Lovers of God
Pleasing our Lord Jesus Christ and meeting His need should be the main theme of our worldly existence. With every beat of our hearts we should be longing for, and thirsting for, spiritual intimacy with the everlasting Shepherd of divine love. The Psalmist expressed this beautifully in Psalm 42:1.... "As the deer pants and longs for the water brooks, so my soul pants and longs for You, O God."
The "Song of Songs" encourages the heavenly Groom [Jesus] and His Shulamite bride [that's us], to pursue a full experience of each other's heart; "Eat, O friends; Drink, yes, drink abundantly of love." or, "drink till you are full, O lovers" [Song of Solomon 5:1].
How wonderful it is to realise that Jesus is not only communion wine to us! Yes, we are wine to Him also! Song of Solomon 7:9 says we are,... "the best wine... that goes down sweetly - for our Beloved." As He meets your every need, you can simultaneously satisfy the need of God's heart for intimacy and love.
Generating intimate interaction with Jesus serves to nourish and refresh your personal relationship with Him. As you simply choose to 'drink in' His loving Spirit [into yours], you quickly forget the pain, the disappointment, the dreadfulness of living in a self-centred and corrupt society. Consequently, you develop a sincere desire, without any sense of obligation or fear of reprisal, to fulfil the greatest commandment! And that is, to... "Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind and with all your strength."
But what exactly does this mean? It means:
(a) Provoking perfected emotions toward Him in true worship, and devoting yourself without reservation or restrictions.
(b) Fully subjecting your human will to His divine purpose for your life.
(c) Constantly bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ. [2 Corinthians 10:4,5]
(d) Using as much of your time and efforts as possible, to serve the Lord with gladness. [Psalm 100:2]
Note, the Greek word translated 'love', in the great commandment, is 'agapao'. And it stems from the word 'agape', meaning 'a selfless, divine love'. However, this word could possibly be related to another ancient Greek word, namely 'agab', which means 'to breath toward' [as lovers who dote upon one another].
Therefore, loving God with all the heart, mind, soul and strength could mean 'to breath toward Him' the gentle and perfect essence of all that you are as adopted sons and daughters. Hence, with every breath you take, you have the opportunity to reverently return to God the very breath of divine life which He has breathed into you.
Remember, it was this divine breath which made Adam a living soul, and which was restored to mankind in the upper room, when Jesus 'breathed' on His disciples and said,.... "Receive the Holy Ghost."
God's divine breath in you has restored perfect communion and it allows you access to God's heart. And in this loving spiritual relationship - your breath intermingles with His breath, and your heart intertwines with His heart.
Psalm 63:1,2 says, "O God, You are my God; Early will I seek You; my soul thirst for You; my flesh longs for You in a dry and thirsty land where there is no water. So I have looked for you in the sanctuary to see Your Power and Your Glory."
Those who yearn for God in this way are remembering and returning to their "first love" what they have by grace received. Also, they invariably dwell in that special and matchless realm: Where unfathomable love sees no bounds - "Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor have entered into the heart of man the things which God has prepared for those who love Him." [1 Cor. 2:9].
Where there is no fear or anxiety - "perfect love casts out all fear" [1 John 4:18]. You should never be intimidated by darkness or fearful of it's grip.
Where there is no sorrow or distress - "them that love the Lord are as the sun and shine forth in His might" [Judges 5:31]. Your love should shine so brightly as to overcome the darkness of sorrow or distress.
Where there is no failure and defeat - "love conquers all", or, "love never fails" [1 Corinthians 13:8]. Your life should radiate dominion and truth. |
Chris Demetriou, 04/12/2005 |
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