Love Began With God

Love Began With God

We can’t talk about love for each other until we establish that love began with God. It was He who first loved us, giving us the spirit of love. Remember one of the definitions of love describe a oneness or a kinship. God is our Father. He loves us. He loved us from the beginning and He has our best in mind. His plans for us are better than any plans we can think of for ourselves. Sometimes we feel like things just aren’t going our way and we’re saying, “God, where are you?” He is right with us, working all things together for our good. Because He can see the end from the beginning, and we can only see right now, it appears that we’re abandoned. But we are not abandoned. He said He will never leave us nor forsake us. It’s completely possible that we have to learn to trust Him and we’ll never learn to trust Him until it appears that we’re losing the battle. That’s when He will show Himself strong on our behalf. Because He can see the end of the matter, He’ll work it out so that even though it seems hard right now, He’s actually lining up the circumstances so that we’ll have an even greater victory in the end.

 One of my cousins told me that God allows us to go through trouble so that we will become closer to Him. I’m not sure that I agree with that, but I have found that because I need Him so much more now after suffering some financial setbacks, I do find myself talking to Him so much more and for depending on Him to make a way for me. So maybe my cousin has a point.

 Love is the first fruit named in the fruit of the Spirit. Again, because love is the attribute that all the other fruit stem from. We can’t have joy unless we have love. We can’t have peace unless we have love. We certainly can’t have faith unless we have love. This is why the fact that God loves us has to be firmly established in our hearts. I can say, “oh yeah, I know that God loves me” a thousand times a day in my head, but until it’s established on the inside of me, it’s really just saying words. Until I get to the belief deep inside me that God loves me and He is for me, I can’t even begin to have faith. Sure, I know the verse from John 3:16, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall have everlasting life.” This verse is the proof of God’s love for humanity. I think that yes, if I believe that God sent His Son to die for me and that believing this I can get into heaven, but what about here and now? I need the assurance that God loves me. He cares whether I get a better job. He will provide the money to pay my bills. He will protect me and my family from harm. He will give me the right words to say in a given situation. He will hear my prayers and heal the sick relative or friend I have prayed for. I need to know and really hold on to the belief that God loves me. He will by His power provide for me, keep me well, keep me on the right path in life, and more importantly of all, He has really forgiven my sins and wiped the slate clean on my behalf. Really? All those self-centered ways, all those mean thoughts I’ve had about others? All the conniving underhanded things I’ve done? How I have (and have done lately) told other people’s business? And here’s the worst: I have watched the news or heard bad reports and ingested the negativity and the fear going around in the world. In spite of all this and in spite of what I’ve done and am sometimes still doing, God loves me and He is for me.

The writers of the Old Testament referred to God’s love for us as “His merciful kindness” (Psalm 117:2). Mercy is described as compassionate forbearance shown toward an offender, an enemy, or other person in one’s power. It can also be described as forgiveness, benevolence, kindness, clemency, and pardon. 

 Psalm 103:8-10 says, “The LORD is merciful and gracious, Slow to anger, and abounding in mercy. 9. He will not always strive with us, Nor will He keep His anger forever. 10. He has not dealt with us according to our sins, Nor punished us according to our sins.”

 Joel 2:13 says, “…Return to the LORD your God, For He is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness; And He relents from doing harm.”

At the end of Jonah Chapter 3 (verse 10) God relented from the disaster that He had said He would bring upon them (the people of Nineveh) and He did not do it. Chapter 4 begins with Jonah getting angry and explaining just why he didn’t want to go to Nineveh as he was instructed.

 Jonah 4:2: “So he prayed to the LORD, and said, “Ah LORD, was this not what I said when I was still in my country? Therefore I fled previously to Tarshish; for I know that You are a gracious and merciful God, slow to anger and abundant in lovingkindness, One who relents from doing harm.”

We, in the present, also receive God’s mercy daily and if that weren’t enough, we also receive God’s grace: the free and unearned favor of God that He gave us when He sent His son to die on the cross to atone for our sins and the provision of His daily blessings. Whereas the Old Testament writers only could describe God’s love by His mercy, we can describe it by His mercy and His grace.

"If there is hope for a tree, what about me?" A Sermon by Pastor D'Hati T. Burgess July 5, 2012.

Job 14  New King James Version (NKJV)

“Man who is born of woman

Is of few days and full of trouble.
² He comes forth like a flower and fades away;
He flees like a shadow and does not continue.
³ And do You open Your eyes on such a one,
And bring me to judgment with Yourself?
⁴ Who can bring a clean thing out of an unclean?
No one!
⁵ Since his days are determined,
The number of his months is with You;
You have appointed his limits, so that he cannot pass.
⁶ Look away from him that he may rest,
Till like a hired man he finishes his day.

⁷ “For there is hope for a tree,
If it is cut down, that it will sprout again,
And that its tender shoots will not cease.
⁸ Though its root may grow old in the earth,
And its stump may die in the ground,
⁹ Yet at the scent of water it will bud
And bring forth branches like a plant.

 

Job continued this discourse, lamenting that even though there is "hope for a tree," it appeared that there was no hope for man. In fact he began this discourse in verse 1 pointing out that life is short and full of trouble. Of course, we know by reading the end of Job's story, that Job was delivered from his troubles and there is hope for man.

 

Pastor Burgess pointed out that "temporary trouble is only for permanent improvement!"

 

In this message that there are many commonalities between man and trees:

 

Both need oxygen.

 

Both can stand upright.

 

Both have circulation.

 

Both reproduce.

 

Both grow.

 

The main commonalities are what takes place under the surface: Trees are rooted and grounded under the surface of the earth. We are rooted and grounded in the things that are of God.

 

Pastor Burgess ended his sermon by pointing out that, The cross that Jesus died on came from a tree! Our healing came from a tree over 2000 years ago! Our salvation came from the cross!

 

Pastor Burgess is not a long-winded preacher. Knowing that people can only absorb but so much in one sitting, he encourgages the congregation to read more on their own at home. In my reading, I found more in God's word concerning how God does liken man to a tree. One of my favorite passages is from Psalms 1:

 

1 Blessed is the man
Who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly,
Nor stands in the path of sinners,
Nor sits in the seat of the scornful;
² But his delight is in the law of the Lord,
And in His law he meditates day and night.
³ He shall be like a tree
Planted by the rivers of water,
That brings forth its fruit in its season,
Whose leaf also shall not wither;
And whatever he does shall prosper.

 

Job, in Job 14:9, said that, "at the scent of water, a tree would bud and bring forth branches like a plant." What if our "water" is the Holy Spirit and the Word of God? Wouldn't we also bud and bring forth branches? Notice that Psalms 1:3 says "planted by the rivers of water." This indicates a deliberate planting. These are not trees just growing in the wild, they (we) are trees that are being nurtured! We're planted by rivers (plural) of water. Even if one source dried up, another would take its place!

 

David wrote in Psalms 52:8, " But I am like a green olive tree in the house of God;
I trust in the mercy of God forever and ever."

 

 

Psalsms 92: 12-14 tells us:

 

 ¹² The righteous shall flourish like a palm tree,
He shall grow like a cedar in Lebanon.
¹³ Those who are planted in the house of the Lord
Shall flourish in the courts of our God.
¹⁴ They shall still bear fruit in old age;
They shall be fresh and flourishing,

 

Psalms 92:13 says we are "planted in the house of the Lord," then we'll flourish outside in the courts!

The nurturing and the watering that we receive in the sanctuary will be evident when we're about our daily tasks.

 

 

Jeremiah 17:7-8 tells us:

 

⁷ “Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord,
And whose hope is the Lord.
⁸ For he shall be like a tree planted by the waters,
Which spreads out its roots by the river,
And will not fear^[b] when heat comes;
But its leaf will be green,
And will not be anxious in the year of drought,
Nor will cease from yielding fruit.

 

We don't have to fear when the pressures of life come against us and we don't have to be anxious in the years of drought. There is hope for a tree and there is hope for us!

 

 

 

 

 

Holy Communion

Receiving Communion helps us remember the price that was paid for our sins on the cross

     The table is set. The bread and the wine (or grape juice) is ready, however some of us feel that we are not qualified to take part in communion. Some of us feel as though because we’ve sinned or because we haven’t yet been baptized, that we aren’t worthy. Both communion and baptism are ordinances of the church. It is true that baptism is involved with the forgiveness of sins, but it must be stressed that what saves us is not the baptism, but the forgiveness of sin, which is a gift from God. This gift was purchased for us by the blood of Jesus when he died on the cross. To show our appreciation for the finished work of Christ (and to show obedience to his direct command: ”Do this in remembrance of me,) we receive Holy Communion as a participation in, and as a proclamation of, his death. Don’t feel as though you are unworthy to take communion. Communion is for all of us. When Christ died on the cross, he died for us all. He changed us from “unworthy” to “worthy.” He changed us from “unqualified” to “qualified.” In I Corinthians 11, Paul writes that some eat and drink judgement to themselves when they partake in a manner that is unworthy, specifically when they do not discern the Lord’s body that was broken for us. When we eat the wafer and drink from the cup, we are to recall how his body was broken and how his blood was shed to pay the penalty for sin. Our penalty has been paid!! As long as we believe that Christ died for us and that He rose again on the third day, and that He is alive today, seated at the right hand of the Father, we are qualified to receive communion. Romans 10:9 says, “That if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.”

                                            Holy Communion

Matt. 26:26-28 Jesus Institutes the Lord’s Supper

²⁶ And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, blessed^[b] and broke it, and gave it to the disciples and said, “Take, eat; this is My body.”
²⁷ Then He took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you. ²⁸ For this is My blood of the new^[c] covenant, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.

Mark 14:22-24   Jesus Institutes the Lord’s Supper

²² And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them and said, “Take, eat;^[b] this is My body.”
²³ Then He took the cup, and when He had given thanks He gave it to them, and they all drank from it. ²⁴ And He said to them, “This is My blood of the new^[c] covenant, which is shed for many.

Luke 22: 19-20 Jesus Institutes the Lord’s Supper

¹⁹ And He took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, “This is My body which is given for you; do this in remembrance of Me.”
²⁰ Likewise He also took the cup after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in My blood, which is shed for you.

I Cor. 11:23-26 Institution of the Lord’s Supper

²³ For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you: that the Lord Jesus on the same night in which He was betrayed took bread; ²⁴ and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, “Take, eat;^[b] this is My body which is broken^[c] for you; do this in remembrance of Me.” ²⁵ In the same manner He also took the cup after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in My blood. This do, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me.”
²⁶ For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death till He comes.

 

Christ was always there from the beginning and look at what He’s done for us!

Genesis 1 New King James Version (NKJV)

²⁶ Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness…
 

Genesis 11 New King James Version (NKJV)

⁵ But the Lord came down to see the city and the tower which the sons of men had built.

⁶ And the Lord said, “Indeed the people are one and they all have one language, and this is what they begin to do; now nothing that they propose to do will be withheld from them. ⁷ Come, let Us go down and there confuse their language, that they may not understand one another’s speech.”

Isaiah 7 New King James Version (NKJV)

¹⁴ Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel.⁽ Literally God-With-Us)

Isaiah 9 New King James Version (NKJV)

6 For unto us a Child is born,

Unto us a Son is given;
And the government will be upon His shoulder.
And His name will be called
Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

John 1 New King James Version (NKJV)

The Eternal Word

1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. ² He was in the beginning with God

The Word Becomes Flesh

¹⁴ And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.

John 17 New King James Version (NKJV)

Jesus Prays for Himself

1 Jesus spoke these words, lifted up His eyes to heaven, and said: “Father, the hour has come. Glorify Your Son, that Your Son also may glorify You, ² as You have given Him authority over all flesh, that He should^[a] give eternal life to as many as You have given Him. ³ And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent. ⁴ I have glorified You on the earth. I have finished the work which You have given Me to do. ⁵ And now, O Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world was.

 

Romans 1 New Living Translation (NLT)

¹⁶ For I am not ashamed of this Good News about Christ. It is the power of God at work, saving everyone who believes—the Jew first and also the Gentile. ¹⁷ This Good News tells us how God makes us right in his sight

Romans 3 New Living Translation (NLT)

Christ Took Our Punishment

²¹ But now God has shown us a way to be made right with him without keeping the requirements of the law, as was promised in the writings of Moses and the prophets long ago. ²² We are made right with God by placing our faith in Jesus Christ. And this is true for everyone who believes, no matter who we are.

²³ For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard. ²⁴ Yet God, with undeserved kindness, declares that we are righteous. He did this through Christ Jesus when he freed us from the penalty for our sins. ²⁵ For God presented Jesus as the sacrifice for sin. People are made right with God when they believe that Jesus sacrificed his life, shedding his blood.
 

Romans 8:28  King James Version (KJV)
And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.
³¹ What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us?
³² He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things?

Romans 10 New Living Translation (NLT)

Salvation Is for Everyone

⁵ For Moses writes that the law’s way of making a person right with God requires obedience to all of its commands.

⁹ If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. ¹⁰ For it is by believing in your heart that you are made right with God, and it is by confessing with your mouth that you are saved.
 

Ephesians 1 New Living Translation (NLT)

³ All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ. ⁴ Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes. ⁵ God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure. ⁶ So we praise God for the glorious grace he has poured out on us who belong to his dear Son.^{[b] 7} He is so rich in kindness and grace that he purchased our freedom with the blood of his Son and forgave our sins.

¹⁹ I also pray that you will understand the incredible greatness of God’s power for us who believe him. This is the same mighty power ²⁰ that raised Christ from the dead and seated him in the place of honor at God’s right hand in the heavenly realms.

 

 Ephesians 2 New International Version (NIV)

Made Alive in Christ

As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, ² in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. ³ All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our flesh and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature deserving of wrath. ⁴ But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, ⁵ made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved. ⁶ And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus,

⁸ For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— ⁹ not by works, so that no one can boast.

Jew and Gentile Reconciled Through Christ

¹¹ Therefore, remember that formerly you who are Gentiles by birth and called “uncircumcised” by those who call themselves “the circumcision” (which is done in the body by human hands)— ¹² remember that at that time you were separate from Christ, excluded from citizenship in Israel and foreigners to the covenants of the promise, without hope and without God in the world. ¹³ But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near by the blood of Christ.

¹⁹ Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and strangers, but fellow citizens with God’s people and also members of his household,

Philippians 2 King James Version

  ⁵Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus:
   ⁶Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God:
   ⁷But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men:
   ⁸And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.
   ⁹Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name:
   ¹⁰That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth;
   ¹¹And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Colossians 1 New International Version (NIV)

²¹ Once you were alienated from God and were enemies in your minds because of your evil behavior. ²² But now he has reconciled you by Christ’s physical body through death to present you holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation—

2 Timothy 1

⁹ He has saved us and called us to a holy life—not because of anything we have done but because of his own purpose and grace. This grace was given us in Christ Jesus before the beginning of time,