[fb-like-button]
A Fully Devoted Follower Loves Selflessly
Becoming A Fully Devoted Follower: #4 of 6 (taken from the Treepost Newletter) | View the Entire Devotional Series
This month we continue our series on what it means to be a Fully Devoted Follower of Jesus.
We’ve been looking at the five traits of a Fully Devoted Follower of Jesus Christ the last few months. Our purpose statement at Wawasee Bible is to see people transformed into Fully Devoted Followers of Jesus Christ by the power of the Holy Spirit and the Word of God. The goal isn’t just to see people become a Christian, but to grow into a Fully Devoted Follower of Jesus. And we’ve said that a Fully Devoted Follower is someone who’s life is characterized by five things: They Learn Continually, Worship Passionately, Love Selflessly, Give Sacrificially, and Live Missionally.
Last month we studied Jesus’ response to the Pharisees after they confronted him, trying to trap him, and asked “What is the greatest commandment?” Do you remember Jesus’ response? He said the first and great commandment is to Love God. To love him first. To turn from our idols and worship him passionately.
Jesus didn’t stop there, though. He said there was a second command that was very similar to the first: Love Others. Love and care for other people just like you would and already do for yourself. Learn to put their needs before your own. Learn to Love Selflessly.
Jesus said if someone would simply obey these two commands, Love God and Love Others that they would obey all of Scripture! So how are you doing in these two areas? Are you all about loving Jesus first and worshiping him passionately? Are you actively seeking to love others selflessly and put their needs before your own? It’s a simple command, but one that’s really hard to obey because we’re sinful and by nature self-absorbed.
We’re entering the one time of year where it seems to be a little bit easier to love selflessly. It seems like at Christmas it’s just easier to do this. Maybe it’s because we spend more time focusing on the way God first loved us, sending Jesus to redeem us and model how we ought to love God (worship passionately) and love others (love selflessly). Jesus did it perfectly, actively seeking the needs of others above his own, even to the point of death on the cross.
Jesus was able to do this by relying on three things that are available to every one of us: 1) The Holy Spirit, 2) The Word of God, 3) Prayer. Do you allow the Holy Spirit to fill you, guide you, and empower you? You’ll fail to truly love selflessly until you do. Are you spending time regularly in the Word of God? If not, you’ll have no clue how to love like Jesus loved. Are you taking time each day to pray? If not, you’ll burn yourself out trying to do it all on your own. God created you to be dependent upon him. So spend time in prayer, get connected, worship him passionately and then you’ll be able to love selflessly.
You Are Loved!
Pastor Josh