Today’s Reading: 1 John 4:13-18
Psalm 84:2 — My soul longs, yes, faints for the courts of the Lord; my heart and flesh sing for joy to the living God.
God promises to love us. Billy Graham said that longing is when “a person is unsatisfied or unfulfilled because there is someone he or she very much wants to be near, to hear that certain voice, to experience that special presence.” The author of Psalm 84 was longing to be in the presence of the living God.
The apostle John had lived with the Lord Jesus for about three years. During that time, John had come to view himself as the disciple that Jesus loved. When he wrote his first epistle, John had not seen Jesus for a long time. Jesus had ascended to heaven many years before, and now John was an elderly man. It is safe to say that John longed to be with Jesus once again.
John wrote so much about the love of Jesus. He said that he had seen and experienced the love of God through Christ. John had come to know and believe the love that God has for us because of his time with Jesus and the assurance of that love given by the Holy Spirit in him.
John knew love because John knew Jesus. John believed and put his trust in the love of God because John believed Jesus. When Jesus said that He loved the disciples, John believed Him. The memory of Christ’s perfect love sustained John for the rest of his life.
When you long for someone, you cannot stop thinking about that person. Do you long for God? Do you long to see Jesus face to face and to be held in His arms? Do you long to hear God’s voice, to hear Him say your name? Who is your soul longing for today? Let it be Jesus.
05/20/2024 Devotional
"John wrote so much about the love of Jesus. He said that he had seen and experienced the love of God through Christ."
I feel this all the time, but am I really able to convey the love I received from the Lord to others? Can you love someone else that much? We are busy judging the action called love. I am completely unaware of what I am saying or doing. They say that a person who has received a lot of love can love others that much more. But these days, that doesn't seem to be the case. Anyway, I want to experience and know God's unchanging and true love. Thank you, Jesus!
2024년 5월 20일 묵상