Lock Down Defines Love

LUKE 4:1-44

“Love” is the constant cry of God’s voice in the wilderness of the human heart. “Level up, remove the rocky patches, straighten up the crooked path – by my spiritual gift of love to you”, says the Lord.

With the continued Lockdown, continued infection and associated deaths, the voice has been heard in all languages of the world. Everyone wise and powerful has been humbled, frightened to the core, and forced into self-quarantine. Behold the voice!

The three Components of God’s Love – the fruit of faith.

1. Gift of life (Ability)
2. Gift of Spirit (Qualification)
3. Righteousness (Salvation)

1. Gift of life (Our ability)

“It is written”
The spirit of God came upon Jesus at baptism and enabled him to face the world with all its hatred, rejection and ultimately to His sacrificial death.

With God’s spirit of Love, Satan’s stronghold could not defeat the second Adam but the first Adam, who was without the spirit was quickly defeated. So it is with our human existence. the devil has three major weapons to defeat humanity, with the exception of those with the gift of the Spirit.

a) Food and all necessities:

The devil makes it imperative that necessities of life like food, drink, etc., are fundamental and core to your life here below. Many die in possession of the so-called essentials of life; the rich and poor, the educated and uneducated, and many others; but without eternal life. They face the verdict of eternal death, for their lives were dependent on what does not endure.

Man’s life is dependent on the Word of God not on food or necessities of life. Without this true life, you face the verdict of eternal death.

“It is written”
Man’s whole life, both the temporal and eternal is a gift of “God’s love”. A love which turns a guilty sinful soul into a righteous one through faith in Christ.

b) Reaching the pinnacle of life:

Idols of our hearts – the great sign of paganism. Repentance accepts Christ’s gift of love which puts His love into our hearts.

This same spirit which came upon Christ at baptism, fills our lives; and with this alone we are able to hear the words: “Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God with all your heart…..”

c) Take ownership: manage your life with your abilities then the contradiction – the Lord your God will bless the work of your hands and protect you

Christ, though a son of God derived all power of his existence on earth from the gift of the Spirit which came to him on baptism.

So we must put all our spiritual dependence on Christ who alone plants “the obedience of faith” into our hearts. Only with “the Word” can we deter the spirit of the world which defeated the first Adam but could not tempt our Lord.

Otherwise we shall not rest, or even feel the spiritual joy of those about to reach the promised land; or even be of courage to those who are down-trodden until the spiritual gift of Love is manifested in our lives.

Lockdowns, infections and associated deaths demand the fruit of the spirit. This is revealed below.

2. Gift of the Spirit (Qualification) – the source of love

God’s people are perfectly aware that no living soul can exist without God’s love to the world. All of us are born to receive this gift, sadly many deliberately or ignorantly reject it.

On a particular day, the spirit of love was manifested to the public in a synagogue in Nazareth, Jesus’ hometown. The Word (Christ) read from the word (Scriptures):

“The Spirit of the Lord (God’s love) is upon me….”

• appointed me to preach the Gospel to the poor.
• to heal the broken hearted
• to preach deliverance to the captive recovers sight to the blind.
• to liberate those who are bruised.

This power is God’s spirit of love (Christ) kindled at baptism into the hearts of those with faith.

This love makes us all come to God with empty hands, with no merit except the wretchedness of our human frailty. Every element of our life is a gift entrusted to us by God’s gift of love, the wonderful spiritual knowledge.

Therefore, our qualification: “in grace alone we stand: the fruit of faith; love, hope, then unity of all believers, in dependence and confidence of the Spirit.

In times such as these of total lockdown; in our tribulation here on earth, we stand firm, just waiting joyfully for the final goal of our salvation; the work which Christ has already accomplished for those who are one in Spirit with him.

3. The Work (Our Salvation)

See what God’s love has done! He has transformed the pagan gentile life into righteousness. This is a great work which no man can do. It is like transforming stones into food.

• We who were poor have been made rich from a life that flickers (ie., is temporary) to eternal life, so we should rejoice because of what Jesus has done.
• Only one poor widow (out of the many in Israel) was made to live during the period of famine in Elisha’s ‘time.
• Naaman; a Syrian received mercy out of the many lepers in Israel.
• What these two had in common, was their possession of wretchedness, their sinfulness which they brought to Christ’s divine power in contrition.
• This is why there were many gifts in Galilee and Capernaum, they constantly felt their unworthiness and turned to Christ.

The voice of God is knocking at the door of your heart during this time of lockdown, disease and death. It is a wonderful loving call to turn to Christ and receive the free spiritual gift of his love which is your salvation.

This gift of the spirit is your ability to live in this world and the ability to ward off the devil.

Our qualification is grace alone, which makes us stand in the unity of fellow brethren; with its greatest joy here on earth as a people coming out of tribulation (our earthly existence); to a new and joyful world where our Lord Christ lives in Heaven.

Publication: True Faith Revealed