Life in Christ

Frank Viola has written another excellent book, called the "Jesus Manifesto". I tried finding it several times and finally managed to buy a copy. It focuses on the excellency of Christ as the center of all that is Christianity. We often forget just who is alive in us the very living resurrected Jesus Christ. It is all about Him, not about us. The only us - is what He the Father has done for us through the Son.
I know if it wasn't for Him, my life would be shambles. He has continued to be faithful always through all of my life, I wouldnt trade my life in Him for all the gold in the world.
I have learned in this life, that much of our heartache and pain comes because we forget who and what Jesus has done for us. We often as the Corinthians forget to examine ourselves as Paul exhorted the Corinithians. This is what the church has lost.

I spent from age 6 until age 53, growing in Christ, but all the same struggling to know my idenity in Him, who is life. I went to church a large portion of those years, and was actively involved in ministry. I was doing all the do's performing but ever failing, it wasn't until I met the real Jesus, that my life changed and has been changing. He has brought me a long way over the years. I have learned that those who don't have a relationship in Christ, hate you, even despise you. I never knew this until I became Christ centered rather than religious performing.
I never knew the lengths that people will go to harm a Christian, until the last several years. We are hated, despised even by this world, and the world does have and is full of evil.
I have been struggling for years to love those who hate me, even as Christ loved, when He looked down from the cross, and said, "Father forgive them for they know not what they do".
I have tried to love like that, and failed, it wasn't God's fault, it was mine for trying too hard from my own willpower to love those who are incapable of loving you back. I finally crashed in, and couldnt do it anymore.

The pain is more than one can bear at times. I can tell you how the heart of God must feel, when He loves us so much, that He gave His only begotten Son, yet everyday people reject God's love. How it must hurt Him, as it has hurt me, to love others who just couldnt love back, because, we must realize you must love God before you can love others, and many others do not love God first and foremost, they love self, centered in self, they despise true love.
Their love is based on performance, "you do for me, and I'll do for you".
Jesus said, I will do for you what no man has ever done, I will give without expectations of return, but all the same it will hurt me deeply if you reject my love, my free offering. I somewhat know what He must feel now, when I look at the world around me, and find that the world goes it's own way and never stops for a moment to consider the love that was there when He died on the cross.
The sweat on His forehead when blood came forth, was great love for the Father versus the love of self. It took complete surrender to the will of the Father, that took Him to the cross. Can we surrender our love to the Father like that? Not often, we love, but since we live in a world designed and centered around performance, we grow tired when we love, that others don't respond immediately by returning that love.
The problem is our definition of love often is self centered rather than God centered.
We give with expectations for something in return. In other words in what we do for others, we often consider love, but when it doesn't return to self, then we no longer want to do for that person. Now this should be expected once we discover our reasons for acts of kindness, etc. we have to examine ourselves, are we doing to get in return or we actually loving to love as God loves.
Secondly, often, no matter the love- true love given - there will be those, who will always reject your love. I know that experience. Just as Jesus did, you at times have to say, Ok, enough is enough.
Jesus came to the Jews, showing and displaying His love to His people, they rejected Him, He then did all He came to accomplish and set forth with the giving of His Spirit into those who would recieve Him, and sent them forth to preach the Good News of His love.
For 40 years He spent revealing the reality of who He was through His Apostles, and yet still but only a few, the remnant accepted His love. Then came 70 A.D. He brought forth destruction and wrath upon His people with the destruction of Jerusalem, but it was much more, for this was that Great Day of Wrath prophesied by Him while here on the earth, the Day of the Lord!
He still calls out to His people, every man, Jew or Gentile to come unto Him who is that which is life and love.
For God is love.
Will we hear the call of His love, will we see His love at the cross, and what He gave freely which took love, yet that I have not found in anyone, including myself at times, that says, "not my will but your will be done".
Will we as His people look at Him and say, I accept your love freely, and ask Him to fill us with His Spirit, so that we recieve what He has freely given us, no strings attached. He wants relationship with us, and that is what we all starve for is relationship, with someone who loves us unconditionally. Then come to Jesus, for He loves us, without any strings attached. He says to come to Him, "the living waters", that I might give you life and "life more abundantly".
We don't know this abundant life often, because as people who were and are bent on self, we think, what do I have to do, to get God to love me back.
Even when we first accept Him, often we as Christians think, well I have to do something, whether it be religious activity or charity or whatever, and all John says when we finally get a hold of how great His love is, "then we will love Him".
He ask nothing but our love, and since we as selfish humans can't do that based on what we have learned, we turn it into everything else but pure worship of the Father with the sacrifice of our lives and heart to Him.
I spent many years thinking I could give something back to God, but in reality I could never give back what He has given for me, but I can see more clearly now the love that He displayed at Calvary, and remembering who is alive in me, I ask Him only everyday, love through me, as me, and be in me, in all that I do and say.
Best yet, don't put expectations on those you love, love them as Christ loved and understand at times, there will be those who are incapable of loving back, and when that happens, it is as Jesus said, "If they won't hear you, then dust your feet and go on to preach the good news elsewhere".
This doesn't mean you don't still love them, but at times, by removing your love from others for a time being, it often will make them see just how much you did love them. Then if they don't, then it's not your fault for their rejection, it is theirs. Love them anyway. This the love of God, is that He loves in spite of ourselves. What wonderous love it is.
He may hurt when we don't return our love but it isnt because He is expecting something in return as we do, it is because He is holding out a gift that we refuse that brings life to us. The Life in Christ.
He wants us to have the best of life. If that is what you want really, rather than thinking that the things of this world offer the best in life, have a change of heart and see that life isn't in things, it is in Him.
Jesus desires you as children for the Father. He is our brother who loves us like no friend or family member on earth could ever do.