If you’re like me, you probably struggle to not take for granted the significance of having the Spirit of God dwelling within You. This is an awesome and all but unfathomable truth. It’s too big to grasp all at once, so it’s been helpful for me to look at a single piece of this truth at a time. One of those pieces is to realize our hearts burn with the same passion in which Jesus’s heart burns. As much as He loves us, such is the capacity we have to love others.
It becomes sobering when we contemplate how little of this great love we are sharing with and showing to others. As followers and disciples of Jesus, I believe it is our duty to maximize the gifts He has given us for the purpose of building His Kingdom here on earth. As we begin to understand the immense power available to us, we, in turn, begin to realize how little of it we are employing.
What would love look like in your life if it was manifested in the magnitude and capacity of Christ? The love we dish out to others is paltry, trivial, and embarrassing compared to the vast resources of love at our disposal. Recall how much Jesus loved you; He loved you so much He submitted Himself to inferior beings to be mocked, beaten, tortured, and killed. He did this all for you, someone who had not yet even been born or known to the world. He did it knowing the probability of you rejecting or ignoring Him was not just highly likely, it was all but assured. That is love beyond comprehension. But it is the same reservoir of love from which we have to draw.
Now, look at the love you are pouring out to others. If we are honest, we know it’s more like a trickle than a flood. We aren’t pouring out anything; the reality is we are delivering love with the force and volume of an eye dropper. It seems the only person we come close to lavishing an abundance of love upon is ourselves. This is not just sad, it is pathetic and tragic.
For God so loved the world He gave His only Son (John 3:16). For we so loved the world, we’ve decided to keep it all to ourselves. What will we say to Jesus when we meet Him face to face and He asks us how we demonstrated His love to the world? We will be without excuse without a place to hide.
Jesus commanded us to love each other as He loved us (John 15:12). How well do you think you are living up to this? The love we have for others should be in direct proportion to the love Christ has for us. All of His love flows through us. All of His love is available for us to give to another. When was the last time you partook fully of His love? When was the last time you lavished love on another? This should not be an occasional event; it should be the rule of our lives. When we see a person, we must love the person. And don’t just love them a little. Love them as Jesus loves you. His love is waiting. Don’t hold back. Exercise the power of love.