Do You Love Me?

DO YOU LOVE ME?

By

Dr. Gale A. Ragan-Reid (September 19, 2015)

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life...So when they had dined, Jesus saith to Simon Peter, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me more than these?...He saith to him again the second time, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me?...He saith unto him the third time, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me?” (St. John 3: 16; 21:15-17, King James Version [Of regeneration and faith; Christ's charge to Peter].

Greetings In The Holy Name Of Our Lord And Savior, Christ Jesus,

My sisters and brothers, to meditate on Apostle John's gospel reading (3:16, KJV), “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life” is to seriously contemplate what remains for you to do. I cannot compete with God's love, can you? Do you think this to yourself as you meditate on the Words of God? Christ Jesus said it right---delivered the greatest commandment to you. Did you understand the threshold of your faith begins with love?

This story is about the meat of truth. We will not hypothesize, using If and Then. Did you notice the Words of God before the first comma, says, “For God so loved the world”, so I ask you again, what remains for you to do? In The Epistle Of Paul The Apostle To The Romans (13:8-10, KJV), Apostle Paul said, “Owe no man anything, but to love one another: for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law.” You know as I continuously meditate on Apostle John (3:16, KJV), Paul sounded like a father to me, because a father always wants to give you hard truths that you might not understand coming out of the mouth of someone else. A father just wants to love up his children, not think about all the times he fell short of his promises, just enjoy his children and when he cannot enjoy his children he meditates on the memories of his children, holding them so tightly in his heart.

There is something about a father's presence that makes all the scary stuff go away---the darkness turns to light. For it is the blessed assurance of the father that holds you together---those sweet words that give you the confidence to go on without him that build you up to face those sinners and nations of sinners who deny God's love for the world, thus deny that they must love God with all their hearts, souls, and minds and deny that they must love their neighbor. Do you see the love of God in your Father? How deep must you go when you look into your father's eyes to see the love of God? That is why Apostle Paul questioned your love, “For this, thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not kill, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, Thou shalt not covet; and if there be any other commandment, it is briefly comprehended in this saying, namely, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. Love worketh no ill to his neighbour: therefore love is the fulfilling of the law” (Romans 13:9-10, KJV [Of uncharitable judgments]).

Are you still meditating on St. John 3:16, the first words before the first comma, “For God so loved the world,” I find myself seeing God looking upon us with loving eyes in spite of our guilt-for Jesus came to call sinners. We know the law made us guilty. “Now we know that what things soever the law saith, it saith to them who are under the law: that all the world may become guilty before God” (Romans 3: 19, KJV [The Jews' prerogative]). You do not have to sin, do you? You do not have to let the law convict your heart, soul, and mind for sin, do you?

I know you feel, like a good brother, Christ Jesus, cleaned you up and the law does not apply to you anymore---you no longer think of a sin as a sin but did Jesus change the sin or did he change you to be born again into a new creature. “...That he gave his only begotten Son, ...” are the Words of God before the second comma, because “Christ Jesus is the righteousness of God, and the books of the law and the books of the Prophets in the Holy Bible witnessed the manifestation of God's righteousness, without

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the law”(Romans 3:21, KJV). I am sure you taste the meat of this story just as you feel the weight of any sin charged to your name. “You have the knowledge of sin. You know the commandments” (3:20, KJV).