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Network 211 Weekly Message|From Conditional Love to Unconditional Love Episode
By Flattery, George M. IntroductionOne of the common drives that we have is that we want people to accept us and love us as we are. We want people to love us no matter what we say or do. On the other hand, one of the most difficult tasks we face is to love people who disrespect us or treat us badly. In other words it is difficult to give the same unconditional love that we desire. We must make the journey from conditional love to unconditional love. As we grow in the image of Christ, we can make this important journey. We can learn to both receive and give unconditional love. We cannot do this journey alone, but we can with Christ! God Loves Us UnconditionallyFortunately for us, there is one who loves us unconditionally. This is why God sent His son to die for us. Without regard to our sins, Christ died for each one of us. According to Romans 5:8, "But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." With regard to atonement for sins, God's love is unconditional. The love of God for all mankind is amazing! When we think of all the wickedness in the world, all of the evil that is daily paraded before us, and all of the despair caused by evil people, we wonder how God could love all people. But we know that He does! The Word of God is very clear on this point. Because of His Son, God makes His offer to all men to be saved. We Must Receive God's LoveThrough Christ, we can make the journey from being conditionally loved to being unconditionally loved. Our desire to be unconditionally loved can be fulfilled in Christ. David Lim says, "When we are restored to relationship as God's children, we are: "fully known, fully accepted, fully loved, fully valued, and fully celebrated." It would not be fair to say, however, that we can experience the results of atonement without any conditions. The conditions are that we must repent of our sins and believe in Christ. Through repentance and faith, we receive God's love. The apostle Paul clearly explained to the Ephesians (2:13-18) that we have peace with God through Christ. We have access to God through Christ and the Spirit. We must repent of our sins and believe in Christ before the results of atonement apply to our lives. Unconditional Love and AccountabilityIt is important that we journey from conditional love to unconditional love in what we offer to others. But before we can do this, we need to understand the nature of unconditional love. We often extol unconditional love in human affairs, especially in marriage. The idea is that we will love others without placing conditions on that love. According to some, unconditional love has no conditions whatsoever. Unconditional love is a free gift that does not call people to account. Others, however, find that unconditional love is not to be separated from accountability. Indeed, in their view holding people to account is an expression of love. James Dobson writes p. 89: I certainly believe in the validity of unconditional love, and, in fact, the mutual accountability I have recommended is an expression of that love! . . . I'm trying to say that unconditional love is not synonymous with permissiveness, passivity, and weakness. Sometimes in require toughness and discipline and accountability. Giving Unconditional LoveOnce we properly understand unconditional love, we must step forward quickly to embrace it. We must journey from conditional love to unconditional love. When we do, we will discover that I Corinthians 13:4-8 provides an excellent framework to guide us in our decisions. 4 Love is patient, love is kind and is not jealous; love does not brag and is not arrogant, 5 does not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered, 6 does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth; 7 bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. 8 Love never fails. NAU ConclusionThe yearning of our hearts to be loved unconditionally can be fulfilled through Christ. We must repent of our sins, believe in Christ, and allow the Spirit to open up our access to God. If we do, we will experience unconditional love. Then, we must make the journey from giving only conditional love to giving unconditional love. Although not every situation demands this, we must be able when it is appropriate to make the journey. Unconditional love is in harmony with accountability. Accountability is a way to express that love. Let us love unconditionally!
[ Mon, 2 Apr 2007 14:20:00 GMT ]
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