Our Heavenly Father's Unconditional Love............Dr. Charles Stanley

Our Heavenly Father's Unconditional Love

Dr. Charles Stanley

Romans 5:6-11

Scripture tells us that love is the very essence of who God is (1 John 4:7). So if you don't believe that He loves you unconditionally, you'll never really know Him or have genuine peace about your relationship with Him.

How do you define "love"? It is Jesus unselfishly reaching out to mankind, giving Himself to us and bringing good into our life regardless of whether or not we accept Him. Romans 5:8 tells us that His care and concern are so immeasurable that He laid down His life for us while we were still His enemies. In fact, the Bible says that He first began to express His love toward us before the foundation of the world (Eph. 1:3-5). That means your actions had absolutely nothing to do with His love for you!

God's commitment to us has absolutely no conditions or restrictions and isn't based on whether we love Him back. Nor does He have more love for "good" people who may strike us as more worthy. He loves us even in our sin, even when we don't repent. Does that give us license to disobey? No. It gives us power to live holy lives, walk obediently with Him, and learn to love Him the way He deserves. To follow Him is to receive the love He has been offering all along.

Every single moment, whether awake or asleep, we all live under the canopy of the Lord's wondrous, absolute love for us. But to fully experience that love, you must receive it. Say yes to this amazing gift that God wants to pour out on you. Bask in it, and let it overflow to those around you.

A Prayer for Faith and Understanding

A Prayer for Faith and Understanding............By Dick Woodward

“Then Jesus told him, ‘Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.’” - John 20:29

As we ponder the definition of faith we hear it said that believing is seeing. “When I see it I’ll believe it” is the way some would put it. In the verse quoted above David clearly writes that we believe first and then our believing leads us to the seeing of what we believe.

Biblical faith always has an unseen object. According to other Scriptures there will always be evidence that the unseen object of our faith exists, but when our faith is biblical faith the object of that faith will be unseen (Hebrews 11:6). Seeing does not lead to believing because we already have the object of our faith when we see, but believing does lead to seeing according to David and other authors of the Bible.

A rural pastor told his people that when they invited him home for dinner after church he was always hoping they would have southern fried chicken. If he had no reason to believe that would be the menu he could only hope there would be chicken for dinner. But when he came into their home if he smelled chicken and if he saw from the living room chicken gravy on the dining room table, those things were the evidence of the object he could not see. He could now believe there was chicken in the kitchen and he would have it for dinner.

David tells us that after the believing that leads to seeing, all we have to do is wait on the Lord until we see the object of our faith. Are you believing God for something you cannot yet see?

Dear Lord, we cannot see you but we trust that you are there. We trust that you hold the world in the palm of your hand. Help us to live every day with this perspective. Help us to understand that faith is found in the small actions of kindness we make. When we comfort the grieving, when give help to the homeless, we are declaring your victory. Amen.

3 Things to Learn from Malachi: The Last Book before Centuries of Silence

3 Things to Learn from Malachi: The Last Book before Centuries of Silence
By Alice William

“I will send my messenger, who will prepare the way before me. Then suddenly the Lord you are seeking will come to his temple; the messenger of the covenant, whom you desire, will come,” says the Lord Almighty. – Malachi 3:1

The term Malachi means “My Messenger,” which aligns perfectly with the purpose of the book as it communicates God’s message to His people. It is laid out as a conversation between man and God, argumentative, heartfelt, and convicting.

Let’s look at a few things we can learn from this minor prophet.

1. God is unchanging.

Malachi is home of the famous verse on God’s unchanging nature. “For I am the Lord, I do not change;” (Malachi 3:6) Throughout the book, we can encounter God, going through a roller coaster of emotions. From love, to anger, to justice, God remains true to His character.

2. The names of God evoke different responses.

Throughout Malachi we read about different names given to God. What is interesting is that almost each of these names invoke a certain type of response from us. Here are just a few:

Father

In Malachi 1:6, God calls Himself “Father” and He urges honor from His people. Just like how a child would respect their father.

Master

In the same verse, He is called a “Master,” demanding reverence and respect that a servant would show to his earthly master.

Lord of Hosts

Several times in Malachi, God is called the “Lord of Hosts,” which speaks of His authority and dominion over Heavenly beings. Our response to His dominion is to glorify Him and to make His name great. (Malachi 1:11; 2:2)

3. God answers our strange questions.

Malachi is written as a conversation between God and man. And in those conversations, one of the strange things that recur is when God makes a straightforward statement followed by man’s counter-argumentative question to which, most times, God responds.

Malachi’s opening lines express God’s love towards Israel. Strangely, the question posed to God is, “In what way have you loved us?” (Malachi 1:2) These people were first hand witnesses of God’s mighty hand at work, guiding, rescuing, protecting, and watching out for them. Yet, they questioned God’s love toward them.

Later in chapter 1 when God says that they have despised His name and offered defiled food, they respond saying,

“In what way have we despised Your name?

In what way have we defiled You?”(Malachi 1:6-7)

One would think that these people would have learned by now not to retort the Almighty God. Four more questions, similar to the above, span out in the rest of Malachi, which are vague rhetorical questions, reflecting the people’s oblivious nature. They didn’t honor or comprehend what God had done for them, nor had they looked at their own lives and reflected on God’s accusations.

Malachi is special to us now, as we wait for the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ the second time. Just as He promised, He will come. Until then, let’s remember to heed His word and glorify His name.

Wasting the Word

Wasting the Word
by Ryan Duncan

But the word of the Lord remains forever. And this word is the good news that was preached to you.
1 Peter 1:25 

Not long ago, a friend sent me a funny message over Facebook that went something like this,

Question: If someone from the 1950’s suddenly appeared before you, what would be the most difficult thing to explain to them about life today?

Answer: I possess a device, in my pocket, which is capable of accessing the eternity of information known to man. I use it to look at pictures of cats and get into arguments with strangers.

I can remember laughing after I read this. It really was true; I mostly used the internet to watch reruns of TV shows or recommend new music to friends, pretty trivial tasks for a device that contains all the world’s knowledge. After I signed off however, I was struck by a sudden thought, “Am I wasting God’s word the same way I waste the internet?” It was a sobering question. I picked my Bible up off the coffee table and for a few moments just stared at it.  

Here in my hands was a book that recounted the days when the Immortal, Eternal God of all that was and will ever be walked the earth as a man and spoke to humans. How was I using this gift again? Last I could remember it was to find a prayer that would keep me from going bald. To tell the truth, I think all Christians (me included) have a serious problem with wasting the Gospel. Just look at how we’ve used it in the past: 

• To argue why one political party is better than another,
• To tell divorcees, and homosexuals, and people from checkered backgrounds that they’re not good enough for God,
• To justify why we don’t help the broken and the needy.

The Bible is a precious gift and a valuable resource; it should never be used lightly or frivolously. So the next time you sit down for a quiet time or look up a favorite verse, remember that what you see is more than words on a page. You possess, in your hand, a testament to God’s love for humanity and his desire to be a part of our lives. Make sure you don’t waste it.

Intersecting Faith and Life: Do not waste the Word of God. When you read the Bible, seek to apply it.

Further Reading

Matthew 13:33