One of the most important question we must answer in our walk of faith is, ‘what is a true Christian?’ A lot of books have been written trying to address that question. Well, if you asked apostle John this question, he would respond to ask you with another question : Do you love other followers of Jesus with love of God? Here is how he he puts it:
In other words, love is our new call in Jesus. Therefore, the fundamental question all of us have to answer is : do you love other followers of Jesus as God loves His children? Of course this does mean we will love exactly as God.
As you grow older people increasingly say to you, 'you look just like your dad'. And as time passes, you increasingly say to yourself, 'I am beginning to sound just like mum'. The truth is that you are becoming like your dad or mum because they gave birth to you, even though you will never ultimately look exactly like them because everyone is unique.
In the same way, you can never love as God does because our Father is perfect. And yet, if you are truly born of God you will grow to love more like Him. So all of us who claim to born again need to look closely at our love and the love of God and ask: is my love growing in resembling God’s love?
Love and commitment among followers of Jesus must never be like being married and yet living in two separate houses! That would be absurd! In the same way if we claim to be born again, then we must also forgive and reconcile with those people in our local fellowship we purposely avoid talking or we feel bitter to because of some past hurt or wrong they did to us in the past.
If we say we are children of God, then we must show our love to the family of God by identifying with her publicly in the means of grace, especially the grace of baptism. In many parts of the world where the church is persecuted, being baptised involves a huge sacrifice because it is through that the person’s faith is actually visibly known by the local community. Sadly too many people who profess to be followers of Jesus have not answered the call of love by becoming baptised.
If we say we love children of God then we must show our commitment and love by visiting those who are hurting in our churches. This particularly means inviting those on the fringe of community life in our homes and demonstrated tangibly the love of Jesus to them.
If you are like me, you know you struggle to love as a follower of Jesus, and want to grow in love. So how do we grow in love? It starts by honestly confessing to God our failure to love others as we are meant to love. For failing to live as a member of God’s family! Come to God honestly because you know that Jesus has already taken away all your sins and nailed them to His cross!
Growing in love is not about earning your place in Heaven it is about becoming in practice who you already are inside as a child of God! So, come to God boldly confessing your sins. Respond to this call of love by ask God to give you his amazing power to love afresh. Ask him also to enable you to study Bible diligently and sit regularly under preaching to learn more how to grow in love.
Above all take steps to commit yourself to life together in a sound church where you live. Love does not grow in a vacuum, it grows within a community bound by the unbroken cords of love within the Trinity. The church is God's miracle of love on earth so commit yourself to local fellowship and answer the call of love!
Love Series :
The Origin of Love
The Birth of Love
Copyright © Chola Mukanga 2017
Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love. (1 John 4:7-8)In the verses above, John uses a phrase he repeated uses in his “one another”. Here it refers to the “beloved” or true followers of Jesus. The church is a new loving family of people who share the same Father. In other words, just as we naturally seek to love our human family, if we have a new nature as children of God, we now have the capacity to love our new spiritual family in Jesus.
In other words, love is our new call in Jesus. Therefore, the fundamental question all of us have to answer is : do you love other followers of Jesus as God loves His children? Of course this does mean we will love exactly as God.
As you grow older people increasingly say to you, 'you look just like your dad'. And as time passes, you increasingly say to yourself, 'I am beginning to sound just like mum'. The truth is that you are becoming like your dad or mum because they gave birth to you, even though you will never ultimately look exactly like them because everyone is unique.
In the same way, you can never love as God does because our Father is perfect. And yet, if you are truly born of God you will grow to love more like Him. So all of us who claim to born again need to look closely at our love and the love of God and ask: is my love growing in resembling God’s love?
Love and commitment among followers of Jesus must never be like being married and yet living in two separate houses! That would be absurd! In the same way if we claim to be born again, then we must also forgive and reconcile with those people in our local fellowship we purposely avoid talking or we feel bitter to because of some past hurt or wrong they did to us in the past.
If we say we are children of God, then we must show our love to the family of God by identifying with her publicly in the means of grace, especially the grace of baptism. In many parts of the world where the church is persecuted, being baptised involves a huge sacrifice because it is through that the person’s faith is actually visibly known by the local community. Sadly too many people who profess to be followers of Jesus have not answered the call of love by becoming baptised.
If we say we love children of God then we must show our commitment and love by visiting those who are hurting in our churches. This particularly means inviting those on the fringe of community life in our homes and demonstrated tangibly the love of Jesus to them.
If you are like me, you know you struggle to love as a follower of Jesus, and want to grow in love. So how do we grow in love? It starts by honestly confessing to God our failure to love others as we are meant to love. For failing to live as a member of God’s family! Come to God honestly because you know that Jesus has already taken away all your sins and nailed them to His cross!
Growing in love is not about earning your place in Heaven it is about becoming in practice who you already are inside as a child of God! So, come to God boldly confessing your sins. Respond to this call of love by ask God to give you his amazing power to love afresh. Ask him also to enable you to study Bible diligently and sit regularly under preaching to learn more how to grow in love.
Above all take steps to commit yourself to life together in a sound church where you live. Love does not grow in a vacuum, it grows within a community bound by the unbroken cords of love within the Trinity. The church is God's miracle of love on earth so commit yourself to local fellowship and answer the call of love!
Love Series :
The Origin of Love
The Birth of Love
Copyright © Chola Mukanga 2017
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