The Enormous,the Profuse Need for More LOVE in our Strife-filled World!

03 Nov 2024 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Exodus 20:8.       Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy.

The cycle has come full circle again friends; meaning it’s Sunday; time to get together and praise and worship our wonderful God in fellowship with other believers. It’s the most important day of our week, as it celebrates the Lord’s Sabbath, which He commanded us to do in His word. ‘Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work: But the seventh day is the sabbath of the Lord thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work… (Ex. 20:8-10a) 

And today, our song of worship is a beautiful gospel and R&B standard from the old Commodores ‘Heroes’ Album from around 1980, a song that is most appropriately titled ‘Jesus is LOVE!’ And that’s the gospel truth, for it’s why He left heaven to come to earth to save us humans from our abominable sins. The main reason for that was simply ‘LOVE!’ A  LOVE so great that it would not allow heaven to see us all go to hell as our sins demanded: ‘For  the wages of sin is death: but the gift of God is eternal life though Jesus Christ our Lord.’ (Rom. 6:23) 

Heaven refused to reject us without a fighting chance to be reconciled to the Father and therefore spend eternity with Him. And the words of the song are also very appropriate for these turbulent and trying times. So as always, let’s offer up our sacrifices of sincere praise in a soulful rendition of this most relevant song. 

Singing: ‘Father help your children And don’t let them fall by the side of the road. And teach them to LOVE one another And heaven might find a place in their hearts. ‘Cause Jesus is LOVE He won’t let you down And I know He’s mine forever Oh, in my heart We’ve got to walk on Walk on through temptation ‘Cause His LOVE and His wisdom Will be our helpin’ hand And I know the Truth And His words will be our salvation Lift up our hearts To be thankful and glad That Jesus is LOVE 

He won’t let you down And I know He’s mine Deep down in my soul Jesus is LOVE Oh, yes, He is, He won’t let you down And I know He’s mine, He’s mine, He’s mine, He’s mine, all mine Forever, ohhhh, in my heart Help me, heart, heart Ooh…ooh… (Deep in my heart) I know, I know, I know, I know, cause His LOVE’S the power (Power) His LOVE’S the glory (Glory) Forever (Ever and ever) Ooh, yeah (Yeah, yeah) Ooh, yeah (Yeah, yeah) 

Oh wait a minute, I wanna follow your star Wherever it leads me And I don’t mind, Lord I hope you don’t mind I wanna walk with you And talk with you And do all the things you want me to do Cause I know that Jesus (Jesus is LOVE, I know) ‘Cause I know, Lord (And if you ask, I’ll show) (LOVE is the word forever) And ever and ever Who can bring you LOVE (Jesus) Who can bring you joy (Jesus) Who can turn your life around (Jesus), oh Ooh, yeah (Yeah, yeah) Yeah (Yeah, yeah) 

Hey Who will pick you up (Jesus) When you fall (Jesus) Who’ll stand beside you (Jesus) Who will LOVE us all Hey, hey, Jesus (Yeah, yeah) Jesus (Yeah, yeah) Oh, yeah (Yeah, yeah) One thing I wanna say Who can heal your body (Jesus) Who can make you strong (Jesus) Who can help you to hold out (Jesus) A little while longer Ooh, yeah Yeah (Jesus LOVES you (Yeah, yeah), Jesus wants you If you call Him, He will answer (Jesus) Call him in the mornin’ (Jesus) Call him in the evenin’ (Jesus) Call him in the midnight hour Hey, hey Yeah Yeah, Yeah Yeah, y’all say it for me (Jesus is LOVE)… (Jesus is LOVE)…Yes Jesus is LOVE…’ 

Ah friends, it’s a long song, but a good song, and that was a most excellent rendition! And as one commentary says: ‘The song starts with a prayer. Lionel’s prayer (Lionel Ritchie, lead singer of the then Commodores Band) is reminiscent of the parable of the Sower in Matthew 13. In this story, some of the seeds are (children) that fall by the side of the road. They never reach good soil and are gobbled up by birds, grow among the weeds, or have roots that grow too shallow. 

But the song reminds us that Jesus and His Extraordinary LOVE is there to save us, it’s the answer to our every problem. If we put our trust in Him, He won’t ever let us down, for ‘His wisdom and LOVE will be our helpin’ hand…His words will be our salvation…His LOVE’S the Power…and the Glory…forever and ever…’ And we’ll be smart to follow His star, to walk wherever He leads us: And who can bring you LOVE and joy and peace…? Nobody but Jesus! 

Who can turn your life around …pick you up when you fall…stand by you through all your trials…? Nobody but Jesus! And who can heal your body…make you strong and help you to hold on just a little longer eh? Nobody but Jesus! And the great thing about it all is that we can call Him at any time asking for help; in the morning, in the evening, or even in the midnight hour, for He is always available to help those who believe in Him! 

And that’s why we so badly need Jesus right now in our topsy turvy world. For as Lionel says in the latter half of his soliloquy in the live version of the song: ‘You know, I don’t have to be the one to tell each and every one of you, but the world is in a whole lot of trouble right now. Every body, the world is in a whole lot of trouble. And yuh know the funniest thing is this; everyone is looking for something new, something different to solve the problem.  

Some of us feel that technology sooner or later, will solve the problem. We feel that money can solve the problem. In 1980 we even feel that a President can solve the problem. But yuh know the funniest thing about the whole thing is this; everybody knows what the solution is; everybody knows what the solution is; because what the world needs now, what the world needs, right now is a little LOVE, a little sweet LOVE …!’ 

And that’s the gospel truth my fellow saints! What our world needs now is not anything new, like technology, or a new President, but the same old-fashioned remedy that existed from since the Lord created the universe and mankind…that’s LOVE! For if there’s anything so sadly lacking in our world at this disaster and strife filled moment is the LOVE of mankind for God, our selves and each other! 

And until we get that straightened out, our world will never get any better. And deep down we all know that, but we’re just allowing our blinkers to blind us to the fact, and insist in foolishly carrying on as though anything else will ever fix our numerous problems. And it would certainly help if we took some time on this Sabbath Day and consider all the things we can correct with just a li’l LOVE…and start doing them! Much LOVE!

…our world’s biggest problem is not too much hate…but not enough LOVE…

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Today’s Scrip-Bit 10 October 2013 John 13:34

10 Oct 2013 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

John 13:34.    A new commandment I give unto you, That ye LOVE one another; as I have LOVED you, that ye also LOVE one another.
 
Oh Friends, oh Friends, I’m here to tell you a few wonderful things this beautiful autumn morn! First off, that God LOVES you unconditionally, and that He will give you everything your heart desires, provided it lines up with His will. I’m here to also let you know that you are indeed heading in the right direction by being a sincere follower of Jesus Christ.
 
Wow! What a rush that brings! (smile) And following as a direct consequence of all that, the action of God is now flowing through you in a pattern of success! Therefore, please make it a habit to be happy; practice LOVE, practice being peaceful, because no one, or nothing ever becomes successful or succeeds without much practice. And thus ends the sermon for today! (smile)
 
Ah mih people, life is hard enough without us making it even harder by having sour, miserable, fearful and anxious attitudes. We need to laugh and be comfortable in our own skin, look at ourselves in the mirror and like what we see, not in a narcissistic manner, for we truly can’t like other humans until we like the one that looks back at us in the mirror. It’s just a natural fact of life. If we dislike ourselves, we’ll simply dislike a whole lot of other people, for dislike will come more naturally to us than like.
 
And one more thing, let’s stop wishing that we were other people, for God made us to be who we are, not somebody else. Forget the material wealth, the physical good looks, the powerful positions, or the celebrity status that they may have. Their material and physical attributes won’t last forever.
 
And believe me, if you knew the real truth about their lives, how they got what they have, and the messy situations in which they’re embroiled, you won’t give up your bland and simple but godly life. Plus they all have fears, anxieties and problems like you, they just hide them better behind their public facades. 
 
Yes my people, we cannot be kind to, or LOVE others until we are kind to and LOVE ourselves, wherever and whatever we are. That’s what Jesus is saying in our Bit. ‘A new commandment I give unto you, That ye LOVE one another; as I have LOVED you, that ye also LOVE one another.’
 
He’s asking that we follow His example; just the way He LOVED us, we ought to LOVE each other. And as He so wisely continues: ‘By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have LOVE one to another.’ (John 13:35)
 
Ah Friends, that logic follows so logically, (smile) like the day follows the night, and vice versa. Jesus’ manifesto is LOVE! That’s what He came to earth to spread; the LOVE of our heavenly Father. He came to begin a serious LOVE Revolution, one that would revolutionize the entire world!
 
And as His followers, He expects us to continue building that LOVE Revolution, so that others will know we’re part and parcel of His world movement. But it’s obvious my brethren that we’re falling far short of Jesus’ expectations, because true or real LOVE is one of the hardest, if not the hardest thing to find in this wicked, deceitful, ungodly world.
 
And we’re not talking about romantic LOVE here, but a simple caring for each other, kindness to make sure that we all at least have the basic necessities of life. But Friends, we’re very very far from that utopian position, for too many are suffering from terrible want and abject poverty, while too few have too much, enough to last them several lifetimes, but they selfishly refuse to share with their unfortunate brethren in this life.
 
How sad eh! And that definitely doesn’t fall under Jesus’ directions. Remember too, when the Pharisees, in trying to entangle Jesus in His own words… What fools they were eh, how can mere mortals tangle up God! And sadly they’re plenty like them still around today.
 
Anyway, one of them, a lawyer – had to be – (smile) figuring he was so bright, asked Jesus which was the greatest commandment? ‘
 
Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt LOVE the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt LOVE thy neighbour as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.’ (Matt.22:37-40)
 
There we have it again Friends: It’s all about LOVE, about sharing and caring and being kind to each other. First we LOVE the Lord God Jehovah, then we LOVE ourselves, and then we LOVE our neighbours as ourselves. But how can we LOVE our neighbours if we don’t LOVE ourselves? It’s not possible.
 
And unfortunately that’s what we’re seeing, that is the prevalent attitude in our world today. There’s a complete lack of real LOVE for self, but a selfishness that’s so great it cannot be measured. LOVING ourselves doesn’t mean being proud, arrogant and selfish, but strong, confident, caring, giving and faithful, walking in the footsteps of Jesus.
 
And we’ll end with some strong words from Bruh Paul to the Thessalonians, regarding his appeal for purity. ‘For God hath not called us unto uncleanness, but unto holiness. He therefore that despiseth (rejects), despiseth not man, but God, who hath also given unto us his holy Spirit.
 
But as touching (concerning) brotherly LOVE ye need not that I write unto you: for ye yourselves are taught of God to LOVE one another. And indeed ye do it toward all the brethren which are in all Macedonia: but we beseech you, brethren, that ye increase more and more.’ (1 Thess.4:7-10)
 
Yes Friends, the Thessalonians were getting the message of LOVE for each other and putting it into action, but Bruh Paul just wanted them to increase that action, spread it further and further. Now that’s exactly what we need to do today too my people!
 
We claim to LOVE God, but hate our brothers. As John so aptly puts it, that makes us liars: ‘for he that LOVETH not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he LOVE God whom he hath not seen?’ (1 John 4:20b) That says it all my fellow believers!
 
So today, let’s turn back to God and live in true LOVE nuh. Let’s put aside all the foolish things that lead us away from God and true fellowship with each other. Our world is in serious decline because it’s sadly lacking in true LOVE. And the only way we can advance Jesus’ LOVE Revolution is by spreading LOVE, not the negative emotions that are currently predominating.
 
So let’s take off our blinkers, put on our 20/20 eyes of faith and get out into this wicked world and sow some, no lotsa LOVE, as Jesus desires of us. Remember, we reap what we sow. You can’t plant corn and expect to reap peas. Much LOVE!
 
…you can only reap LOVE and its wonderful benefits…when you first sow LOVE…