Love Builds Up

"Now regarding your question about food that has been offered to idols.

Yes, we know that 'we all have knowledge'

about this issue.

But while knowledge makes us feel important,

it is love that strengthens the church.

Anyone who claims to know all the answers

doesn't really know very much.

But the person who loves God

is the one whom God recognizes."

1 Corinthians 8:1-3 NLT

The Pharisees knew the scriptures well.  They studied the Torah and the Talmud, which was the written record of the interpretation of the Law, an oral tradition passed down from generation to generation.  These men thought they knew exactly what God expected of them and that they were therefore the experts to be held up as examples of godly men.

Unfortunately, they neither knew God nor loved Him, leaving their knowledge of God as a tool that served to elevate themselves.  Jesus often criticized their sense of self-righteousness and ironically held them up as an example of how not to live.  While the Pharisees thought they had it all together, their opinion of themselves couldn't be further from the truth.

The question then becomes, how do I live in a way that elevates God instead of myself?  The answer is found in the way I respond to the following:  How do I love God?

Obedience

From the beginning he was a boy dedicated to the Lord and served Him from a young age. (1 Samuel 2:18)  The first time he heard the voice of God, his mentor had to tell him what to do.  Even though the first message was a difficult one to tell, he spoke to words the Lord had given him, delivering the prophetic judgment against his own guardian.  Samuel was obedient to the Lord.

His love for God led Samuel to take the Lord seriously, doing as He directed even if it didn't make sense.  When it was time to choose a king to replace the defiant Saul, then, Samuel had no problem passing over all the sons of Jesse who seemed fit for the position and instead let God choose the one whose heart was inclined toward Him.  Consequently, Samuel anointed the little brother, a mere shepherd boy who would come to be known as a man after God's own heart. (1 Samuel 16, Acts 13:22)

Loving God means doing what God asks me to do.  When my common sense says to take the easy way but God directs me toward the difficult, my love for Him will drive me into obedience.  When all my friends are advising me to take the job, but my heart is ill-at-ease, my love for Him will drive me to do exactly to that which He has inspired me.  When the obvious choice seems to be to go through the wide door, but the narrow gate is calling my name, my love for Him will propel me through the uncommon way.

My love for God can manifest itself in the same way it did in Samuel, a man who followed God's direction to the minute detail.

Priorities

Nothing had been spared to hunt him down.  Even though he was the Lord's anointed, his time was yet to come.  Meanwhile, he was living like a hunted animal, running from cave to cave, keeping just out of reach of the king whose jealousy burned like a consuming fire.

Suddenly, it seemed God had provided an opportunity for the hunted to kill hunter, ending this lethal game of cat and mouse once and for all.  As David and his men hid in a cave one day, Saul entered to find a private place to relieve himself.  David crept up and cut the hem of the king's robe, retreating quickly into the darkness before Saul even knew he was there.  Intending to kill the king, David's conscience got the better of him as he called off his men, saying, "The LORD forbid that I should do this to my lord the king and attack the LORD's anointed one for the LORD himself has chosen him." (1 Samuel 24:6)

Sometimes it seems that God has delivered the fruit of my desires to within my reach.  The temptation dangles like a luscious peach on a tree, but if I love God, I will put His will above what I want.

Loving God means His glory and His will is my most ardent desire.  Instead of taking what is so temptingly handed to me, loving God means I will set aside my reputation and instead choose His way.   Instead of doing what is within my rights to do, loving God means I will cast my privilege aside and pick the option that will best glorify Him.  Instead of paying attention to how my obedience to God might hurt another, loving God means I will put His will above my own popularity or comfort.

My love for God is apparent when I put Him first in all my decisions.

His Pleasure

He was the richest, wisest, most famous king of all time.  Every pleasure known to man was made available to him.  As one who loved women, He took 700 wives as his own and kept 300 concubines at his disposal.  (1 Kings 11:3)  No source of delight was withheld from King Solomon.

Still, he labeled everything as meaningless.  It's not like he didn't try to find purpose and fulfillment in the things of life.  He lived life to the fullest, tasting every kind of food, sampling the affections of many foreign women and studying the great philosophers.  Nothing, however, brought any kind of deep satisfaction to his life. 

Solomon's conclusion to his search for significance was this:  "Fear God and obey his commands, for this is everyone's duty." (Ecclesiastes 12:13)

When I am tempted to live for myself, catering to my own desires, my love for God will turn my heart toward pleasing Him instead.  When the way He leads me is filled with thorns and prickly people, my love for God will propel me forward anyway as I desire His delight above my own.  When I see what pleases me standing right in front of me, my love for God will turn me around toward what will please Him.

My love for God means I will seek His pleasure above my own.

It is easy to fall into the same trap as the Pharisees and know a lot about God, but not know Him.  When I enter into a personal relationship with the God of the Universe, I will find a love for Him growing in my heart.  This devotion to Him will lead me to want to do what He asks of me, to desire His will and glory above all things, and to seek to please Him in all I do.  In this way, love will work to build up God's kingdom in a powerful way.

As I begin this day it is my prayer that I will keep God first in my life.

How do I seek my own pleasure instead of trying to find what God wants me to do?

When am I more concerned with my own rights instead of what will bring glory to God?