Thursday, October 3, 2013

October 4, 2013

"And thou shall love the Lord your God with all you heart, with all your soul, with all your mind and with all your strength. This is the first commandment. And the second, like it, is this: 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself. There is no other commandment greater than these." Mark 12:30-31

Love is the focus and the force of evangelism and discipleship.

Unless you are entirely committed to loving God you will be unable to sustain a lifestyle of winning others to Christ. And without an enduring love you will find discipleship more of a burden than a blessing.

Trying to serve God minus a vital personal relationship with Jesus is religion not Christianity.

Loving people into life is a result of welcoming and nurturing the love of God in your life. Loving people into life is not conjuring up "warm fuzzies" toward those you want to reach but it is living in His love so He can love others through you.

In addition to commitment, loving requires courage.

Courage?

How so?

Loving is risky!

What if I witness to someone and that person get offended and rejects me?

What if I invest time and resources and emotional vulnerability in a person and that person betrays my trust?

And after I have been hurt trying to live out the love of God through the Great Commission, God expects and requires me to go back on try again. That requires more courage than the first time!

Loving people to life takes commitment and courage!

If you want to be a Christ-follower you must follow Christ's example of commitment and courage!

Where do you need to be courageous today?