Thoughts from The Bible

Thoughts from the Bible

Tuesday, 13 February 2024 09:53

A Particular Love That Encourages the Soul
by Joey Carroll Corinth Missionary Baptist Church

Last week we considered the difference between man’s love and God’s love. Man’s love is almost always a “because of” love, and God’s love is always an “in spite of” love. God’s love is selfless and serving that genuinely seeks the good of the one loved.
As we continue in 1 John, John has challenged our souls regarding sin in our lives. Now he challenges our souls in regard to love in our lives. John writes, “The one who says he is in the Light and yet hates his brother is in the darkness until now,” (1 John 2:9, NASB). This statement should immediately cause us to examine our hearts. Here is an impossibility for the genuine believer – for hate to reside in his heart without conviction. As the world continues to grow in hatred, the follower of Jesus must remember the words that our Lord said to His disciples on the night of the last supper. “By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another,” (John 13:35, NASB).

Thankfully, for the believer, something wonderful and profoundly powerful has taken place in our lives to ensure that we are well-equipped with God’s kind of love.
Not many people talk about being “born-again” anymore. It seems too antiquated and bizarre for our so-called advanced society. But as Christians, we would do well to go back and study this profound doctrine. As it turns out, being “reborn” is an absolute necessity in order to be accepted by God and welcomed into heaven. In fact, Jesus told Nicodemus in John 3 “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God,” (verse 3, NASB) This new birth is a powerful work by the Holy Spirit that is described in many different ways in Scripture, and it can be difficult to understand. It is truly a raising of the dead so to speak. Paul describes our state before faith in Jesus as being “dead in [our] trespasses and sins,” (Ephesians 2:1, NASB). He describes our state of faith in Christ as being “made… alive together with Christ,” (Ephesians 2:5, NASB, emphasis added).
Sadly, a great many have merely been convinced by the words of men and responded according to their denominational standards, but have never been truly born again of the Spirit of God. How do you know the difference?

The Holy Spirit is the one who draws us to Christ. He is the One who convicts us of our sin and awakens faith within our hearts. And when that person expresses faith in the person and work of Jesus Christ, it is the Holy Spirit that brings about this new birth. And that birth truly brings about new things as Paul says in 2 Corinthians 5:17, “Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come,” (NASB, emphasis added).

At the moment of new birth, the Holy Spirit of God fills that new believer, seals that new believer in Christ (Ephesians 1:17) and floods that new believer’s heart with the very love of God (Romans 5:5). But the Spirit does not stop there. He begins a work of transformation for the sole purpose of manifesting the very character of Christ in that life. And one of His first efforts is toward this new love of God. Paul writes in Galatians 5:22-23, “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control,” (NASB).
For a person to profess saving faith in Christ and not possess a growing measure of the love of God in their life is a contradiction. It is to say that the Spirit of God was unable to accomplish His primary purpose in our lives, and that is to make us like Christ.

So when John says this most difficult statement, may we examine our hearts and find a growing selfless and serving love in our hearts; may we rejoice that we have truly been born again and not deceived. And, if we happen across an attitude of hatred in our hearts, may John’s words bring us to repentance and obedience. Beloved, this is one of the ways that we know that we have truly been born again.