Love Like You’re Being Loved

eDevotion

Encouragement for your daily walk with God

There are many issues in life that need to come from deep within our hearts. But we have a problem. The prophet Jeremiah told us that the heart is “deceitful above all things and desperately wicked” [Jeremiah 17:9]. A lifelong you-are-my-one-and-only love, just doesn’t seem to be in our hearts. An I’m-sticking-with-you-no-matter-what kind of friendship, cannot be found in our hearts. And what about loving your enemies like Jesus talked about? Impossible! We need help beyond our hearts, a transfusion of sorts. If we are to love as God does, we must start by receiving and living in His love. 

It’s easy to quote Bible verses like, “Love one another” [John 15:17], or “be kindly affectionate to one another with brotherly love” [Romans 12:10], or “above all things have fervent love for one another” [1 Peter 4:8], but it’s another thing to live it unless the love of God has been “poured out” in your heart [Romans 5:5]. A good analogy is check writing. It doesn’t do any good to write a check unless there are sufficient funds in your account to cover it. Trying to love without love is, well, impossible. 

No wonder so many friendships are overdrawn and marriages bankrupt. People are writing love checks with insufficient funds!

The key to loving is to have your heart filled with the love of God. The secret to loving is living loved.

This is how God showed His love among us: He sent His one and only Son into the world that we might live through Him. This is love… 1 John 4:9-10a