Godly Love - Accountability

The Christian has accountability to The Word of God. We must abide by God's rules in order to live a life filled with God's presence. There is no compromise in the pages of The Holy Bible, and there can be no compromise with sin.

"A little leaven, leavens the whole lump." Galatians 5:9

In fact this chapter reminds us that we must walk in love, the liberty of love; loving one another without sin in it. "Love one another" is a repeated phrase in our King James Bible. It stands to reason, therefore, that this Godly Love, this Agape Love, must be used to love each other wholly.

Love based on the color of one's skin, or on cultural unity, or on denominational status is not Agape Love. That love is compromised, for within its exclusivity there is no room for any other than themselves.

The love of God exceeds all man-made boundaries: "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes on Him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved." John 3: 16,17.

God's Love is for THE WHOLE WORLD. And every one in it. We are to love each other with this love. This love is sacrificial and beneficial to both the one who loves and the one who is loved by the other. This love is in me because Jesus Christ lives in my heart. This love is active in my life because The Holy Spirit was sought after by me and given to me by God.

I am whosoever will because I believe that Jesus Christ is The Only Begotten Son of God. He died on the cross to pay the death penalty for my sins because He loves me. He fought death, hell and the grave and walked out of the tomb because He loves me. But before He ascended on clouds into His Father's presence, He reminded us that He would send The Comforter in His place.

This Comforter would reveal The Truth in God's Word: The whole Bible is The Word of God. And we now know through much study and prayer that Jesus Christ Is The Word of God. That Bible on your shelf isn't just a representation of God's Holy Word: IT IS GOD'S WORD. IT IS, in print, GOD'S SON.

That is not a relic of times past. To change The Bible is to condemn your soul to hell by your actions and your own wisdom, which is foolishness. Therefore, any Bible which has been modified to redact certain verses which make a person uncomfortable, is not a Holy Bible any more. It is just a book.

What makes The Holy Bible difficult to read for many is not the 'thees' and 'thous', but it is the declaration of what is sin and what is not sin. It is the Do's and Don'ts of living a righteous perfect life before God. It is the unwillingness to surrender one's heart and mind and life to God's Will, God's Heart, God's Salvation.

Without first surrendering your heart to God when you believe on The Name of The Lord Jesus Christ for your salvation, you cannot understand The Written Word on your own. You and I both need this precious Holy Spirit of God which Christ sent into the world on they who believe and wait for It. Without The Holy Spirit revealing Truth and Wisdom in God's Word, I could not speak to you as such.

Without the love of God working in me, perfecting my soul, I could not boldly tell you of God's redeeming love. A love which is unconditional: there are no strings attached to Godly love. This love is defined in 1 Corinthians 13, using the word 'charity'.

Godly Love is longsuffering. Longsuffering means patiently enduring. Hebrews 12:1-4

Godly Love is kind. Mercy and Compassion are evident in action and speech. Psalm 23:6

Godly Love is un-envious. It does not want what someone else has. Philippians 4:11-13

Godly Love is not prideful. Proverbs 8:13, 16:6; Psalm 97:10

Godly Love is mindful of one's actions. Unseemly behavior, acting out and tantrums, are not a way of life with this love. Psalm 112:4; Romans 12:1,2

Godly Love seeks to please others before self. John 13:34, 35

Godly Love is not easily provoked. Every offense must not be reciprocated with vengeance. Remember Godly Love covers all sins and forgives all. John 3:16

Godly Love does not think evil thoughts. Philippians 4:8

Godly Love rejoices not in sin, but in truth. Hebrews 11:24-26

Godly Love bears all things. Psalm 91

Godly Love believes all things. Romans 8:38, 39

Godly Love hopes all things. Galatians 5:5, 6

Godly Love endures all things. 1 Timothy 6:11, 12; Ephesians 6:13, 14

Godly Love never fails. Endures everlastingly, for ever. Absolute. Without end. From everlasting to everlasting. Psalm 145:8, 9

The born again Christian chooses to allow Christ to live and breathe through him and her. We choose to live godly lifestyles. We choose to be perfected by The Holy Spirit, that we might become holy and then be allowed into God's eternal presence, after our bodies die. We choose to have Christ love through us to whomsoever we may encounter in our lives. We choose to love you even if you do not reciprocate that love to us. We cannot help ourselves. We are the love of God to the whole world. 

Understanding Psalm 23-The Joy of Being Pursued

Psalm 23:6
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of The Lord for ever.

~Surely (because of) what I now know to be true and Truth, because I know now Who my Shepherd, my Lord, is to me and for me, goodness (the good things of God) and mercy (the lovingkindness of God) shall follow me (pursue, chase after, hunt [down], run after) all the days (sunrise to sunrise) of my life (chronicles, age, daily living): and I will dwell (live, inhabit, settle down in, remain) in the house of The Lord for ever.~

Bringing together in six short but meaning-filled verses, David writes of a relationship with God that is like no other. It is a lifelong commitment that requires knowing not only Who loves you but who hates you and is against you. For in these verses we learn right away that we have enemies: enemies who would love nothing more than to see us fail and die. We learn that the only way to survive is to be near God, The Good Shepherd. And that is just what Jesus called Himself. In John 10:11, Jesus is speaking to the crowds, among whom are the Pharisees. "I am The Good Shepherd; The Good Shepherd lays down His life for His sheep."

Surely, meaning beyond a shadow of a doubt, I know for a fact, and do believe with all of my heart, that the good things which God has prepared for me, and His mercy, His lovingkindness, pursue me and follow me so closely that there is no way anything else could ever catch me and throw me off my course.

For this is an endurance race: to the finish we must run, to the prize which is before us, to obtain a good report from The Lord, we must keep every part of our being focused on Him. For The Lord God is our Good Shepherd, and where He leads we must follow in order to place our feet where they must go. Seldom, do we actually see sheep fall down a mountain or hillside, though it does happen. Their feet are created to bound across mountaintops and hills, to walk narrow paths around mountainsides. But if their feet follow their appetite, they will fall.

If we allow our appetite to take control of the direction we go, then we have put our needs first. It is only when we take our eyes off of ourselves and place them back on The Lord God that we are able to avoid distractions which will delay our arrival at the finish line. Every part of the body of Christ works together successfully in order that God's purpose might be fulfilled. And God's purpose Will Be Fulfilled, make no doubt about that.

Not all hunts end in death. Geo-caching is when one person buries objects in different locations, then creates a map using a GPS for others to follow and find the object. Buried treasures the 21st century way. But God's treasures are in God's Word. To find them we must first believe and accept that Jesus Christ is Lord. We must believe God's Word to be Truth and without error or fault. We must acknowledge and admit that we are sinners in God's eyes, according to God's Standards. We must repent of our sins, turn away from doing them, and begin our new life in Christ. "He reveals the deep and secret things: He knows what is in the darkness, and the light dwells in Him." Daniel 2:22

We must also seek out and be baptized with God's Holy Spirit. For it is The Spirit which reveals the Truth of God's Word. Just reading our Bible will not work. You cannot look for God's buried treasure without the proper tools. Do you just dig a hole with your hands? No. You need to use the right tool for the job at hand. So, in order to dig into God's Word properly we need to #1 Repent of sins in our life and believe that Jesus Christ is Lord of all and #1 Be baptized with The Holy Spirit with the evidence of speaking in tongues. #3 Be faithful to God in reading His Word and obeying Him. You will know when God is speaking to you, telling you to do this or that, depending on where He is leading you.

But wherever God leads you and I, surely goodness and mercy shall follow us. And not just some of the time but all the time: all the days of my life. For ever. I keep tasting that word 'surely' and it sits well on my tongue. Surely. Because of what has been and what is and what will be. Because I know and believe. Because it has been declared and I also declare it. Surely.

 With sure-footed faith I follow God's leading. I may not always see where He is taking me, but I believe that when He goes before me, He will not leave me. Regardless of how steep the climb, how rough the way, how seemingly impossible the path. God's hand is on me. And it can be on you, too, if not already in place.

Goodness. "Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from The Father of lights; with Whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning." James 1:17


Mercy. Psalm 136 speaks continually, like running water through my soul, of God's mercy enduring for ever.

There are 26 verses in this chapter and each one gives a reason and a statement: Who God is or what God has done AND His mercy endures for ever. God's mercy is God's favor. Those who believe and follow will have God's favor on them FOR EVER. It is one of many promises which God makes to us through His Word. For ever God Is. That tastes good, too.

And I shall dwell in the house of The Lord for ever. Where does The Lord live? Well, God inhabits the praises of His people-Psalm 22:3. He also states that He lives in a house not made with hands-Mark 14:58 and 2 Corinthians 5:1. He covers Himself with light-Psalm 104:2. In Him is no darkness-1 John 1:5.

When Jesus prayed in the garden before He was arrested, He asked that we become one in Him as He is in The Father and as The Father is in Him-John 17:21. Why? "That the world may believe." God is in Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ is in God. Believers are in Jesus Christ and Jesus Christ is in us. We are God's children, God's people, and where we go, God goes with us, Christ goes with us, The Holy Spirit goes with us. For each dwells/lives/stays/remains in us when we believe.

We who believe that Jesus Christ  is Lord of All, that He is God's only begotten Son who died on the cross and rose from the dead, are one in spirit, one in truth and one in heart. Jeremiah 32:39 "I will give them one heart and one way, that they may fear Me For Ever, for the good of them, and for their children after them."
Acts 4:32 "And the multitude of them that believed were of one heart and of one soul: neither said any of them that ought of the things which he possessed was his own, but they had all things common."

Ephesians 4:1-6

 I, therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you that you walk worthy of the vocation with which you are called, With all lowliness and meekness, with long-suffering, forbearing one another in love; Endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. There is one body, and one Spirit, even as you are called in one hope of your calling; One Lord, one faith, one baptism, One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all. 


FOR EVER.

Psalm 59:16

Woke up singing Matt Redman's 10,000 Reasons. It's gonna be a good day.