Tuesday, January 12, 2016

January 15, 2016

"Your love must be real. Hate what is evil, and hold on to what is good. Love each other like brothers and sisters. Give each other more honor than you want for yourselves." Romans 12:9-10

Telling someone to love like this is equivalent to telling your dog to act like a cat. It is unnatural. The love that God demands of you in this portion of Scripture is unnatural. Think about it!

To love this way you must be sincere, i.e. - authentic, the real deal! That is not your nature! It is natural to fake it. You show only your best side and mask or hide your faults, flaws and weaknesses. You don't like those parts of your nature and you are sure that if others knew how you really are they wouldn't like you either!

Loving others with a real, true, genuine and sincere love is not natural!

Likewise, expecting someone to hate evil and cling to good is very idealistic isn't it? That won't really happen. It is not the way we are! How can you hate evil when your very nature is controlled by evil? Your natural way of loving is selfish love. It is a love that manipulates others to get what it wants. Therefore selfish love uses other people, sometimes abuses them to gratify its desires.

Loving others with a holy and unselfish love is unnatural.

So it is with brotherly love or a love that prefers others above your own wants and needs. It is not in your nature to honor others. You want the spotlight! You want the credit! Center-stage belongs to you! You deserve the honor! You have earned it!

Honor others? 

Why?

Pure love requires a maturity that is not natural. True love, Christian love, requires a fundamental change in your nature. As the Scripture declares, you must "be transformed by the renewing of your mind"! That is not just unnatural it is supernatural! Only God can do that because only God loves like that! It begins the moment you receive the love that God has for you in Christ Jesus! When you receive His love you also receive the desire to love others. Along with that desire comes the ability to love others because - HE LOVES THROUGH YOU!

Are you ready for some radical love? Are you tired of shallow self-centered love? Are you wanting to help others rather than hurting them?

Repent of your selfish love and surrender to the supernatural endless love of God!