Tag Archives: First Love

That’s the Way Love Goes

Family Ministry, God Loves You, Self Care, Spiritual Food, , , , , ,

1 John 4:17-19 NKJV Love has been perfected among us in this: that we may have boldness in the day of judgment; because as He is, so are we in this world. 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. 19 We love Him because He first loved us.

OK so I guess I was having a Pastor Jamal Bryant moment with the title choice today (Pastor Bryant is known for his very provocative sermon titles).  However, when I read these three verses, and read them together it was the first thing that popped into my mind.  Why?

Maybe it was because it’s the title of a song that somewhat redefined Janet Jackson’s entire singing career.  That song and that album turned Janet from an international singing super star, who had just rose from under the shadow of her famous brother, to a global sensation and sex symbol who had now put herself among the same plan as her brother because she had displayed a new side of herself that no had ever expected.  WHAT??  Then why would I see John’s words and think of this secular star.  

One my brain could be a little warped and these three verses are considered the Consummation of Love; that word consummation means the completion, achievement, attainment, execution or conclusion of love.  It denotes the action of making a marriage or relationship complete by having sexual intercourse. The completion of the covenant. Just as this song and album completes Janet’s quest to become a global phenomenon this section of scripture consummated Jesus’ Love Toward Us when HE died on the cross for our sins.

The crazy thing is this; each of these verses have been preached, taught, meditated on and had entire conferences centered around them.  But when you read them together.  It just makes everything Crystal Clear!!!  

Love Consummated (or perfected)

  1. Perfect Oneness-(The Two Become One): Love has been perfected among us in this: that we may have boldness in the day of judgment; because as He is, so are we in this world.  
  2. Perfect Security: 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.
  3. Perfect Pursuit: We love Him because He first loved us.

This radically changes how you see a relationship.  Because our relationship with God was perfected the minute He had Jesus come to earth to live and give His life so that we all would be able to be loved.  Jesus made it possible for God to truly demonstrate His love for us.  The cross allowed us to become one with Jesus and be seated at the right hand of God.  Because of His sacrifice, sin which kept us apart from God was destroyed, removed as a barrier to Him.  Now He could pour out His great love toward us like never before.  We were able to literally become One with God (John 17:22 NKJV And the glory which You gave Me I have given them, that they may be one just as We are one).   

Next we understand the true Security of His love for us.  To be secure is the be safe, have a feeling of safety or even the constant state of being protected against any danger or threat.  Being secure, stable, firm in your place.  I just looked up the three biggest fears of mankind and they are; death, abandonment, and failure.  Man, O could cry crocodile tears right there because that is the way the devil (our enemy) comes at me damn near every day.  Death, he is always reminding me of when my father and grandfather died so why do you think you will live to much longer; showing me a ton of people dying in and around that age.  Then he attacks with abandonment, being isolated loosing relationship focusing on how everyone around me wants nothing to do with me, I’d they had their choice they would be somewhere or be with someone else.  Always pushing me towards isolation.  Let me tell you first hand for a people person that sucks… Yet, let me also tell you what God says to us (Hebrews 13:5 NKJV…For He Himself has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.”) Jesus died on the Crosss and was resurrected to the Father, He never abandoned us but gave us Forever Help (John 15:26 NKJV “But when the Helper comes, whom I shall send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father, He will testify of Me).  We are not alone….

Then lastly, that failure attack!! It is a non-stop attempt to minimize any accomplishment, overemphasize or stress any setback or unmet goal.  It literally diminished almost any success and makes the world come crashing down with any and every inevitable missed opportunity, problem, or unmet expectation.  I see this every single day as a business owner.  It becomes so hard to celebrate the small victories because of the constant thought of one dropped ball bring the whole thing crashing down.  However, when I find myself here I have to recall Jesus’ perfect love which gives me the option to cast all of these cares on Him (1 Peter 5:6-7 NKJV Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time, 7 casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you).  A big part of God’s perfected love is that He does not force anything, this then causes us to submit ourselves to be loved.  You have to humble you to give all of this stuff in us to God.  When we won’t humble ourselves and allow Him to love us we hold on to the fear of abandonment afraid that if we give it He may decide it’s too much and leave as well not accepting the fact that He cares for you.  His care for us loves the mess out of us.  

God came after us, it was a full out Pursuit.  God chased us down.  To show us why we needed him (the Law; wages of sin); to demonstrate true love (that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us) and lastly giving us blessed assurance (John 16:33 NKJV These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.”) He has paved the way for us to overcome and He has made a place with Him forever (John 14:2-3 NKJV  In My Father’s house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also).  When we were pursued in the manner that God pursued each of us we cannot help but be loved and then return that love (because He first loved us). 

We need this Love, but the majority of the world does not accept it and they look for it everywhere else.  

But you know what….That’s the Way Love Goes.  

My Security is In Jesus 4

Spiritual Food, , , , , , ,

We’re in part 4 of a word of encouragement from the Lord for those of us bold enough to admit we’re insecure. God has a Secure place for us. We learned in Part 1 that we can each declare that “I Praise God; For Choosing Me to Love ; For Bringing Me Home and For Accepting Me As I Was.”

For Bringing Me Home

Eph 1:5 having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will,

Isn’t it so powerful that God chose to bring us home to be in His family. The truth is we can be confident of a few things according to Paul’s letter to the Ephesians:

1. We’re His Child: having predestined us to adoption as sons. We have been predestined; which means to predetermine, to decide beforehand, to adopt (the action or fact of legally taking another’s child and bringing it up as one’s own); to become sons/daughters of God. God made this decision well before we were born (before anyone was borne for that matter). The term as sons in Greek speaks of the same relationship that God was pleased to establish with the Israelites; and the condition of the true disciples in Christ; and those who by receiving the Spirit of God become sons of God. Each of these demonstrates just what a special position we’ve been blessed with as sons.

2. Were His Decision: by Jesus Christ to Himself. Jesus made the decision to adopt us as sons while the Triune Godhead before the foundation of the world. However, after making the decision, Jesus Christ followed up and executed the decision on the Cross as Messiah. Truly amazing; Jesus, the Son gave His life so that we might switch places and live in the Son.

3. Were His Pleasure: according to the good pleasure of His will,. Finally, we need to comprehend this last piece. We please God!!! But it’s not what you think; we don’t please him by how good we act nor what nice deeds we do. We please God because we believe in our hearts what Jesus did on the cross and have declared with our mouths that Jesus is our Savior. Jesus pleased God so we wouldn’t have too. We bring our Daddy pleasure and they is so Sweet.

We praise God because He chose us; He loves us and He made a home for us in His family and allows us to be ourselves. Paul’s text lays out a tremendous path for us to receive God’s insatiable love for us and I hope you can appreciate it; I’m learning to more and more everyday.

Return to Your First Love

Spiritual Food,

Rev 2:4 Nevertheless I have this against you, that you have left your
first love.

I was recently watching a podcast (sound weird because you listen to podcast, right?) and the podcaster mentioned a song by Israel Houghton, “Go Back” (to your First Love).  And he made a statement about remembering just how in love he was with God prior to marrying his wife.  It reminded me of this verse in Revelations.

I often long for the intensity of the Love I had for God when I first really got to know who He was and how powerful He was in my Life.  I will be honest; the intensity of my Love then is different now than it is now.  However, the magnitude is not, I believe it is because of the journey of our relationship.  OK because that sounds crazy let’s give an example, when I fell in love with my wife the intensity of our love for each other was extreme, but the magnitude was minimal because we were still figuring each other out, trying to learn who each other were.  However, now after 18 years together; the ups, the downs, the highs, and the lows.  The tenderness, the hurts, the joys, the pains; the intimacy and the frustration; it has all worked together to significantly increase magnitude but at times damage the intensity.  I love my wife way more now than I did then; because I know her, I know the sacrifices she’s made, the love she’s shown the joy she brings the forgiveness she’s given.  I also know the hurts she’s caused the painful words that were said and the actions that have caused anger; and I’ve done the same and more to her.  All this experience wrapped up together significantly strengthens the magnitude and appreciation of our love for each other but the intensity ebbs and flows.      

John reminds us as he pens what the Angel of the Lord spoke to the church in Ephesus.  They’ve done great overall, but the one thing against them, was “that you have left your first love ….” they’ve lost the intensity of their love, the focus, the complete surrender to Jesus Christ.  How  does this happen?  That’s easy the focus that was placed on Jesus was shifted somewhere else.  Like in a marriage, the focus of loving your spouse at some points selfishly shifts to yourself. The actions that use to be taken to ensure the other was loved sometimes shifts as a means of self-preservation, to take care of what you feel to be unmet needs.  Now the intensity in which you’ve loved in the past, diminishes and begins to ooze back unto you.  It is the same with Jesus, we often loose focus on Him and place it on ourselves whether it’s problems that arise,
desires we seek after, hurts/scars that we have not dealt with.  Whatever it is, causes the intensity to diminish.

When this happens, we cannot work to get it back because that would be our imperfect blood and sweat attempting to accomplish something only God can.  Instead, we must wholly trust and believe in the righteous of Jesus.  Focusing on His sweat and His Blood that was shed to cover all of our failures, short comings and lack of intensity.  We cannot read enough, pray enough or fast enough (although each can assist our areas of focus) to regain that intensity for our First Love.  However, as we change our focus away from ourselves and back to Jesus our faith will increase, we will experience the presence of God more and gain His peace that will surpass everything we understand on our own. 

I don’t know about you, but I miss my First Love and want to “Return.”  Just like the experiences my wife and I have shared requires renewed focus, engagement, and belief in one another to increase the intensity of the Love we share.  We also need to get help, seek wisdom and guidance from someone who understands restoration.  Counseling will definitely help in this and though I highly recommend it for everyone; I’m talking about going to the One who restored each of us to a righteous relationship with God our Father.  The One who took all of the focus off of Himself and went to the cross to deliver us from the Hell and destruction that we absolutely deserve.  Jesus has the answers we need!!  Therefore, I plan to focus on Jesus, His righteousness, His sacrifice and His Love for me.  As I do, the Bible reminds me that He will “make your way strait.”  That way or that road leads straight back to Our First Love; Jesus.