Category: Love

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Echoes of love

[The Glory Unveiled]

”Above all, constantly echo God’s intense love for one another, for love will be a canopy over a multitude of sins.“ [ 1 Peter‬ ‭4‬:‭8‬ ‭TPT‬‬ ]

The most scarce commodity in our world today is not gold nor diamonds; it’s not money, and it’s not even time. The most scarce commodity today is love. The Bible foretold this in Matthew 24:12, stating that the love of many will grow cold because wickedness will abound in our day. The nature, art, and complexity of wickedness in our day are baffling. But then, a thing is most needed when it is most scarce. So, love is needed in our time now more than ever in the history of mankind. It is true that some very horrible things were recorded in history, but the artistic complication and technology behind those of our day are outrageous. However, the good news is that the personality of love and the spirit of love dwells on in the world, manifested through believers in the Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, those who have purified themselves through the obedience of the truth have sincere love. It is this sincere love that the world is so ridden of. So, we are called to constantly echo that intense love. As we echo God’s intense love, it becomes a canopy over the wickedness (sin) of men. We echo the love of God when we express it to one another. The intense sincere love of God is already in us through our knowledge of God’s word, which is truth. Let us spread it to a world that is in dire need of it.

Prayer_Bead: Father and God, thank you for your love in our hearts. Help us to spread it to our world. In Jesus’ name.

Wisdom_Quote: We can love because God loves us.

#GNews: Unveiling the glory of God.

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Broken Kisses

[The Glory Unveiled]

Then she called, “Samson, the Philistines are upon you!” He awoke from his sleep and thought, “I’ll go out as before and shake myself free.” But he did not know that the LORD had left him. [ Judges 16:20 NIV ]

Samson was a Nazarene—a person who felt called to consecrate themselves unto God—with the extraordinary ability and gift of supernatural strength. He understood the terms of his consecration well and kept them until his unbridled love for a woman severed his connection to the source of his abilities. Unbeknownst to Samson, not honoring the terms of his consecration had consequences. The terms of his consecration were the live wire of his relationship with God, silently implying his love life with the Heavenly Father—a symbol of the continuous affection of his divine lover. However, Samson found another lover and gradually shifted his focus from his heavenly lover to her. As a result, the vows of his consecration lost their significance to him; he relinquished those vows to preserve his hair for the love he harbored for his earthly lover, Delilah. Meanwhile, Delilah traded that love for eleven hundred pieces of silver (Judges 16:5). Before this transaction, Samson had rested his head on Delilah’s lap, with unending kisses adorning his lips. Yet, after betraying his heavenly lover and the source of his uncommon strength, the kisses ceased—as the Lord left him. Consequently, as he began to stray from his divine pattern, his earthly relationships lost coherence as well; each of his relationships began to deteriorate. Samson was coerced into severing his fellowship with God when he violated the terms of his consecration, by the woman to whom he was most vulnerable at a compromised moment. The choice always lies with us—who holds greater importance in our lives, God or our partners? We must prioritize maintaining our heavenly affection if we wish to safeguard our earthly connections.

Prayer_Bead: My Lover and King, thank you for the unending kisses. Help me to remain in the embrace of your love as I intentionally obey and love you.

Wisdom_Quote: Unending kisses begin with unending devotion to God.

#GNews: Unveiling the glory of God.

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Lovers of God

[The Glory Unveiled]

“But as the Scriptures say, “No one has ever seen, no one has ever heard, no one has ever imagined what God has prepared for those who love him.” [ 1 Corinthians‬ ‭2‬:‭9‬ ‭ERV‬‬ ]

It is evident that God loves us, as showcased through His actions. The Psalmist pondered, “Who is man that you’re mindful of him? You have made him a little lower than elohim and have crowned him with dominion” (Psalms 8:4-6), recognizing God’s particular attention to our creation. God’s constant concern for us is reflected in the biblical teaching to love our neighbours as ourselves, mirroring God’s love for us as His image bearers. The concept of the reciprocation of love is beautifully expressed by the apostle John: “We love Him because He first loved us” (1 John 4:19). We are compelled to love God because He first loved us and gave Himself for us. This demonstration of love by God is the reason we love Him back. Yet, in addition to the natural reciprocal gesture, God has special blessings and packages for those who love Him back. He has made provisions for His lovers, He has prepared ahead of their needs before the needs ever come. He made provisions and keeps those provisions ready for those who love Him; those who hold Him in affectionate reverence, promptly obeying Him and gratefully recognizing the benefits He has bestowed [AMPC‬‬]. To love God basically means to promptly obey Him above all else. Consequently, what God will do in your life and through your life will beat the imagination of everybody.

Prayer_Bead: Heavenly Father, thank you for helping me to love you because you first loved me. Let your name be glorified through my life.

Wisdom_Quote: In your walk with God, your prompt obedience tells your love story.

#GNews: Unveiling the glory of God.

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God’s love gift

[The Glory Unveiled]

For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith —and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—[ Ephesians 2:8 NIV ]

Our salvation is solely the result of God’s grace. We did nothing to deserve or earn it; it is a love gift. Like all gifts, you don’t have to do anything to earn it. However, even though it is a gift, you must receive it, and in this case, you must receive it with faith. Without faith, even though the gift is available and free, you cannot have it. Faith is the only hand that can take from God; without it, we cannot receive from Him. The first step to receiving this gift is to look away from ourselves, as salvation does not come from us. Depending on ourselves for what we cannot offer is a futile pursuit. Since salvation cannot come from us, we cannot boast that we attained it ourselves or received it as a reward for something we have done. The truth is that we had countless opportunities to save ourselves from the time of Adam and Eve until the birth of Jesus, but we couldn’t do it ourselves. These opportunities were meant to convince us that we cannot achieve salvation on our own. In the garden of Eden, God made it clear that humans couldn’t clothe themselves with His identity as it was depicted in their attempt to clothe themselves. The man and the woman clothed themselves with leaves, while God made a covering for them out of animal skin. God’s provision was better than what they did for themselves, but they had to accept the gift before it could benefit them. Similarly, we need to receive the gift of salvation, which comes to us by grace, in order to enjoy its benefits.

Prayer_Bead: Dear Heavenly Father, thank you for the grace that brought me salvation through your Son Jesus Christ.

Wisdom_Quote: Faith is the only hand that can receive from God.

#GNews: Unveiling the glory of God.

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Team Jesus: The single indicator

[The Glory Unveiled]

By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” [ John 13:35 NIV ]

There are specific indicators of our relationship with Christ. In the social world, certain things expose a person’s identity and background. A person’s accent can provide insight into their identity and lineage. For the believer, identification with Christ goes beyond knowing His name or calling upon Him. The Lord Jesus tells us what will make everyone recognize that we were taught by Him and have a relationship with Him. The indicator is a singular behavior. This single behavior functions like a jersey, identifying which team a believer is playing for. Just as a group of people in the same jersey belong to the same team, when we love one another, our love becomes a garment identifying us with Christ and indicating that we belong to His team. God is love, and anyone claiming to relate to Him must be filled with love and exude it. If we love one another, everyone will know that we are sent-out ones of the Messiah. Apart from love, nothing we do communicates to the world that we are related to Christ. People will recognize our connection to Christ through our love life. If we engage in every other activity, manifesting all power gifts and revelational gifts without love, it still means we are not disciples of Christ. Jesus didn’t use “these” to mean many things; He said “this” as a single indicator. Let love guide us to people and allow them to see that we have been with Christ.

Prayer_Bead: Dear Lord Jesus, thank you for showing me the one thing that identifies me with you. Help me to love generously.

Wisdom_Quote: Love is the only thing that identifies the believer as a disciple of Jesus.

#GNews: Unveiling the glory of God.