The older I get the more I understand that to love God is to obey Him. We can’t say I love God and then not obey His commands.
This verse backs up this statement: “This is love for God: To obey His commands. And His commands are not burdensome, for everyone born of God overcomes the world.” (1 John 5: 3)
- To love one another is the greatest command.
“Who is it that overcomes the world? Only He who believes that Jesus is the Son of God.” (1 John 5: 5)
- If you want to overcome, come to the Son.
“Anyone who believes in the Son of God has this testimony in his heart.” (1 John 5: 10)
What’s the testimony? “God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He who has the Son has life, he who does not have the Son of God does not have life.” (1 John 5: 12)
John wrote these words so we can understand. “To you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life.” (1 John 5: 13)
- Believing in Jesus is knowing you have eternal life.
After John’s message about loving God and eternal life, he says this, “Dear children, keep yourselves from idols.” (1 John 5: 21)
(Shared from 1 John 5, Modified)
To Love Is To Worship Him
“It is good to praise the Lord and make music to your name, O Most High, to proclaim your love in the morning and your faithfulness at night, to be the music of the ten-stringed lyre and the melody of the harp. (Psalm 92: 1-2)
- Worship shall flourish in the courts of God.
“The righteous will flourish like a palm tree, they will grow like a cedar of Lebanon, planted in the house of the Lord, they will flourish in the courts of our God. They will still bear in old age, and they will stay fresh and green.” (Psalm 92: 12-14)
I’m liking this. We will bear old age and stay fresh.
- Palm trees are able to withstand great winds of adversity when they blow.
When we are fresh we are, “Proclaiming the Lord is upright, He is my Rock and there is no wickedness in Him.” (Psalm 92: 15)
I’m reminded of the promise in Psalm 1 that says,
- Our leaf will not wither.
- Fruit will yield in season.
- The Living Water will supply water making us refreshed.
(Shared from Psalm 92, Modified)
Rebuild The Altar With Sacrifices Of Praise
Ezra was called to rebuild the temple, yes, rebuild the altar, “Despite their fear of the peoples around them, they built the altar of God to sacrifice burnt offering on it to the Lord, both the morning and evening sacrifices.” (Ezra 3: 3)
- Fear of man can never stop the building God requires.
- God is calling us to offer sacrifices, not of animals, but sacrifices of praise.
“When the builders laid the foundation of the temple of the Lord, the priests in their vestments and with trumpets, and the Levites, with cymbals, took their places to praise, the Lord.”
- Church, it’s time to take our place to praise, to once again build up and lay the foundation of praise.
- When worship is the foundation laid, repentance, revival and joy will occur.
- Expect opposition when we press forward in the things of God.
“The peoples around them (the builders) set out to discourage the people of Judah and make them afraid to go on building.” (Ezra 4: 4)
- There are some that want to set out to discourage.
- Recognize them.
So the people that did not want them to rebuild, sent a letter to the king requesting that the royal revenues would suffer because the taxes would be withheld. So “The work on the house of God in Jerusalem came to a standstill until the second year of the reign of Darius king of Persia.” (Ezra 4: 24)
- Delay does not mean denial.
- If God called you to it, expect opposition, wait on God and He shall release in His way and in His time!
(Shared for Ezra 3-4, Modified)
UNBROKEN LOVE SERIES
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