Brotherly Love

Let brotherly love continue. (Heb 13:1)

Be kindly affectionate to one another with brotherly love, in honor giving preference to one another . . . (Rom 12:10)

But concerning brotherly love you have no need that I should write to you, for you yourselves are taught by God to love one another . . . (1 Thes 4:9)

What is “brotherly love”? It is having a love for all mankind. This is the kind of love that desires the best for other people; helps others; and prays for good things to happen to other people.

We are called by God to love all mankind because all humanity was created by God in His image, and due to that fact, can be called children of God. The Lord tells us that if we say that we love Him but we hate our brother, then we must be lying! (1 Joh 4:20) Also, it is a commandment of God that we love one another! (Joh 13:34, see also 1 Joh 3:11)

Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. (1 Joh 4:7)

The Bible says that one characteristic of a true disciple of Jesus Christ is that they demonstrate love for other people. (Joh 13:35) The Word goes on to point out that brothers (and sisters) suffer together and share joy together. (1 Cor 12:26)

Brotherly/sisterly affection and love covers [overlooks, forgives] a multitude of sins. (1 Pet 4:8)

Love does no wrong to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfilling of the law. (Rom 13:10) Brotherly and sisterly love for other people is a fulfillment of the highest law that the Lord has given to us, that we love one another!

A Covenant-Keeping God

²². . . by so much more Jesus has become a surety [guarantee] of a better covenant. ²⁴But He, because He continues forever, has an unchangeable priesthood. ²⁵Therefore He is also able to save to the uttermost those who come to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them. (Heb 7:22, 24-25)

In that He says, “A new covenant,” He has made the first obsolete. Now what is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to vanish away. (Heb 8:13)

Grace and mercy characterize the NEW covenant, replacing the first or old covenant. Under the new covenant, there will be full, widespread and direct knowledge of God according to Hebrews 8:11: None of them shall teach his neighbor, and none his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for all shall know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them.

And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent. (Joh 17:3) Once we have accepted Jesus as our Savior, we have received the gift of eternal life and of knowing God closely.

A covenant is a contract, promise, or pledge. God cannot lie (Tit 1:2) and He fulfills His Word. (Isa 55:11)

Here are a couple of examples of God fulfilling His Word on earth:

Adam and Eve were promised that a Savior would one day come and crush the serpent’s head (Genesis 3:15).
This promised Messiah would be born of a virgin (Isaiah 7:14).
Messiah would be anointed by the Holy Spirit to perform miracles (Isaiah 35:4-6, 61:1-3).
The Savior would be rejected by His own people and then wounded, bruised, and pierced as the sacrifice for our sins (Isaiah 53:1-12, Psalm 22:16).
He would rise from the dead and then ascend to the right hand of God in Heaven (Psalm 16:10, 68:18, 110:1).

According to Hebrews 7 (above), Jesus continues forever in an unchangeable priesthood. God has promised that we shall ALL know Him, from the least of us to the greatest. What an amazing and wonderful promise from a covenant keeping God!

The Beauty in this World

He has made everything beautiful in its time. (Ecc 3:11) All the beauty that we see in everything is a gift from God.

Naphtali is a deer let loose; he uses beautiful words. (Gen 49:21) This verse compares a person to a liberated deer, and highlights the graceful and pleasant words that this person uses. Even beautiful words (songs, poetry) are a wonderful gift from God.

And you shall take for yourselves on the first day the fruit of beautiful trees, branches of palm trees, the boughs of leafy trees, and willows of the brook; and you shall rejoice before the Lord your God for seven days. (Lev 23:40, underscoring added) This verse demonstrates that even the beauty in nature—the world around us—proceeds from God’s generous goodness.

These verses from the Bible (and my comments upon them) are used simply to endorse the concept and display it to you, that the beauty that we see, hear, taste, and touch in this world emanates from God’s love, generosity, and goodness.

Beautiful and successful relationships are also a gift from our loving God. (Pro 13:20; 27:6, 9b)

We serve a good God who is full of lovingkindness and a desire to bless and to embrace us in beauty! Hallelujah!

How to Deal With Offenses

Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered. (Ps 32:1)

The discretion of a man makes him slow to anger, and his glory is to overlook a transgression. (Pro 19:11)

But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses. (Mat 6:15)

Some synonyms for the word OFFENSE are: crime; wrongdoing; transgression; insult; affront; barb; attack; sin; or assault.

When we offend someone, whether intentionally or unintentionally, it is crucial for us to seek to understand how it happened, and to try to soothe and calm the situation. This can only happen through the grace and wisdom of God. The Lord will help us and support us with His guidance so that we may work through these situations.

Seek the Lord and pray for His wisdom and guidance in dealing with any offense that you have committed. Ask the Lord to forgive you, and ask Him to give you wisdom, and also ask Him for divine favor with the person whom you have offended.

Go to the person that you’ve offended and ask them to forgive you. Be sincere in your apology, and remain contrite during any discussion so that the person may see that you are truly seeking reconciliation. Try, as discreetly as possible, to understand what exactly gave offense because you seriously don’t want to repeat it.

If you are the person who is offended, think about what happened and determine what specifically made the exchange offensive or hurtful to you. Take it to the Lord in prayer and ask Him to heal the wound and to give you His grace to forgive the person who offended you. He is the Prince of Peace and will bring His peace to your situation and to the relationship if you will put it in His hands.

If the person asks to meet with you, agree to it. When they ask you to forgive them, do it as unto the Lord. If the person isn’t a Christian or doesn’t seek reconciliation, then it’s a matter best handled between you and the Lord. You can forgive and release that person from their offense, and the Lord will see your heart and your sincerity. He will bless you for your obedience to His Word. (Ps 32:1; Pro 19:11; Mat 6:15)

We keep short accounts by reviewing the day’s events in the evening. In a quiet time with the Lord, determine if there are any offenses that you committed and if any were committed against you. Try to deal with them as quickly, Biblically, and wisely as possible.

It’s vital that we live in such a way that we don’t give offense to others because in 1 Corinthians 10:32 and 2 Corinthians 6:3 we’re instructed to be inoffensive to all.

Imagination—A Benefit for the Kingdom

The imagination at its core is good because it comes from God who created each one of us with an imagination. God imagined US before He created us. When we are curious for answers, it can trigger our imagination to become creative in finding unique solutions.

And all who heard Him were astonished at His understanding and answers. (Lk 2:47, underscoring added)

When you need answers, turn to the Lord Jesus Christ and to the Word of God.

For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened. (Mt 7:8)

When we ask questions or seek for answers (in the Lord), God will bring us the information that we need in wondrous and miraculous ways.

But let each one examine his own work, and then he will have rejoicing in himself alone, and not in another. (Gal 6:4)

When we examine our own work, to determine its excellence or ability to meet a specific need, then we may rejoice over our work and what we have accomplished for the glory of God and His kingdom.

We need to develop our imagination, and in order to do that we need input from numerous other people. So we need to build friendships and relationships with other, talented people. As we do this our neural networks develop and we use more and more of our brainpower!

Imagination takes us to new places and helps us to envision new possibilities. Don’t limit people to your view of the world or to your life experiences. Create a judgment-free zone in which to grow your imagination. “Big Imagination” should equal “big sense of humor” as well.

Think of (imagine) the good and excellent things that God has given to us. (Phil 4:8)

In Green Pastures

The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. ²He makes me to lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside the still waters. ³He restores my soul; He leads me in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake. (Ps 23:1-3)

This passage of Scripture is addressing the truth that God is our shepherd and He gives us His special and all-encompassing rest. What does God’s kind of rest really look like for mankind?

First of all, verse two says that He MAKES us lie down in green pastures. In other words, the Lord in His mercy commands us to rest (Ex 23:12; 34:21); and then He creates an atmosphere where we may rest completely and utterly in perfect safety. How does He do that? Psalm 23:1-3 shows us.

First of all, the Lord leads us to green pastures with grass as far as the eye can see and these pastures are situated beside quiet, peaceful waters. The Shepherd is right there watching over us to protect us. This image of abundant grass is selected by God to convey the concept of provision for our souls as well as our bodies—through His love and goodness. That is easily believed because God opens His hand and fills all living things with abundance according to Psalm 145:16. One of God’s titles is Jehovah-Jireh, our Provider. (Gen 22:13-14)

The peaceful waters to which the Lord leads us are quiet and gentle waters that induce us to relax and to rest. God provides for His people, not just food and rest, but refreshment and pleasure. (Ex 31:17; Ps 16:11; Jer 31:25; Phile 1:7; 1 Cor 10:4)

The Word actually says that God takes pleasure in the prosperity of His servants! (Ps 35:27) Glory to God!

When God supplies for your every need (spiritual, physical, financial, emotional) are you not then in the best possible state in which to relax and to rest? God bless you!

Friends

Have you experienced some relationship catastrophes in your life? Have one or two friends decided, for various purported reasons, to “unfriend” you? Well, I want to reassure you that you have a Friend who will NEVER treat you like that!

Jesus is your Friend who sticks closer than a brother, and He told us that He will NEVER leave us nor forsake us! (Pro 18:24; Heb 13:5) Hallelujah!!

No longer do I call you servants, for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you. (Joh 15:15 ESV, emphasis added)

Greater love has no one than this that someone lay down his life for his friends. (Joh 15:13 ESV)

A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity. (Prov 17:17 ESV, emphasis added)

What kind of “friend” decides to end a relationship of many years’ standing simply because of one or two tiny incidents? Why would they not rather choose to communicate with their friend about what happened and how they felt, in order to restore harmony and unity in the relationship? This person would be a poor example of a friend.

Teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” (Mt 28:20 NKJV) Jesus is the friend who will never leave us. He promises to be with us ALWAYS. Glory to God!

Not only are these points significant, but Jesus is a very special Friend indeed. (All verses below NKJV)

He is our Friend who LOADS us daily with blessings and benefits (Ps 68:19).
He gives us the desires of our hearts, as we delight in Him. (Ps 37:4)
He gives us great and precious promises through which we be may be partakers of His divine nature. (2 Pet 1:4)
He does whatever we ask Him to do! (When we ask in His name – Joh 14:13-14)
In Christ Jesus, our Friend, all of God’s Biblical promises have been answered: “Yes!” and “Make it so!” (1 Cor 1:20)
If we ask anything according to God’s will (which is His Word), we know that the Lord hears our request. And when we know that He has heard our prayer, we know that He has answered our prayer, “Yes”. (1 Joh 5:14-15)
Jesus is our healer. (Isa 53:4-5; Mt 8:17; 1 Pet 2:24)

There is no other Friend who loves us, blesses us, and cares for us like He does!

Banner of Love

He brought me to the banqueting house, and his banner over me was love. (SOS 2:4 NKJV)

In the Bible, many times when the word banner is used, it is referring to a flag. Armies carry flags and kingdoms display flags to identify and declare several things:

The identity of the King who rules in a certain country and in whose name a particular army fights;
The identity of the kingdom to whom an army has pledged its loyalty and steadfastness;
The identity of the kingdom that has supplied (and will continue to supply) an army;
The identity of the King and the kingdom which will protect an army or a country.

In the instance of the verse shown at the top of this article, the word banner has additional implications to those mentioned above:

The King signified by this banner is King Jesus (the King of Kings and Lord of Lords), who has established His banner, authority, and might in LOVE;
The Kingdom that displays this banner of love not only supplies food, armaments, and other supplies but it also supplies grace to its army and to its people;
This banner represents a Kingdom of loveliness, security, unity, and loyalty;
One of the seven names of God, Jehovah Nissi, means “The Lord our Banner.” (Exodus 17:14-15) The Bible reminds us that God is love. (1 Joh 4:8, 16b) Praise the Lord that His banner over us is love!

In John Gill’s Exposition on Song of Solomon 2:4, he says: “ . . . the covenant of grace and the Scriptures of truth may be thought of as a banqueting house, well stored with blessings, and promises, and rich provisions; which, to be led and let into, is a singular kindness . . .”

As the children of God, we are a blessed people and I recommend thinking about this at length.

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Month: February 2019