken. There is beauty in the created universe, but everything that humanity has touched has also been stained by sin’s grip on your world. Don’t be deceived by the world’s allure! Remember all that it offers you is temporary. The world can offer only a broken and temporary substitute for the eternal life I have shared with you. Don’t be surprised when the world doesn’t love you when you live for me: Consider the kind of extravagant love the Father has lavished on us — He calls us children of God! It’s true; we are His beloved children. And in the same way, the world didn’t recognize Him, the world does not recognize us either. (1 John 3:1) Brothers and sisters, don’t be shocked if the corrupt world despises you. (1 John 3:13) Even more, John doesn’t want you to get caught up in loving the world and being led away from Me. His words are true. His words are your warning. Don’t trade away the life I came to bring you for the temporary, fleeting, and corrupted enticements of the world! Verses to Live Take a few minutes and look up all the times the word “world” is used in John’s writings — the Gospel of John; 1, 2, and 3 John; and Revelation. The world, corrupted and lost, is a major theme for John. Not loving the things of this world was one of John’s primary concerns. The following verses can help you understand why John had these concerns. Contemplate his words. Heed them. Realize that I came to bring life to you. The underlined sentences at the end of today’s verses point out the contrast between the fleeting, temporary nature of the allures of your world and the eternal life that comes from doing God’s will. All the world’s enticements are really only cheap, fleeting, and shallow substitutes for the true life I long to give you. Don’t fall in love with this corrupt world or worship the things it can offer. Those who love its corrupt ways don’t have the Father’s love living within them. All the things the world can offer to you — the allure of pleasure, the passion to have things, and the pompous sense of superiority — do not come from the Father. These are the rotten fruits of this world. This corrupt world is already wasting away, as are its selfish desires. But the person really doing God’s will — that person will never cease to be. (1 John 2:15-17) Response in Prayer Give me strength, dear Father, to resist the allure of the world. I know in my heart that it is a poor and deadly substitute for the life that You have given me in Jesus. Sometimes, dear Father, the ridicule of those who don’t believe and the enticements of this world do distract me and lead me away from a whole-hearted dedication to you. Please forgive me. Sometimes my losses in this world have captured all of my energy in grief, anger, and confusion. Please strengthen and reclaim me. I know my world is broken, but it is the world I know. So please help me be strong as I keep my eyes on Jesus and seek His life and not the world’s shallow substitutes. It is in His name I pray. Amen. ‘A Year with Jesus’ is written by Phil Ware. © 1998-2024, Heartlight, Inc. ‘A Year with Jesus‘ is part of the Heartlight Network.All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Voice™. © 2008 by Ecclesia Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Today’s Verse – Hebrews 11:6
And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him. —Hebrews 11:6 Thoughts on Today’s Verse… And why do we serve God? Fear? A sense of obligation? Because our parents did? How about because we want to please God and bring the Father joy? How about because we believe in what God has done and will do for us? We believe that God sent his Son Jesus to die for our sins so we can be forgiven, cleansed, and adopted as his children into his forever family. What’s more, we believe that God longs to share his blessings with us and loves to reward those who believe in his grace and love. We believe! So, we earnestly, diligently, and passionately seek him! My Prayer… Dear Father, thank you for my faith and all those who helped me come to know you and your grace. Please bless me as I seek to share this faith with my family and friends. Thank you for the confidence that my life is secure in your love and victorious because of your power demonstrated in Jesus’ resurrection. And it is in his name, Jesus, that I offer you my thanks, praise, and heart. Amen. All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION. © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House.
The Truth about Sin
Note from Jesus Dear Beloved, As God’s child, you need to know that some truth is very basic and very simple. You also need to realize that the evil one, whom John called the “diabolical one,” wants to confuse you. He wants things to appear to be complicated, and he lies to you about what’s important. Some believe him. However, you can tell those who are My disciples, God’s adopted children, and My younger siblings by faith. They live good moral lives full of good deeds, but those who don’t live this kind of life are not My disciples and are not God’s children. You will not live life perfectly. None of the Father’s children, except for Me, ever has or ever will. You will slip into an occasional sin. However, My disciples do not, as John describes it, live “a life of habitual sin.” My disciples, the Father’s children, don’t “persist in sin”: Sin is not their way of life and certainly not their desired way to live. My disciples long to live as I did, dedicated to the Father and reflecting His righteous character and gracious compassion. When they do stumble and sin, they confess it instead of trying to hide it. My sacrifice on the cross cleanses them of their sin (1 John 1:5-10). I don’t want you to sin even one sin because it entraps, damages, and brings with it harsh consequences. However, I will forgive and cleanse you of these unwanted sins. It’s the “habitual” nature of sin and the willingness to “persist” in sin that ultimately reveals the disloyalty to the Father in a person’s heart. If you are struggling alone with your sin, please remember John’s call for you to confess your sins (1 John 1:7-9). That doesn’t mean that you confess them just to the Father or Me. You also need to get the help of another couple of brothers or sisters in the Father’s family to walk alongside you and strengthen you (Ecclesiastes 4:9-12). Confess your sins to these spiritual partners. You need confidants in the faith who can walk beside you, encourage you, challenge you to live the life you want to live in Me, and help you overcome the power of sin’s allure because it seeks to destroy you (James 1:13-15). No one should want the “moral anarchy” of sin and the damage it brings. As James said: So own up to your sins to one another and pray for one another. In the end, you may be healed. Your prayers are powerful when they are rooted in a righteous life. (James 5:16). Sin will not be your lifestyle because you are God’s child — the Father’s spiritual DNA is alive in you through the Holy Spirit. You have been adopted into My family of grace. So let the true Spirit-transformed you shine through in your daily life! Verses to Live John’s words are simple and clear. Don’t let anyone convince you of anything other than My high standards when it comes to morality. While none of you is perfect, the fruit of a good person’s life shows through in good deeds as well as in an obedient and godly lifestyle. John makes that very clear in the following verses from his short letter of 1 John. You are my little children, so I am writing these things to help you avoid sin. If, however, any believer does sin, we have a high-powered defense lawyer — Jesus the Anointed, the righteous — arguing on our behalf before the Father. It was through His sacrificial death that our sins were atoned. But He did not stop there — He died for the sins of the whole world. We know we have joined Him in an intimate relationship because we live out His commands. If someone claims, “I am in an intimate relationship with Him,” but this big talker doesn’t live out His commands, then this individual is a liar and a stranger to the truth. But if someone responds to and obeys His word, then God’s love has truly taken root and filled him. This is how we know we are in an intimate relationship with Him: anyone who says, “I live in intimacy with Him,” should walk the path Jesus walked. (1 John 2:1-6). So now, my little children, live in Him, so that whenever He is revealed, we will have confidence and not have to hang our heads in shame before Him when He comes. If you know that He is just and faithful, then you also know that everyone who lives faithfully and acts justly has been born into a new life through Him. Consider the kind of extravagant love the Father has lavished on us — He calls us children of God! It’s true; we are His beloved children. And in the same way the world didn’t recognize Him, the world does not recognize us either. My loved ones, we have been adopted into God’s family; and we are officially His children now. The full picture of our destiny is not yet clear, but we know this much: when Jesus appears, we will be like Him because we will see Him just as He is. All those who focus their hopes on Him and His coming seek to purify themselves just as He is pure. Everyone who lives a life of habitual sin is living in moral anarchy. That’s what sin is. You realize that He came to eradicate sins, that there is not the slightest bit of sin in Him. The ones who live in an intimate relationship with Him do not persist in sin, but anyone who persists in sin has not seen and does not know the real Jesus. Children, don’t let anyone pull one over on you. The one doing the right thing is just imitating Jesus, the Righteous One. The one persisting in sin belongs to the diabolical one, who has been all about sin from the beginning. That is
Today’s Verse – Matthew 11:5
“The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is preached to the poor.” —Matthew 11:5 Thoughts on Today’s Verse… The clear sign of the Messiah’s presence was a time of true blessedness for all who knew and followed him. His actions — his miracles and compassion shared with others — gloriously displayed the anticipated Messiah’s coming. If this was true with his first coming to earth, imagine how much more gloriously blessed the LORD’s people will be when he returns in his glory! The good news preached by Jesus is the anticipation of even more fantastic news when he returns to take his disciples home to the Father! My Prayer… LORD God Almighty, I praise you for the time of blessing that accompanied Jesus’ first coming to earth. I anticipate even greater rejoicing at his return and the glorious blessings that await his disciples, my brothers and sisters in Christ, when our Savior returns in glory. In anticipation of that Day, I thank and praise you in the name of Jesus, my Savior, King, Friend, and LORD. Amen. All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION. © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House.
Love Each Other!
Note from Jesus Dear Beloved, You are the Father’s child! You are precious! The Father adopted you into Our — Father, Son, and Holy Spirit’s — family. I paid the purchase price for your adoption. You are a blood-bought and blood-redeemed child of the King of Glory! Despite your lack of perfection, you are a precious child in the Father’s family. So is every other person who is a Christian! The point of these words is simple. We love you. We love all your brothers and sisters in our spiritual family. We expect you to love, accept, help, receive, and value your brothers and sisters as much as you hope We will love, accept, help, receive, and value you. Love one another! Verses to Live John was known for his teaching about love. He taught about the Father’s love for a lost world (John 3:16-17). He proclaimed My love for My disciples as well as My expectation that My disciples will love each other (John 15:12-17). What follows is a collection of verses from 1 John about God’s loving you and your loving each other as brothers and sisters. Read these words. More than reading them, let them linger in your heart and commit to living them. Love one another; not just in words, but from the heart demonstrate love for each other! People will recognize that you are My disciples because of the way you demonstrate My love with each other (John 13:34-35). Not only that, but your love is one way for you to reveal God to your world (1 John 4:12). My loved ones, in one sense, I am not writing a new command for you. I am only reminding you of the old command. It’s a word you already know, a word that has existed from the beginning. However, in another sense, I am writing a new command for you. The new command is the truth that He lived; and now you are living it, too, because the darkness is fading and the true light is already shining among you. Anyone who says, “I live in the light,” but hates his brother or sister is still living in the shadows. Anyone who loves his brother or sister lives in the light and will not trip because his conscience is clear. But anyone who hates his brother is in the darkness, stumbling around with no idea where he is going, blinded by the darkness. (1 John 2:7-11) Consider the kind of extravagant love the Father has lavished on us — He calls us children of God. (1 John 3:1) The central truth — the one you have heard since the beginning of your faith — is that we must love one another. Please do not act like Cain, who was of the evil one. He brutally murdered his own brother. Why would he do something so despicable? Because his life was devoted to evil and selfishness, and his brother chose to do what is right. Brothers and sisters, don’t be shocked if the corrupt world despises you. We know that we have crossed over from death to real life because we are devoted to true love for our brothers and sisters. Anyone who does not love lives among corpses. Everyone who hates other members of God’s family is a murderer. Does a murderer possess the beautiful life that never ends? No. We know what true love looks like because of Jesus. He gave His life for us, and He calls us to give our lives for our brothers and sisters. If a person owns the kinds of things we need to make it in the world but refuses to share with those in need, is it even possible that God’s love lives in him? My little children, don’t just talk about love as an idea or a theory. Make it your true way of life, and live in the pattern of gracious love. (1 John 3:11-18) His command is clear: believe in the name of His Son, Jesus the Anointed, and love one another as He commanded. The one who follows His teaching and walks this path lives in an intimate relationship with God. How do we know that He lives in us? By the gift of His Spirit. (1 John 3:23-24) My loved ones, let us devote ourselves to loving one another. Love comes straight from God, and everyone who loves is born of God and truly knows God. Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love. Because of this, the love of God is a reality among us: God sent His only Son into the world so that we could find true life through Him. This is the embodiment of true love: not that we have loved God first, but that He loved us and sent His unique Son on a special mission to become an atoning sacrifice for our sins. So, my loved ones, if God loved us so sacrificially, surely we should love one another. No one has ever seen God with human eyes; but if we love one another, God truly lives in us. Consequently God’s love has accomplished its mission among us. (1 John 4:7-12) We have experienced and we have entrusted our lives to the love of God in us. God is love. Anyone who lives faithfully in love also lives faithfully in God, and God lives in him. This love is fulfilled with us, so that on the day of judgment we have confidence based on our identification with Jesus in this world. Love will never invoke fear. Perfect love expels fear, particularly the fear of punishment. The one who fears punishment has not been completed through love. We love because He has first loved us. If someone claims, “I love God,” but hates his brother or sister, then he is a liar. Anyone who does not love a brother or sister, whom he has seen, cannot possibly love God, Whom he has
Today’s Verse – Proverbs 11:4
Wealth is worthless in the day of wrath, but righteousness delivers from death. —Proverbs 11:4 Thoughts on Today’s Verse… What is your primary investment? Only righteousness offers a truly long-term benefit! That’s why Jesus said: “So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well” (Matthew 6:32-33). My Prayer… Holy God, thank you for valuing what is good, holy, and righteous. I praise you for empowering me through the Holy Spirit to develop those qualities I see in Jesus, have them formed in my character, and invest my life in what matters eternally. I thank you, in Jesus’ name. Amen. All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION. © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House.