HOW LONG, OH LORD

   As I set at the computer editing this month’s newsletter, snow is once again falling out my office window. And it is very tempting to ask, “How long will this snow last, Oh Lord?” But then that would be an almost blasphemous question, at least in my spiritual life. Because whenever I have felt like complaining about anything that is irritating me these last few days, snow, ice, stuck cars, livestock needing extra care, the picture of twenty one  brother Christians kneeling on a beach about to be beheaded for believing in Christ, flashes in my head.

     This is the ultimate picture of the ultimate sacrifice for our Savior. Never giving in, never denying Him, no matter the cost. What a strong, stirring portrait of faith that image is. As horrible as the picture is, it should be a rallying point to all of us in America who think tribulation and persecution is having a hard time parking in the church parking lot because the snow isn’t completely removed.

   God has been pointing me to the verses in Revelation that should be attached to this picture of the kneeling Christians. Read them and think about what it says. And then cry out to the Lord to return soon. God bless and keep each of you, and God bless our brothers and sisters in harm’s way!

        

 And when he had opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of them that were slain for the word of God, and for the testimony which they held: And they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth?

    And white robes were given unto every one of them; and it was said unto them, that they should rest yet for a little season, until their fellowservants also and their brethren, that should be killed as they were, should be fulfilled.

Revelation 6:9-11

What is LOVE?

                There was a popular song by Haddaway in the 1990’s called “What is Love”. But every time the song asked the question, the next line said “Baby don’t hurt me, no more.”  So why do so many people associate “love” with pain?

                It is obvious that when we lose someone we love to death or relocation to another area, i.e. military deployment, we feel a since of loss because the focus of our love has gone away from us. But that isn’t the kind of pain I’m writing about. Love isn’t abuse of any kind.

                Love has many forms. Other languages have words that speak much closer to the true meanings of the different types of love than the English language conveys. But no matter how you say it, real, true love never hurts or demeans anyone. The problem today is few people really know what true love is. Their only references are movies, television, the internet, broken homes or abusive homes. Unfortunately, many in today’s society have been brainwashed into believing love equals sex. How that has cheapened the truth of love.

                This month, I want to set the record straight. Love was invented by God, and as such was bestowed to us, His created beings, as a feeling, an attachment, between Him and us and between us and others. God also defined love in His Word. Let’s take a look at just a few verses.

                How much does God love us? John 3:16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

                How many of you would allow someone to kill your only child, or even pet for that matter, in order to save someone else from perishing? On top of that, what if you knew that they may reject your love anyway?

                What does God’s Word say about the definition of love? 1 Corinthians 13:4-8 tells us Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never ends. As for prophecies, they will pass away; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will pass away.

                God defines love as having only good toward another, not pain, nor will it ever fail if it is true Godly love. He even tells us that language and knowledge may cease, but love never will.

                The confusion lies in the common way we use the word. We say we “love our new car”, or we “love that new dress”. But truthfully, we can’t “love” any material thing. We may like an object, or have a preference for a color of fabric, but God has reserved true love for us spiritual beings towards other living beings.

                Many will say true love is hard to find. I say it isn’t, although I’ve made mistakes in that area myself. What we need to realize is that Jesus loves us and if we would only believe who He is and accept Him, we would know real, true love here and now. We don’t have to try to find Him and we don’t have to love Him first. He already loved us first. That’s why he died and rose again, so we could by grace have our sins removed and have fellowship with a Holy Jesus.  We call it “agape” love, a love that loves the unlovable sinners that we are, not romantic or sappy but pure, hardcore, self-sacrificing love that Jesus showed on the cross.

                So what is love? You won’t find a good definition in Webster’s Dictionary. The only place to find what love is, is to read the gospels about Jesus. Now there is a true love story with an ending we all can partake in!