Love Faith's Foundation

Galatians 5:6 For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision avails anything, but faith working through love.

Faith is one of my favorite topics to teach. I have found that it is the very foundation to our relationship with God the Father. We can not have or sustain any kind of relationship without it. He said in His Word ….

Hebrews 11:6 But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.

If we don’t believe that He is, we will not come to Him nor seek Him. Because of this we will never receive the reward that diligent seeking provides.

I have learned through God’s Word that truly the very foundation of our faith is based on love. Love here is the Greek word agape. Agape is the Greek word meaning the love of God or the God kind of love. It is the highest form of love there is. It is the same word translated love in John 3:16.

John 3:16 "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.

This is an unselfish kind of love that literally puts others first. God’s Word tells us that God is love. This is not just one of His attributes but what He is.

1 John 4:8 He who does not love does not know God, for God is love.

4:10 In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins.

4:16 And we have known and believed the love that God has for us. God is love, and he who abides in love abides in God, and God in him.

This is a truly profound statement. The Apostle John had great understanding in this area.

I don’t claim to have all the answers but I have seen first hand people who have learned to walk in this higher agape form of love. God’s protection and hedge is up around them.

This does not mean there are not problems in the world that will try to come against you.

We know that if you are living Godly in Christ Jesus you will be persecuted. (2Tm: 3:12.)

History tells us that the Apostle John was put alive into boiling oil and they could not harm him. Was he special in some way? With this in mind lets go back and read our last verse of Scripture. 1 John 4:16 And we have known and believed the love that God has for us. God is love, and he who abides in love abides in God, and God in him.

This is not saying bad things will not come your way, it is saying that if you are truly abiding in God’s love then God will abide in you. How can we fail if we are truly abiding in God?

1 Corinthians 13:8a Love never fails.

This gives us much to reflect upon. Has the body of Christ been walking in the reality of this truth? I am speaking for myself when I say I seek to abide in Him and Him in me in a more profound way.

I realize this is an ongoing process that we must all learn to walk in, however I believe we have just barely scratched the surface in our love walk. I know I have, I’m not pointing my finger at anyone.

Let’s look on at the Word of God.

1 John 3:23 And this is His commandment: that we should believe on the name of His Son Jesus Christ and love one another, as He gave us commandment.

A commandment is an edict or a statue. It is true we are not under the law of the Old Testament, however we are under the law of God’s love. This is a higher law that supercedes all the other laws of the entire Bible.

Matthew 22:37. Jesus said to him, " `You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’

38. "This is the first and great commandment.

39. "And the second is like it: `You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’

40. "On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.’’

This is truly an incredible thing. We read right through this as if it were reading the begots.

I believe that if we can learn and understand this holy precept of God’s Word, we as the body of Christ will step into a new area of God’s divine presence and glory. We’re not going to walk in it any other way.