Love , Permanent Love For The One Whose Sacrifice Helped.

I know from experience. Two powerful Judges in Atlanta helped me at cost to themselves in a time when I was a young lawyer and needed help. I will never forget. Love for them and desire to justify their actions for me has never left. They have passed from this life, but even if a member of their family needed help I could give, I would respond immediately.

The apostle Paul speaks of this human characteristic in the Bible., (11Cor. 5:14) . The “love of Christ constraineth us”. Because Christ died for us and in our place, those of us who live as a result live unto Him. The inference is obvious: Those who don’t live for Christ are ones without benefit of His death. Hear the words of Jesus, “Her sins which are many are forgiven for she loved much; but to whom little is forgiven, the same loveth little” (Luke 7:47). That is one reason the Bible (John) tells us ( 1John.3:9), that one who is born of God does not practice sin.

The conclusion is obvious. The reason some religious people practice sin is because they have not the experience of real faith, else their love and feeling of obligation would work out in their lives with love to Christ. As Martin Luther said of such, “They don’t have faith , they have a dream”.

Even so, the believer suffers an inward struggle, “For that which I do I allow not: for what I would, that do I not, but what I hate, that do I”(Rom. 7:15). The Lord does not leave us there. The Lord willing, next week I will write a paragraph on winning the battle over the flesh.