From: "Phil Rembleski" <PHIl@rescuechurchofchrist.org>

To: "1111RESCUEMEMBERS"

Cc:

Sent: Mon, Aug 19, 2024 at 5:16 AM

Subject: 8-19-24 THOUGHTS

8-19-24   THOUGHTS

God does not want us to sin!  Knowing us as He does, Jesus was given as the  Advocate for our sin.   .Our walking as Jesus walked cannot be separated from our abiding in Him!  More than anything, we need to abide in Him! The other major point in our reading is THE MUST OF LOVING!  “God is love!”  “We love Him because He first loved us!”  The command of love permeates the New Testament writings.  Mark 12:29-31  And Jesus answered him, The first of all the commandments is, Hear, O Israel; The Lord our God is one Lord:  30  And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment.  31  And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these.

1John 2:1-11    My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous; 2  and He Himself is the propitiation for our sins; and not for ours only, but also for those of the whole world. 3  By this we know that we have come to know Him, if we keep His commandments.  4  The one who says, "I have come to know Him," and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him; 5  but whoever keeps His word, in him the love of God has truly been perfected.  By this we know that we are in Him:  6  the one who says he abides in Him ought himself to walk in the same manner as He walked.  7  Beloved, I am not writing a new commandment to you, but an old commandment which you have had from the beginning; the old commandment is the word which you have heard.  8  On the other hand, I am writing a new commandment to you, which is true in Him and in you, because the darkness is passing away and the true Light is already shining. 9  The one who says he is in the Light and yet hates his brother is in the darkness until now. 10  The one who loves his brother abides in the Light and there is no cause for stumbling in him. 11  But the one who hates his brother is in the darkness and walks in the darkness, and does not know where he is going because the darkness has blinded his eyes.

My Prayer:
O God, we love You with our all.  May that be true today and always to the end.  Father, we know our need to abide in You, in Christ, in the vine.  May we follow in the steps of Jesus.  Teach us to love as You love, O God.  Help us to love, not ourselves, but others.  Help us to see Your  “love design”  in all creation.  May we always promote that design in our lives.  Give  us hearts that love naturally and continually from our deepest parts.  May we ever be in the light.  
In the name of Jesus’,    Amen.