Gospel.com Blog

If God loves everybody, what’s so special about the fact that he loves me? Is God’s love for all of us exactly the same, and does that mean there’s nothing individual or unique about our relationship with Him? Those are the central questions in a devotional article from Nehemiah Ministries. Author Blaine Smith explains why humans long for distinctiveness—and why we long for a relationship for God that is unique:

We long, on the one hand, to know that our work and accomplishment are unique–that we’re able to contribute something to human life that no one else can. But we also yearn for distinctiveness in relationships. Much of the thrill of being loved and cherished by someone is the sense of being special that goes along with it. You know that you’re accepted for who you are, and esteemed in a way that’s different from that person’s affection for anyone else.

Yet if God loves everyone in an equal, unbiased fashion, how can there be anything distinctive about a relationship with him? What’s so novel about receiving his love? What possibility for creative accomplishment is there in living for him? You’re simply one of the mass of believers, responding to a vast cosmic love force.

But thankfully, that isn’t the end of the story, as Blaine explains—God may love His children equally, but there’s nothing “generic” about that love. Read the complete devotional at Nehemiah Notes.

Today’s devotional comes from Our Daily Bread and is based on the story of the Good Samaritan. In the devotional, the author recounts a story of how he reacted with total and urgent love for himself after a nasty cut:

It would have been simpler just to buy a new hair dryer. But determined to save a buck, I decided to fix it myself. In order to loosen the screw that was buried deep in the handle, I took out the ultimate handyman’s helper—my pocket knife. As I put pressure on the knife to turn the screw, the blade folded back—on my finger.

I learned a lesson that day: I love myself. And I am urgent about meeting my needs. There was no thought of, “Well, I don’t really have time to stop the bleeding now. I’ll get to it later.” Also, there was a tenderness about how the need was met. I instructed my first-aid team (my wife and kids) to wash my finger gently and then to put the bandage on in a way that would avoid having the hairs on my finger pulled up when it was removed. My thoughts, words, and actions were driven by my love for myself.

Read the whole devotional at Our Daily Bread.

How do you share the love you have for yourself with others? How do you practically love your neighbor as yourself?

Are you ever tempted, when you read about a crisis in a faraway place or an injustice committed against somebody you don’t know, to say “Well, it’s none of my business”? Today’s devotional from Our Daily Bread calls to mind not only the ongoing struggle against racism and discrimination, but the disaster unfolding in Haiti. If we are followers of Christ, then all of these truly are “our business”:

Making another’s concerns our own is what Leviticus 19:18 calls us to do: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” Jesus quotes this verse and interprets it as not placing any limitations on loving those around us (Matt. 22:39; Luke 10:25-37). Our neighbor doesn’t just mean someone close by; it’s anyone who has a need. We are to care for others as we care for ourselves.

To love our neighbor means to make the persecution, suffering, and injustice of our fellow human beings our own. It is the business of all who follow Christ.

Read the full devotional at Our Daily Bread.

In today’s world, the number of injustices and needs that demand addressing far exceed the ability of any individual Christian to deal with. But these things nevertheless are our business. Sometimes that might mean helping out in a direct, physical way… and sometimes, it means simply praying and yearning for the justice that will arrive with the Kingdom of God.

This question was posed to a small group that I participated in last night. We never came to a consensus, but it generated a lively discussion.

Personally, it’s far harder for me to receive love—from both God and other people—than it is to give it. Giving has always come naturally to me; but when love is proffered to me, two thoughts spring to mind: there’s a catch and I don’t deserve this.

What about you? Is it easier for you to receive love or to give it?

Share your thoughts!

Mere Comments links to a moving story of Christian love in action in a Lutheran pastor’s account of life in prison in Communist Romania. Within the pastor’s account is an amazing story of a dying priest’s love for his tormentor. Here’s the relevant passage (although the account is worth reading in its entirety):

At my right hand was a priest by the name of Iscu. He was abbot of a monastery. This man, perhaps in his forties, had been so tortured he was near to death. But his face was serene. He spoke about his hope of heaven, about his love of Christ, about his faith. He radiated joy.

On my left side was the Communist torturer who had tortured this priest almost to death. He had been arrested by his own comrades….

And so it happened that the Communist torturer who had tortured this priest nearly to death had been tortured nearly to death by his comrades. And he was dying near me. His soul was in agony.

During the night he would awaken me, saying, “Pastor, please pray for me. I can’t die, I have committed such terrible crimes.”

Then I saw a miracle. I saw the agonized priest calling two other prisoners. And leaning on their shoulders, slowly, slowly he walked past my bed, sat on the bedside of this murderer, and caressed his head — I will never forget this gesture. I watched a murdered man caressing his murderer! That is love — he found a caress for him.

[The priest told him], “If I who am a sinner can love you so much, imagine Christ, who is Love Incarnate, how much He loves you! And all the Christians whom you have tortured, know that they forgive you, they love you, and Christ loves you. He wishes you to be saved much more than you wish to be saved. You wonder if your sins can be forgiven. He wishes to forgive your sins more than you wish your sins to be forgiven. He desires for you to be with Him in heaven much more than you wish to be in heaven with Him. He is Love. You only need to turn to Him and repent.”

According to the account, the torturer accepted Christ, and died of his wounds later that night—as did the priest he had tortured. Mere Comments has some excellent commentary on the story, and on the Christian imperative to love our enemies.

“Love your enemies” is a familiar phrase to most Christians. Most Christians I know try, with varying degrees of success, to pray for their “enemies” or tormentors (although no Christian I know can match the above incident for its suffering and drama). But this story, and Mere Comments’ reflections, challenge us not just to pray for or abstractly “love” our enemies. We are to understand that Jesus loves even our fiercest, most antagonistic enemies with a depth we can’t comprehend. The same love that called us into a relationship with Christ wants the same for our bitterest enemies.

Do you pray for your enemies—not just that they’ll stop tormenting you, but that they’ll know the peace of Jesus Christ? When you look at them, do you see a person who has unique worth in God’s eyes? If they needed help—spiritual, emotional, or physical—would you be the first to offer aid, or would you sit back and let them reap the consequences of their actions?

As trivial as it might seem compared to “real” holidays like Christmas and Easter, Valentine’s Day can be alternately exciting and terrifying. Although several years of marriage have given me a new perspective on relationships and this particular holiday, I remember well the weirdness of being single on Valentine’s Day: if you’re in a relationship, it prompts all sorts of deep and difficult questions about love and commitment; and if you’re not in a romantic relationship, Valentine’s Day is at best an annoyance to be skipped past and forgotten as quickly as possible.

But whether you’re enjoying your 40th year of marriage or are planning to stay home and watch the NBA Dunk Contest by yourself this Saturday, it’s still worth taking a few minutes to consider the Bible’s teachings about love and relationships. One of the most thoughtful Christian writers I know on this topic is Blaine Smith of Nehemiah Ministries. Here are two essays that will get you thinking this Valentine’s Day:

• Is God a Matchmaker? Written with singles in mind, this essay tackles an oft-repeated but somewhat dubious claim: that God has picked out one perfect person for you to marry. So are you supposed to sit back and wait for God to bring that person into your life—and how would you even recognize the “right” person? Blaine finds the message behind this idea a bit troubling, and has some good suggestions for singles intimidated by the prospect of finding Mr. or Mrs. Right.
• The Compassion Factor: what does real love look like? It doesn’t always bear much resemblance to the love on display in books, movies, and popular culture. If our expectations about love are unrealistic, we risk failing to recognize it when it appears.

Both of these essays are from Blaine’s book Should I Get Married?, which despite the title is not just for couples considering marriage; it’s a good all-around book about Biblical relationships and romantic love. Enjoy—and have a good Valentine’s Day!

No one would argue that Jesus’ teaching to love our enemies is easy. In fact, it might just be the hardest of his commands. I know from time to time I’ve wondered—did he really mean all of our enemies?

In this article Delve into Jesus discusses what it means to love our enemies:

The love of which Jesus speaks is not a feeling in any sense of the word. It is a decision resulting in action. It is a choice you make that has nothing whatsoever to do with how you feel, and quite often, occurs in spite of a feeling to the contrary. This kind of love judges the needs of a person but never the person themselves, and responds according to the gravity of the need, never the character of the person. […]

This is the kind of love that Christ demands – not a feeling, but rather a spirit of service, selflessness and humility. It is the ability to give to others with no regard to what they can do to repay you, what they feel for you or what you feel for them.

Jump over to the site to read the rest of the article from Delve into Jesus.

Love is in the air today, whether you’re planning a romantic date with your significant other tonight, or are eagerly waiting for the holiday to be over and done with. There are a lot of useful articles and resources at Gospel.com about sex, marriage, dating, and relationships, and today seems a perfect time to highlight some of them. Here are some Valentine’s-themed items to get you thinking:

• ACTS International has a large collection of articles about marriage and relationships that are worth perusing. In particular, check out The Art of Staying in Love and Seven Secrets for a Successful Marriage, both of them aimed at married people. If you’re single, take a look at Single and Satisfied and Sex and the Single Adult.
• In a serious relationship, and thinking about marriage? InterVarsity has a free Bible study that explores the question What Qualities Should I Look for in a Future Spouse?
• Blaine Smith of Nehemiah Ministries has written a lot of good material (including a few books) about relationships, dating, and marriage. One of his best articles on the topic is Is God a Matchmaker?, which looks at the question of whether or not God has chosen a “special someone” for you.
• If you’re looking for short, inspirational messages about love and relationships, In His Steps has two collections of devotionals on the subject: one set of Valentine’s Day devotionals, and another set of devotionals about love.
• The ThinkChristian blog has two items talking about sex and the Christian life: a report on Lauren Winner’s speech about whether good sex is possible in marriage; and another asking whether Christians are too uptight about sex in general.
• On the ever-popular topic of sex, writer James Watkins has an entire site dedicated to “adult topics”: the Adult Site for Adults, where he talks frankly about, well, adult topics like sex and relationships.
• On the lighter side, Reverend Fun has a nice collection of cartoons with a Valentine’s Day theme.
• No collection of holiday links would be complete without a word from the Christian History Institute. So who was the original St. Valentine? And was he a romantic Romeo-type figure? Why is Valentine’s Day named after him?

That’s a lot of reading to do between now and tonight. But even after the romance of Valentine’s Day has come and goes, much of this material can help you keep your relationships healthy and Christ-centered. Have a happy Valentine’s Day!

We’re taking this week to highlight resources from our Gospel.com community on family, and today we’re looking at resources about children. Children are the building blocks of family. When they’re present they drive everything from finances to play. Our heavenly father calls us to raise up those He has entrusted to us in His ways. A task that, hopefully, no one has to take on completely by themselves.

Psychology for Living has published a few articles on kids that parents might find interesting:

Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder outlines the types and diagnosis of AD/HD in children.

When Children Lie to You tries to get at why they lie and what to do about it.

Lastly, this is an article about the difference between loving your children and them experiencing it called Why Love Is Not Enough.

Psychology for Living attempts to provide biblical solutions to “human problems through literature, radio, the world-wide web, training seminars and counseling.”
(more…)