Love (The Fruit of the Spirit in You)

Love                                                                                        Day 24

¹⁸ My little children, let us not love in word or in tongue, but in deed and in truth. ¹⁹ And by this we know that we are of the truth, and shall assure our hearts before Him.

1 John 3:18-19

Real life stories of abuse and domestic violence are becoming more exposed with each passing year. Commonly, the excuse of love is provided as a faulty explanation provided by parents who abuse their children and by spouses who perpetrate physical and verbal violence towards another spouse. These abusers fail to recognize that love is not simply spoken, but is shown.

Speaking the word love does not equate with the real quality of love that should exist in our actions and hearts. While we, hopefully, do not go to the extreme of abuse, we too can look to our actions to examine whether we truly show love to those around us. For many, the problem is not in showing appropriate love to associates in public. The problem is in showing and acting out love to those who are closest to us. Let us aim to reveal a Christ-like loving spirit to all.

Christ showed His love for us and took abuse for us. He did not abuse others. Because of what Christ did, we know the pure heart of the Son. What would an examination of our hearts reveal about our love? Do your actions show the fruit of love?

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Love (The Fruit of the Spirit in You)

Love                                                                                        Day 23

Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends.

John 15:13

It is easy to become focused on the busyness of life. By the time we are finished doing the things we have to do, there often is little time left for the things we want to do. For some, work becomes the singular focus of life. It seems that they live to work. For others, their lives revolve around their time away from work. They proclaim that they live for the weekend, television, or whatever relaxes them.

Christ laid down more than all of this in His sacrifice for us. He gave His actual life. Instead of living for work or for the weekend, He lived and died for us.

What are you willing to put aside to show the love that you have for others? Our culture tells us that there is nothing wrong with keeping the focus on ourselves. Jesus, however, leads by example. He tells us that there is no better way to show our love than to lay down our lives for another.

It is unlikely that we will face the challenge of physically giving our life for another. The question does remain, though, what are you willing to put aside to help another? Are you willing to give up time at work or time in front of the television to help another? What are you willing to give up to lead someone else to Jesus?

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Fruit of the Holy Spirit

Fruit of the Holy Spirit in You - Love (1 Corinthians 13:8) Day 22

Love (The Fruit of the Spirit in You)

Love                                                                                        Day 22

Love never fails. But whether there are prophecies, they will fail; whether there are tongues, they will cease; whether there is knowledge, it will vanish away.

1 Corinthians 13:8

The love of a parent towards a child is unique. Through ups and downs, successes and failures, and all types of circumstances, parents tend to continue loving their child, no matter the child’s indiscretions. This power of love can be seen in God’s love towards us.

Paul writes that the spiritual gift of love never fails and persists through various circumstances. Prophecies, tongues, and knowledge may fail or no longer be necessary. God’s love towards us, however, is everlasting.

So, why don’t we take the time to have an ongoing love toward others? Through love, we have the opportunity to help others in need, to seek peace with enemies, and to rebuild relationships. Love can serve as an unfailing engine for us to do God’s will.

Because the gift of love never fails, there is comfort in knowing that God’s love for us will always prevail. Therefore, let us remember that no matter the circumstances and no matter our failings, there will always be an opportunity for us to show love to others. Because we know that love never fails, let us not fail to love.

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Fruit of the Holy Spirit

Fruit of the Holy Spirit in You - Love ( John 3:16) Day 21

Love (The Fruit of the Spirit in You)

Love                                                                                        Day 21

For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.

John 3:16

Humanity can be inhumane. In every century, there have been attempts to lessen the value of certain individuals. Today, certain people are still demeaned due to their race, income, nationality, gender, lifestyle, etc.

On occasion, those who are different are presented as having lives of lesser value than others. Even in news reports about distant wars or events nearby, the deaths of certain individuals are often reported as being less newsworthy than others (or not newsworthy at all). When it comes to sin, some Christians even seem to suggest that people who have committed specific acts, have various addictions, or have lived certain lifestyles are unworthy of salvation.

While we continue to attribute value based on particular categories, God subscribes to a different valuation system. God has a whoever valuation approach. No matter the origin, history, past mistakes, or present circumstances, whoever believes in Christ has everlasting life. God so loved the whole world that he made salvation available to whoever.

Do you live by a whoever kind of love and treat others with love, whoever they are? Do you love beyond biological, social, and economic barriers? Can you see beyond sin to love a sinner? Falling short of living by God’s standard does not stop God from loving us. What is your excuse? Let us all learn to have a whoever kind of love.

See more at www.thefruitinyou.com

Fruit of the Holy Spirit

Fruit of the Holy Spirit in You - Love ( Deuteronomy 6:5) Day 20