Lovers of Jesus

          The church should never major, first of all, on strategy, methods, projects and fundraising. Its heartbeat is to nourish the life inside her that the world needs and craves. Marketing the church often leads to compromise and manipulation. Instead, she should compel, knowing that only the Holy Spirit can motivate believers to holiness, to service in the kingdom, to selfless living and to lay down their lives for others and to love.
          It can’t be said any stronger than the scripture—the Church is called the Bride of Christ. When Jesus says the greatest command is this: 'Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one.  Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.'” Mark 12:29-30 (NIV) we tend to just treat them as words. But God wants a love relationship with us and what we keep offering Him is duty so that we can keep our heart and give it to other things. That is called idolatry.
          The second command is to love our neighbor as ourselves. It takes supernatural love to really love others. We cannot love with supernatural, unstoppable love unless we actually experience the love of the Father for ourselves. As the radiance and exact image of the invisible God, Jesus is a spiritual lover, our perfect and ultimate companion. Our first value is to know Him in a passionate relationship with a love that is stronger than death There is a song that includes these words: “Place me like a seal over your heart, like a seal on your arm; for love is as strong as death, its jealousy unyielding as the grave. It burns like blazing fire, like a mighty flame.” Song of Songs 8:6 (NIV) 
          Holy Spirit, make us passionate, lovers of Jesus—with a love that is as strong as death. Amen.
-Pastor Dino Griffin