Close The Gap Between You And God By Pete BriscoeSample

Are You Clouding The Issue?

We must try to speak of His love. All Christians have tried, but none has ever done it very well. I can no more do justice to that awesome and wonder-filled theme than a child can grasp a star. Still... as I stretch my heart toward the high, shining love of God, someone who has not before known about it may be encouraged to look up and have hope. — A.W. Tozer

Disobedience tends to cloud the experience of His love for us. I’ve seen this many times. 

My wife was talking with a friend who was living in disobedience. The friend was complaining that she hadn’t sensed God’s love lately. Libby looked her in the eye and spoke truth, “The problem is you’re living as though you’re separate.” The fact was that she was a believer in Jesus Christ, she was in union with Christ, but she was living as though she wasn’t. She was living as though He didn’t matter (even though He always does). She was living as though she was separate, but she wasn’t (God’s presence in her and around her never changed). So as a result, there was all this discord in her soul. She couldn’t sense the love of Christ. Ponder Jesus’ words again from John 15:9-10: 

As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you. Now remain in my love. If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in His love.

This is important stuff—not just in what it does say, but in what it doesn’t say. Jesus is not saying that obedience is necessary to earn God’s love, OR to retain it. That is contra-biblical. What He is saying here is this: As the Son, I experience the Father’s love in its fullness as I walk in natural obedience. As you walk in obedience, you too will experience My love in its fullness.  

Because, you see, disobedience tends to cloud the experience of His love for us.  

Lord, I would really like to experience Your love more and more. Show me the disobedience that might be clouding that experience. I surrender that disobedience to You and claim full dependence on You to motivate and empower me today. In Your strength, Amen. 

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