The Christian life without agape love is like Christianity without Christ. “Agape Love” does not originate in this world but from God; it is given to every believer at the new birth, and then TO BE individually & deliberately cultivated in your life, Christian! Agape Love is the first fruit of the Holy Spirit, therefore, if you’re a Christian, you MUST possess agape love in your spirit! 1 John 4:7-12 In our text, Paul describes agape love for us by what it is, and by what it is not; agape love LOOKS LIKE THIS, and it DOESN’T LOOK LIKE THIS! Agape love is patient (longsuffering) and kind, agape love is not full of envy and jealousy, which leads to malice and hatred, agape love does not vaunt (or brag about itself), and it is not puffed up or arrogant. Agape love does not behave itself unseemly (or in ways that are indecent, rude, or unbecoming), agape love is not selfish (or self-centered and self-serving), it is not easily provoked to anger, (not short fused or easily exasperated); agape love thinks no evil, (but it thinks of righteousness, holiness, and of the excellent things of the Kingdom of Christ)! Agape love does not rejoice in iniquity and sin, (it weeps and grieves), but it rejoices and acquiesces truth and holiness. This is a lot to take in and consider, but if the Spirit of God is in you, your natural response should be that you want this love that comes from God to dwell in you richly, but also, that this love would be openly manifest in your conduct and character, (TO THE HONOR AND GLORY OF CHRIST!) Your Christian life is about NOT ONLY about learning truth and knowledge from the Holy Scriptures, (it is that), but you must also be determined to believe, obey, and practice what you know/believe from God’s Word. How often do we believe so much but practice so little! “Agape Love” is either going to “BE SEEN” in you Christian; or the lack of it “WILL BE SEEN” in you. HOW? By what you proactively say and do, and how you behave and react toward THOSE that God has providentially and skillfully put in your personal space for you to socialize with and practice this love! If you want to see and learn about proactive/reactive “agape love” look at the life the Lord Jesus Christ in the days of His humanity, in the midst of a sea of fallen and sinful humans, and you will see agape perfection!
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