You can let God flow through you to minister to other people. You have the power and the anointing of God in you, but how do you get it out to other people? There are several scriptures we can start with. In Philemon 6, Paul is praying “that the communication of thy faith may become effectual by the acknowledging of every good thing which is in you in Christ Jesus.” The very first step in having the power of God flow through you toward other people is that you first acknowledge the good things that are inside you. You can’t give away what you don’t have, but once you know what you have on the inside, things will automatically happen. You’ll share with others your excitement, give testimonies of what God has done in your life, and automatically, some people will be helped.
(Philemon 6, ESV), “…and I pray that the sharing of your faith may become effective for the full knowledge of every good thing that is in us for the sake of Christ.”
The “full knowledge” Paul mentions is a reference to spiritual maturity. This maturity is said to be regarding “every good thing,” stressing a mature knowledge about all areas of life. In particular, this requires growth and development in one’s Christian walk. This is an important point from Paul—he is about to ask Philemon to perform an enormous act of forgiveness and free his runaway slave. The slave, Onesimus, had actually returned along with the letter.
Sharing of your faith. We share our faith by bearing witness, sometimes by words and sometimes by deeds. Paul encourages Philemon to live out or witness to his faith through a special work of mercy and sharing. Greek Koinonia, every good thing. Effective, living faith bears fruit in appreciating what is good and what is good works. For the sake of Christ, God gives us good works to perform so that Christ may be glorified.
(1 John 4:7-8, ESV), “Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love.”
God’s nature is turned toward and bound up in seeking, working, and being for the welfare and benefit of others, namely humankind. Love fittingly describes the nature of God; His love is revealed in the flesh and blood of Jesus Christ.
Anytime you feel love flow out of you toward another person, that’s God flowing out of you toward them. There are actually four major words for “love” in the Greek language; the highest form, agape love, is God’s supernatural kind of love. You need to recognize the difference between attraction, or desire, toward somebody and this supernatural, high form of God’s love. Whenever you discern God’s love flowing out of you toward someone else, it’s not self-serving. You can verify this by looking at 1 Corinthians 13:4-8, which gives the qualifications of God’s kind of love. It is not envious, selfish, self-serving, easily provoked, etc. You need to analyze what you call love and make sure it’s really God’s love, that it’s not selfish or self-serving, that you don’t love a person because of what they can do for you. As you grow in this and literally discern His kind of love, then when you feel it flow through you for somebody else, that’s God moving. Once you discern the love of God flowing through you for someone, all you have to do is follow it with some word of encouragement or action to do something.
(1 Corinthians 13:4-8, ESV), “Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never ends. As for prophecies, they will pass away; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will pass away.”
Poetically balanced between negative and positive statements. Fifteen assertions describe the nature of love in Christ: two positive statements, eight negative statements (the last one adds a positive contrast), then four positive statements. The first assertions are most important (“patient,” “kind”; God’s attributes, and are further defined by the assertions that follow. Love never ends. Or, “never fails.” Paul introduces another contrast to show love’s superiority.
The “love” Paul speaks of in these verses is from the Greek term agape. This is a selfless love, distinguished from sexual desire, eros, and from brotherly love, phileo. These verses include 14 descriptors of agape, all of them verbs. Godly love, from a godly perspective, is defined by what Christians do or do not do. It is not primarily about feelings; nor is it mostly the words which describe them. Love is action: the choice to do or not do in relationships with all other Christians.
Agape describes God’s immeasurable and incomparable love for humankind. It is the highest form of love in the Bible. It is a perfect and unconditional type of love that transcends and persists regardless of circumstances. Agape love has been used frequently throughout the New Testament. It perfectly describes the love that Jesus Christ has for God and his followers. Agape love goes beyond emotions. It is this kind of love that is given freely, expecting nothing in return. It is a pure, selfless, willful, sacrificial love that always seeks the best for others.
Agape love should not be just words and talk, it must be true love with action as shown by our savior Jesus Christ. We should be ready to lay our lives for others just as Christ gave his life for us.
(Matthew 14:14, ESV), “When he went ashore he saw a great crowd, and he had compassion on them and healed their sick.”
Jesus and His disciples embarked on a boat journey intending to distance themselves from the persistent crowds who sought healing and sought to listen to His teachings. Realizing Jesus’ intended destination, the crowd swiftly made their way along the shore on foot, ensuring they would be present in Bethsaida upon His arrival. Bethesda, which was positioned on the northeast shore of the Sea of Galilee, held great significance in the region.
In what manner would Jesus respond? It would appear to be a reasonable expectation for us, and possibly even for the disciples, that Jesus would explore alternative methods of evading the persistent crowds. Maybe they will decide to continue their journey by sailing to another secluded destination. It was for this reason that they ultimately left Capernaum.
Despite the circumstances, Jesus is overwhelmed with compassion as He observes the immense crowd gathered on the shore. In the book of Colossians, Paul referred to Jesus as the “image of the invisible God” in order to emphasize his divine nature (Colossians 1:15). By demonstrating his character, he reveals the true essence of God the Father to us. In this specific moment, as well as in many other instances, Jesus shows God is not only the “Father of mercies,” but also the “God of comfort.” It is through this comforting nature that God provides solace to us in all our afflictions, as mentioned in 2 Corinthians 1:3-4. Jesus, with the purpose of ministering to Israel, had arrived, and to His amazement, there were the people of Israel eagerly expecting His presence. No matter how much He longed to be alone, He would never refuse them, no matter how strong His desire was.
(Matthew 25:37-40. ESV), “Then the righteous will answer him, saying, Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? And when did we see you as a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you? And the King will answer them, Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.”
This story does not teach that people are justified before God based on works. The sheep receive their blessing and inheritance from the Father before a single word about their good works is spoken. Scripture teaches people to do good works in God’s sight only after they have come to faith and are justified by Christ. Good works result from salvation. Interestingly, those called righteous are surprised at what is being said about them. Far from being boastful about the good deeds worked in them by God’s Spirit, they are completely ignorant of them. An important theme in Matthew is that Jesus is Immanuel, “God with us”; this verse stresses that Jesus is with the Christian community in such a way that we serve Him when we serve others.
The group Jesus praises during the end times are confused about His comments. After describing them as blessed by His Father and welcoming them to take their rightful places in His kingdom, He has also told them that they cared for Him in several essential ways when He was most in need of help. Given that this judgment happens at some point in the end times, most or all these people will never have seen Jesus in person until then.
It’s important to note that the reason these people did these good works was because they were living faithfully for Jesus. Their works followed their faith in Him as the chosen ones of His Father. Jesus calls all who are sons and daughters of His Father, His brothers and sisters. He is their King, yes, but He is also their spiritual brother since they are all children of God.
Shalom
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