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Epaphroditus, Lover of God – The Greatest Commandment

paleohuguenot — Sun, 29 Mar 2009 05:01:44 +0000

Epaphroditus, Lover of God

Exodus, 20:17; Deuteronomy 5:21

“And you shall not covet…”

Philippians 2:29, 30

So receive him in the Lord with all joy, and honor such men, for he nearly died for the work of Christ, risking his life to complete what was lacking in your service to me.

We love God in little and great efforts.

Epaphroditus was a messenger. He had been sent by the Philippians to Paul in Rome in order to bring certain provisions and supplies to meet his needs. Along the way, apparently, he fell ill, and might have turned back to Philippi. Instead, he stayed the course and carried out his assignment, arriving in Rome nearly at the point of death. It was a small task – compared to Paul’s standing before the Emperor, for example – but in it Epaphroditus proved himself a true lover of God, a man to be honored for his faithfulness in little things. It’s easy to overlook such people in our churches. We tend to focus on the glitzy, grab-the-spotlight kind of ministries that seem to be so important to the work of the Gospel. Meanwhile, how many lovers of God go overlooked because their faithfulness in small things is not appreciated as it should be? Make a point in your own ministry to single out the Epaphrodituses in your church and give them the honor they are due.

Pray

Help me to grow in love for You, O Lord, in all the ways we have been considering this week. Draw me closer to You and let my soul burn with love for You, so that, whether in great things or small, I may be faithful to obey.

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“In the Gates” is a devotional series on the Law of God by Rev. T.M. Moore

T. M. Moore is editor of the Worldview Church. He serves as dean of the Centurions Program of the Wilberforce Forum and principal of The Fellowship of Ailbe, a spiritual fellowship in the Celtic Christian tradition. He is the author or editor of twenty books, and has contributed chapters to four others. His essays, reviews, articles, papers, and poetry have appeared in dozens of national and international journals, and on a wide range of websites. His most recent books are The Ailbe Psalter and The Ground for Christian Ethics (Waxed Tablet).

Scripture quotations in this article are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, (c) copyright 2001,2007 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Editor’s note: The use of a translation other than the Authorised Version in an article does not constitute an endorsement in whole or in part by The Christian Observer.

Zacchaeus, Lover of God – The Great Commandment

paleohuguenot — Sat, 28 Mar 2009 05:01:32 +0000

Zacchaeus, Lover of God

Matthew 22:37, 38

And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment.”

Luke 19:9

And Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, since he is also a son of Abraham.”

They who love God prove by obeying His Law.

John wrote that love – for God as well as for neighbors – is expressed in obedience to the Law of God (1 Jn. 5.1-3). Jesus confirmed this assertion in His encounter with Zacchaeus. This man, who for many years had scammed and skimmed from his neighbors, was suddenly, in the presence of Jesus, soundly converted to living faith in God. His immediate response was to invoke upon himself the obligations of restorative justice set forth in the Law. He had no way of knowing whether or not Jesus or anybody else was aware of his thievery. Yet something in His heart – the love of God like his father Abraham – provoked him to this act of repentance and restoration. When we love God we are sensitive to the promptings of His Spirit and eager to follow wherever He leads. In Zacchaeus’ case that meant full public disclosure of his sin, heart-felt repentance, and a return to the ways of loving God and neighbor marked out in the Law. Loving God must mean the same for us as well. If we fear Him, as Abraham did, and long to know His glory, like Moses; and if we are eager to serve Him, like Joshua, and to provoke others to love Him, as David did; then out of the solitude of our hearts will flow love for God in the form of obedience to His Law.

Such sensitivity to God’s Spirit comes from allowing Him to search the depths of our souls. How do you practice this (Ps. 139.23, 24)?

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“In the Gates” is a devotional series on the Law of God by Rev. T.M. Moore

Editor’s note: The use of a translation other than the Authorised Version in an article does not constitute an endorsement in whole or in part by The Christian Observer.

Anna, Lover of God – The Great Commandment

paleohuguenot — Fri, 27 Mar 2009 05:01:14 +0000

Anna, Lover of God

Matthew 22:37, 38

And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment.”

Luke 2:36, 37

And there was a prophetess, Anna, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was advanced in years, having lived with her husband seven years from when she was a virgin, and then as a widow until she was eighty-four. She did not depart from the temple, worshiping with fasting and prayer night and day.

We love God in the secret places.

Perhaps one of the greatest tests of our love for God is whether we love Him in solitude. Anna was a lone, living in temple quarters from which she never departed. Yet she was not moping around, feeling sorry for herself or bitter about her plight. Anna loved God, and she devoted her solitude to showing her love for Him in the only ways she could, by fasting and praying night and day. People today don’t like to be alone. We have to have something to do, someone to be with, lest we become fidgety. But solitude with God – to meditate on His beauty, draw on His strength, fast for a clearer focus on Him, and just to wait on Him in silence – is an important discipline for the lovers of God. So much did God revel in Anna’s solitude with Him, that He granted her the privilege of a first look at His Son, honoring her love for Him with a special act of love for her. In the solitude, where there’s no one to see us and no one to impress, we have an opportunity to show the purity and intensity of our love for God, and to find Him there, in the solitude, waiting to bestow upon us some special gift of His glory and grace.

How do you practice the discipline of solitude? Can you find some brief moments for solitude during the course of your day?

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“In the Gates” is a devotional series on the Law of God by Rev. T.M. Moore

Editor’s note: The use of a translation other than the Authorised Version in an article does not constitute an endorsement in whole or in part by The Christian Observer.

David, Lover of God – The Great Commandment

paleohuguenot — Thu, 26 Mar 2009 05:01:04 +0000

David, Lover of God

Matthew 22:37, 38

And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment.”

Psalm 31:23

Love the LORD, all you his saints!

They who love God provoke others.

Love for God consists in fearing Him, entering into His glory, and serving Him in every aspect of our lives. David certainly loved God by those criteria. But he shows us yet another way that the Law of God leads us to love Him. David provoked others to love the Lord. On so many occasions, when things had gone badly for David and his followers, we find him constructing a psalm of praise and thanks to the Lord, often setting it to a familiar tune so he and his followers could sing it. David’s love for God was such that he longed for others to share in it with him. This is the way it is with everything we “love” – a favorite movie or TV program, a favorite food or vacation place. We want to tell others about it so they can enjoy it with us, and together we can sing the praises of what we “love” to many others besides. David understood this principle well, and he constantly labored to provoke others to know God, fear God, come into the presence of God, and serve Him. If we love God we will extol His many virtues to others and call them eagerly and earnestly to join their hearts and lives with us in loving God with all our soul and strength.

How do you try to provoke others to join you in loving God? What opportunities for doing this can you expect to have today?

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“In the Gates” is a devotional series on the Law of God by Rev. T.M. Moore

Editor’s note: The use of a translation other than the Authorised Version in an article does not constitute an endorsement in whole or in part by The Christian Observer.

Joshua, Lover of God – The Great Commandment

paleohuguenot — Wed, 25 Mar 2009 05:01:48 +0000

Joshua, Lover of God

Matthew 22:37, 38

And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment.”

Joshua 24:14, 15

“Now therefore fear the LORD and serve him in sincerity and faithfulness. Put away the gods that your fathers served beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the LORD. And if it is evil in your eyes to serve the LORD, choose this day whom you will serve, whether to gods your fathers served in the region beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.”

They love the Lord who serve Him.

We can sometimes get the impression that the conquest of the land of Canaan was a fairly short campaign. In fact, years were required to subdue as much of the land as the people managed in Joshua’s lifetime. And even then, as we read about the disposition of the land to the various tribes, it is clear that much work remained. Joshua refused to let the people rest on their laurels. If they truly loved God, they would serve Him, and serving Him meant reducing the rest of the land and beginning to cultivate faithfulness to the Law in pursuit of the promises. Joshua’s courage and faith enabled him to overcome mistakes – at Ai and with the Gibeonites – and to lead the people into the promises of God. He was a faithful servant all his days, and he stands for us as a model of what God requires of those who fear Him and to whom He reveals His glory. They must serve Him according to His Word, as Joshua had done all his days, and as he, at the end of his life, called Israel to do. It is not enough to testify of our fear of God or to retreat into His presence, waiting on His glory. Love for God begins and is renewed here; but love for God ultimately takes the form of obedient service to Him, according to His commands and with an eye on His precious and magnificent promises.

Which of God’s promises motivate you to serve Him faithfully each day?

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“In the Gates” is a devotional series on the Law of God by Rev. T.M. Moore

Editor’s note: The use of a translation other than the Authorised Version in an article does not constitute an endorsement in whole or in part by The Christian Observer.

Moses, Lover of God – The Great Commandment

paleohuguenot — Tue, 24 Mar 2009 05:01:55 +0000

Moses, Lover of God

Matthew 22:37, 38

And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment.”

Exodus 19:12

“And you shall set limits for the people all around, saying, ‘Take care not to go up into the mountain or touch the edge of it. Whoever touches the mountain shall be put to death.”

Love obeys to the point of danger.

Moses knew that God had called him to lead the people of Israel out of captivity. He reluctantly acquiesced in God’s plan and, not without trials and tribulations, led them to the foot of Mt. Sinai, where they were to receive the commandments of the Lord. God solemnly warned Moses that anyone who touched the mountain would die; then He commanded Moses to come up the mountain to meet with Him. Was Moses willing to obey this command of God, to go beyond where anyone else in Israel would be allowed to go, in order to bring the blessings of God to His people? Of course he was. While others feared to approach the sacred mountain, Moses had learned to be, if not at ease, at least, secure in the presence of God. He loved God not from a distance, but, as it were, face to face, in His presence, where no one else ever dared to go. Do you love God enough to go before Him in His Word and prayer, and to wait upon Him to bring you into His glory – even though no one you know practices the presence of God in this way? If we love God we will long for His presence, even though it can be fearful, and we will go before Him faithfully, to be bathed in His glory as we linger over His Word and wait on Him in prayer. It matters not whether anyone else dares such boldness. God has called us, so, loving Him, we come.

What about your time with the Lord each day? Does it indicate that you sincerely love the Lord? Are you entering into the glory of the Lord in your time with Him?

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“In the Gates” is a devotional series on the Law of God by Rev. T.M. Moore

Editor’s note: The use of a translation other than the Authorised Version in an article does not constitute an endorsement in whole or in part by The Christian Observer.

Abraham, Lover of God – The Great Commandment

paleohuguenot — Mon, 23 Mar 2009 05:01:59 +0000

Abraham, Lover of God

Matthew 22:37, 38

And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment.”

Genesis 22:11, 12

But the angel of the LORD called to him from heaven and said, “Abraham, Abraham!” And he said, “Here am I.” He said, “Do not lay your hand on the boy or do anything to him, for now I know that you fear God, seeing you have not withheld your son, your only son, from me.”

To love God is to fear Him.

The Law of God is crafted to promote the practice of two supreme loves: love for God and love for our neighbor. We do not take up the Law and the practices it recommends in order to earn the favor of God, that He might save us. Rather, understanding how much He loves us, to what lengths He has gone to save us, and the infinite wisdom and strength that lie back of His every revealed Word, we take up the practice of the Law – the practice of loving God and neighbor – because we believe God knows best how our lives should be conducted, and we are eager to demonstrate our gratitude for His mercy and our confidence in His wisdom. But how do we love God? Love for God begins in the heart, in fearing Him, as Abraham did. Abraham feared God so much that He would do anything God required of Him rather than risk offending Him any further than he already had. The sacrifice of Isaac was the supreme test. Surely Abraham must have been anxious and dismayed at the prospect of this deed. But, more than that, he believed God’s promises, trusted God’s goodness, banked on God’s power even to raise Isaac from the dead, and obeyed God explicitly, fearing to offend His majesty and honor. Love for God is expressed in obedience to His every command, but it begins in a heart that fears Him.

Is it possible to love God without fearing Him? Why not? Can you say that you fear God? How do you demonstrate that fear?

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“In the Gates” is a devotional series on the Law of God by Rev. T.M. Moore

Editor’s note: The use of a translation other than the Authorised Version in an article does not constitute an endorsement in whole or in part by The Christian Observer.