Love is sacrificial and unpracticed truth is meaningless
Will I read the signs of guilt in my heart
Will I keep my heart clean and confident – ready to ask in faith?
Sacrificial Love
1 John 3:16-23
16 By this we know love, because He laid down His life for us. And we also ought to lay down our lives for the brethren. 17 But whoever has this world’s goods, and sees his brother in need, and shuts up his heart from him, how does the love of God abide in him?
18 My little children, let us not love in word or in tongue, but in deed and in truth. 19 And by this we know that we are of the truth, and shall assure our hearts before Him.
20 For if our heart condemns us, God is greater than our heart, and knows all things. 21 Beloved, if our heart does not condemn us, we have confidence toward God. 22 And whatever we ask we receive from Him, because we keep His commandments and do those things that are pleasing in His sight.
23 And this is His commandment: that we should believe on the name of His Son Jesus Christ and love one another, as He gave us commandment.
The nature of love is sacrificial, if we are shown a need we are to fulfill it by His Spirit. Many like to believe that they have and know truth, however truth has no meaning unless it is applied in practice. We are drawn here to the attitude and motive of the heart as we approach God, for He alone can change our heart from stone to flesh.
Heart Preparation And Asking
God is working with the Overcomers to move them more and more into a verbal ministry in these last days where we speak the Word and God will honour that which is spoken. This Word can only be spoken out of a right attitude and relationship with God, and our hearts provide the clue as to whether or not we stand right before God.
John 14:12-15 “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do, because I go to My Father. 13 And whatever you ask in My name, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. 14 If you ask anything in My name, I will do it. 15 “If you love Me, keep My commandments.
Matthew 7:7 “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.
So, God wants us to ask because He then will do it for His glory, however the attitude of the heart is essential and it is necessary to remain before God until the answer comes. Only the Holy Spirit can work that in our lives both individually and corporately as a body. We know this as we come together in prayer, sometimes the Holy Spirit shows that we have to pray through a need for a season – a type of knocking until we know that the answer is there. At other times it requires verbally speaking out whereby we know that God has granted it. For this we need the witness of the Holy Spirit but cannot have this witness if the heart is not right with God. God so often communicates with our hearts.
Maintain Your Life with God
Jude 20 But you, beloved, building yourselves up on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit,
1 John 1:9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
There will be times when our hearts condemn us when we love the things of the world and sin, the question is ‘will I read the signs of that guilt in my heart?’ We know that we’ve all sinned and fallen short but do we read the signs of what our heart is telling us moment by moment? God is trying to get our attention. This is critical for an effective prayer life – to asking in faith. If your heart is not right before God you cannot release faith.
Confession along with continuous communication with God in the Spirit keeps the heart clean and confident, ready to respond in faith.
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God’s Love We deliver
