{"id":21281,"date":"2017-01-30T00:10:44","date_gmt":"2017-01-30T08:10:44","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/lccredding.com\/lcc\/?p=9998"},"modified":"2017-01-30T00:10:44","modified_gmt":"2017-01-30T08:10:44","slug":"january-30-2017","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lccredding.org\/church\/2017\/01\/30\/january-30-2017\/","title":{"rendered":"January 30, 2017"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\u201cIn this the love of God was manifested toward us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him.\u201d<\/em> 1 John 4:9<\/span><\/p>\n

Cultivating Awe and Reverence for God, Day 30<\/span><\/em><\/h3>\n

The Love of God<\/span><\/strong><\/h2>\n

This series would not be complete without looking at the love of God, but it is difficult to write about in a convincing way because we all have varied experiences with the concept of love. From our earliest years, possibly even prenatally, we\u2019ve known varying degrees of love, varying ways of expressing it, and in some cases we\u2019ve lived with a lack of love or a distorted, unhealthy expression of it.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

God\u2019s love is like everything else about Him: something we cannot fully comprehend in this life. We can only compare what the Bible says about God and love with the few experiences we have had and, sadly, with our own limited (and sometimes warped, ungodly) imaginations.<\/span><\/p>\n

To comprehend God\u2019s love is, as A.W. Tozer says, \u201clike trying to take the ocean in your arms, or embrace the atmosphere, or rise to the stars.\u201d*<\/span><\/p>\n

The more I know God, the more I am in awe that He loves me, that He chose me to be His own, and particularly that He sent His Son to die for my sins so that I could live forever with Him.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

His choice to love us had nothing to do with us, that is certain. There is nothing in us that should produce any love on His part\u2014and that is just the point. We cannot earn it, we cannot change it, we cannot squirm out from under it, and we cannot do anything to keep it. It is all on Him. He loves us, and that is that.<\/span><\/p>\n

It\u2019s rather like my memory of being in first grade: each Monday the teacher would chose who would get to be eraser monitor for the week. As she looked out upon the children, she would simply choose someone. Oh, how my heart would pound with suspense! To be chosen by Teacher! To feel special, wanted, and important for a whole week!<\/span><\/p>\n

Love, being an essential part of God\u2019s being, proves that everything He does comes from His love, for His love cannot be separated from Who He is. Even when I don\u2019t feel as if things are working out for my good, I can still believe that they are, because God loves me.<\/span><\/p>\n

It fills me with awe that He chose me knowing all the sins I would commit, all the thoughts I would think, all the trouble I would cause, all the people I would hurt with my words, all the times I would be faithless, lazy, doubting, fearing, accusing, and criticizing. He didn\u2019t choose me after He looked me over and said, \u201cHmmm, I don\u2019t know about this one\u2026\u201d, but He chose me before the foundation of the world, before I ever came to be. \u201cBefore I formed you in the womb, I knew you\u2026\u201d<\/em> (Jeremiah 1:5).<\/span><\/p>\n

When I think really big thoughts such as we\u2019ve been doing this month in these devotionals\u2014\u201cWhen I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, the moon and the stars which You have ordained\u201d<\/em>\u2014then I see my smallness clearly, and I know I am nothing at all\u2014\u201cWhat is man that You are mindful of him, and the son of man that You visit (give attention to and care for) him?\u201d<\/em> (Psalm 8:3-4).\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Maybe the concept of a God Who loves unconditionally is new to some of you. The Spirit-Filled Life Bible explains God\u2019s love (using my own paraphrase) as a tireless benevolence, a goodwill that can\u2019t be conquered, always seeking the highest good of the loved one no matter what she does. This love gives freely without any hope of the love being returned. The worth of the loved one is not to be considered. This love is a choice of the will.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

To cultivate awe and reverence for God, remember that He knows you completely, yet has given you His best gift\u2014His only begotten Son\u2014so that you may be with Him forever. \u201cGreater love has no one than this, than to lay down one\u2019s life for his friends\u201d<\/em> (John 15:13).\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cGod, You have proved Your love over and over, particularly by giving Your Son to be the sacrificial Lamb for the sins we commit. We wholeheartedly thank You. Amen.\u201d<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

*The Attributes of God, Volume 2, page 182<\/span><\/em><\/h4>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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