Love: A Work of Faith

... love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven,... (Matthew 5:43-45)

Faith without works is dead, but love in action is a work of faith. Faith energizes us unto good works and these mature us to be more like Jesus.* This for me has been one of the most difficult challenges to my faith and maturity; loving my enemies, those who persecute me, do me wrong and unjustly. As we mature though the surpassing love of Jesus compels us into obedience.

what good my brethren if someone claims to have faith but has no works, powerful to save him? If a brother or sister is in need... but you do not give them what their body needs what good is that? In the same way faith works without is dead... (James 2:13-17)

Obviously, works by themselves without faith is dead. Serving one another in love begins within the church. This is why Jesus said we would be known as his disciples by our love for one another. If the brother or sister in your church is in need and you do nothing, your faith is dead. So let us first start within the church to practice faith with works of love. Putting into action out faith through love works to mature us to be like Jesus.

but God rich in mercy through his great love which he loved us made us alive with Christ, by grace saved... to demonstrate in the ages, that coming the incomparable riches of his grace in loving-kindness to us in Christ Jesus (Ephesians 2:5-7)

This is why God made us alive in Christ, thus why he sent Jesus, to manifest his great love for us. He made us alive by grace through faith, thus we are his workmanship which God prepared in advance for us to walk in. What God prepared in advance in Christ and was kept hidden until this age is that God chose us, before he created the world, to be holy, predestined us for adoption through the Spirit to be his own, like him. His eternal purpose in Christ and fulfilled through the church is so we are being conform the image of his son.

... so that you may have strength to according receive with all the saints... to know the surpassing love of Christ so to be filled to the fullness of God (Ephesians 3:18-19)

I write a lot about love, and it is good to always remind of the importance of agape love. First we need a firm foundation so we have strength to lay hold of a surpassing love and power so to grow into the maturity in Christ (Ephesians 3:13-21). This love surpasses affliction, persecution, injustice... it endures, in this life as we know we are loved as God's children and are not citizens of this world. Thus when our identity and mind is focused heavenly the things of this world become weak and we become strong in Christ.

in this we know because we love the children of God, whenever we love God and obey his precepts. For this is the love of God so that we keep his precepts (1 John 5:2-4)

Jesus commanded us to love one another. How can we say we love God and want to spread the gospel to the world but not love the children of God? Obedience comes from a proper foundation and growth into maturity, knowing the surpassing love of Christ and being filled to the fullness of God, In this verse there is a circular truth. If we are filled to his fullness and love God then we obey him which comes back around to the command that we love his children. True obedience is a fervent love for God and one another.

We ought always to thank God for you, brothers, as is fitting, because your faith is growing abundantly, and the love of each one of you for one another is increasing, (2 Thessalonians 1:3

When we can obey God's precepts like loving our enemies and those who persecute us, our faith is active through works and love has been matured among us. A sign of our maturity and obedience is that our faith is active in works of love. Any one can do good works, there are many non-Christian based charitable organizations that do. Mature faith in action is energized by love, this is a light unto the world, and how our good works glorify our Father in heaven (Matthew 5:16).

Exists no fear in love but maturing love drives out fear because fear has to do with punishment so the one in fear is not matured in love (1 John 4:18)

The Tripartite Nature of Humanity: Spirit, Soul, and Body

The Tripartite Nature of Humanity: Spirit, Soul, and Body in Biblical Understanding The human being, as depicted in the Bible, is a multifaceted creation, often understood through the distinct yet interconnected components of spirit, soul, and body. While some theological perspectives lean towards a bipartite view (soul and body), which we do see in the Old Testament, a careful examination of the New Testament scripture reveals a compelling case for a tripartite understanding, where each is divided into or composed of three parts. Let’s explore the biblical distinction between spirit, soul, and body. The Body: Our Earthly Vessel The body is the physical form that interacts with the material world. From the very beginning, Genesis 2:7 states, " Then the Lord God formed man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being ." This verse clearly establishes the body's origin from the earth, emphasizing its connec...

True Widows: A Biblical Perspective

True Widows: A Biblical Perspective Throughout Scripture, God's compassion for widows is evident. He is portrayed as their defender, provider, and source of justice. The Bible repeatedly calls believers to care for widows, reflecting God's own heart for the vulnerable. However, in his letter to Timothy, the Apostle Paul provides a specific definition of a "true" widow, emphasizing the church's responsibility in supporting those who are genuinely in need. God's Compassion for Widows The Old Testament is rich with passages that reveal God's concern for widows. In Exodus 22:22, God commands, "You shall not afflict any widow or fatherless child." This verse underscores His protective nature, ensuring that widows are not mistreated or neglected. Similarly, Deuteronomy 10:18 declares, "He administers justice for the fatherless and the widow, and loves the stranger, giving him food and clothing." Here, God is depicted as a just and loving prov...

Word Of Life

"That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we looked upon and have touched with our hands, concerning the word of life. " 1 Jesus is the Word, He was in the beginning with God. 2 All things were made through Him. He is the Word and Light of men, the way, the path, "I am the way, the truth, and the life." 4 Thus we can say as the Psalmist, Jesus, the Word, is a Lamp unto my feet, and a Light unto my path. 5 "In him was life, and the life was the light of men." 6 Concerning the Word of Life, " the life was made manifest, and we have seen it, and testify to it and proclaim to you the eternal life ," Proclaimed, that our joy may be complete, a glory like that in the beginning, fellowship with the Father, with one another, and with his Son Jesus Christ, the Word of Life. "You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot...

The Persuasion of Faith: Theological Foundations of Trust, Persuasion, and Transformation

The Persuasion of Faith: Theological Foundations of Trust, Persuasion, and Transformation Introduction The interconnectedness of faith and trust lies at the very heart of Christian theology, yet these terms are frequently conflated or oversimplified in both personal devotion and academic discourse. The Greek root of "faith," πείθω ( peithō ), meaning "to be persuaded," provides critical insight into biblical faith, suggesting that faith involves a process where conviction is formed through persuasion—one that originates from the trustworthy character and actions of God. Contrary to interpretations that require blind obedience or uncritical acceptance, the Christian Scriptures depict trust not as a demand, but as a relational response to God’s persuasive self-revelation. This dynamic is embodied in the ministry of Jesus, who consistently subverts authority structures by exalting humility, service, and self-giving love as prerequisites for true greatness—a recurr...

My Rightousness

" Who has believed what he has heard from us? And to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed? For he grew up before him like a young plant, and like a root out of dry ground; he had no form or majesty that we should look at him, and no beauty that we should desire him. He was despised and rejected by men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief; and as one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not. Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned—every one—to his own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth; like a lamb...

I Will Awake Like Him and Be Satisfied

I Will Awake Like Him and Be Satisfied Psalm 17:15 frames the believer’s hope as both present communion and future consummation: “ As for me, I will behold thy face in righteousness; I shall be satisfied, when I awake, with thy likeness .” This essay develops Charles Spurgeon’s reflection by adding the biblical emphases that we are being conformed to Christ now, that the Spirit gives life to our mortal bodies, and that our final awakening will reveal the full redemption of those bodies in Christ’s likeness. Present beholding and present transformation We already “behold the face of the Lord in righteousness” because Christ’s righteousness has reconciled us and opened intimate access to God. That beholding is not passive sight but an active, formative encounter: “We all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord” (2 Corinthians 3:18). Faith fixes our gaze ...

The New Living Way

The New Living Way "... Now, at the present released from the Law, having died in that which held us captive, so that we serve in newness of Spirit and not the old written code " -- Romans 7:16 Paul states that we are now united to Christ in his death and also raised with him into newness of life. What held them captive was sin but also the Law, it was a guardian until the appointed time God would send a Messiah (see School Master ). Paul uses the metaphor of marriage to describe how we are released from the Law; like a wife whose husband dies, now she is released from the Law and can marry another, so also have we died with Christ and are released from the Law and bound to Christ in a new covenant. The purpose of this is that we live in a new living way of the Spirit and not fleshly through the old written code or Mosaic Law. " So then brothers, you also have died to the Law through the body of Christ to the extent you exist by creation of another, the one raising you f...

Called According to His Purpose: A Biblical Examination

Called According to His Purpose: A Biblical Examination 📖 Introduction The phrase “called according to His purpose” appears in Romans 8:28 (ESV), a foundational verse that reads: “And we know that for those loved of God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to His purpose.” This statement gives comfort and more—it is a declaration about identity, destiny, and divine intent. To be “called according to His purpose” means participating in God’s sovereign, redemptive plan. God's plan is being manifested through the church through the "new covenant in his blood" as it was established by the death of Jesus, his blood. The calling is not arbitrary or based on human merit, but is rooted in God’s purpose, eternal will and love. 🔍 The Nature of the Calling In Scripture, God's calling is effectual—that is, it accomplishes what He intends. Paul writes: "...those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also...

Stay In The Fold

I have other sheep which are not of this fold. These too I must bring in. They will listen to my voice, and there will be one flock, with one shepherd (John 10:16) Two becoming one speaks that there is only one fold in the new covenant, and being part of this fold is not based upon the fleshly birth but of the Spirit, so both Jews and Gentiles who believe in Jesus will enter the fold where Jesus is the Good Shepherd. A sheepfold is a robust fenced enclosure to protect the sheep gathered within it. Figuratively Jesus uses the idea that we are sheep in his fold. When comparing God's children to a flock or sheep in his fold we see he calls them by their name, and they follow him because they know his voice (John 10:3). When he brings the sheep out [of the fold] he goes before them and they follow him because they know his voice (John 10:4). They will not follow a stranger's voice because they do not trust his voice, but they know the good shepherd will protect them and care for an...

Law of the Heart

" The one who has my commands and keeps them is the one who loves me. And the one who loves me will be loved by my Father. I also will love him and will reveal myself to him " (John 14:21). Most people think this means obeying the ten commandments or Mosaic law. While obeying the law is important there is a greater meaning. The commands are the ones God said he would write on our hearts. “ I will put my law within them and on their heart I will write it; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people " (Jeremiah 31:31-34). This is the new covenant, in which we are the heirs through Jesus Christ who is the first (Romans 8:23; Colossians 1:13-18). The heirs of Abraham are made righteous through faith, for if those who are of the law are heirs, faith is void and the promise nullified (Romans 4:13-14). The righteousness of God has been manifested, through faith in Jesus Christ for all those who believe (Romans 3:21-22). What the law could not do, in bringing right...

Love Fulfilled Ministry

Search This Blog