We love God’s works because they are wonderful. His awesome power, His wisdom, are on full display in all He has done to work our Great Salvation. Nowhere is this as clear as in the life of Jesus Christ.

As we continue to reflect on what we love when we love God, let us consider what God’s Word has accomplished. That is, last week we saw what God’s Word is, and now let’s look at what God’s Word does.

What we love when we love someone is, we love them. Nonetheless, it is appropriate to describe what we love about them specifically.

What we would see, if we could see God truly, would be an infinite—never-begun and never-ending—perfect, all-powerful, all-wise, mutual delight. Each person of God directs all of the virtues of God to the adoration and celebration of the other persons of God.

Hawaii has a lot of natural beauty, but they lack the resources necessary for stable, healthy, growing, Gospel preaching churches. Our partnership with Oahu Theological Seminary is working to change that. And it's working.

This is the beginning of a short series of reflections on What We Love When We Love God. What we’ll find is that, Yes, our journey into His love will do something to us that will prepare us for doing something for others.

In two weeks I will be flying to Hawaii to visit Fellowship Bible Church’s ministry partners, the Bruno family and Oahu Theological Seminary.
 
Let me tell you the story.

Are we living with a sense that “it is well, with my soul”? Are we living with a sense “all things are working together for good”? . . . This is the freedom and the joy of which the whole Bible speaks.

In as much as depends on us, let’s put our thumb on the scale for grace and for encouragement.

When Christ’s Righteousness is our Director, well, it’s a whole new way of life—new direction with a new objective.

Jesus is our Savior and Lord, our Shepherd and Teacher. Who He is, what He has done, and what that means for us—this is our new reality.

All overseers and taskmasters—you and me and everyone—exert that influence and give those directions in ways shaped by our selfishness and sin. But Jesus changes everything.

Surprising insights can sometimes come from just reading a little bit more. A little more context, a few more connections, and things stand out differently.

Steadfastness in prayer is everywhere praised in Scripture. Why? Because God wants us watching when He works to answer our prayers.

Here’s what we see happen to Jesus: as He prayed according to God’s will and for God’s glory, etc., Jesus’ prayer changed and His true heart opened up.
So too I have found that my prayers change as I pray according to God’s will. But in that change, I discover my true heart.

…what we ourselves most truly want is going to be found in exactly what God Himself most truly wants for us.

Just because we want it badly doesn’t mean He’s going to give it to us. Just we because it’s something we may be plausibly able to attach to a verse or phrase in the Bible, doesn’t mean He’s going to give it to us.

Christian prayer is the opening of my heart to God and my entering of the heart of God. So what’s there, what is, is welcome.

The truest nature of God is revealed in Jesus. What's more: the nature of God is most completely revealed in the sacrificial death of Jesus on the cross.

A church is not, and cannot be, just the pastor or paid staff or leadership team. A church is the membership and friends, woven together in mutual support, upbuilding, and growth.