The Power of God's Love - part 3

Today we conclude the topic of The Power of God’s Love. Please take time to read through the first two blog entries as today’s discussion will add to some of the things we have already talked about.

God desires that we be intensely rooted and grounded in His love because His love has the power to change us and the world around us. Let’s examine a few more of the ways that the powerful love of God affects and blesses our lives.

• God's love restores us to a right relationship with Him. His powerful love rescues, repairs brokenness, and redeems our days and years of being lost. His love resurrects us, bring our deadness in sin to life in Christ. His love can even rename us as Abram became Abraham, Simon became Peter, etc. And more certainly His love places our names in the Lamb’s book of life!

During His time on earth, the love of Jesus restored sight to the blind, the ability to walk to the crippled, hearing to the deaf and more. Yet the work of the love of Jesus on the Cross restored our relationship to the Father, a restoration that could never be matched by such wondrous love.

• God's love gives us a new identity. We are new creations because of the love of God. First and foremost, we are Christians, children of the living God! 1 John 3:1-2 (NKJV) -- Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called children of God! Therefore the world does not know us, because it did not know Him. ² Beloved, now we are children of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is.

The Father’s love for us has given us royal citizenship, a royal heritage, a royal position in the heavenlies. We are now part of a royal priesthood – all because of God’s love for us.          

• God's love is personal. We each matter to Him and His love for each of us is individually unique. His love is given specifically to our lives and what matters to us. He cares about both the small and big things that we care about.
• God's love empowers us. It has the ability to inspire us, transform us and build up our confidence. His love drives away all fears and takes away all guilt.

As we conclude, let’s take time to read through Psalm 103. Our loving God is omnipotent, omniscient, and omnipresent. He has supreme power, is all knowing, and His divine presence is everywhere. Psalm 103 reminds us of all the greatness of our loving Father. His everlasting love for each of us should move us to join with the psalmist and daily declare, “Bless the Lord, O my soul!”

Psalm 103:1-22 (NLT)       

Bless the Lord, O my soul; and all that is within me, bless His holy name! ² Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits: ³ Who forgives all your iniquities, who heals all your diseases, ⁴ Who redeems your life from destruction, who crowns you with lovingkindness and tender mercies, ⁵ Who satisfies your mouth with good things, so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.

⁶ The Lord executes righteousness and justice for all who are oppressed. ⁷ He made known His ways to Moses, His acts to the children of Israel. ⁸ The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in mercy. ⁹ He will not always strive with us, nor will He keep His anger forever. ¹⁰ He has not dealt with us according to our sins, nor punished us according to our iniquities.

¹¹ For as the heavens are high above the earth, so great is His mercy toward those who fear Him; ¹² As far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us. ¹³ As a father pities his children, so the Lord pities those who fear Him. ¹⁴ For He knows our frame; He remembers that we are dust.

¹⁵ As for man, his days are like grass; as a flower of the field, so he flourishes. ¹⁶ For the wind passes over it, and it is gone, and its place remembers it no more. ¹⁷ But the mercy of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear Him, and His righteousness to children’s children, ¹⁸ To such as keep His covenant, and to those who remember His commandments to do them. ¹⁹ The Lord has established His throne in heaven, and His kingdom rules over all.

²⁰ Bless the Lord, you His angels, who excel in strength, who do His word, heeding the voice of His word. ²¹ Bless the Lord, all you His hosts, you ministers of His, who do His pleasure. ²² Bless the Lord, all His works, in all places of His dominion. Bless the Lord, O my soul!

May you experience the power of God’s love in your life now and always,

Dr. Sharon Predovich