God Gives Good Love All the Time

 

Romans 5:8-10 (NLT)
“8 But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners. 9 And since we have been made right in God's sight by the blood of Christ, he will certainly save us from God's condemnation. 10 For since our friendship with God was restored by the death of his Son while we were still his enemies, we will certainly be saved through the life of his Son.”

In John 14:1, Jesus tells us not to let our hearts be troubled, but to trust God in all things. The heart is a part of our souls, and our soul is the innermost part of who we are. Our reflection in the mirror reveals the physical attributes of our bodies, and although our physical being allows others to identify us, our bodies cannot define who we are. God has done this. Romans 8:29(NLT) tells us, "For God knew his people in advance, and he chose them to become like his Son, so that his Son would be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters."

We are God's sons and daughters, and brothers and sisters of Jesus Christ, His only begotten Son. God tells us in Genesis 1:26-27 that He created us in His own likeness. We are indeed His spiritual children if we have His seed, the Holy Spirit, abiding within us. When we give our lives to Jesus Christ, and allow him to have lordship over them, we are no longer the lord of our own existences; he is, and because we make him Lord, we commit to God that we will have a heart and mind like Jesus Christ.

Having a heart and mind like Christ are a spiritual reality. We can't touch the mind, heart, and soul, but we know that we have them, and for much of our lives, we have made deposits into them. Like checks in the bank, we signed our names on all the information and feelings that we deposited into our minds, hearts, and souls, but as Lord, only Jesus Christ should have this privilege. Our thoughts, feelings, attitudes, and behaviors should have God's endorsement, and they should be continually filtered through the example of Jesus Christ.

Through the work of His beloved Son, Jesus Christ, God has made us brand new! 2Corinthians 5:17(NLT) tells us, “This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun!” Now, we can pull off all the old thoughts and feelings that kept us filled with anxiety and fear, and we can put on the joy and faith of Christ and live abundantly. Our problem is that we don't do this as readily as we should. God commands us to renew our minds to His Word, but most of us do this very slowly. We take a long time to change our thoughts to the thoughts of Christ. Because of this, our hearts can be easily troubled.

This isn't God's Will for any of us. Our Heavenly Father has made it possible for us to be so totally immersed in His love that fear and all its cousins like worry, doubt, and anxiety are a thing of the past. We may not feel this way, but our feelings do not dictate the truth. God's Word does. So, although a heart that isn't troubled may not be our reality, we can have 100% confidence that God has made a way through Christ for us to live free. 

There are no imperfections in God's love. God gives good love all the time, and He tells us in 1John 4:18(NLT), “Such love has no fear, because perfect love expels all fear. If we are afraid, it is for fear of punishment, and this shows that we have not fully experienced his perfect love.” A lack of faith in Him will leave us confused about how to manage our own lives, but if we learn more about God and His love for us all, we'll see that we have nothing to fear. We must trust in Him with all our hearts and do so until our love for Him is filled to overflowing and leaves no more room for fear and doubt.

Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.

“God Gives Good Love All the Time”, written by Kim for https://rescuefromdomesticviolence.blogspot.com© 2024. All rights reserved. All praise and honor to God through Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior.

Our Faith in God Will Never Fail Us

 

Romans 8:37(NLT) tells us that despite our troubles and obstacles in life, "overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us." Some of us are wondering how that can be, especially when our circumstances and situations don't look like victory but look more like setbacks, confusion, and disappointments. Well, if we don't believe God's Word, we might always be convinced that life is a series of one troublesome thing after the other, but when we are born-again and have God's Spirit living within, we can and should have a completely and totally different view. We can see over and above what is facing us and anchor our trust in God. He tells us in His Word that as His sons and daughters, we don't live according to what our physical eyes can perceive; we walk according to our faith in Him, because our faith in Him will never fail us.

Our Heavenly Father wants us to spend our time on earth getting to know Him better with each passing day. He tells us in Ephesians 5:1-2(NLT), "1 Imitate God, therefore, in everything you do, because you are his dear children. 2 Live a life filled with love, following the example of Christ. He loved us and offered himself as a sacrifice for us, a pleasing aroma to God." This is our target in life, to know God's Word and to wear it like a second skin. He doesn't want anything getting us down and has equipped us with everything we need to be the head and not the tail, above and not beneath. We are His 'called out' ones, and He has set us apart for His very special purpose.

Christians are not exempt from trials and tribulations, and our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, made it clear in God's Word that on earth, we will encounter troubles. Through situations and people, the enemy will try to steal and destroy our peace, but 1John 4:4(NLT) declares, "...you belong to God, my dear children. You have already won a victory over those people, because the Spirit who lives in you is greater than the spirit who lives in the world." We are God's children of light! We live in this dark world, but we are not of it. We belong to God's Kingdom! And we have the right to walk in His power and authority through our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ!

Many people try to separate themselves from the reality that we are spiritual beings having an earth experience. They will not acknowledge themselves as spiritual beings that are created by God, but the truth is that everything, from the minutest to the greatest detail, is spiritual. Our success in this life is dependent on how well we grasp this truth and use it to become grounded in our identity in Christ. God's Word tells us in Ephesians 6:10-13(NLT), "10 A final word: Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11 Put on all of God's armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies of the devil. 12 For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places. 13 Therefore, put on every piece of God's armor so you will be able to resist the enemy in the time of evil. Then after the battle you will still be standing firm." As spiritual beings, we have a spiritual enemy, and we can’t use physical weapons to defeat a spiritual enemy. We must use the spiritual weapons God has provided us. They are fail-proof, and we must learn to use them by studying God’s Word.

Romans 10:17(NKJV) tells us, “So then faith [comes] by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” We cannot rise above the level of what we have been taught. We need to study God’s Word so that our faith in Him will increase. Our greatest issue is that we don’t do this. Some of us lack faith in God and often look for solutions that are outside of Christ. This is where we run into trouble. Even though it appears to our physical eyes that our enemy is a human being, this is not the truth. Our enemy is satan who works through people and situations to interrupt our relationship with God. We must see through his plots and tricks. We must understand that our authority and power comes from God, and through Christ, we can resist the enemy and stand firm in our faith in God.

Uncertainty can cause mental and emotional pressure, but light will always dispel darkness, and we have the light of Christ in us if we have accepted him as our Lord and Savior. Make a commitment to God and to yourself to grow stronger in faith by studying His Word and praying to Him often. John 3:16(NLT) declares, "For God loved the world so much that he gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life." This verse should increase our confidence in our Heavenly Father's love for us, because it shows us that His Will is for us to flourish in this life and the next. He wants us to triumph over adversities, so never stop believing in His goodness. Your faith in Him will never fail as you renew your mind to His Word and trust wholeheartedly in His love, strength, and power. ■

 Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.

Scripture taken from the New King James Version. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. 

“Our Faith in God Will Never Fail Us”, written by Kim for https://rescuefromdomesticviolence.blogspot.com© 2024. All rights reserved. All praise and honor to God through Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior.