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I don't know about you guys, but these days I'm really feeling that Love is the only thing that will matter in the end. The ONLY thing.
And sometimes I think that, as we leave this world, we will desperately asking, "did I love enough?"
It's all that matters. Love today!!
Blessings of love to all,
brian
Thank you Brian... beautiful words, friend.
You put a smile on my face.
peace,
sparrow
I just re-read my post above. I'm sorry, meerkat2. I didn't mean to sound as though judgment was a bad thing! I just want to show others what love is. I want to show others what this crazy world could look like if everybody knew how to love.
Judgment can be a good thing, sometimes. This world could probably use a good judging, I think.
(it's kind of hard to show how we are feeling over the Internet. That's why I try to use the little faces)
I know what you mean -- sometimes what comes out of the fingers does not express exactly what is in the heart
Romans 5:8 God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
Have you ever noticed the curious language of Romans 5:8?
Rom 5:8
But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.
Paul was NOT saying that God was showing how much He "loves" us in that Christ died for us.
Rather, the verse means that God was demonstrating or exhibiting (that is what commendeth means) the God kind of love unto (Gk-eis) us.
He was demonstrating The GOD kind of love that will send His Son to die for His enemies.
To demonstrate the God kind of love to us as sinners does not mean that he "loves" those to whom he is demonstrating the God kind of love. In the same way God demonstrated the God kind of justice by drowning His creation like rats.
Yes, God acts in love toward his enemies but it does not follow that God loves them. That is why, in the Scriptures you cannot find any Biblical statement which says that God loves ALL men - though it does say that he hates workers of iniquity. (Psalms 5:5)
Notice verse 10 of Romans...
Rom 5:10
For if, when we were "enemies", we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.
Yes the kind of love that will send ones Son to die for a people that God was "sorry He had made". (See Gen 6:5-6)
The love God "demonstrated" was not love for you as an individual, but undeserved mercy for mankind whom he was sorry he made because they are desperately wicked.
Whom does God love?
"IF ye keep my commandments, YE SHALL ABIDE IN MY LOVE;" (John 15:10)
"IF a man love Me, he will keep my words: AND MY FATHER WILL LOVE HIM," (John 14:23)
"He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: And he that loveth me SHALL BE LOVED OF MY FATHER..." (John 14:21)
Those verses clearly say that God will love someone IF they keep His commandments. If God already loves all men then these comments by Jesus are nonsense.
Quote:
Originally Posted by sparrow
And to those who crucified Him...."forgive them Father, they know not what they do."
"...forgive them Father..." sparrow...this proves my point even further...when I say that God's Word says to love our enemies in this way...with the fruits of the Spirit...which includes love, joy, peace, longsuffering, FORGIVENESS, gentleness, meekness...He is saying to forgive His enemies...who crucified Him and wished Him dead.
Quote:
Originally Posted by sparrow
Yes, this proves to me the superior LOVE of Christ.
and why we all need Him to enlargen our hearts with HIS love.
Yes, you've got it, but you don't understand it...you use it, but you don't know what it means...God's kind of love IS superior...and a resounding! YES!..<<<that we indeed DO need to enlargen our hearts with HIS KIND OF LOVE...a faithful, obedient kind of love.
Quote:
Originally Posted by sparrow
Because our carnal hearts just aren't big enough.
peace,
sparrow
...why sparrow...sure they are...when our hearts break for what breaks God's own heart...when our hearts have been changed to replicate the heart of Christ...why would God tell us to..."...love Me (God) with ALL OF YOUR HEART....?" ....I'll tell you why...because we can...How?...by keeping His commandments.<<<THIS IS the love OF God...and nothing less.
In Christ's love...In His truth, Verna.
Last edited by Verna Perry; 05-26-2010 at 05:51 AM..
God hates all workers of iniquity:
Psalm 5:5 The arrogant cannot stand in your presence; you hate all who do wrong [workers of iniquity].
Romans 9:13 Just as it is written: "Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated."
However you cannot take these two verses and say God doesn't love all people. Understand this: WE ARE ALL WORKERS OF INIQUITY!
So even though God hates workers of inquity (all of us), He loves us too:
John 3:16 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life
The greatest act of love one can do is to lay down their life for another:
John 15:3 Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends
And God did this act for the whole world:
1 John 2:2 He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world.
God is loving to EVERYONE:
Psalm 145:9 The LORD is good to all;
he has compassion on all he has made.
Psalm 145:17 The LORD is righteous in all his ways
and loving toward all he has made.
So you can see God hates all of us (when we are sinners) and loves all of us enough to sacrifice His son for all of us so we can all be saved!
You cannot present one side of the message (God hating sinners) while not presenting the other side of the message (God loves all people and is loving in all His ways towards all - so much so that He intends to save all through His son's sacrifice).
No.
Our carnal hearts are NOT big enough.
Only HE can expand our hearts.
A carnal heart is one that accepts and thinks it must be righteous that the Creator of the universe will burn most of his beings for all eternity. A carnal heart demands that you follow a set of rules before they are treated as a nieghbor. A carnal heart believes all the wrong things, sister.
A carnal heart is full of all manner of confusion and hypocrisy.
Have you ever noticed the curious language of Romans 5:8?
Rom 5:8
But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.
Paul was NOT saying that God was showing how much He "loves" us in that Christ died for us.
Rather, the verse means that God was demonstrating or exhibiting (that is what commendeth means) the God kind of love unto (Gk-eis) us.
He was demonstrating The GOD kind of love that will send His Son to die for His enemies.
To demonstrate the God kind of love to us as sinners does not mean that he "loves" those to whom he is demonstrating the God kind of love. In the same way God demonstrated the God kind of justice by drowning His creation like rats.
Yes, God acts in love toward his enemies but it does not follow that God loves them. That is why, in the Scriptures you cannot find any Biblical statement which says that God loves ALL men - though it does say that he hates workers of iniquity. (Psalms 5:5)
Notice verse 10 of Romans...
Rom 5:10
For if, when we were "enemies", we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.
Yes the kind of love that will send ones Son to die for a people that God was "sorry He had made". (See Gen 6:5-6)
The love God "demonstrated" was not love for you as an individual, but undeserved mercy for mankind whom he was sorry he made because they are desperately wicked.
Whom does God love?
"IF ye keep my commandments, YE SHALL ABIDE IN MY LOVE;" (John 15:10)
"IF a man love Me, he will keep my words: AND MY FATHER WILL LOVE HIM," (John 14:23)
"He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: And he that loveth me SHALL BE LOVED OF MY FATHER..." (John 14:21)
Those verses clearly say that God will love someone IF they keep His commandments. If God already loves all men then these comments by Jesus are nonsense.
"...forgive them Father..." sparrow...this proves my point even further...when I say that God's Word says to love our enemies in this way...with the fruits of the Spirit...which includes love, joy, peace, longsuffering, FORGIVENESS, gentleness, meekness...He is saying to forgive His enemies...who crucified Him and wished Him dead.
Yes, you've got it, but you don't understand it...you use it, but you don't know what it means...God's kind of love IS superior...and a resounding! YES!..<<<that we indeed DO need to enlargen our hearts with HIS KIND OF LOVE...a faithful, obedient kind of love.
...why sparrow...sure they are...when our hearts break for what breaks God's own heart...when our hearts have been changed to replicate the heart of Christ...why would God tell us to..."...love Me (God) with ALL OF YOUR HEART....?" ....I'll tell you why...because we can...How?...by keeping His commandments.<<<THIS IS the love OF God...and nothing less.
In Christ's love...In His truth, Verna.
::SIGH:: Verna . . . "you don't understand it...you use it, but you don't know what it means...God's kind of love IS superior...and a resounding! YES!..<<<that we indeed DO need to enlargen our hearts with HIS KIND OF LOVE"
Verna, Verna, Verna . . . if only you truly understood what this means. Answer the following question by searching your innermost self in ALL sincerity and honesty (NOT with your knee jerk answer that you have been taught God wants) . . . because that is where God has written the answers: "Which kind of love wouldYOUtruly most value . . . one that says . . . "Obey me OR ELSE I wont love you and you will suffer eternally" . . or one that says . . . "You are so very precious to me . . . I will always love you and want you to avoid the consequences of mistakes in your life by following me." For ONCE . . . don't parrot your dogma . . . and don't change the question . . . just be completely truthful and honest (ignore that it is about God, if you must).
Hi there!
Yes, that's me.
It's been months since I've posted there.
But I still go back every now and again.
peace,
sparrow
I knew it! I could "feel" it in your tone, too! That's neat!
I also haven't posted there for a while. Under "whyiloveitaly"..
I haven't been posting there, but I do go back to it. Hannah Whitall Smith's writings are still very important to me..!
Brian
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