|
Author
|
Topic: I love the LORD and I try to love my neighbor,
|
Eden
unregistered
|
posted
Sister Carol Swenson wrote quote:
While it is true that the Holy Spirit equips people to serve as shepherds, and gives these people to churches (Eph. 4:11), it is also true that each individual Christian must help to care for the flock. Each of us has a gift or gifts from the Lord, and we should use what He has given us to help protect and perfect the flock.
Amen to that, sister Carol Swenson.
1 Corinthians 12
1 Now concerning spiritual gifts, brethren, I would not have you ignorant.
2 You know that you were Gentiles, carried away unto these dumb idols, even as you were also led.
3 Therefore I give you to understand, that no man speaking by the Spirit of God calls Jesus accursed: and that no man can say that Jesus is the Lord, but by the Holy Spirit.
4 Now there are diversities of gifts, but of the same Spirit.
5 And there are differences of administrations, but administered by the same Lord.
6 And there are diversities of operations, but it is the same God Who works all in all.
7 But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man, to profit with all.
8 For to one is given by the Spirit the word of wisdom; to another is given the word of knowledge by the same Spirit;
9 To another faith is given by the same Spirit; to another the gifts of healing by the same Spirit;
10 To another the working of miracles; to another prophecy; to another discerning of spirits; to another divers kinds of languages {glossae}; to another the interpretation of languages {glossae};
11 But all these works that One and selfsame Spirit, dividing to every man severally as He chooses.
12 For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of that one body, although many, are one body: so also is Christ.
13 For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we are Jews or Gentiles, whether we are bond or free; and have all been made to drink into one Spirit.
14 For the body is not one member, but many members.
Sister Carol Swenson wrote quote:
While it is true that the Holy Spirit equips people to serve as shepherds, and gives these people to churches (Eph. 4:11), it is also true that each individual Christian must help to care for the flock. Each of us has a gift or gifts from the Lord, and we should use what He has given us to help protect and perfect the flock.
Amen to that.
love, Eden
IP: Logged | 
|
|
Carol Swenson
Admin
Member # 6929
|
posted
Be a good shepherd.
John 21:15 - 17 (NLT)
15 After breakfast Jesus asked Simon Peter, “Simon son of John, do you love me more than these?” “Yes, Lord,” Peter replied, “you know I love you.” “ Then feed my lambs ,” Jesus told him. 16 Jesus repeated the question: “Simon son of John, do you love me?” “Yes, Lord,” Peter said, “you know I love you.” “ Then take care of my sheep ,” Jesus said. 17 A third time he asked him, “Simon son of John, do you love me?” Peter was hurt that Jesus asked the question a third time. He said, “Lord, you know everything. You know that I love you.” Jesus said, “ Then feed my sheep."
This means care for those He wants you to care for, and teach those He wants you to teach.
While it is true that the Holy Spirit equips people to serve as shepherds, and gives these people to churches (Eph. 4:11), it is also true that each individual Christian must help to care for the flock. Each of us has a gift or gifts from the Lord, and we should use what He has given us to help protect and perfect the flock.
Posts: 6787 | From: Colorado | Registered: Dec 2007
| IP: Logged |
|
|
Eden
unregistered
|
posted
Dear Carol Swenson, did you know that Shepherds FOLLOW and to NOT LEAD?
From the back of the flock, the Shepherd can see which sheep is doing what and can send a rock crashing into the ground near it to turn the sheep safely back to the flock.
But as Commander-in-Chief (a hot political Topic right now), Jesus will be AT THE HEAD OF HIS ARMY:
Joel 2
11 And the LORD shall utter His voice before His army: for His camp is very great: for He is strong Who executes His word: for the day of the LORD is great and very terrible; and who can abide it?
But, getting back to loving my neighbor, shall I just smile at everybody? ![[Smile]](smile.gif)
love, Eden
IP: Logged |
|
|
|
|
Eden
unregistered
|
posted
Make love our aim. (the titlle of a book by Eugenia Price)
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.
John 15:12
This is my commandment, That you love one another, as I have loved you.
John 15:17
These things I command you, that you love one another.
Romans 13:8
Owe no man any thing, but to love one another: for he that loves another has fulfilled the law.
1 Thessalonians 4:9
But as touching brotherly love you need not that I write unto you: for you yourselves are taught of God to love one another.
1 Peter 1:22
Seeing you have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren, see that you love one another with a pure heart fervently.
1 John 3:11
For this is the message that you heard from the beginning, that we should love one another.
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.
1 John 4:7
Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and everyone that loves is born of God, and knows God.
1 John 4:11
Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another.
1 John 4:12
No man has seen God at any time. If we love one another, God dwells in us, and His love is perfected in us.
2 John 1:5
And now I beseech you, lady, not as though I wrote a new commandment to you, but that which we had from the beginning, that we love one another.
Does that only mean to love another in the church? Jesus did not specify, but I think we love, "to the Jew first, and then to the Greek also":
Romans 1:16
For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God to salvation to everyone who believes; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.
Romans 2:10
But glory, honor, and peace, to every man who works good, to the Jew first, and also to the Gentile.
When Jesus says, "You must love your neighbor as yourself", Jesus did not specify. If anything, Jesus included my enemies:
Matthew 5
42 Give to him who asks, and from him who would borrow of you, turn not away.
43 You have heard it said, You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.
44 BUT I SAY TO YOU, Love your enemies, bless them who curse you, do good to them who hate you, and pray for them who despitefully use you and persecute you.
Let us MAKE LOVE OUR AIM. Our neighbor is everyone on earth.
love, Eden
IP: Logged |
|
|
Carmela
Advanced Member
Member # 4817
|
posted
Oh I forgot to say something.
Michael maybe it's just because I'm way over tired but I have no idea what you were trying to say in your post. Could you please clarify for me? Thanks so much.
--------------------
www.pinecrest.org
Posts: 646 | From: Central New York | Registered: Jun 2005
| IP: Logged |
|
|
Carmela
Advanced Member
Member # 4817
|
posted
Growing up in a lot of abuse, I hated myself because of all of the rejection I faced growing up. One day I was talking to an amazing woman of God Joan, and she said that we may think we hate ourselves but if we look at things differently, we really don't hate ourselves. I mean, before I leave the house I shower (I'm sure people appreciate this lol) and dress and make sure I look nice, if I'm hurting, I look to comfort myself of fix the pain, ect. So, I obviously care enough about myself to take care of me. The same is true for everyone. So, I may have times when I'm feeling down or something, but if I look below the surface and the pain, I realize that deep down I do love myself. I just find it hard to accept that I can love myself at times. Maybe because I think it's easier to feel less pain if I'm avoiding love. Does that make sense?
I don't typically have trouble loving others though. When I was younger I didn't trust anyone. I wouldn't get close to anyone. I kept very high walls around me. As I allowed God to bring those walls down, I realized that it feels so much nicer to love others than it ever did to dislike people. It's so much more rewarding to love. It makes us feel better inside also. When we spend out times disliking others, we feel more miserable inside. I guess I learned that it took more energy to hold a grudge against people than it does to love them. Believe me, I use to be a major grudge holder and when I finally chose to stop holding a grudge, I became a happier person inside.
When take the scriptures literal and walk them out, we are not only obeying but we are changing for the better as we obey and carry out God's word.
--------------------
www.pinecrest.org
Posts: 646 | From: Central New York | Registered: Jun 2005
| IP: Logged |
|
|
vivalavida123
Community Member
Member # 7260
|
posted
"One of the teachers of the law came and heard them debating. Noticing that Jesus had given them a good answer, he asked him, "Of all the commandments, which is the most important?" "The most important one," answered Jesus, "is this: 'Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.' The second is this: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' There is no commandment greater than these." (NIV, Mark 12:28-31).
This has always been my favorite verses in the Bible. I feel like these two verses sum up the entire Bible.
Love God First.
Love Everyone After.
This is how I live my life.
Posts: 7 | From: Nashville, TN | Registered: Jul 2008
| IP: Logged |
|
|
yahsway
Advanced Member
Member # 3738
|
posted
Ah yes. Leviticus 19:18
You shall love your neighbor as yourself!
The word "love" (hebrew -ahav)could be understood as "esteem". Love of ones neighbor begins with self-esteem. Then one esteems his neighbor.
This general rule summarizes and fulfls the other commandments.
The Jewish sages Hillel and Akiva taught that within this law is contained all the other laws of the Scriptures.
Paul quotes the verse in a similar fashion (Rom 13:8 Gal 5:14)
When Yeshua sites the golden rule, which emphasizes positive action to assist others in need, He explains that-
"This is the law and the prophets" (Matt 7:12)
Shalom
Posts: 1238 | From: Tennessee | Registered: Aug 2004
| IP: Logged |
|
|
Eden
unregistered
|
posted
So God so loved the world that He gave His Only Begotten Son...
And then we are to love God with all our heart, mind, and soul...
And to love our neighbor as ourself. Say what? Love our neighbor as ourself?
Eugenia Price, in her book, "Make Love Your Aim", writes, "so what happens when I don't love myself that much?", since I am supposed to love my neighbor "as myself".
Okay, I already love my neighbor "as myself". If I don't love myself that much, then that is also the kind of love that I will end up giving my neighbor.
Therefore, BEFORE I can truly love my neighbor, I must first LOVE MYSELF.
And besides, how can I not love myself once I heard that "God so loved the world, that..."? Will I now say to God, "You may love me so much, but I don't love myself". Isn't that rebellion against what God has said of me?
If God loved me enough to give His Only Begotten Son, shall I now deprecate the opinion of God and say, Oh, well, you shouldn't have done that because I do not love myself"?
So then, if we are to love our neighbors as ourselves, we must first love ourselves. Because if we do not love ourself, our neighbors probably won't want our "love" either. ![[Kiss]](graemlins/Kiss.gif)
As Dr. Stanley Jones once said, "I am neither a worm nor a wonder, but I am a bundle of possibilities in Jesus Christ". God loves me, for God IS love.
We are therefore not to "kill the self" but to "love ourselves", even as God loves us. Else, what will we love our neighbor with?
God is love, and therefore God is always in motion toward us, just as our love is always in motion toward our loved ones.
When Christ comes into our lives, we are not to STOP loving ourselves, but to BEGIN loving ourselves.
with love, Eden
IP: Logged |
|
|
Zeena
Advanced Member
Member # 7223
|
posted
quote:
Originally posted by Michael Harrison:
Well thank you! I am blessed that you agree!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Rejoice in the Lord always and again I say rejoice!
Me too! ![[Big Grin]](biggrin.gif)
Who is Al?
1 Corinthians 14:9-11
So also ye, unless ye utter by the tongue speech easy to understood, how shall it be known what is spoken? for ye will be speaking into the air.
There are, it may be, so many kinds of voices in the world, and no kind is without signification. If then I know not the meaning of the voice, I shall be to him that speaketh a barbarian, and he that speaketh will be a barbarian unto me.
Love in Christ!
--------------------
Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates?
But I trust that ye shall know that we are not reprobates.
Posts: 749 | From: Toronto, Canada-EH! | Registered: Jun 2008
| IP: Logged |
|
|
Michael Harrison
Advanced Member
Member # 6801
|
posted
Well thank you! I am blessed that you agree!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Rejoice in the Lord always and again I say rejoice!
Posts: 3273 | From: Charlotte N.C. | Registered: Sep 2007
| IP: Logged |
|
|
Zeena
Advanced Member
Member # 7223
|
posted
quote:
Originally posted by Michael Harrison:
Jesus loves your neighbors. Let Him! (Somehow it is hard not to sound like Al.) You cannot love your neighbor. Jesus does!
![[clap2]](graemlins/clap2.gif)
--------------------
Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates?
But I trust that ye shall know that we are not reprobates.
Posts: 749 | From: Toronto, Canada-EH! | Registered: Jun 2008
| IP: Logged |
|
|
Michael Harrison
Advanced Member
Member # 6801
|
posted
Jesus loves your neighbors. Let Him! (Somehow it is hard not to sound like Al.) You cannot love your neighbor. Jesus does!
Posts: 3273 | From: Charlotte N.C. | Registered: Sep 2007
| IP: Logged |
|
|
Eden
unregistered
|
posted
I love the LORD and I will try to love my neighbor, not just thos neighbor who agree with me, but also those who disagree with me. Eden
So who do we love more? I love the LORD more than I love my neighbor, but that is not good because Jesus did not specify who my neighbor was, meaning that everyone is my neighbor.
The person I like is my neighbor, and the person I like less is my neighbor, and the person I don't like at all is my neighbor.
I'm captive to this I must love my neigbor thing!
Does God love everybody?
Matthew 5
43 You have heard that it has been said, You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.
44 But I say to you, Love your enemies, bless them who curse you, do good to them who hate you, and pray for them who despitefully use you, and persecute you.
45 That you may be the children of your Father who is in heaven: for He makes His sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and He sends rain on the just and on the unjust.
46 For if you love them who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the publicans the same thing?
47 And if you salute your kinsmen only, what do you more than others? Do not even the publicans so also?
48 Be you therefore perfect, even as your Father who is in heaven is perfect.
45 That you may be the children of your Father who is in heaven: for He makes His sun to rise on the evil and on the good and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.
That we should love the LORD God of Israel with all our heart (and His Son Jesus) and our neighbor as ourselves: for He makes His sun to rise on the evil and on the good and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.
48 Be you therefore perfect, even as your Father who is in heaven is perfect.
We love God, let us also love our neighbor.
with love to God and my neighbor, especially my Christian neighbor:
Romans 2:10
But glory, honor and peace to every man who works good, to the Jew first, and also to the Gentile:
Romans 11:24
For if you were cut out of the olive tree which is wild by nature, and were grafted contrary to nature into a good olive tree, how much more shall these, who are the natural branches, be grafted back into their own olive tree?
with love to God and I try to love my neighbor better,
"Exodus 15:25
And he {Moses} cried to the LORD; and the LORD showed him a tree, and when he had cast the tree into the waters, the waters {of bitter Marah=any individual on earth before God entered his or her life} those waters were made sweet..."
Listen to the Holy Spirit instead of to our stupid and ignormant mind. When it comes to operating our body, only the Holy Spirit knows best!
So who do we love more? Isn't it easy to love God and Jesus from the quietness of our own home, but loving all our neighbors is not as easy?
It may sound like a blue tomorrow, but with my Jesus I'm looking for a bright tomorrow.
with love, Eden
IP: Logged |
|
|
|
Printer-friendly view of this topic
