Learning to love is sometimes the hardest thing of all. This lesson was written by my wife some years ago to help a friend who was struggling with just that. It helps me when I go over it. Perhaps it will help you too.
In order to have effective, productive and rewarding relationships, in ANY relationship, we must learn from the One who created relationships:
GOD
He creates us in His image (Gen. 1:26) to be relationship-oriented and therefore is also the perfector of relationships.
What do we need to do first?
How?
From God:
1 John 4: 16 GOD IS LOVE
We can’t love without Him, for He IS love
1 John 4: 10 We don’t know how to love without Him.
We can only love because HE loved us first.
We get love from GOD to be able to love others.
HE is THE only source.
Psalm 139 (esp. vs. 1-4, 13-16) God made us as we are, with the strengths and weaknesses that we have. He knows our weaknesses and loves us just the same. He also had a plan to use those weaknesses to glorify Himself. It is because we have weaknesses that God can show his strength in our lives. Therefore we must love ourselves the way He made us, or we are fighting against Him.
So then, we need to respond to that depth of love:
Mark 12: 28-31 The MOST important thing is to love GOD (in return) with EVERYTHING that you are; and secondly most important…love yourself and others
HOW?
John 14:15, 19, 21, 23, 24 & John 15: 9-10 In order to love God (in return), we must know how to obey Him
1 John 5: 1-5 His commands are not a burden. They were issued to protect us
Where and how do we learn to obey Him?
1) His Word.
1 Timothy 3: 16-17 The Bible is useful for EVERY good work…loving GOD and others
John 1: 1-2 Jesus = the Word; the Word = GOD; How to learn about God and what He wants? From Him!!
2) His people who have been trained and taught
Matt 28: 18-20 We ALL need to be specifically taught to be disciples; no one just knows or is; from the Word and their lives, others need to teach what they’ve been taught
In order to have effective, productive and rewarding relationships, in ANY relationship, we must learn from the One who created relationships:
GOD
He creates us in His image (Gen. 1:26) to be relationship-oriented and therefore is also the perfector of relationships.
What do we need to do first?
How?
From God:
1 John 4: 16 GOD IS LOVE
We can’t love without Him, for He IS love
1 John 4: 10 We don’t know how to love without Him.
We can only love because HE loved us first.
We get love from GOD to be able to love others.
HE is THE only source.
Psalm 139 (esp. vs. 1-4, 13-16) God made us as we are, with the strengths and weaknesses that we have. He knows our weaknesses and loves us just the same. He also had a plan to use those weaknesses to glorify Himself. It is because we have weaknesses that God can show his strength in our lives. Therefore we must love ourselves the way He made us, or we are fighting against Him.
So then, we need to respond to that depth of love:
Mark 12: 28-31 The MOST important thing is to love GOD (in return) with EVERYTHING that you are; and secondly most important…love yourself and others
HOW?
John 14:15, 19, 21, 23, 24 & John 15: 9-10 In order to love God (in return), we must know how to obey Him
1 John 5: 1-5 His commands are not a burden. They were issued to protect us
Where and how do we learn to obey Him?
1) His Word.
1 Timothy 3: 16-17 The Bible is useful for EVERY good work…loving GOD and others
John 1: 1-2 Jesus = the Word; the Word = GOD; How to learn about God and what He wants? From Him!!
2) His people who have been trained and taught
Matt 28: 18-20 We ALL need to be specifically taught to be disciples; no one just knows or is; from the Word and their lives, others need to teach what they’ve been taught
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