The power of love
Posted by appolus on April 4, 2020
The word “Christian,” has become a real problem in our modern world, especially when it is used as a label rather than as a description of a living reality. C.S. Lewis proffered the notion that the word Christian was rendered meaningless a long time ago. The theory being that if everyone uses the title of Christian whether they are or not, then it empties the title of all meaning and what we end up with is religion rather than relationship. People who merely turn over a new leaf rather than being born again. These people are then constrained in their actions by the confines of the strictness of their own particular brand of religion. To complicate it further, it then becomes about degrees. So even within the broad realms of the religious world there is a vast degree of different levels of compliance, so some appear holy in comparison to others yet is is still just degrees and not the new birth.
In genuine Christianity there are no constraints. There is only love and reverence and respect. A love so deep that you would never want to disappoint the object of your love. That is relationship, everything else is religion no matter how shiny. Now there will be objections to the notion that there are no constraints to the genuine saint, yet those objections would be unfounded because within the confines of love itself lies the answer to the question. Love is the motivator of everything that we do, and when we mess up, when we sin, love is the answer to the problem. It is love that draws us before the throne of grace, it compels us to come and confess and repent and be reconciled. For who would ever want to be separated from the grand love of their lives.
A Call To The Remnant 
Scott Price said
Hi Brother Frank.
Question. Aren’t the wooings of love sufficient for the humble, the broken and tender hearted?
With the dull hardened heart, isn’t fear of the consequences of departing from God what compels men to return?
Whenever Jesus spoke of the Last Days or when Jesus was concerned about His best friends the Apostles and how they might drift from devotion to Him, to obedience to Him or to fulfill their calling from Him, He warned them of serious consequences to them, even His most beloved. He said that if they backed down and were unfaithful to and ashamed of Him and feared men that they then must be afraid of Himself who can cast their soul into Hell.
The point being wooings of love motivate the tender submissive heart who walk in the light, abide and stay near and warnings of fearfully falling into the hands of the Living God motivate the sinful hard hearted backslider who lag at the edges of the Light.
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appolus said
Hi Scott, good questions. I loved my earthly father because he was my father. I also had a healthy fear of him and respect. Love is the foundation, without love there cannot be a proper fear and awe and respect of God. The warnings would be meaningless to one who did not want to be separated from Him. Those who only fear going to hell or only fear punishment, I sincerely doubt they have salvation. David is confronted with his sin, gross sin, and we see how he reacted when he realized the prophet was speaking about him. He cries out to God and confesses that against HIm alone he had sinned. He also cries out to Him to restore the joy of his salvation, to “take not thy Holy Spirit from me.” He had known the joy, he had known the peace and the companionship of the Holy Spirit, he wanted that restored. His motivation was to get right with the Lord that he loved and he was looking for a restoration of his intimate relationship, he was not motivated by the fires of hell and some kind of legal standing before God. I believe that the motivation of David is the motivation of the saints. Not so sure hard hearted sinful backsliders there are, especially in the light of Hebrews six. It may be they are the many and not the few, or the different kind of seed that Jesus spoke of. Love is the foundation of it all, without that love and intimacy with Jesus then any discipline would be the discipline of the flesh. Having said all that, I do not believe in once saved always saved. I do believe that Hebrews six is a frightening chapter, I do believe it would be a frightful thing to fall into the hands of a the Living God. I do believe that we should beware when we stand lest we fall and that we should be careful that after preaching the Gospel that we ourselves should not become reprobates of castaways. The fear would come from being parted from my loving Father in heaven and not the fires of hell which may well be one and the same thing………………..bro Frank
Kimberly Mcbride said
i believe I was saved and I longed after God, I was baptized in the Holy Spirit with the evidence of speaking in tohgues. I was in the “charismatic movement ” and had received very personal words from a prophet in that day. Very personel– he spoke specifically of things in my heart that no one could have known. Things that at the time I was suffering in and wanted delvereince from (more than I wanted God) that is why I was picked out by the so called “prophet”. Well I was thrilled and overjoyed thinking God had heard my cries for relief. (He always does). But the years past and the words did not come to pass, in fact just the opposite to what was predicted occurred. I was completely distraught in my relationship with the Lord. I thought I was the one person in the world whom He didn’t love. I had some in the word of faith movement telling me “it’s not God’s fault ” in other words it was my fault. I fell completely away. I got addicted to drugs after 1 dose and ended up being as a prostitute to keep the drug available. Well after only a year since I completely fell away (almost died by an overdose) God made a way for me to go to a christian rehab. I was there for 17 months and spent many, many hours with the Lord. at the which time after my whole walk with the Lord- He showed me HE LOVED ME, HE LOVED ME !! Even while I was running believing He hated me. HE LOVED ME! I remember my face hurt I smiled for so many days when HE revealed that to me. That I believe is the enemy’s # 1 job to twist the face of God, 2 Cor 4:4
In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.
Jude 21-22
Keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life.
appolus said
What a tremendous testimony Kimberly!!!…………bro Frank