Sacrificial Love

SACRIFICIAL LOVE
By Carolyn Dale Newell

For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son,
That whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.
John 3:16 (NKJV)

Why did Jesus Christ come into this world, suffer and die, rise on the third day, and give us eternal life? The answer: “For God so loved”. John used the word “so” because there is no word that rightly describes the depth of God’s love. It is an unconditional love that we cannot fathom.

He loved us when we were unlovable. “But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” (Rom. 5:8). We did nothing to deserve His love. We could never do enough good works to earn it.

How can Christians receive such a gift from God and not show love to an unsaved world? In Mark 10:21, Jesus loved the self-righteous, rich, young ruler who was unsaved. Surely, if Jesus loved a man who was not saved, shouldn’t we do likewise? In Matt. 5:43-45, Jesus tells us to love our neighbors and our enemies. This love is not an emotion. It is a choice to sacrifice time and show kindness towards them. If we love our neighbor as we love ourselves, then we take care of them as we would take care of ourselves.

The parable of “The Good Samaritan”) Luke 10:25-37) explains that a neighbor can be anyone that we come in contact with. The Jews and Samaritans hated each other. We may not even like the person, but if we don’t show God’s love to them, they may never see it. We should learn from that parable that we should love ALL people: the dirty homeless person, the unwed mother, the person blinded by a false religion, and homosexuals. They are all sinners in need of God’s grace, as we once were. Share the love that God has bestowed upon you with someone today.

Dear Lord,
Help us to love that particular person that we find so hard to love. Forgive us for prejudice and help us show them Your love. Prepare them for the gospel message that they may be saved. In Jesus ‘name, amen.

DIG DEEPER
Read about the Good Samaritan in Luke 10:25-37.

HIKING THE TRAIL
Is there a particular person that you need to show the love of God to? It may be an enemy or a person that simply annoys you. Make a point to show them an act of kindness and begin praying for them this week.

Copyright 2015 Carolyn Dale Newell.