Today is the first day of ” 12 Days of Eternal Gifts” and I found myself contemplating about allowing God’s Spirit to fill oneself.
What does it mean?
13 By this we know that we abide in Him, and He in us, because He has given us of His Spirit. 14 And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent the Son as Savior of the world. 15 Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. 16 And we have known and believed the love that God has for us. God is love, and he who abides in love abides in God, and God in him.
17 Love has been perfected among us in this: that we may have boldness in the day of judgment; because as He is, so are we in this world. 18 There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment. But he who fears has not been made perfect in love. d=”bg_passage-30619″>19 We love Him because He first loved us.
20 If someone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen, how can he love God whom he has not seen? 1 John 4:13-21, New King James Version)
For a better understanding, the MHC (Matthew Henry Commentary) shares the following about this passage:
The Spirit of God is the Spirit of love. He that does not love the image of God in his people, has no saving knowledge of God. For it is God’s nature to be kind, and to give happiness. The law of God is love; and all would have been perfectly happy, had all obeyed it.
The provision of the gospel, for the forgiveness of sin, and the salvation of sinners, consistently with God’s glory and justice, shows that God is love. Mystery and darkness rest upon many things yet.
God has so shown himself to be love, that we cannot come short of eternal happiness, unless through unbelief and impenitence, although strict justice would condemn us to hopeless misery, because we break our Creator’s laws.
None of our words or thoughts can do justice to the free, astonishing love of a holy God towards sinners, who could not profit or harm him, whom he might justly crush in a moment, and whose deserving of his vengeance was shown in the method by which they were saved, though he could by his almighty Word have created other worlds, with more perfect beings, if he had seen fit. Search we the whole universe for love in its most glorious displays? It is to be found in the person and the cross of Christ.
Does love exist between God and sinners? Here was the origin, not that we loved God, but that he freely loved us. His love could not be designed to be fruitless upon us, and when its proper end and issue are gained and produced, it may be said to be perfected.
So faith is perfected by its works. Thus it will appear that God dwells in us by his new-creating Spirit.
A loving Christian is a perfect Christian; set him to any good duty, and he is perfect to it, he is expert at it. Love oils the wheels of his affections, and sets him on that which is helpful to his brethren. A man that goes about a business with ill will, always does it badly. That God dwells in us and we in him, were words too high for mortals to use, had not God put them before us.
This part really stood out to me: “A loving Christian is a perfect Christian; set him to any good duty, and he is perfect to it, he is expert at it. Love oils the wheels of his affections, and sets him on that which is helpful to his brethren.” and reminded me of the words from Proverbs 16:24 (NKJV),” 24 Pleasant words are like a honeycomb,
Sweetness to the soul and health to the bones.”
Having the Spirit of God within us, as Christians, should make us desire to want to reach out, to others, to give and to share a precious gift, of mercy and grace that our Father, Himself, gave to us.
A reminder that it is more than the season to get gifts, but a season, when we remember, the memory, of a child that was born to save all mankind, then, now and tomorrow, forever and through Him, as His children, to reach out to all those around us.
It’s humbling to think of the words of 1 John 4:20, “20 If someone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen, how can he love God whom he has not seen?”
If we call ourselves Christians and yet brush off, treat rudely, ignore, say not our problem, and yet turn to God for the very same things, denied to others, where does that put us?
Humbling….
Challenging….
Convicting….
Let His Spirit, God’s spirit fill you, and with it, a desire to reach a hand to all those around us, in whatever way, our circumstances allows us to reach out.
Our Father gave us a special gift.
A love for all of us, that one night,
” 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.
7 Of the increase of His government and peace
There will be no end,
Upon the throne of David and over His kingdom,
To order it and establish it with judgment and justice
From that time forward, even forever.
The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this. (Isaiah 9:6-7, New King James Version)”
Rejoice.
Give.
Embrace.
It’s an eternal gift for all of us.
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says:
Such a beautiful post! On the first day of Christmas my True Love gave to me. . . (Wish you could do musical notes on a Mac.)
Ginger recently posted..12 Days of Eternal Gifts {Day 1}
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