sup guys,
Today's email is completely plagiarized from uncle joseph and tim keller, so if i sound even remotely smart/holy, it's completely their fault.
Christ summarized the law so well when he said it all amounts to loving God and our neighbours. Love is never inactive, it spurs us into action to protect, to edify, and to build. This gave rise to three observations i wanted to share:
1- To know God, like...really know God, is to be remade. It is impossible to walk away from an encounter with him unchanged - he destroys our selfishness and places a piece of himself in its place. Every person who've really encountered God in the scriptures and stayed with him has lost their sense of self and became consumed with a desire to serve him. Keller puts it even more strongly when he said "God will never bless us except to make us a blessing."
2- To be that blessing to others always mean sacrifice on our part. The highest sacrifice we can give is our lives and God demands nothing less of us. If THAT is the standard we're being called to, how much more should we, out of love, be free/generous with our time, money, and skills. To see our relationships not as investments, measured in terms of cost/benefits to ourselves, but as living growth of the Kingdom. Jesus gave us the perfect example of this sacrifice - whenever we fail to burn our lives as a blessing to him/others we're not simply failing to listen to God, we're failing to be LIKE God.
3- To bless others is a blessings for us. I dont mean if we passed out $10 to a homeless person or started tithing at church we'd suddenly get raises at work. I mean that in serving God wholeheartedly, not out of selfishness but because you love him, you can be 101% certain that that love/desire was put in your heart by him - that you are HIS. i honestly can't think of any greater blessing God can give me, in this life, than knowing that i walk with his mark upon me.
Encouragement for the week: Bless and be blessed.
Have a happy wednesday,
Edward
"And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord's glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit." - 2 Corinthians 3:18
"As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you...Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends...This is my command: Love each other." - John 15:9-17
"The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God's children...if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory." - Romans 8:16-17
Surprised kitty! courtesy of christina =D
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Bmhjf0rKe8
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