Sunday 29 Sep 2013

Sunday Reading: Hebrews 13:1-2

Key Verse: Hebrews 13:1
1  Let brotherly love continue.

Devotion:
When we look at the death on the cross, the price Jesus Christ paid for our sins, we see the awful truth about our sins and the horrible side of life. We even look at the emotional side and try to put ourselves in His shoes so that we can try to begin to understand just what He went through. But even if we get close to the horror that Christ had to face, we will still be missing one of the most important reasons why.

Why did Christ give His life on the cross for us? Because of His great love for us.

We read and remember that there is no greater display of love than someone giving their life for someone else and it is not something we get to experience from the giving side unless we actually do give our life. We may be lucky enough to experience it from the receiving side when someone gives their life for us (apart from the gift Christ gave us). The love Christ displayed is meant to be the greatest example of love that we can imagine and it is that seed that God has sewn in our hearts so that we will be able to share true Christian love with others. As I sit and write these words down a few people spring into my mind, people that I love to love because I know them as true, honest, loving Christians themselves. It is easy to love people like that because they are so special in our eyes and so special in the eyes of God. But what about the other people that we get to meet?

It is may seem odd to most people that you can love someone from the very first moment that you see them; but if you are willing to allow Christ to guide you through your life then you too will be able to love those people that God brings into your life for a very special reason. I am not talking about the beautiful women or the handsome men because all of us are beautiful – it’s just hard to find that beauty in some people who hide it so well. God wants us to share His love with others and that means opening up your heart even when you are scared that you will be hurt. After being hurt some time ago I gave up on that love for a while but quickly found out that by doing that I was closing off Christ’s love to others as well. Don’t be scared of loving people; just let God guide you toward the people He wants in your life and stop trying to choose what you want!

Points to Ponder:
Do you actually allow yourself to love others?

Can you name three people you really, really love?