The Motive--Love (Eph. 1:4c-5a)

 

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 11/1/2018 11:20 AM

 

My Worship Time                                                                              Focus:  The Motive—Love

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                 Reference:  Eph. 1:4c-5a

 

            Message of the verses:  “In love He predestined us to adoption as sons.”

 

            This section shows us that God elects those who are saved because of His Love, and we know that love is one of His attributes as John says “God is love.”  Deuteronomy 7:8 tells us “But because the LORD loved you, and because He would keep the oath which He had sworn unto your fathers, hath the LORD brought you out with a mighty hand, and redeemed you out of the house of bondmen, from the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt.”  This shows us why God chose Israel to be His special people, and this is the same as He chose the church who is the family of the redeemed.  Deuteronomy 7:8 is certainly a wonderful picture of those that the Lord has saved throughout the history of the world, including the church age.

 

            I suppose that we have gone over what Biblical agape “love” is in the past.  Many people today do not understand that this is not an emotional kind of love, but it is a disposition of the heart to seek the welfare and also to meet the needs of others.  Jesus said in John 15:13 “"Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends.”  After stating this Jesus did that very thing, and He did this on behalf of those God has chosen to be saved.  John MacArthur writes “In the ultimate divine act of love, God determined before the foundation of the earth that He would give His only Son to save us.  ‘God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ’ (Eph. 2:4-5).  He loved us, and will eternally continue to love us, according to the kind intention of His will.”

 

The Result—Sonship

 

            We will look at one more section in today’s SD.  The result of God’s election in our “adoption as sons.”  This is another of the things which we have “in Christ,” as we become subject of His kingdom, and because He is our Lord we are His servants.  In John 15:15 Jesus states “"No longer do I call you slaves, for the slave does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all things that I have heard from My Father I have made known to you.”  We are even more than slaves, and friends and servants for He makes us His children, and in the church age a bride for His only Son.  It is an amazing thing what God does as he lovingly draws us (redeemed sinners) into the intimacy of His own family.  I suppose that at times we don’t think about this, nonetheless it is true and it is something that we all need to praise the Lord for.

 

            Let us look at what Paul has to say about this from Romans 8:15 “For you have not received a spirit of slavery leading to fear again, but you have received a spirit of adoption as sons by which we cry out, "Abba! Father!"”  The term “Abba” in the Aramaic is what we would call “daddy” a term of love and affection.

 

            John MacArthur concludes this short sub-section by writing “To be saved is to have the very life of God in our souls, His own Spirit enlivening our spirits.  Human parents can adopt children and come to love them every bit as much as they love their natural children.  They can give an adopted child complete equality in the family life, resources, and inheritance.  But no human  can impart his own nature to an adopted child.  Yet that is what God miraculously does to ever person whom He has elected and who has trusted in Christ.  He makes them sons like His divine Son.  Christians not only have all of the Son’s riches and blessings but all of the Son’s nature.”

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  I just have a great deal of trouble of wrapping my arms around the great love that God has for me even though I know that all of it is true.

 

My Steps of Faith for Today:  Trust the Lord to get a handle on my Sunday school lesson for this week as I am having trouble with it.

 

Answer to yesterday’s Bible question:  “In his hair” (Judges 16:19).

 

Today’s Bible question:  “What did the prodigal son want his father to make him?”

 

Answer in our next SD.

 

11/1/2018 12:05 PM