A cornerstone of this month’s exploration of God’s LOVE is probing our heart for how THANKFUL we are for that love. Is it superficial “of course I’m thankful for God’s love!”? Or is it all-encompassing, genuine thankfulness for the blessing of walking with Jesus in surrendered obedience?
On the surface, it seem like an easy question. But if we automatically say we are thankful for the love of God, we should consider WHY.
Why are we thankful for God’s love? To be healthy and happy? Satisfied and successful? Off-load our guilt and avoid hell?
All of those things are reasons to be thankful for God’s love, but we should recognize the foundation on which they are built and the real WHY behind being thankful for the love of God:
To truly know him and walk with his Son Jesus in surrendered obedience.
This is when we know our thankfulness for God’s love is genuine. When our SELF is subordinated to Christ. When we view God as cherished treasure. Here’s the goal:
“The purpose of this commandment is to arouse the love that comes from a pure heart, a clear conscience, and a genuine faith.” 1 Timothy 1:5
Those three things–1) Pure Heart; 2) Clear Conscience; and 3) Genuine Faith–come together to produce the LOVE OF CHRIST in us and our thankfulness for what he has done, is doing, and will do in our lives.
A PURE HEART
Our thankfulness for God’s love originates in our PURE HEART, not through the actions we put on display for the world or a “performance” for OTHERS.
GOOD CONSCIENCE
Our thankfulness for God’s love is created by a GOOD CONSCIENCE covered by the blood of Christ and unburdened by guilt.
GENUINE FAITH
Our thankfulness for God’s love is produced by GENUINE FAITH that comes from placing our confidence in him, not counting on our own ability.
I ask God to equip me to arouse his love in me so it comes out in a way that glorifies HIM.
WHAT ABOUT YOU?
Are you thankful for the love of God—for the right reasons? When was the last time you AROUSED GOD’S LOVE to come out of you?
“The purpose of this commandment is to arouse the love that comes from a pure heart, a clear conscience, and a genuine faith. Some have departed from these and have turned to meaningless talk. They want to be teachers of the law, but they do not know what they are talking about or what they so confidently affirm.” 1 Timothy 1:5-7
