Grow in the Love of Jesus Christ

One of the lessons that we learn very early in life is that it waits for no one. Life is very dynamic. It can have exuberant highs and devastating lows, and how we respond to both matters to our relationship with God and to our spiritual well-being as well. No matter the challenges or pleasures, life will not slow down and wait for us to catch our breaths. It moves forward whether we get on board or not, but whether we believe it or not, we’re built to withstand the ups and downs, and God has made sure through Jesus Christ that we always come out victoriously. His Will is that we succeed and overcome, and the way to do this is to grow continually in the love of Jesus Christ.

God is all-powerful, all-knowing, and everywhere present. There isn’t anything that He doesn’t know or see, and He’s intimately familiar with every detail of our lives. God is love. He is full of grace and mercy, and He’s perfect beyond perfection. The Apostle Paul said in 2Timothy 4:8(NLT), “And now the prize awaits me—the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give me on the day of his return. And the prize is not just for me but for all who eagerly look forward to his appearing.” Our Heavenly Father is a Righteous Judge who never makes a mistake. What He has judged unrighteous is truly unrighteous, and what He has judged righteous is truly righteous.

For all those that have given their lives to God through Jesus Christ, He has judged them righteous, and this righteousness that He’s given us isn’t because of anything that we’ve done. It’s because of our faith in His grace and mercy that He has given us this unfathomable gift of righteousness. Romans 5:17(NLT) proclaims, “For the sin of this one man, Adam, caused death to rule over many. But even greater is God’s wonderful grace and his gift of righteousness, for all who receive it will live in triumph over sin and death through this one man, Jesus Christ.” Jesus Christ did what Adam did not do. Jesus Christ did what we could not do for ourselves. He delivered us from darkness and transferred us into his kingdom. Because of what God has done through Jesus Christ, He has stamped us righteous and given us the gift of eternal life!

God did it! He redeemed us! Our belief in His finished work that was completed by Jesus Christ brought us into His extraordinary favor. 2Corinthains 5:21(NLT) declares, “For God made Christ, who never sinned, to be the offering for our sin, so that we could be made right with God through Christ.” Adam messed up, there’s no denying that, but God secured our certain pardon, our righteousness, and salvation through Christ. Our great privilege and responsibility are to live in the freedom, light, authority, and power of the victory Jesus Christ won for us. The way that we do this is to grow in his love.

God’s overwhelming grace is demonstrated towards us in ways that it will take us an eternity to explore, but the treasure we can enjoy right now, in this moment, is the knowledge that God loves us. As if the enormity of this truth wasn’t enough, He has given us, mere mortals, the honor of being conduits of His love. We get to live with, in, by, and through His mighty power as we change our hearts and minds to the heart and mind of Christ.

1 Peter 2:2(ESV) tells us, “2 Like newborn infants, long for the pure spiritual milk, that by it you may grow up into salvation—3 if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is good.” Cod liver oil mixed with a half can of soda was my great grandmother’s remedy for maintaining a good constitution. I couldn’t imagine that anyone would crave this concoction, and you probably would agree. We usually don’t crave food or drink that is in no way delicious, but when something is awesomely delicious, we desire it all the time. We’ve tasted it and found that it was good. Well God is a feast beyond our greatest imaginations. He’s good all the time, and the benefits of making our relationship with Him a priority will keep our lives nourished and flourishing in His love.  

Some of us have longed for the trappings of this world because we thought these things could fill our cups, but only the Lord can do this for us. What we’re really longing for is the pure spiritual milk of His Word. We should hunger to know God greater with each passing day, so that we begin to imitate His nature and become transformed by His truth. Many of us have been stuck a long time, and we’re miserable because we don’t know why we can’t get out of our own way. We need confidence, and the only way to be anchored in it is through Christ and his love. Heavenly Father tells us in Colossians 2:6-7 that since we’ve accepted Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior, we need to let our roots grow down into him and let our lives be built on him. When we make it a habit to live by the Spirit, follow the example of Christ, and study God’s Word, like the roots of a tree, we become strong. His love completes us, and we must seek to grow in it as we are transformed into everything our Heavenly Father desires us to be. ■

English Standard Version (ESV)
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version copyright © 2001, 2007, 2011, 2016 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved. 

“Grow in the Love of Jesus Christ”,, written for 4theChristianMan.com© 2024. All rights reserved. All praise and honor to God through Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior.

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