John13-35

       “By this, all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.” Have you ever been to a church where everything seems scripted? We’ve all been there, doing things for others or things at church, but really didn’t have our hearts put into what we were doing, it was more out of feeling obligated. There is a warning in 1 Corinthians 13:1-3, “Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I have become sounding brass or a clanging cymbal. And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, but have not love, it profits me nothing.” Did you catch the warnings? Without love doing all the busy things we do, like witnessing in and out of church, we are just noisy. and without love doing things for other believers, we are nothing, and all we do will profit us nothing. Isaiah tells us what we look like in God’s eyes, “But we are all like an unclean thing, And all our righteousnesses are like filthy rags” (Isaiah 64:6a). If we want all to know we are HIS disciples, we need to get back to loving one another, and doing the things we do with the love of Christ as the motive. Amen?