You Are Dearly Loved
By David J. Stewart
September
2007 | Updated November 2015
The
Test Of Spiritual Maturity
(Jesus called Judas, “friend.” Love
all or you love none!)
I love you in the Lord, whoever you may be. I became a born-again Christian when I was 13-years-old, a little over a third-of-a-century ago. I praise God for saving me, and equally so for giving me the blessed assurance of my salvation. It took 7-years to settle the matter of my salvation, but I finally obtained the sweet peace in my soul that I had so longed for with the Lord's help. I've written a book about some of the things I learned, SALVATION, to help others.My how time flies! Most of what the heathen unsaved world calls “love” is really lust, fondness or self-gratification. Oftentimes “love” is nothing more than a smokescreen for one's desire to have their needs met. Love seeks to give, not take. Love seeks to forgive, not remember one's sins. It is impossible to truly love someone without God, for God is love. The world needs God today as much as ever!
The Beatles sang the hit song in 1967, “All You Need Is Love.” Unfortunately, what they misunderstood for “love” is sinful compromise, ecumenism and worldliness. This is not God's unconditional love. The sinful world is taught to accept one another as they are in total ungodliness, and no one dare criticize another's heathen religious beliefs or immorality. The world will tolerate anyone except a born-again Christian. Whereas the Word of God in John 14:6 plainly teaches that Jesus Christ is the ONLY way to Heaven, the heathen world teaches that there are many paths to the light.
The world exploits the truth, hiding their tolerance for wickedness behind the disguise of “love.” When a faithful Bible-believing preacher stands up in the pulpit and proclaims the Word of God, denouncing sin and exposing false prophets by name, wicked people accuse him of “lacking love.” The world adores and praises religious phonies like Joel Osteen and Rick Warren, cream puff preachers who never take a stand for anything godly. Pastor Osteen is a motivational speaker, sought by business people across the country to inspire young entrepreneurs and employees. No one preaches against sin anymore! No one warns sinners of the reality of a burning Hell, where all Christ-rejecters will spend eternity. Rick Warren has a net worth of $25,000,000 and Joel Osteen $40,000,000. Serving the Devil's New World Order pays off!
Many people haven't a clue what real “love” is. In its most purest form, “love” is the character of God. Many people mistake kindness, a cooperative spirit and generosity for love. These are not love, although they may be an expression of love. So what is love? Biblically, love is God's character. God is love and all genuine love ultimately originates from God. 1st John 4:8, “He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love.” If I am to love you, then I must yield to God's Holy Spirit in obedience to the Holy Bible, allowing the FRUIT of the Holy Spirit (God's character) to flow through me to you.
Galatians 5:22-25, “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts. If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.”
I love all my web visitors. Perhaps you ask, “How can you love someone that you've never met?” That is the nature of God's unconditional love. God doesn't love us for who we are, but because of Who He is. Likewise, I love you because of Christ in me, and it matters not who or what you are as a human being. I love you and there's nothing you can do about it!
1st John 4:16, “And we have known and believed the love that God hath to us. God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him.” Interestingly, 1st John 4:16 makes dwelling in love synonymous with dwelling in God. This is why we read in the Book of Matthew...
Matthew 22:35-40, “Then one of them, which was a lawyer, asked him a question, tempting him, and saying, Master, which is the great commandment in the law? Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.”
The entire Holy Bible is based upon these two simple commandments of God, which are really just one, that is, TO LOVE!!!