BEING A GODLY INFLUENCE MUST BE MOTIVATED
BY GOD’S LOVE FOR YOU AND YOURS FOR HIM
2 Corinthians 5:14-15
14 For the love of Christ compels us, because we judge thus: that if One died for all, then all died; 15 and He died for all, that those who live should live no longer for themselves, but for Him who died for them and rose again.
Please memorize:
Matthew 5:5 – Blessed are the meek for they shall inherit the earth.(Complete Trust)
Matthew 5:6 – Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness for they shall be satisfied. (Satisfaction Guaranteed)
Q1: WHEN YOU SEE PEOPLE TRYING TO BE GOOD, WHAT DO YOU IMAGINE THEIR MOTIVES TO BE? WHY DO PEOPLE EVEN TRY TO BE GOOD?
When’s the last time you and God had a conversation? I have never had a face to face meeting with Him where God was visible to me, but I have been with Him and enjoyed His presence in prayer, in worship, in study, in meditation (thinking a lot about) scripture. I am not trying to put doubts in your mind, but I can imagine that you have occasionally wondered about whether God is real or not, whether He is good or not, etc. Most people I know have wrestled with these issues. Some still are wrestling.
Q2: WHAT ARE SOME OF THE REASONS PEOPLE HAVE A HARD TIME TRUSTING GOD AND HIS WORD?
Q3: DO YOU TRUST GOD? HOW DOES HE WANT TO BE TRUSTED – IN WHAT AREAS? IN WHAT AREAS DO YOU HAVE THE MOST TROUBLE TRUSTING GOD? finances, security, future, eternity, children/grandchildren, job, marriage/relationships ??
That said, many of us KNOW He is real because of many factors: personal changes in us, answers to pray that could not be coincidence, study of prophecy and fulfillments, observing the life of Christ in scripture and then up close in salvation and a new life, watching others change, seeing people set free to have a life worth living, study of archaeology, apologetics, or the lives of Christians who’ve gone before us. Whatever your journey may have included, we should have personal experiences with God in forgiveness of our own sins and empowering us to forgive others we thought we could never forgive.
In these personal experiences with God’s Holy Spirit, we see, feel, touch, and taste that the Lord God is good. We come to believe even more deeply that He knows us, loves us, cares about us, wants us, and plans for us to be with Him in heaven someday. When God makes us a promise and we are connected to His heart of love, we will submit to what He says without fear, or at least the fear we have won’t stop us from obeying Him or doing what it takes to please Him. Ephesians 5:10
Q4: WHAT PERSONAL EXPERIENCES HAVE YOU HAD WITH TRUSTING GOD AND HOW DID THE CIRCUMSTANCES WORK OUT FOR YOU?
You are being a Godly influence in a healthy way when you do what you do because you love and trust God and willingly give His love to others. Your old view of God may be changing to a new more accurate, trusting love for Him. He deserves no less; you can give Him no better gift than your loving devotion and obedience.
Q5: WHO IN YOUR LIFE HAS A TOUGH TIME TRUSTING GOD? DO YOU KNOW WHY? WHAT CAN YOU DO ABOUT IT – ANYTHING, NOTHING, SOMETHING?