(Continued)
In last week's message I mentioned how God died for relationship; and whether or not we place that same value on it.
In Matthew 24, Jesus is recorded as saying the following:
Now as He sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, “Tell us, when will these things be? And what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?”
And Jesus answered and said to them: “Take heed that no one deceives you. For many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and will deceive many. And you will hear of wars and rumours of wars. See that you are not troubled; for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be famines, pestilences, and earthquakes in various places. All these are the beginning of sorrows.
“Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and kill you, and you will be hated by all nations for My name’s sake. And then many will be offended, will betray one another, and will hate one another. Then many false prophets will rise up and deceive many. And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold. But he who endures to the end shall be saved. And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come.
One of the signs of the end times is that the love of many will grow cold.
(We don't have to look too far to realise how true this is.)
A lack of love will affect our ability to develop relationships. This in turn will result in a lack of soul winning and discipleship, and could possibly hinder it all together!
A few questions I asked myself as a result of last week's message:
Do I love people the way God loves them?
Do I accept people the way He does?
Do I tolerate people the way He does?
Am I faithful towards others?
Do I keep no record of wrongs?
Am I proud or self seeking?
Do I envy or am I boastful?
Am I rude?
Will I look past any short comings or difficulties in others for the sake of the relationship
It highlighted the following as well: Can we be an effective vessel of the Holy Spirit if we don't excel/strive for the above?
(We may operate in the gifts of the Spirit from time to time, we may hear God's voice, we may have faith to receive things, etc.) ... but can we effectively influence without the above? Meaning that the more we develop in how to relate with people, the more influence we'll have.
... If we want to develop in our relationships, all we need to do is treat others the way God treats us.
John 13:34
A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”
Matthew 7:12
Therefore, whatever you want men to do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets.