LOVE SEES THE NEED
"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." 1st John 4:10.
One of the hymns I especially like is
a song written by Avis B. Christiansen entitled, "Love Found A
Way."
"Wonderful love that
rescued me, sunk deep in sin
Guilty and vile as I
could be. No hope within;
When every ray of light
had fled, O glorious day!
Raising my soul from out
the dead, love found a way.
Love found a way to
redeem my soul.
Love found a way that
could make me whole;
Love sent my Lord to the
cross of shame.
Love found a way---O
praise His holy name."
When man sinned it put a mighty gulf
between God and man. Man believed Satan and disbelieved God.
Man chose Satan's way and rejected God's way. Man became a
sinner by nature, by choice and by action.
God has revealed Himself as a God of
holiness, righteousness and justice. These qualities can
have no fellowship with sin. They also require that sin be
punished. On the other hand, God has also revealed that He
is a God of love, mercy, compassion, and grace. These
qualities yearned for man to be restored to fellowship with Him.
What God's holiness, righteousness,
and just required the love, mercy and grace of God provided.
God clothes His Son in a human body. His Son, Jesus, had all
our sins laid on Him. He then received the full punishment
for all our sins. After three days He rose again from the
dead and sent forth the message that all who receive Him as their
Savior by faith will be restored to fellowship with God forever.
God spanned the seemingly unbridgeable
gap, but oh what a price He paid! Avis Christiansen was
right on target when he wrote that song, "Love Found A Way".
One of the things that deeply impresses every serious Bible
student is that there is not a need that man has but what God has
made provision to meet it. We may not even know what they
are. Other times we know what they are, but don't take
advantage of the provision God has made. Sometimes we get
frustrated because God's timetable for taking care of our needs is
not the same as ours. Yet, every believer possesses deep
within the confidence that from the vantage point of eternal glory
every need will have been met forever.
God still sees the need of every human
and He still loves and desires to fulfill them. God works
primarily through His people to do this. As we come to know
God intimately,---to know His mind and His heart, we begin
to know His love. When God fills our heart with His love we
begin to see the requirements of others and we are motivated
to try to satisfy them. What are they, you may ask.
The greatest need every person has is
to receive forgiveness of sin and salvation of their soul.
We share with them the saving gospel of Jesus Christ. After
a person is saved, one of his or her great needs is to know God
intimately and to learn God's ways. This is accomplished by
teaching God's Word.
On the path of life there are many
obstacles and pitfalls. We experience rejection, or perhaps
worse, neglect; there may be financial reverses; husbands and
wives may experience conflict; parents may abuse children;
children may break the heart of their parents; drug or alcohol
addiction may crop up in the family; immorality may bring its
blight; loved ones may die. These and a thousand other
turmoil's require loving encouragement, comfort and counsel.
Yes, there is poverty, crime of every
sort, frightening tension among nations. There is great
ignorance and seemingly no workable plan to produce strong
character in those millions of young people growing into adults.
All of this requires that God's people be a light that shines in
the darkness of the world and a salt that holds back corruption.
Paul talked about the love of God
being shed abroad in our hearts. (Romans 5:5). When it is,
then we, like God, will see the need and be moved to do what we
can to fulfill it.
Copyright © 2002
Thomas E Berry
Scripture quotations from NKJV unless otherwise noted
Copyright © 2008 Truth Helpers Inc.
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