03/03/2024 – “His Commission to Us” // “Feed by sheep” (John 21:17) // Comment attached – John, Chapter 17, this week’s global bible study lesson.
“This is love in the making. The love of God is not created — it is His nature. When we receive the life of Christ through the Holy Spirit, He unites us with God so that His love is demonstrated in us. The goal of the indwelling Holy Spirit is not just to unite us with God, but to di it in such a way that we will be one with the Father in exactly the same way Jesus was. And what king of oneness did Jesus Christ have with the Father? He had such a oneness about the Father that He was obedient when His Father sent Him down here to be poured out for us. And He says to us, ‘As the Father has sent Me, I also send you’ (John 20:21).
Peter now realizes that he does love Him, due to the revelation that came with the Lord’s piercing question. The Lord’s next point is — ‘Pour yourself out. Don’t testify about how much you love Me and don’t talk about the wonderful revelation you have had, just ‘Feed My sheep.’ Jesus has seem extraordinarily peculiar sheep: some that are unkempt and dirty, some that are awkward or pushy, and some that have gone astray! But it is impossible to exhaust God’s love, and it is impossible to exhaust my love if it flows from the Spirit of God within me. The love of God pays no attention to my prejudices caused by my natural individuality. If I love my Lord, I have no business being guided by natural emotions — I have to feed His sheep. We will not be delivered or released from His commission to us. Beware of counterfeiting the love of God by following your own natural human emotions, sympathies, or understandings. That will only serve to revile and abuse the true love of God.”
Soli Deo Gloria!
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Inserted Comment:
All scripture connects to His truth. But I point y’all this morning to John 17, three sections: Jesus Prays for Himself ; Jesus Prays for His disciples; and, Jesus Prays for all believers. I encourage you not only to read it, but to pray fervently over it with prayers of praise! And in doing so, you will be in fellowship with Christians globally, who are studying this chapter this week. (see fyi below)
Do we really believe what we say we believe is really true? If so, the Truth is unfathomably and gloriously eternal. I will share with you here just the first paragraph of that last section:
“My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in ussr that the world may believe that you have sent me. I have given. them the glory that you gave me, and that they may be one as we are one: I in them and you in me. May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me…”
Indeed – Always connected by His grace and through prayer…
FYI: This chapter is being studied globally this week by “BSF – Bible Study Fellowship”, in this year’s study of the gospel of John concluding the end of April.