Devotional

January 2008

Living By The Word
By Dr. Alvonia McCoy

Scripture References: 1 John 3:11, 23; 4:11
Focus Verse: 1 John 4:21, "And this commandment we have from Him: that he who loves God must his brother also."

Have you ever made the decision to write off another believer because the person seemed bent on rejecting you without a cause. Well, I did. In fact I told the Lord I would continue praying for that person, but I was not going to do anything to restore the relationship. After all, it was not me who took deliberate steps to sever the ties.

However, instead of peace, I experienced conviction. The Holy Spirit reminded me of Paul's words in Romans 5:8: "But God demonstrates His own love towards us that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." Although we rejected Him, even denied Him, He still loved us enough to die for us. Wow! What a humbling thought.! This is the agape love Paul describes in 1 Corinthians 13:4-8. This is the same love Jesus speaks of when He commands us to love our enemies (Matt. 5:44).

No matter how we are treated by others, our duty is to love them. Yes, even those who curse us and say evil things about us, spitefully use and persecute us. If you are thinking how is this possible. Let me reassure you that the Lord knows it is NOT possible to love like this in our own human strength, but only through the power of Jesus Christ. You see according to Romans 5:5, the love of God has been poured out into the hearts of believers by the Holy Ghost. All we have to do is be the vessel God has equipped us to be, and allow His love to flow out to each other and to all humanity.