MORNING MANNA 12-3-22
LLVING GOD MOST
And there went great multitudes with him: and he turned, and said unto them, If any man come to me, and hate not his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be my disciple. And whosoever doth not bear his cross, and come after me, cannot be my disciple.”- Luke 14:25–27
In his sermon “The Secret of Loving God,” Charles Spurgeon highlighted the importance of taking a public stand for God and declaring our love for Him to the world with the story of his baptism. “I always look back, with deep gratitude, to the day when I was baptized. Up to that time, I was timid and fearful, and afraid to confess Christ; but after I went into the river, and was publicly baptized into His death, I lost all fear of man, and I think I can honestly say that I have never been ashamed to acknowledge my Lord from that day to this. The world has had many a cruel word for me from that day to this, and there is no love lost between us; I am done with the world as the world is done with me; I am crucified to the world, and the world to me.”
The command for us to love God above all else begins with the internal—our heart, our soul, our mind, and our strength—but it certainly does not end there. The proper love of God in our hearts will inevitably be displayed in our actions. Jesus said, “If ye love me, keep my commandments” (John 14:15). The proper affection for God as the supreme love of our lives guides everything else that we do. It determines how we use our time, what we allow and avoid, and how we treat those around us. There is nothing that can take the place of loving God above all else. Our love for God should be so great that it is visible to everyone who knows or meets us.
David Stone
Lakeway Baptist Church
Humble, Tx.
