MAY – LOVE
1. 1 John 4:7-8 “ My beloved friends, let us continue to love each other since love
comes from God. Everyone who loves is born of God and experiences a relation-ship with God. The person who refuses to love doesn’t know the first thing about God, because GOD IS LOVE – so you can’t know Him if you don’t love.” MSG
We may have the idea that God dispenses love and that He has love, and that is in fact true. But let us come to the full realization that God IS LOVE. That is the essence of His being. As we read about Him in the Scriptures and observe His actions, we must accept that all He does and all He says has it’s source in Love. Therefore, since we are a people who are born of God, born of love, we too should begin to reflect the love life of our Heavenly Father. That is the evidence that we really “know” God.
2. 1 John 4:18 “ 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.”
The Message Bible says that well-formed love banishes fear. Since fear is a crippling factor in our lives, we want to work on developing our love life. Far too often we try to battle fear by addressing the fear, or dealing with the root of fear. Suppose we focus on increasing our love, activating ourselves to speak words of love, initiating deliberate works of love, reading the Words of love in the Bible, and giving our resources in love. It would be like lighting a candle in the darkness; the light simply overcomes the darkness and it disappears. There is no big fight. In this way, the power of love can overcome the elements of darkness and release us from all those issues that bind and torment us.
3. Proverbs 17:17 “”Friends love through all kinds of weather, and families stick toge-
ther in all kinds of trouble.” Msg
Now here’s a true picture of the God kind of love. This kind is not a fair weather type of commitment. God’s love poured out on us while we were yet sinners, and even now it pours out if we commit sin. There is no way He will ever condone sin, but there is no way He can stop loving us. God is love. How many times have I changed my commit-ment to, and attitude towards people who live like the devil or adopt his ways? How easily do I give up praying for those I would consider to be “flakey” Christians? How often do I neglect to bless or reach out to someone struggling to get their life in order with God? As Jesus continues to pray for and love mankind from His throne in heaven, so also do I need to rally myself to love them from my position on earth. Amen.
4. 1 John 4:19-21 “We love Him because He first loved us. 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? And this com-mandment we have from Him: that he who loves God must love his brother also.”
Here is the test of our relationship with the Father. It is God who establishes the criteria. How am I doing in love towards my spouse? How about my natural brothers or sisters? Am I avoiding contact with any people in the church? Are my acts of service to others genuine, or being done for show? I am going to cultivate a greater desire to just simply love people because God loves me. His love is in me! I will allow that love to flow out of my spirit and out of my mouth to be a blessing to every person I know and also to those I am about to meet. I do want to prove my love for God in this way.
5. 1 John 3:1 “What marvelous love the Father has extended to us! Just look at it –
we’re called the children of God! That’s who we really are. But that’s also why the
world doesn’t recognize us or take us seriously, because it has no idea who He is
or what He’s up to.” Msg
The moment we chose to repent of our sin and receive complete forgiveness from Jesus, God the Father revealed His great love to us. We are born of love. We are now part of His spiritual family. There is a distinction between us and those who don’t know the Lord. This doesn’t give us an excuse to become high-minded, but it does give us the privilege to love them with the kind of love that was and is extended to us. This is how Jesus can be revealed to a world that is still blind to seeing who He really is. Of course we may be rejected, but that cannot stop us from loving. God proved that to us.
6. 1 John 2:15-17 “ Don’t love the world’s ways. Don’t love the world’s goods. Love of
the world squeezes out love for the Father. Practically everything that goes on in the world – wanting your own way, wanting everything for yourself, wanting to appear important – has nothing to do with the Father. It just isolates you from Him. The world and all it’s wanting, wanting, wanting is on the way out – but whoever does what God wants is set for eternity.” MSG
We have to learn to surrender to God. This will, of course, require us to hear Him. We need to know the scriptures and recognize when He is talking to us. He will speak to each person who is willing to accept His Word and who is active in making life changes to please Him. That is proof of our love for God. As our love for Him increases, the love for the world and things of the world decreases. We are now motivated to live for Him!
7. Proverbs 10:12 “Hatred stirs up strife, but love covers all sins.” NKJV
“Hatred starts fights, but love pulls a quilt over the bickering.” Msg
Just what kind of a person am I? Do I leave a trail of strife and bickering in the wake of
my daily movements among people? Do the people where I work shudder when I arrive on the job site? Is there a guarded attitude when I approach a person or group of people that know me for who I really am? Or have I gained a reputation among my family, my co-workers, and my church, of being a peacemaker and someone who brings joy into most situations. There is much to be said for someone who will refrain from stirring up trouble, or even stop careless people from engaging in unnecessary contentions. Some-times it may only take a word of kindness or correction to dispel a “people war,” and at other times it may require withdrawing from the scene. Let’s do what is right!
8. Micah 6:8 “ God has shown you, O man, what is good; And what does the Lord re-
quire of you but to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God?”
What God has in mind for us is that we constantly walk in love. To treat those around us justly and fairly is acting in love. To be merciful and kind to saint and sinner alike is love. To maintain a generous attitude of forgiveness is what the Lord does for me so my response is to generously forgive others in the same spirit. Walking humbly with God simply means to seek Him daily so He can govern my life, to obey Him so my actions can be seen by the world, and to fellowship with Him so I am growing spiritually every day. My goal is to continue to be compassionate to people and loyal to God. That is what is required by the Lord. In the destiny He has planned for me, and whatever circumstances I find myself in, there will be an opportunity to love like He loves.
9. Matthew 5:43-44 “ You’re familiar with the old written law, ‘Love your friend,’ and it’s
unwritten companion, ‘Hate your enemy.’ I’m challenging that. I’m telling you to love your enemies. Let them bring out the best in you, not the worst. When someone gives you a hard time, respond with the energies of prayer, for then you are working out of your true selves, your God-created selves.” Msg
Anyone can love the one who loves them. What is so admirable about that? There is not even any reward from God for that! But to mature in your Christian life to the point of spending serious time praying for those who persecute you and hate you is worth men-tioning. Who else is going to pray for people who are full of hatred and evil? That is the assignment of the righteous and not to be left to the unrighteous. One of the greatest acts of love that Jesus ever did for me was to pray for me when I was still His enemy. Well, I now have the picture of how to really love, and the opportunity to repay Him.
10. Matthew 22:37- 40 “ Jesus said, ‘Love the Lord your God with all your passion and
prayer and intelligence.’ This is the most important, the first on any list. But there is a second to set alongside it: ‘Love others as well as you love yourself.’ These two commandments are pegs; everything in God’s Law and the Prophets hangs from them.” Msg
One of the prominent Pharisees, a lawyer, asked Jesus which is the greatest command-ment. The religious leaders were trying to trip Him up so He would contradict their Law.
Jesus answered wisely: loving the Lord God corresponds to the first four of the Ten Commandments and loving your neighbor is the sum of the last six Commandments given to Moses for the people. Jesus confirmed Exodus 20:1-17 for them.
11. John 14:15 “If you (really) love ME you will keep (obey) My commands.” Amp
In this verse Jesus speaks the truth to us short and sweet. This may be confrontational
to those inclined to just “hang out” and “feel” love or just get “goose bumps.” Love demands first of all that we accurately understand what Jesus’ commands are. This will require reading the Written Word and hearing what the Holy Spirit is saying to us, so that we may have something to obey. Then our love for Jesus will be proven by our responding action to the Word. Here we are talking about love for Jesus, not a love for the things of this world or a love for ourselves, which is translated “selfishness.” Our actions being birthed out of a love for Jesus will be defined as serving, and by repeated practice will transform us into servants. That is Jesus’ goal. Anyone who wants to become more like Him will be a servant. Since Jesus was the Servant of all, the least we could do is become the servant of many. That is love.
12. John 15:10-11 “If you keep My commandments – if you continue to obey My
instructions, you will abide in My love and live on in it; just as I have obeyed My Father’s commandments and live on in His love. I have told you these things that My joy and delight may be in you, and that your joy and gladness may be full measure and complete and overflowing.” Amp
Our desire is to please the Lord. We also want Him to delight in us. His desire is to see us abounding with joy and gladness. Therefore it is imperative that we live a lifestyle of following the instructions laid out in the scriptures, because that is the means to abiding in Christ’s love. Jesus obeyed His Father. That is how He continued to live on in His love. Look at the fruit of Jesus’ obedience and love, then follow His example.
13. 1 Corinthians 2:9 “But as it is written: Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor have
entered into the heart of man, the things which God has prepared for those who love Him.”
Our whole future is determined by our love for God. Our eternal destiny is already plan-ned out for us by our loving Father in Heaven. But while we are present on this planet we can anticipate and experience all the blessings He has prepared for our time here. He has chosen to provide the needs of those who love Him. He protects us from our spiritual and earthly enemies. God has arranged for us to be in a spiritual family, the local church. He gives us children and great friends. There is a great assignment for each of us to be His ambassador to the nations and people around the world. And all we have to do is love Him by keeping His commands to receive this abundance.
14. 2 Timothy 1:7 “For God did not give us a spirit of timidity – of cowardice, of craven
and cringing and fawning fear – but (He has given us a spirit) of power and love and of calm and well-balanced mind and discipline and self-control.” Amp
We can be so thankful that God gave us His spirit when we received Christ into our life. We are no longer cowards or fearful. We have love now. That love is power. That love is wisdom, and God-wisdom gives us a sound mind. My mind is calm and well-balanced. That helps me to have self control and discipline for my life. Circumstances no longer control me, because love is in me now. I am not afraid of what man can do to me as fear has no power over me any more. I have the discipline to go to the Bible for instruction on how to maintain a well-balanced walk with God and live with courage among people. The God of Love has truly changed me, and the Holy Spirit helps me.
15. Hosea 12:6 “Therefore return to your God! Hold fast to love and mercy, and right-
eousness and justice, and wait (expectantly) for your God continually.” Amp
The exhortation in this verse to “hold fast” may well be an indicator that love, mercy,
righteousness, and justice could slip through our fingers or possibly be squeezed out of our lives. What kind of a person would I become without the presence of active love? How Christ-like would I be without righteousness and mercy? I am going to take this admonition seriously. Therefore it will be my priority to value love and keep it actively flowing from my heart and mouth to those around me. I will take the initiative to promote love by giving it freely, not just to those who love me, but especially to those who are hard-hearted, unlovely, resistant to God’s love, and nasty. I believe love is the power of God that can effectively bring people to salvation and freedom from sin.
16. 1 Corinthians 13:4-6 “Love doesn’t want what it doesn’t have, love doesn’t strut,
doesn’t have a swelled head, doesn’t force itself on others, isn’t always ‘me first,’ doesn’t fly off the handle, doesn’t keep score of the sins of others, doesn’t revel when others grovel.” Msg
Now here we have a list of Bible phrases telling us what love is not. We can easily check ourselves to determine if there is real love within us. These definitions are about our character, and what lies within our hearts. Before we will have godly love actions, we are required to have a godly love attitude and character. We are speaking of developing contentment, humility, unselfishness, and forgiveness. Once these kinds of foundational characteristics are in place and growing, our potential to be a vessel of love increases, and becoming an ambassador for Christ can become a reality.
17. 1 Corinthians 13:4-8 “Love suffers long and is kind……bears all things, believes all
things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never fails.”
After noting all the things that love isn’t, we focus on the things that love is and does.
Love does not give up on people or God. It is able to wait because it is patient. This God-love is courteous and kind, it looks out for the welfare of others. Real love rejoices in the blessings and promotions those around us receive from the Lord. The nature of love is that it is generous toward our fellow humans and willing to build them up with hope. It is looking for the best and refuses to look back at the failures of the past. Love is also the fuel that keeps the engines of our faith humming; as we know that faith works by love. Without love we are nothing, our words are empty, and our works become unprofitable. But with love we can do anything, it continues even when we are gone.
18. Romans 13:8-10 “Don’t run up debts, except for the huge debt of love you owe
each other. When you love others, you complete what the law has been after all along. The law code – don’t sleep with another person’s spouse, don’t take someone’s life, don’t take what isn’t yours, don’t always be wanting what you don’t have, and any other “don’t” you can think of – finally adds up to this: Love other people as well as you do yourself. You can’t go wrong when you love others. When you add up everything in the law code, the sum total is love.” Msg
Since Jesus Himself paid for all my debts of sin and wickedness, I owe Him. There is nothing I can do to repay Him, in fact He would refuse anything for Himself, as my freedom was His gift. But on the other hand, there is something I can do to repay Him, and that is to love the people around me. That can be my gift to Jesus, to love others.
19. Ephesians 3:17-18 ”May Christ through your faith (actually) dwell – settle down, a-
bide, make His permanent home – in your hearts! May you be rooted deep in love
and founded securely on love, that you may have the power and be strong to ap-prehend and grasp with all the saints (God’s devoted people, the experience of that love) what is the breadth and length and height and depth (of it).” Amp
Love does not come to abide in us simply because we need it. It is imperative that we exercise our faith to have love settle in our hearts and make a permanent home there. It takes time for love to root deeply within us. It has to be nourished to grow at all. Jesus has provided the way to establish love in us. We give ourselves to read and meditate in the Scriptures, which produces faith and gives us power to apprehend the love made available from the Word of God. The twins, love and faith then grow together in us.
20. Matthew 24:10-12 “And then many will be offended, will betray one another, and
will hate one another. Then many false prophets will rise up and deceive many. And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold. But he who endures to the end will be saved.”
The word “many” appears four times in this passage. Beware of this warning from Jesus. Offences, betrayal, and hatred will abound in the last days in the churches. This condition in the hearts of people will open them up to false prophets spreading lawless-ness among Christians. They will stop caring and loving one another because they will be gripped by the flesh. Their love for Christ will be exchanged by a love for lawless-ness, worldliness, and selfishness. Never let your love for Christ and His people grow cold. Fire up your love now! Practice, Practice, Practice. Exercise your LOVE!
21. Luke 6:27-28 “But I say to you who hear: Love your enemies, do good to those who
hate you, bless those who curse you, and pray for those who spitefully use you.”
Jesus Himself is giving us counsel on how to act as a Christian. Now we need to really
hear, or pay close attention to this Word, with the intention to obey it. He said ‘love your enemies,’ not ‘ignore them,’ which we would rather do. Loving them is proven by doing good to them, not just avoiding their presence. Even if they continue to curse us and spitefully harm us, we bless them continually, pray for them diligently, and even take the initiative to do good deeds for them. Ask the Lord what you specifically should do. I can’t recall anyone ever saying that they asked the Lord what blessing they should give to their abusers. Now if Jesus tells us to do good to them, would He not also be willing to inform us exactly what it is we need to do? Here is a test of real love!
22. Philippians 1:9-11 “So this is my prayer: that your love will flourish and that you
will not only love much but well. Learn to love appropriately. You need to use your head and test your feelings so that your love is sincere and intelligent, not sentimental gush. Live a lover’s life, circumspect and exemplary, a life Jesus will be proud of: bountiful in fruits from the soul, making Jesus Christ attractive to all, getting everyone involved in the glory and praise of God.” Msg
Here is the counsel of a truly spiritual man in jail. This book is often referred to as the happy book. Can you imagine that? But Paul is not a man who only tells us to love, he is the teacher who demonstrates how to love to all sincere apprentices of the faith. He begins by giving thanks to God and praying, which gives him a glad heart. Then he blesses all those who have stood with him. Finally, he writes a letter with a loving heart.
23. 1 Thessalonians 1:2-5 “Every time we think of you, we thank God for you. Day and
night you’re in our prayers as we call to mind your work of faith, your labor of love, and your patience of hope in following our Master, Jesus Christ, before God our Father. It is clear to us, friends, that God not only loves you very much but also has put His hand on you for something special. When the Message we preached came to you, it wasn’t just words. Something happened in you. The Holy Spirit put steel in your convictions. Msg
All the work we do in the Kingdom of God should be motivated by love for Jesus Christ.
God is love, and His Word has the power to change us on the inside. It is that power that Paul the Apostle says puts steel in our convictions. The special assignment God has entrusted to us is to love one another with unwavering faith and patience.
24. James 1:12 “Blessed, happy, to be envied is the man who is patient under trial and
stands up under temptation, for when he has stood the test and been approved he will receive (the victor’s) crown of life which God has promised to those who love Him.” Amp
I really do want that crown of life promised by God. It seems clear to me from this pas-sage that the victor’s reward has a price on it. There are tests to pass, like temptations that come to plague our lives. There are trials ahead of us that will require patience to endure, and every attitude will come under scrutiny to reveal just how deep and true our love for Christ is. I pray to the Lord today to strengthen me for the road ahead so I can stand the testing and be approved by Him in the end. I am getting set to receive the blessing and happiness and joy of the Lord as my life exemplifies His love.
25. 1 Timothy 6:10 “For the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil, for which
some have strayed from the faith in their greediness, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.”
God has wanted us to be content with what we have. If we have obeyed the direction of the Scriptures to tithe and give, and lived the way Jesus instructs us, we should always have an abundance for every good work. Why then should we demand more than the harvest God gives us or become greedy for more. It must cause Him sorrow if we begin to think more about money than Himself. If that craving for things gets a strong hold on us we can become addicted to materialism and greed just like a drug addict is over-come by his need for narcotics. The next step: money has become our God, and Jesus has been set aside. What follows is all kinds of evil growing from the roots of greed.
26. Hebrews 13:1 “ Let love for your fellow believers continue and be a fixed practice
with you – never let it fail.” Amp
This is easy to say, but let’s get practical. Don’t forget or neglect to extend hospitality to your neighbors as well as to strangers that should come into your gatherings. Be friendly and gracious to people you encounter in the marketplace and those you meet while walking in the street. In fact you may just walk uptown instead of driving your car so God can arrange a divine appointment for you. Get over your insecurity by forcing yourself to be a little bolder. Share the comforts and abundance of your home with someone you would not normally hang out with. Make a way for love to happen. Keep your eyes open for the opportunity. Listen with your heart for someone needing an invi-tation to be with you. Who knows, you may entertain angels without knowing it!
27. John 5:42-43 “But I know you, and recognize and understand that you have not the
love of God in you. I have come in My Father’s Name and with His power and you do not receive Me – your hearts are not open to Me, you give Me no welcome. But if another comes in his own name and his own power and with no other authority but himself, you will receive him and give him your approval.” Amp
Now here is a strong word from Jesus Himself. He says that if we are inclined to accept and approve people who come in their own name instead of accepting Jesus or those who will come with His authority and representing Him, we don’t have the love of God in us. Maybe Jesus is warning us that people pleasers could be suspect of not loving God first. Do we just want to impress others to make them like us or possibly get a promotion in life. Let’s really be aware of keeping an open and welcoming heart toward Christ.
28. 1 Thessalonians 3:12-13 “ And may the Lord make you increase and abound in love
to one another and to all, just as we do to you, so that He may establish your hearts blameless in holiness before our God and Father at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ with all His saints.”
Here is a great declaration from Paul to the church: that the people would grow in love. He is confident that God would assist them to increase in this fruit. We know that God’s measure of increase is often by multiplication; therefore we too can believe, like the Scripture has said, for love to abound to fill us up. Our hearts are established in purity and holiness as we practice love over and over to all who come within reach of our words and our actions. This kind of love is contagious, so let’s get out there where the people are and generously infect many with it! Make it a love revolution!
29. Psalm 119:165-168 “ Those who love your laws have great peace of heart and mind
and do not stumble. I long for Your salvation, Lord, and so I have obeyed Your laws. I have looked for Your commandments and I love them very much; yes, I have searched for them. You know this because everything I do is known to you.” LB
The love for God’s laws is the evidence that we truly love Him. Love for the church family is also a sign of real love. These are the Great Commandments. Genuine love for the Lord keeps us from stumbling in people relationships and also brings us peace in our minds. It is so important to keep seeking the Lord and being willing to embrace Him through obeying His commandments. Let the Lord and His Word be our first priority and then let our lives be governed in every way by the love He pours out to us.
30. Galatians 5:22 “ But when the Holy Spirit controls our lives He will produce this
kind of fruit in us: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self control, and here there is no conflict with Jewish laws.” LB
Once the Holy Spirit governs us we have the potential to manifest all of these nine gifts; it is not like He only gives us one or two choices. In fact we are expected to bear all of the fruit available. We are not to be just a peace tree, a goodness tree or a joy tree. We, as a tree planted by the rivers of water that brings forth fruits in season, should be daily bearing all of the harvest intended by the Holy Spirit. I really think love is a key fruit here. With love we can grow all the other fruit. Without love it will be nearly impossible to have much patience, self control or faithfulness. A lack of love will definitely affect the measure of joy, kindness and gentleness in us. Therefore let us love well!
31. Galatians 2:20 “ I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but
Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.”
I live a new, different life, now that Christ is in me. This is a completely opposite life that I lived before my encounter with Jesus. Just like Jesus was crucified and He died, my old self was crucified and is now dead. Here I am – new being, new person! I have been overpowered by the love of God to the point that love took over – forgiveness came in and the blood that Jesus shed washed all that sin and wickedness away. Love brought freedom to me. I am a new person, with new freedom, and new faith in the Son of God. All this came as a free gift because of the great love of God. So as a son or daughter of love, this life I live in the flesh has become a life of faith that I can give for others, as Jesus did for me.