The Will of the Father: Love
Devotions:
Our purpose is to do the will of the Father. What is the will of the Father?
“Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.” Matthew 22:37-40 KJV
“Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy. But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust. For if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye? do not even the publicans the same? And if ye salute your brethren only, what do ye more than others? do not even the publicans so? Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.” Matthew 5:43-48 KJV
We can only love the unloveable as we feed on our Father's love for us daily. Neither of these two statements could the Old Testament saints keep. Jesus was the only one who did keep them. Then it is His life within us that can keep these laws and we have His life within us only if we are born again. The mark of our Chirstian life is not if we have everything right theologically but how much of the Love of God we are walking in towards God as measured by our love for others. Walking in the will of the Father is walking in His love and in the power of that love because out of that love flows the gifts of the Spirit.