The Greatest is Love
Ho! Ho! Ho! Christmas is here in Phoenix. The traffic has picked up around all the shops and the weather has dipped, leaving morning frost on the rooftops and windshields. By midday we enjoy sunny and 75º, and all the winter lawns are looking nice and green.
At my house, my wife is in full gift mode–which she is in most of the year–but now she does it with a joyous fervor. Our house has three Christmas trees up, paper snowflakes everywhere, and we are not allowed to go near certain rooms because one of our presents could be there. There also is a constant stream of holiday baking shows and Hallmark movies on our television.
But with all this hustle, bustle and fun, we are having some good times with our kids, setting everything aside and learning about the Joy, Peace, Hope, and Love that Jesus brought with His advent. The Advent video series at thebibleproject.com has been very helpful. We had a great night the other night sitting in our tv room for a couple of hours without turning the tv on. We talked and played and quizzed. (For some reason my kids love it when I quiz them on geography. Weird kids.)
The last three Sundays at our church, we have focused on Joy, Peace, and Hope.
We have seen how the Bible teaches that God is overflowing with Joy. “In His presence there is fullness (overflowing) joy.”
We have read about Jesus being the Prince of Peace. “The greatness of His peace has no end, (overflowing).”
And we have looked at some Biblical words to teach us what hope really is and how God is the God of Hope. “I pray that God, the source of hope, (overflowing) will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust in Him. Then you will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit.”
Now, there is one that remains. It is the greatest of them all, and every other virtue finds its roots in Love. Just as with the other three, God is overflowing with love.
The best word we have in our shallow human language to describe the community of the trinity is love. “The fruit of the (trinitarian) Spirit is love.” The fierce and overflowing love that God has for the world is what caused Him to sacrificially give the one He loved most, so that we could know and enjoy His love in a personal and everlasting way.
Today, and each day between now and Christmas, I would like for you to do three things:
Sit still for twenty minutes, away from the distraction of your phone, and ask God to tell you how He feels about you. Expect Him to speak in a still, small voice. Expect your wounded heart to have trouble receiving and believing what He says. Then, write it down, or tell someone about it to seal it in your heart and mind.
Look though your contact list on your phone and find someone that you know needs to hear about the love of Jesus and invite them to church this Sunday.
Pray for me, that despite my shallow mind and feeble words, I will be able to communicate the wondrous love of God in a way that is easy to understand and impossible to run from.
Jesus loves you!
David