God loves me “just as I am.”
True.
But, God’s love doesn’t leave me “just as I am.”
Why?
Because God’s love is both static and dynamic. Static in that it does not ebb and flow. There is nothing we can do (or not do) that will change His love for us. It’s fixed. God’s love isn’t just part of His character, it’s who He is (1Jn.4:16). His love is also dynamic, in that it is always active and moving in our lives to bring about change. This involves an ongoing process - a work that is continually healing and restoring us to Himself. We call this sanctification, and the goal is for us to become more and more like Christ.
God’s love is so pure and holy (set apart) that it is hard to compare and impossible to fully comprehend.
When Jesus Christ (in response to His Father’s love (Jn.3:16)), volunteered to come and lay down His life for us, there was no word to describe His kind of self-sacrificial love. What His followers witnessed, as they watched the way He lived and ministered love to people, was foreign to them. So foreign that the writers of the New Testament had to come up with a new word for this kind of love.
Agape.
According to BibleProject, the New Testament writers had to redefine their very concept of love. And they did this, not by looking in ancient dictionaries, but by studying Jesus’ teaching’s and His life. That's how we got the Greek word, agape.
To imitate this agape love, we must look to the one who modeled it perfectly by seeking the wellbeing of those who could not return His generosity.
The ultimate test of agape love is to demonstrate it to your enemies, like Jesus did.
(Remember, before we were God’s children we were His enemies. “But God demonstrates His own love (agape) toward us, in that while we were still sinners (enemies), Christ died for us.” (Rms.5:8))
How can we do this?
With the help of His indwelling Spirit.
Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean; I will cleanse you from all your filthiness and from all your idols. I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will keep My judgments and do them. Then you shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers; you shall be My people, and I will be your God. (Ezek.36:25-28)
We can agape others because He first agaped us (1Jn.4:19)…. just as we were.
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