From: Beverly French [frenchb@vcss.k12.ca.us]
Sent: Tuesday, July 01, 2003 2:38 PM
To: Ted & Laura Enke
Subject: Greetings to All

From: "Beverly French" <frenchb@vcss.k12.ca.us>
To: "Heritage" <gheritage.ga@verizon.net>
Sent: Sunday, June 29, 2003 7:45 AM
Subject: Greetings to All

 "This is My commandment, that you love one another, just as I have loved  you."  John 15:12  "'...You shall love your neighbor as yourself.'  Matthew 19:19  "But I say to you, love your enemies, and pray for those who persecute you."  Matthew 5:44

 Last week we looked into doing the will of God and in so doing the need to  be careful of our walk, our conduct before man.  Now here we are  confronted with Christ's words concerning love.  Our love is not for a  select few of our choosing, those who love us, for that would be easy to do.  But Scripture asks,  "Do not even the tax-gathers do the same?" Our  Scripture for this morning leaves no one out.  Because 'God so loved...He  gave.'  His desire is that 'none should perish, but have eternal life.' And  what did Jesus do?  In obedience to His Father's will, He went to the cross  and died for the sin of mankind so that we could be reconciled to God.  All  thanks and praise to the Lord.

 But love all people?  Impossible with the kind of love that emanates from  mankind!  This love is God's love, agape and it is seen in the gift of His
 Son:
 "By this the love of God was manifested in us, that God has sent His only  begotten Son into the world so that we might live through Him.  In this is  love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be  the propitiation for our sins.  Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought  to love one another."  1 John 4:9-11

 God's love was not drawn out by any goodness on man's part (we were at  enmity to Him),  it was an act of the Divine will a deliberate choice that  emanates from the nature of God Himself.

 The Lord Jesus Christ is the perfect expression of love and as He lives in  us, it is He who manifests this love.  Christian love is the fruit of His  Spirit in the Christian!

 Vine's Expository Dictionary says,
 "Christian love, whether exercised toward the brethren, or toward men  generally, is not an impulse from the feelings, it does not always run with  the natural inclinations, nor does it spend itself only upon those for whom  some affinity is discovered.  Love seeks the welfare of all (Romans 15:2,  "Let each of us please his neighbor for his good, to his  edification."), and works no ill to any  (Romans 13:8, "Owe nothing to  anyone except to love one another; for he who loves his neighbor has  fulfilled the law."); love seeks opportunity to do good to 'all men, and  especially toward them that are of the household of the faith,'  (Galatians 6:10, "So then, while we have opportunity, let us do good  to all men...")

 I am sure you all can go to a Scripture that describes this love;  1 Corinthians 13:4-8a.  To me Galatians 5:22-23 does exactly this as  well.  These verses list the nine fruit of the Spirit and I like to look at  love as the fruit and the eight words following as the  description/definition of this love.  (Compare it with the 1 Corinthians
 Scripture.) "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience,  kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control ; against such  things there is no law."  Galatians 5:22-23

 It is only in Christ Jesus and by the control of the Holy Spirit can we love  the way we are called to do.  So let us therefore draw near to the throne  of grace and yield to the will of God in this commandment to 'Love one  another just as Christ has loved us.'  "Walk in love, just as Christ also loved you..."  Ephesians 5:2  "...As He is, so also are we in this world."  1 John 4:17

 All praise to the only wise God our Savior now and forever.  Amen.