Feeling the Weight of Love...
To walk with Christ and understand His grace will produce an overwhelming feeling that you owe God something. The law will tell you that you must repay God with your good works and righteous living. If we see that all that God did for us was out of His love and that righteousness was given to us as a gift we will produce good works from our love for Him. The debt we owe is love because it was all for love that God gave us His Son. For only love could make a way for our salvation. See the song "All for Love" at the end of the prayer.
Galatians 5
S= Galatians 5:3 And I testify again to every man who becomes circumcised that he is a debtor to keep the whole law.
Galatians5:6 For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision avails anything, but faith working through love.
Galatians 5:13-14 For you, brethren, have been called to liberty; only do not use liberty as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”
O= Today I used three verses that really stuck out to me. They seem to feed off each other. If we try to maintain the law then we are forced to feel the whole weight of the law. What accompanies the law is guilt, shame and condemnation. Under the law there is always a sense of being driven and never doing enough. You are always feeling that you have somehow done something wrong. Look at verse 3 in The Message;
“I am emphatic about this. The moment any one of you submits to circumcision or any other rule-keeping system, at that same moment Christ's hard-won gift of freedom is squandered. I repeat my warning: The person who accepts the ways of circumcision trades all the advantages of the free life in Christ for the obligations of the slave life of the law.”
Jesus said in Mt. 11:28-30, that our walk with him would be “rest”. When you walk in the law you are obsessed with your actions and self absorbed in your own conduct. Even when you extend love to others it becomes a work to earn something or prove your worth. The Gospel is not about our efforts at all. Paul uses circumcision to illustrate that point (see Romans 2:25-29). The Gospel is about the love of God being expressed in His mercy, forgiveness, grace and power. Our walk is based upon the covenant of love that we have through faith in Jesus. This love covenant does produce a response in us that will motivate us to love others. When we love others it should not be to earn God’s love. Our acts of love should be in response to His love for us (I John 4:19). The law reveals the perfection of God and the Word of God states that God is love (I John 4:16). The law is fulfilled when we take the love of God that was given to accomplish our salvation and we freely give that same love to others.
A= When I feel the weight of the law on me, I need to thank God that I am free from the law because of the love God has for me. I need to take those feelings of not being good enough and never doing all the right things and simply love others. I need to love others not to earn any favor but to renew my mind that I am favored! I am free to love not out of a sense of debt but from a heart of gratitude!
P= Lord, remind me of the gift of your life. You died for me and offered your life in my place. I want to have a debt of love not payback. When I feel legalism crushing down on me, may I serve others selflessly without regard for any return. Help me to remind myself that your love given to others is a sign of a soul set free!
All For Love
by Hillsong United
album: Look To You (2005), God He Reigns (2005)
All for love the Father gave
For only love could make a way
All for love the heavens cried
For love was crucified
Oh how many times have I broken Your heart
But still You forgive
If only I ask
And how many times have You heard me pray
Draw near to me
Everything I need is You
My beginning, my forever
Everything I need is You
Let me sing all for love
I will join the angels song
Ever holy is the Lord
King of Glory
King of all
All for a love a Saviour prayed
Abba Father have Your way
Though they know not what they do
Let the Cross draw man to You
Galatians 5
S= Galatians 5:3 And I testify again to every man who becomes circumcised that he is a debtor to keep the whole law.
Galatians5:6 For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision avails anything, but faith working through love.
Galatians 5:13-14 For you, brethren, have been called to liberty; only do not use liberty as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”
O= Today I used three verses that really stuck out to me. They seem to feed off each other. If we try to maintain the law then we are forced to feel the whole weight of the law. What accompanies the law is guilt, shame and condemnation. Under the law there is always a sense of being driven and never doing enough. You are always feeling that you have somehow done something wrong. Look at verse 3 in The Message;
“I am emphatic about this. The moment any one of you submits to circumcision or any other rule-keeping system, at that same moment Christ's hard-won gift of freedom is squandered. I repeat my warning: The person who accepts the ways of circumcision trades all the advantages of the free life in Christ for the obligations of the slave life of the law.”
Jesus said in Mt. 11:28-30, that our walk with him would be “rest”. When you walk in the law you are obsessed with your actions and self absorbed in your own conduct. Even when you extend love to others it becomes a work to earn something or prove your worth. The Gospel is not about our efforts at all. Paul uses circumcision to illustrate that point (see Romans 2:25-29). The Gospel is about the love of God being expressed in His mercy, forgiveness, grace and power. Our walk is based upon the covenant of love that we have through faith in Jesus. This love covenant does produce a response in us that will motivate us to love others. When we love others it should not be to earn God’s love. Our acts of love should be in response to His love for us (I John 4:19). The law reveals the perfection of God and the Word of God states that God is love (I John 4:16). The law is fulfilled when we take the love of God that was given to accomplish our salvation and we freely give that same love to others.
A= When I feel the weight of the law on me, I need to thank God that I am free from the law because of the love God has for me. I need to take those feelings of not being good enough and never doing all the right things and simply love others. I need to love others not to earn any favor but to renew my mind that I am favored! I am free to love not out of a sense of debt but from a heart of gratitude!
P= Lord, remind me of the gift of your life. You died for me and offered your life in my place. I want to have a debt of love not payback. When I feel legalism crushing down on me, may I serve others selflessly without regard for any return. Help me to remind myself that your love given to others is a sign of a soul set free!
All For Love
by Hillsong United
album: Look To You (2005), God He Reigns (2005)
All for love the Father gave
For only love could make a way
All for love the heavens cried
For love was crucified
Oh how many times have I broken Your heart
But still You forgive
If only I ask
And how many times have You heard me pray
Draw near to me
Everything I need is You
My beginning, my forever
Everything I need is You
Let me sing all for love
I will join the angels song
Ever holy is the Lord
King of Glory
King of all
All for a love a Saviour prayed
Abba Father have Your way
Though they know not what they do
Let the Cross draw man to You
