Tag: Love

Posted on

Less of You?

MARCH 24

MATTHEW 5:24_first be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift.

Nothing in this life is worth the bondage caused by the spirits of darkness. Spiritual bondage is void of light—a place of deep darkness. It thrives on anger, bitterness, hate, and unforgiveness. Spiritual bondage weakens the soul and brings it into despair. Again, nothing in life is worth allowing your spirit, heart, and soul to be in bondage.

Be reconciled. Come in freedom, and offer your gift. God receives your gift with joy and blesses you. As you grow physically and spiritually, your gift will grow, shining in your countenance and in your life. It will cause you to gain wisdom, understanding, and knowledge. Your light will bless all who cross your path: “all that are in the house.”

God possesses the greatest treasure—love. He bestows love upon you—which flows to other people. The more you love God, the more you’ll find you have the ability to love people. The more you love God, the more you’ll find self-sacrifice becomes a byproduct of your life—because you learn to love others more than yourself.

Do you want your life to be more of Jesus, and less of you?

PRAYER

God of Love, I want who You are to shine in my life. In the powerful name of Jesus, Amen.

Christ loves me—He wants me to love His people!

Posted on

A Gift and an Altar

MARCH 22

MATTHEW 5:24_Leave there thy gift before the altar, and go thy way…

Leave your gift!

Get away from the altar and get to the one you’ve wounded, or have some unsettled misunderstanding with, or stolen from, or lied to, or spread lies about, or wronged in some way. If years have separated you, get on social media and find them. If they are in hiding from you, contact a family member, and make a peace offering to get to talk with them.

Whatever you do, do it diligently, and take it seriously. You’ve got a gift and an altar, and you can’t get the two together in your present state. 

If you’re serious about loving Jesus, then you must be serious about loving people. That’s what the Scribes and Pharisees didn’t get.

I believe I just saw some scales balance! 

It is much easier to love Jesus than people. After all, Jesus has never done you any wrong. All He’s ever done is love you. But check out what Jesus says in Matthew 25:40 (KJV), “Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.”

Sounds like Jesus says how you treat people is how you treat Him.

PRAYER

Holy Jesus, I trust You to help me repair any open wounds I have caused. I trust You to help me find my way to the right people. In the powerful name of Jesus, Amen.

Christ loves all people—He will help me love them too!

Posted on

Jesus Hands the Broom to You

MARCH 21

MATTHEW 5:23_Therefore, if thy bring thy gift to the altar, and there rememberst that thy brother has ought against thee;

Don’t be confused about altars. When you come to Jesus’ salvation altar, come with your broken, bleeding, messed up life. This is the time to ask Jesus into your life. He accepts you just as you are. It’s Jesus’ job to clean you up. His full forgiveness is immediate. Then He begins the process to repair the breaks, bind the wounds, and sweep up the mess you call your life. This doesn’t happen overnight—but it does happen.

Jesus cleanses like DoveTM—He is not soap. He is a beauty bar!

The altar in this verse comes after your salvation experience. You are ready and eager to serve Jesus. You come because you want to be a part of the earthly kingdom of heaven. Now Jesus hands the broom to you.

If there are people in your past with wounds you’ve inflicted, Jesus wants you to repair the wounds as much as is possible on your part. 

Possibly the Scribes and Pharisees didn’t like this teaching. They believed the Law had to do with loving God, not people. Jesus says the two go together. This is why the Scribes and Pharisees did not know the Messiah when they saw His miracles, or heard Him teach unconditional love.

Neither did they know Him when they slapped Him in the face, spat upon Him, or saw Him die in their place—and asked God to forgive them.

PRAYER

Forgiving God, Praise You that You take me just as I am. In the powerful name of Jesus, Amen.

Christ accepts me—He makes the necessary changes!

Posted on

Drenched in Love

MARCH 12

MATTHEW 5:20_But I say unto you, that except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the Scribes and the Pharisees…

The Greek translation for the word righteousness used here is, whatever is right and just within itself; whatever conforms to the revealed will of God.

If the Scribes and Pharisees couldn’t recognize Jesus as an extension of God then according to the above translation, their righteousness failed coming out of the gate! 

Jesus was certainly just and conformed to God’s will. He was the very revelation of it. No one can recognize Jesus without recognizing His heart of love. The person who comes to Jesus with a willing and repentant heart, or the one who comes to Him kicking and screaming with a rebellious heart, end up the same way—drenched in love. 

The love of Jesus is overpowering. It is life changing. It is heart healing. No force in this life is stronger. Any righteousness we have comes from the love of Jesus. When the Scribes and Pharisees’ saw Jesus’ miracles, they not only didn’t recognize Him, they said He was demonically possessed!

No wonder Jesus says our righteousness should exceed that! 

PRAYER

Jesus Savior, I want to conform to Your will. I want Your will in my life. In the powerful name of Jesus, Amen.

Christ is God’s will covered in flesh—I want His will in my life!

Posted on

One and the Same

MARCH 11

MATTHEW 5:20_But I say unto you, that except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the Scribes and the Pharisees…

It is easy enough to get to know the hearts of the Scribes and Pharisees—simply read their encounters with Jesus. If anyone on the planet should have known who Jesus was—it was they. 

The Scribes and Pharisees knew all the prophesies in the Scriptures. They knew there was to be the coming of a Messiah. They knew all the details, but because they studied with their head, and not their heart, they didn’t recognize the Messiah when they met Him face to face! They needed wisdom, understanding, and the right kind of knowledge for that, and they hadn’t gained any—not a smidgen. 

The ultimate way to have recognized Jesus was by His love. First, they had to know the love of God. If they had spent a lifetime studying the Law, but not been in touch with God enough to know His love, they missed the whole point.

Jesus said they should have recognized Him by His miracles.

His miracles were instigated by love.

So, love and Jesus’ miracles were actually one and the same.

PRAYER

Loving Jesus, Help me recognize the miracle of love You work in my heart. In the powerful name of Jesus, Amen.

Christ’s miracles are love—He will work them in me!