God’s design, strategy and great wisdom for overcoming offenses is LOVE. This divine wisdom is revealed in the Spirit’s prayer through apostle Paul for the Philippine church: “I continue to pray for your love to grow and increase beyond measure, bringing you into the rich revelation of spiritual insight in all things. This will enable you to choose the most excellent way of all—becoming pure and without offense until the unveiling of Christ.” (Philippians 1: 9-10, TPT)
LOVE isn’t just a divine imperative to be obeyed. No! It is THE VERY FORMULA FOR THE PROSPERITY OF YOUR HEART AND SOUL AND BODY! Love alone can protect the wellbeing or sanity of the heart and soul. This is because only love has what it takes to overcome offenses. LOVE FORGIVES! “Tolerate the weaknesses of those in the family of faith, forgiving one another in the same way you have been graciously forgiven by Jesus Christ. If you find fault with someone, release this same gift of forgiveness to them.” (Colossians 3:13, TPT)
The Bible portrays God as a healer, not just of the body, but also of the innerman – heart and soul. He is a God Who heals and mends broken hearts. He heals our hurting emotions, and pained memories.
Jesus declared that He had come to heal and mend the brokenhearted. This is Great News!
God heals us by comforting our hearts. Isn’t it amazing that of all the names there are, Jesus chose to call the Holy Spirit “the Comforter”? Observe that Jesus didn’t say “a comforter”. He is the Comforter. That means there ain’t any other comforter in the earth. He took the place of Jesus Christ. He is the One Who comforts us in our brokenness.
The word “comfort” is a compound word from the words “com-” and “fortis.” Com is a word forming element usually meaning “with, together, together with, in combination.” Fortis is a Latin, which means “strong, brave.” Our word fortitude also came from the same root. Putting the two together, the word comfort gives a picture of a union or relationship, which brings strength, solace, help, bravery. So the Comforter is One Who comes alongside or walks together with us, to help, aid, assist, solace and strengthen us, especially in our down moments.
The beautiful thing about this picture is the relationship aspect. True and lasting comfort comes only from the vital relationship we have with the Holy Spirit. He doesn’t offer us help from a distance. No! He’s already come to live within us. He has made Himself one with us. In this way, He feels what we feel. In our pain and affliction, He is also pained and afflicted. He understands perfectly our hard-to-describe struggles. He knows our thoughts before we think them, and our words before we utter them. He is never disconnected from our realities.
Not only does the Comforter share in our own pains and sufferings, He helps us to also share in His strength, comfort, joy, peace and healing. He binds up the brokenhearted; strengthens the weak with much strength in their inner man. To the despairing, He imparts hope for a brighter future. He helps us conquer our shame and disappointment. He gives the ability to rise above our hurt, to forgive and to let go of the painful past.
The dear Holy Spirit comforts hearts that are grieving and mourning the loss of loved ones. How He does it amazes me. Gradually but surely He brings in His peace and restores joy. I have been privileged to experience this myself. When I lost my wife, I couldn’t imagine I would be whole again. I was devastated beyond words. I felt torn apart. My pain was indescribable. It’s been a little over a year now, and looking back, I am so grateful for His healing and inner strength, even though He still has alot of mending to do on my heart.
In the midst of the hurt, the fear, the loneliness, the so many unanswered questions and emotions I couldn’t identify, one thing stood tall for me – the ever-abiding Presence of the Helper deep within me. I was not left alone. He was right there with me in it all. That was so reassuring and took care of my fears. And knowing that He was hurting as much as I was, gave me strength beyond measure. I felt loved and valued. And there were times I could even feel His soothing embrace. His voice is both life and healing to me.
I also found out that, not only does the Comforter relieve our pains and gives us the strength to pull through them, He also changes us in the process. He makes us into comforters. He makes our hearts tender and sensitive to the pains of others. We become more compassionate towards those hurting, especially those who are going through the same thing we have come through.
Apostle Paul aptly captures this amazing transformation when he said this about the Comforter:
“He always comes alongside us to comfort us in every suffering so that we can come alongside those who are in any painful trial. We can bring them this same comfort that God has poured out upon us.” (2 Corinthians 1:4, TPT)
Receive the healing comfort of the Divine Comforter today. In Jesus Name
He died to prove that He loves you beyond His life. And that even death would not come between Him and you.
God had a choice. He could have decided to give us up to destruction. He could have chosen to preserve His Life. But He chose not to. He took the path that would cost Him everything.
God chose LOVE over LIFE.
And was crushed beyond recognition, that you might be made whole and beautiful.
He had put upon Himself your weaknesses, wounds and sores and, carried away your diseases, that you might be well.
Jesus wore a crown of thorns, pierced His head with briars, that you might be made whole in your emotions and mind.
Though He was infinitely rich, He impoverished Himself, that you might become rich beyond measure.
He laid down His life for you, that you might be forgiven. And was raised from the dead, to justify, prove that you were “Not guilty.”
Now, “Who could separate us from the endless love of God’s Anointed One?
Absolutely no one!
For nothing in the universe has the the power to diminish His love for us. Troubles, pressures, and problems are unable to come between us and heaven’s love. What about persecutions, deprivations, dangers, and death threats?
No, for they are all impotent to hinder omnipotent love.”
We triumph over all these things. For the One Who loves us enough to go to hell for us has made us partners of His endless triumph. We are more than conquerors. We are larger than life. His reckless and passionate love is our sure victory over everything!
You may be wondering, why study the Names of God?
Jesus let us in on the relevance of knowing the Names of God.
In John 17:26, He said, in a conversation with the Father:
“And I have declared to them Your name, and will declare it, THAT THE LOVE WITH WHICH YOU LOVED ME MAY BE IN THEM, AND I IN THEM.”
So we are learning about the names of God, that our hearts may be established in His love, the very love with which He loved Jesus Christ, the Son of His love!
What does a name tell us? What’s in a name that gives it such power?
Do names have any more significance besides identification?
Names are revealing. Names, especially in the Eastern cultures carried far more significance than they do in the Western world.
In the ancient civilization, names were thought to reveal the essential nature and character of a person – the way he/she reasons and does things.
With this background insight, it becomes easier to understand the Names of God and how they give us a revelation of Who He is and what He does. Studying the Names of God would reveal His love nature. And you could never know of His love without falling head-over-heels in love with Him. ?
We shall start with the name JEHOVAH SHAMMAH, which means the-Lord-is-present.
“The distance all around will be 18,000 cubits. “And the name of the city from that time on will be: the Lord is there.”
~ Ezekiel 48:35
This Name speaks of the relational nature of God. We see Him in the Garden of Eden, having intimacies with man and His wife. He cherished His communion with them. Then sin comes in and destroys that beautiful relationship.
But that’s not all. Next, we see God sacrificing His very own Son, to reconcile man back to Himself and restore that precious relationship He once had with humanity.
God is a Father Who loves to have a vital relationship with His children. He wants to be present in your life. He longs to be involved with every detail of your life. He doesn’t want to be distant. No!
He is not an absentee Father. No!
He yearns to live, not just with you, but in you, in your heart… To dance with you, sing over you, cry with you, and rejoice with you… To comfort, guide, strengthen and watch over you.
He’s engraved you on the palm of His hands. Your face is ever before Him. He would never leave nor forsake you.
“…for He [God] Himself has said, I will not in any way fail you nor give you up nor leave you without support. [I will] not, [I will] not, [I will] not in any degree leave you helpless nor forsake nor let [you] down (relax My hold on you)! [Assuredly not!]”
~Hebrews 13:5, AMP
This truth should be a shield, to protect your heart from the feeling of loneliness and helplessness.
For you’re NEVER ALONE!
When God says “I love you,” He meant that He has ACCEPTED YOU. So go right on ahead and accept yourself for who you are, irrespective of whether someone else accepts you or not.
We are all driven by the need for acceptance. It’s a God-given need built deep into everyone of us.
The world is more starved of unconditional love and acceptance than it is of food and safe drinking water. This famine isn’t only in the ghettoes of the world, but also in the palaces. It’s a plaque of both the rich and the poor; the young and the old; the weak and the strong alike; the civilized and the primitive.
When Daddy God declares over you, “This is my Son, chosen and marked by my love, delight of my life,”
He is saying, “I CHERISH you, My Child.”
To cherish is to treat with tenderness and affection; to nurture with care; to protect and aid. God regards you with such tender affection. He cares about you deeply. His everlasting arms are always stretched over you, to keep you safe from harm. He is so deeply moved at the thought of you. For you’re the Son of His love, the offspring of the sacred sacrifice of God’s only Begotten Son, Jesus Christ.
When God says I love you, what exactly is He talking about? What does He really mean? He means I take a peculiar delight in you!
In the next couple of days we shall be considering what God really means when He says to you, “I love you.”
Matthew gave us the account of Jesus’ baptism in the Jordan river, how that He was baptised by John the Baptist. And how there came a voice out of heaven, declaring:
“… This is My Son, My Beloved, in Whom I delight!”
(Matthew 3:17,AMP)
Your entire life revolves around the revelation of God’s unending and unconditional love for you. Whether you fail or succeed with people, the reason won’t be far fetched from your understanding or non-understanding of God’s love for you.
There are a few thoughts I wish to explore in this post.
First, God’s love for you is unconditional. What that means is that, His love for you has no strings attached. His love isn’t premised on what you have or haven’t done or said. God loves you, not because you’re lovable. No! He loves you because He is love, and decided to love you. He loves you because it’s His nature to share His life and goodness. God loves you because love is His very essence.
Apostle John the beloved says that God first loved us.
Have you ever been to a place in your life, where it seemed like God had turned His back on you?
Or the idea of His love didn’t make sense any longer?
I have been there.
The death of my father ripped such a deep wound in my heart. It wasn’t only in my heart, but in our home generally. It was such a tough time for us. And for me, especially, since I was beginning to experience a deep, meaningful relationship with my father. It happened at a time when I was pursuing my University admission. And worst still, he passed on right before my eyes, in a hospital. That’s so much for a seventeen year old.
The thought of having to face the future without my dad was simply terrifying. While I was doing my best to put myself together, like everyone expected me to, deep down my heart, I had troubling questions. Hard questions that demanded answers.
“If God really loved me, like I thought He did, why would He let that happen to me?”
“Would my father have lived, if I had prayed more?”
“How was I going to face life, feeling so weak and vulnerable?”
I really struggled with the idea of a loving Father, letting me go through such grief. However, in spite of all my struggles, somehow, God helped me to go through that difficult time of my life. And in spite of my questions, I noticed a quiet in my heart that I couldn’t explain.
The Psalmist tells us something pivotal about the true nature of God. He says,
“Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever.”
(Psalm 136:1, ESV)
God is good. He is the superlative of goodness. He is no evil. God is light, and there’s not a trace of darkness in Him. God never sends evil our way. Neither does He punish us with evil. He is intrinsically good. And eternally bent on doing us good only. While we may not be able to always explain why bad things happen to us, whom God loves, we know for sure that He is not the author of evil. And His heart grieves when we hurt. Not only that, but He also helps us rise above the pains and the hurt. He comforts us, when we are afflicted. And builds His comfort within us, so that we can also comfort others who may be going through similar ordeals. Evil is never God-sent, however, when it befalls us, God forges it into a greater good for us. By His divine power, He turns things around for our good.
One of the things I noticed after I had healed from the loss of my father, was a deep feeling for those who lost their fathers. I could connect with their fears and concerns. And I noticed that I could easily talk to them. I feel compassion for them.
