Living In the Word Thursday Feb. 27, 2014 Justifying Grace – Part 4 One way that God moves us to the place where we accept his healing grace, his salvation or our conversion is through the loving acts of other Christians. I believe that this is the way that most, if not all, of us experience his love. This kind of God-love is called “agape”. ((/ˈæɡəpiː/[1] or /əˈɡɑːpeɪ/; Classical Greek: ἀγάπη, agápē; Modern Greek: αγάπη IPA: [aˈɣapi]), often translated unconditional love – from Wikipedia) It is important to remember that we can never earn or even deserve God’s love; it is a gift of grace. It is the self-sacrificing love of God for humanity which he asks that we reciprocate to him and to others. It is the second greatest of His commands for us, to love one another as we love our self. C. S. Lewis wrote in his book “The Four Loves” that agape (agapeto), described the highest level of love known to humanity. It is a selfless love, passionately committed to the well-being of the other. Jesus, in his Sermon on the Mount said this: “You have heard that it was said, ‘Love (agapēseis) your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you, love (agapāte) your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of you Father in heaven. He causes the sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? (Mt 5:43-46 NIV) Loving our enemy is certainly one of the most defining characteristics of a Christian. It is also one of our hardest commitments to obtain and to express (if not the hardest). So, becoming justified is receiving full acceptance by our Lord and Savior. Being justified will bring us to that place where we will learn the full force of His love for us and the means in which we can share that love with others.
Posted on: Thu, 27 Feb 2014 10:00:00 +0000
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