NOTE: Before I get started I need to let you know that this message is the last message you will receive for two weeks. I am going on a much needed vacation and coupled with the vacation, our family will perform some Missions work with we are in the Dominican Republic. We will work on the building project we have ongoing, will purchase the 400 backpacks and associated school supplies, and will hand out the backpacks to underprivileged children. If Today’s Word is part of your daily routine (and I know it is for many of you), I ask you to visit our website (http://todaysword.org) or our YouTube channel (https://www.youtube.com/rickpina) during the break. Both have thousands of messages that will be a blessing to you.
This morning we continue our series entitled, “Power of Fellowship.” Yesterday I shared a message the Father put on my heart. Today I will flow in the same vein.
Let’s look at two statements Jesus made. Carefully and prayerfully read the following:
(John 13:34, 35 NLT)
“So now I am giving you a new commandment: Love each other. Just as I have loved you, you should love each other. Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples.”
(John 15:12 NLT)
“This is my commandment: Love each other in the same way I have loved you.”
So what does this mean to you today? A few things.
1. Yesterday I made the point that God is perfect and we are not. It is hard enough for many humans to believe that a perfect God would want to take up residence inside of imperfect people. But if we can ever get to the point where we believe it, the love of God will change us from the inside out.
2. In 1 John 4 the Apostle John tells us plainly that God sent His Son Jesus to the earth to be the Savior of the world. He tells us that those who believe in Jesus have God’s Son living on the inside of them. We get to experience God daily through the Holy Spirit. John then makes it clear that none of this happens because we are so good. This only happens because God is good; because God loves us. For all of this to make sense John tells us that we have to get to the point where we KNOW and BELIEVE the love God has for us. If you can believe God’s love — that our perfect God loves you despite your imperfections — then you can open your heart to God’s love so you can be changed by it. This is where fellowship comes in. The more you walk with God and you spend time with Him in fellowship, the more His love will fill your heart and mind. Said another way, the more you know God, the more you will know His love, because God IS love. My prayer for you is that you open your heart to the love of God and that you get to the point where you believe. If you can believe that God loves you, despite your flaws, you will be able to live by faith. Faith is all about confidence and you will never have full confidence until you believe God loves you. Faith works by (or is fueled by) love (Gal 5:6).
3. Once you get to the point where you know and believe the love God has for you, you are then in a position to become a conduit of God’s love in this world. This is the ultimate goal. God does not just want to change you. He wants to make you an agent of supernatural change on this planet. What has happened IN you, God wants to happen THROUGH you. The more you walk with God the more you will realize this, and the less your life will be about you and your selfish desires. When you truly die to self your life becomes an offering. You are able to give your life to God (all of it), and God is then able to pour your life into the lives of others. So while your initial goal is to fellowship with God, once that is solid, God sends you out to fellowship with others. God is too big of a God and your purpose is too big of an assignment for God to JUST be focused on you and your family. God wants to use you as a change-agent within your sphere of influence. Stop fighting it. When you fully embrace God’s love, you will open your heart to do whatever He leads you to do, and you will find that He desires to impact the lives of those around you. This will not happen by your “preaching” to them. This will happen through fellowship. God can use you in your daily routine. You don’t need a speaking slot at a conference. You don’t need a position behind a pulpit. Once God changes you with His love, He will use you to share His love and His light with the people you deal with everyday. This is the power of fellowship.
4. Get over the fact that you are not perfect, embrace the fact that God loves you anyway, and open your heart to be used of God. If you do, God will be seen, heard, felt and experienced through you! Not because you will be trying to do it. But simply because you will allow God to flow through you, through your daily routine. It you truly fellowship with God, your relationship with Him will be evident when you fellowship with others. They will hear God in the way you talk. They will feel God’s presence when they are in your presence. They will experience His love when you hang out with them. They will see Jesus in you, all because you fellowshipped with God and you were then open to fellowship with others. The best evangelism happens in your daily routine. Do not underestimate what God can do through you when you simply believe He loves you!
Declaration of Faith:
Father, I know and believe the love You have for me. You are love. I am IN You. You are IN me. Loves lives inside of me. I believe and receive Your love. Your love has changed me from the inside out. Now that I fellowship with You, I am open to fellowship with others. My relationship with You is evident in my daily routine. The people I deal with everyday will experience You as they deal with me. I am an agent of supernatural change within my sphere of influence. I don’t have to preach to make it happen. I don’t need a pulpit to get the message out. I simply LIVE as a person who walks with God, and when I come in contact with others, they will know it, feel it, and be changed by it. I declare this by faith. In Jesus’ name, Amen!
This is Today’s Word. Apply it and prosper!
