Monday, December 12, 2011

Fervent and Sincere Love (1 Peter 1:22-25)

Since you have in obedience to the truth purified your souls for a sincere love of the brethren, fervently love one another from the heart, for you have been born again not of seed which is perishable but imperishable, that is, through the living and enduring word of God. For,
"ALL FLESH IS LIKE GRASS,
AND ALL ITS GLORY LIKE THE FLOWER OF GRASS.
THE GRASS WITHERS,
AND THE FLOWER FALLS OFF,
BUT THE WORD OF THE LORD ENDURES FOREVER "
And this is the word which was preached to you.

(1 Peter 1:22-25, NASB)

I love how Peter describes our eternal salvation. We are born again imperishably “through the living and enduring word of God.” The apostle John described our Savior Jesus Christ as the living Word, and we are saved through His death and resurrection.

Because of that gift, we can be assured of eternity with God.

But these verses command us to do something while we remain on earth. We are to have a “sincere love of the brethren.” We are to “fervently love one another from the heart.”

I don’t know about you, but this pierces my heart a bit. I rejoice in the thought of being imperishably born again. I long for the day when I’ll discard this weak, fleshly body—especially on days like today when all four of my chronic health issues are flaring—and spend eternity praising and worshiping my Lord.

But do I sincerely and fervently love my brothers and sisters? Do I, as the apostle Paul wrote, think more highly of them than I do of myself? (Phil. 2:3, my paraphrase) I know I want to. I pray I do.

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