ADDICTED TO JESUS!
by linzy bruno
It’s because of Jesus that our Father God loves us more than we can even imagine. Therefore, there is no point at which we can be considered obsessed in the negative sense, not that is among our brothers and sisters in Christ:
“Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 8:37-39)
We belong to Him. Therefore, it’s not a bad thing, but a blessed thing to have Him on our minds at all times: “for in Him we live and move and have our being, as also some of you own poets have said, ‘For we are also His offspring.’” (Acts 17:28) “A faithful man will abound with blessings, But he who hastens to be rich will not go unpunished.” (Proverbs 28:20)
Loving Jesus above all else is not a strange phenomenon, but a glorious condition in which to abide! Those who are addicted to Jesus cannot get enough of Him. Needing and desiring Him twenty-four/seven for His cover, Guidance and Divine Communion; sweeter than honey, is good for us. But when we consider all the things of this world; including people and things we love and admire, addiction is extremely negative and even has the potential to become dangerous. Things like infatuation, food obsessions, and worldly pleasures that take over all our free time are incredibly unhealthy to the soul and spirit, and under certain conditions, the body as well. There are innumerable unhealthy obsessions that the Bible warns us against:
“Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not of the Father but is of the world. And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever.” (1John 2:15-17)
But in Christ Jesus our love, even our obsession with Him is healthy and good for us. In fact, the more we give ourselves over to Him, the happier and healthier we are and continue to become; spirit and soul. But, whenever there is any compromise of our allegiance to our God, the door is open for inner turmoil leading to destruction:
“No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.” (Matthew 6:24)
Moreover, we are warned in the Book of James that every man is vulnerable to these things that weaken us and drag us down to the pit of sinfulness:
“But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed. Then, when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death.” (James 1:14-15)
Furthermore, God’s Word not only exposes those things we ought not allow to over take us, the Apostle Paul taught his church to give themselves over to the things of God, that will lift them up, like what he says in this verse in Philippians:
“Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things.” (Philippians 4:8)
To say it quite plainly; it’s not possible to love JESUS too much, for we belong to HIM. Moreover, He imputes that love in us to make us able to love Him into eternity. We love Him because He first loved us. And, as an extension of His Love in us that makes us love Him to no end, we also become so much more loving toward others, which pleases our Father in Heaven and also paints a beautiful picture of God’s reality before men.
OUR LOVE FOR HIM
“I will love You, O LORD, my strength.” (Psalm 18:1) “One thing I have desired of the LORD, That will I seek: That I may dwell in the house of the LORD All the days of my life, To behold the beauty of the LORD, And to inquire in His temple.” (Psalm 27:4) “As the deer pants for the water brooks, So pants my soul for You, O God. My soul thirst for God, for the living God. When shall I come and appear before God?” (Psalm 42:1-2) “With my whole heart I have sought You; Oh, let me not wander from Your commandments!” (Psalm 119:10) “No one has seen God at any time. If we love one another, God abides in us, and His love has been perfected in us.” (1John 4:12) “I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.” (Galatians 2:20) “Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God.” (1John 4:7) “We love Him because He first loved us.” (1John 4:19) “whom having not seen you love. Though now you do not see Him, yet believing, you rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory, receiving the end of your faith—the salvation of your souls.” (1Peter 1:8-9)
HIS LOVE FOR US
“But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” (Romans 5:8) “Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called children of God! Therefore the world does not know us, because it did not know Him.” (1John 3:1) “In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation of our sins.” (1John 4:10) “And we have known and believed the love that God has for us. God is love, and he who abides in love abides in God, and God in him.” (1John 4:16) “The LORD your God in your midst, The mighty One, will save; He will rejoice over you with gladness, He will quiet you with His love, He will rejoice over you with singing.” (Zephaniah 3:17) “But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved),” (Ephesians 2:4-5) “Therefore know that the LORD your God, He is God, the faithful God, who keeps covenant and mercy for a thousand generations with those who love Him and keep His commandments.” (Deuteronomy 7:7-9)
JESUS’ EXAMPLE FOR THE WHOLE WORLD
“Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends.” (John 15:13) “Who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross. Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name,” (Philippians 2:6-9)
HE MAKES US ABLE
“Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us,” (Hebrews 12:1) “Let your conduct be without covetousness; be content with such things as you have. For He Himself has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.”” Hebrews 13:5) “I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit. You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you. Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me. I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit, for without Me you can do nothing.” (John 15:1-5) “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law.” (Galatians 5:22-23) “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.” (Romans 12:1-2) “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become brand new.” (2Corinthians 5:17)
The more we seek Him, the better our lives will be, even in the midst of trials and trouble, for He will show us His Divine Presence, which is better than the presence of any mere mortal person!
“Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me.” (Revelation 3:20)
NKJV Linzy is a certified Bible Counsellor, with countless republications on her viewers blogs, Bible Studies, Ezines and the like. Her portfolio includes, non-fiction articles, short stories for all ages, and Christian poetry. Article Source: http://www.faithwriters.com |
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