When I was
nine years old my Father handed me something dangerous. “It’s uranium,” he
said. “Just touching it will transform you, and if you know how to use it
properly, it has the power to create an explosion so powerful it could be seen
from space.”
This is a
metaphor. My Father in this scenario is my Heavenly Father. The uranium he gave me is “Agape” and it not only has the power to transform us due to prolonged contact, but it can also create an explosion of change that has the potential to transform every human life on this planet – if we know how to use it properly.
I’ve been captivated lately by this image of the Love of Christ as an awesome, unlimited power that has been handed down to us by the Creator of the Universe.
Much like handing
a toddler a nuclear warhead capable of transforming the landscape in the blink
of an eye, Jesus has entrusted every one of us with the greatest force in the
universe ever imagined: Agape Love. A love which has the power - not to destroy a city - but to transform and renew all humanity from within.
If you have
experienced the inexpressible power of this love, you know what I’m talking
about. It disarms you. It changes you from within. It fills your heart with
unspeakable joy, and impossible hope, and complete faith that the impossible is not only
possible but extremely likely.
You and I –
as disciples of Jesus – have been handed the most astounding force of change ever
devised. We have been changed by it ourselves, and the more we are exposed to
it, the more we are changed daily into new creatures with new minds, and new
hearts.
This same
force within us has the power to change the world. In fact, it is intended to
do so. It was designed by the One who spoke the Universe into existence to do
just that.
This love of
Christ has the power to transform the hearts and renew the minds and restore
the souls of every person we come into contact with today. No matter who they
are: Atheists, Rapists, Murderers, Drug Addicts, Prostitutes, LGBTs, Muslims,
Baptists, Democrats, Republicans, Nazis, ISIS, Terrorists, Lawyers, Professors,
and on, and on.
Truthfully,
there is no one who is immune to the power of this love. Some may resist it.
They may deny it. They may run from it in fear. But the power of the love of
Christ to soften the heart and renew the mind, and transform the soul, is irresistible.
We are living
proof. The more we are exposed to this love, the more we are changed. The more
we are changed, the more others around us experience that love, and the cycle
continues.
If you wield
a force as powerful as Agape Love, I have to ask what you would want with a
gun, or a knife? Jesus has entrusted us with a weapon that is mighty beyond
belief. It has the power to demolish strongholds and turn murderers into ministers,
abusers into healers, terrorists into ambassadors of peace – even persecutors
into Apostles of Christ.That same Apostle told us that the love of Christ was powerful beyond our imaginations. He prayed that we would have the “power to grasp how high, and wide, and long, and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge - that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.” (Eph. 3:18-19)
So, take hold
of that volatile, dangerous power today. Immerse yourself in it. Let it
permeate your being.
Let it transform you into a living beacon of His audacious, awesome, astounding love.
Detonate this power indiscriminately wherever you go. Let it flow through your mouth, your hands, your heart, your mind. Let it spill over the lonely, the broken, the outcast, and the hopeless around you.
Let this love
change you, and then let it transform the world around you. Let it transform you into a living beacon of His audacious, awesome, astounding love.
Detonate this power indiscriminately wherever you go. Let it flow through your mouth, your hands, your heart, your mind. Let it spill over the lonely, the broken, the outcast, and the hopeless around you.
"Love’em all.
Let God sort’em out."
-kg
**
FURTHER READING:
"Because we loved you so much, we were delighted to share with you not only the gospel of God but our lives as well." (1 Thess. 2:8)
"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!" (2 Cor. 5:17)
"He who was seated on the throne said, "I am making everything new!" Then he said, "Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true." (Rev. 21:5)
"And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love." (1 Cor. 13:13)
3 comments:
I like that last sentence--love em all-let God sort em out--that's the way I like to live my life--just let his love flow out of me and then let him fix them.
I really like this one, Keith. Have read it and shared it.
While I like the post and what you are getting at, I wanted to throw this out: When I used to think "agape" love meant "only from God" love - I would've agreed. When I read John 3:19 "Now this is the basis for judging: that the light has come into the world and people loved the darkness rather than the light, because their deeds were evil." It startled me to find out that the "love they had of darkness" was agape.
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