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Be Still, I Love You

Be still, and know that I am God...*

God is Love.* Therefore to know God, one must know His love. So to be still and know him is to know His love. Why is it so important that we know the love of God? That God wants to reveal himself, his love to us? Paul prays, not just that, he falls on his knees to the Father praying that we may "have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love is.* Paul really, really wants us to get this, to know the love of Christ, so that we may be filled to the fullness of God.*

If you love me keep my Commandments.*

What does this scripture mean? that love is tied directly to obedience or obedience is tied directly to love. Jesus goes on to say, "the one having my commandments and keeping them exists the one loving me. Now, the one loving me is loved by my Father and loving him and revealing myself to him."* How do you love Jesus? have and keep his commands. The one who loves Jesus, who keeps his commands, the Father loves and reveals himself to. Is God's love conditional on loving the Son? And loving the Son is conditional on keeping his commands? God's love is conditional on loving the Son, believing in the Son, and keeping his words.

so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith, being rooted and established in love.*

Paul says we are to be rooted grounded in love. Why? if we are rooted in love we will obey God. Of course, Paul writes, we are also rooted in faith.* We grow up into Him, the fullness of Christ, truth in love.* Truth, the word of God, increases our faith, creating a unity of faith in the body where it is growing up, truth in love. Faith without love is nothing, and Agape Love without faith is nothing. I do not know the love of God unless I have faith, and God's love is revealed to me, "We love because he first loved us."* God first reveals His love to us, this is why Paul is praying for us to know the love of Christ. Why does Paul want us to comprehend and know of the love of Christ? because love will lead to obedience, if I love him I will keep his commands. He writes, the bond of love leads to perfection.* What is perfection? maturity, growing up into the fullness of Christ.*

There is no fear in love, rather perfect love drives out fear because fear has punishment. Now, the one who fears is not perfected in love.*

What strengthens us is faith energized through love. So we see obedience is a fruit of being rooted and grounded in Love & Faith. This is an amazing truth. "For this is the love of God so that we keep his commands. And his commands are not burdensome,"* What is John saying? this is the purpose of the love of God, so to obey his commandments? John also writes this is how we know we love the children of God when we love God and obey his Commandments. That's amazing.  I can not love the children of God unless I love God. He commands us to love one another and I cannot obey his command unless I love God. It becomes pretty simple when you understand this, I need to love God first.

Now, whoever keeps His word, truly in that person the love of God is fulfilled (perfected, matured). In this we know that we are in Him.*

It really comes down to this truth; I will obey God if I love Him. Is this not why the greatest commandment is to love God? "teacher which is the greatest commandment of the Law? Now, he said to him, you shall love the Lord your God in all of your heart and in all of your soul, and in all of your mind,"* If I do not obey this commandment of the Law then I have broken the Law and it really doesn't matter if I tithe or serve in the temple, I have failed in the greatest and first commandment. I will obey God if I obey this greatest command to love Him. If I love him wholely, I will seek His kingdom first and His righteousness. So the question becomes how do I love God?

We love because he first loved us.*

Such simple and profound truth. No one loved God first, we had all gone our own way. So what is agape love? "In this is agape love: not because we loved God rather because he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins."* God so loved the world He sent His Son. This is how God demonstrates his love when we were dead in our trespasses he made us alive in Christ, through his great love he was rich in mercy and demonstrates his kindness to us in Christ Jesus.* Paul prays that we know deeply the love of Christ, this love will compel us. "For Christ’s love compels us, concluding this, that one died for all, and therefore all died. And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again."*

For the Lord disciplines the ones he loves, now, whipping all whom he receives as sons.*

If we are left without discipline, then God doesn't know us and love us? If He loves us He treats us as legitimate sons.* He chose us in Christ before he created the world to exist holy, in his presence, in love.* So if I am a chosen son, adopted, legitimate, God will discipline me so I do not continue in sin. John writes if God's seed is in me, I am born of God, then I am his son and I will not continue in sin.* Again this is amazing scripture. If I am without discipline where I'm continuing happily in my sin, then there is a problem. The line in the sand is drawn, here are the children of the devil, and here are the children of God. I am an illegitimate son if I do because God disciplines those he loves. God chose me to be holy like Him. Paul writes we are to "cleanse ourselves from every pollution of flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God."*

Now, He disciplines us for our good, in order that we may share in his holiness.*

Be still, I love you, and I am holy. Why does he discipline those he loves?  for our benefit. What benefit? so that we share in his holy character. We see the condition of holiness in regard to God's love. I cannot be in his presence if I am not Holy, and he cannot love me unless I am holy. So we look into the mystery, of what God purposed in Christ, a way for us to approach him, to be blameless before him, in agape love. This is what it means that God so loved the world that He sent His only begotten Son. For those who believe we are favored, adopted, redeemed, and forgiven, blessed from the riches of his glory and grace in the Beloved, we are loved. 
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