Agape Love
God's Benevolence
God's benevolence is reflected through the Gospel, the Word, through pastoral and priestly leadership, devotions of others and our own relationship with our Heavenly Father. His power and indeed, His love.
HIS EXISTENCE
By definition, God is – creator of heaven and earth, He is Alpha and Omega, He is supreme in power and authority, ruler, and independent of all others. There is absolutely nothing that happens in the universe that is outside of God’s influence and authority. As King of kings and Lord of lords, God has no limitations; God is divine, sacred and holy:
* Gods omniscience - God is all-knowing
* Gods omnipresence - God is all-present/all-seeing
* Gods omnipotence - God is all-power
God cannot be all powerful if He is not all knowing; God cannot be all knowing all the time unless he is everywhere at once. God cannot be everywhere if He is not all powerful.
God is above all things and before all things. He is the alpha and the omega, the beginning and the end. He is immortal, and He is present everywhere so that everyone can know Him (Revelation 21:6).
HIS SOVEREIGNTY
When we look up the definition of “sovereign,” a composite of power several names come to mind. The sovereignty of God means his supremacy, his kingship and his Godhood. He is the Most High, according to His will in the inhabitants of the earth and in Heaven. He is the Almighty, the Possessor of all power in heaven and earth, so that none can defeat His counsels, thwart His purpose, or resist His will (Ps. 115:3). To say that God is sovereign is to declare that He is "The Governor among the nations" (Ps. 22:28), setting up kingdoms, overthrowing empires, and determining the course of dynasties as pleased Him best. To say that God is sovereign is to declare that He is the "Only Potentate, the King of kings, and Lord of lords" (1 Tim. 6:15).
Creator:
Everyone who is called by my name, whom I created for my glory, whom I formed and made.” (Isaiah 43:7)
God created all things and holds all things together, both in heaven and on earth, both visible and invisible (Colossians 1:16).
Self-made: Autonomous (meaning: “self” sufficient, “self” governing, “self” directed, “self” ruling)
Whatever He wants to do in the universe, He does, for nothing is impossible with Him (Jeremiah 32:17).
All Knowing:
God knows all things past, present, and future. There is no limit to His knowledge, for God knows everything completely before it even happens (Romans 11:33).
In Control:
God is in control of all things and rules over all things. He has power and authority over nature, earthly kings, history, angels, and demons. Even Satan himself has to ask God’s permission before he can act (Psalm 103:19).
Because God is sovereign, He has the greatest capacity to love his own creation. Because of his sovereignty and his love for “His children;” because we are His, nothing will ever come into our lives that He does not either decree or allow – Our commitment is to always love and serve Him. Not only does the all-powerful God loves and cares about us. It is a testimony to His sovereignty and His ability to support this declaration over and over again. No matter what we face in life, we can take comfort in the fact that God is sovereign.
HIS LOVE FOR US
Our Heavenly Father is a loving God, our Creator, and Creator of Heaven and earth of that is seen and unseen. He is our source and our center. God knew and loved us before we knew of our own existence. Because of his love for us, he provides for all of our needs, he will give us rest when we are tired, and express his love and peace and we can never be separated from his love. And even in the midst of our fallen nature, he loves us so much that He sent his Son, precious Lord Jesus Christ, to restore our souls, who sacrificed His life to save us. John 3:16 (NIV) 16 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. It is written in Peter 1:4 Because of God’s glory and excellence, he has given us great and precious promises that enables us to share in his divine nature and escape the world’s corruption caused by human desires. These are a few scriptures of our loving Father and Provider:
1. Jeremiah 29:11 For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.
2. Matthew 11:28-29 “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.
3. Isaiah 40:29-31 He gives power to the weak and strength to the powerless. Even youths will become weak and tired, and young men will fall in exhaustion. But those who trust in the Lord will find new strength. They will soar high on wings like eagles. They will run and not grow weary. They will walk and not faint.
4. Philippians 4:19 and this same God who takes care of me will supply all your needs from his glorious riches, which have been given to us in Christ Jesus.
5. Romans 8:37-39 No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us. And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord. But all who listen to me will live in peace, untroubled by fear of harm.”
6. John 14:27 “I am leaving you with a gift—peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don’t be troubled or afraid.
7. Romans 10:9 if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.
8. Romans 6:23 for the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord.
9. Romans 8:28 promises that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose.
HONORING GOD
Because our Heavenly Father is our Creator, we honor Him, we give Him Glory, we cherish and embrace all that He is, all that He does, and we who we are, his children. God’s sovereignty compels us to bow before Him; but unlike corrupt earthly kings who abuse their authority to terrorize their subjects, God rules in love; He loves us and wants the best for us.
Through Worship with Praise and Thanksgiving:
Joshua 24:15 And if it is evil in your eyes to serve the Lord, choose this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your fathers served in the region beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”
1 Samuel 2:30 Therefore the Lord, the God of Israel, declares: ‘I promised that your house and the house of your father should go in and out before me forever,’ but now the Lord declares: ‘Far be it from me, for those who honor me I will honor, and those who despise me shall be lightly esteemed.
Deuteronomy 6:5 you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might.
Proverbs 3:9 ESV Honor the Lord with your wealth and with the first fruits of all your produce;
1 Corinthians 10:31 ESV So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.
Romans 1:1-32 Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God, which he promised beforehand through his prophets in the holy Scriptures, concerning his Son, who was descended from David according to the flesh and was declared to be the Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness by his resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord, through whom we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith for the sake of his name among all the nations,
1 Kings 5:1-5 ESV Now Hiram king of Tyre sent his servants to Solomon when he heard that they had anointed him king in place of his father, for Hiram always loved David. And Solomon sent word to Hiram, “You know that David my father could not build a house for the name of the Lord his God because of the warfare with which his enemies surrounded him, until the Lord put them under the soles of his feet. But now the Lord my God has given me rest on every side. There is neither adversary nor misfortune. And so I intend to build a house for the name of the Lord my God, as the Lord said to David my father, ‘Your son, whom I will set on your throne in your place, shall build the house for my name.’
Isaiah 58:1-14 “Cry aloud; do not hold back; lift up your voice like a trumpet; declare to my people their transgression, to the house of Jacob their sins. Yet they seek me daily and delight to know my ways, as if they were a nation that did righteousness and did not forsake the judgment of their God; they ask of me righteous judgments; they delight to draw near to God. ‘Why have we fasted, and you see it not? Why have we humbled ourselves, and you take no knowledge of it?’ Behold, in the day of your fast you seek your own pleasure, and oppress all your workers. Behold, you fast only to quarrel and to fight and to hit with a wicked fist. Fasting like yours this day will not make your voice to be heard on high. Is such the fast that I choose, a day for a person to humble himself? Is it to bow down his head like a reed, and to spread sackcloth and ashes under him? Will you call this a fast, and a day acceptable to the Lord?
John 6:50-71 This is the bread that comes down from heaven, so that one may eat of it and not die. I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. And the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.” The Jews then disputed among themselves, saying, “How can this man give us his flesh to eat?” So Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.
Loving Self as a Child of God and Others
1 Corinthians 3:16 Do you not know that you are God's temple and that God's Spirit dwells in you?
1 Corinthians 6:20 For you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.
2 Timothy 2:21 Therefore, if anyone cleanses himself from what is dishonorable, he will be a vessel for honorable use, set apart as holy, useful to the master of the house, ready for every good work.
Numbers 30:2 If a man vows a vow to the Lord, or swears an oath to bind himself by a pledge, he shall not break his word. He shall do according to all that proceeds out of his mouth.
Acts 20:35 In all things I have shown you that by working hard in this way we must help the weak and remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he himself said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’”
Proverbs 14:31 Whoever oppresses a poor man insults his Maker, but he who is generous to the needy honors him.
Exodus 20:12 “Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long in the land that the Lord your God is giving you.
Romans 13:1-7 Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God. Therefore whoever resists the authorities resists what God has appointed, and those who resist will incur judgment. For rulers are not a terror to good conduct, but to bad. Would you have no fear of the one who is in authority? Then do what is good, and you will receive his approval, for he is God's servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword in vain. For he is the servant of God, an avenger who carries out God's wrath on the wrongdoer. Therefore one must be in subjection, not only to avoid God's wrath but also for the sake of conscience.
Matthew 5:37 ESV Let what you say be simply ‘Yes’ or ‘No’; anything more than this comes from evil.
