Jesus loves you and I'm working on it.

I've seen a lot of things recently that highlight the state of the Church in a somewhat negative way. Most of them stem from ministers and preachers who talk about Jesus and redemption, etc. but are very poor at applying those truths to people they don't personally like. I guess I am an idealist. Maybe even naive. I still expect mercy and forgiveness to salt our attitudes and conversations.

I have written a lot about sanctification and submission. But before those principles can be expected to be followed by the Church, we must first follow the more weighty issues of love and restoration. We can have all of the "good church" and teach all kinds of revelation and splice doctrine into a perfect presentation, but without love it is all just worthless drivel. I don't care how "holy" someone dresses or how worldly their appearance, at the core of their measure is how they love others.

We all have people in our lives that we just do not get along with. Personalities clash. Maybe even character flaws show up that we have trouble ignoring. What MUST happen is for us to pray about those whom we do not have a true affinity for. Jesus said to pray for our enemies. That is so contradictory to our nature. Being like Jesus is not made up solely of what we do outwardly. It is an inward state that expresses itself effortlessly in our lives. When there are people (especially in the church) that are hypocrites or mean spirited, we have to figure out how to not only tolerate them, but to love and serve them as we aim to be like Jesus.

My solemn prayer is for those who profess holiness to express it in their character more than they express it in their standards of dress. When Jesus rebuked the Pharisees for tithing mint and spices, He told them they neglected the more important issues of God's Law. Namely Mercy. He said they ought not to forsake what they had been doing, but to focus on the most important things. We don't have to neglect sanctification in order to love. Frankly, there is no such thing as sanctification without it. Let's have a revival of humble love and allow the love of God to rule in our hearts.

Jesus loves you and I'm working on it.