here is what you are free to do…

GOD put adam in a garden. then GOD gave him a command.

GOD said, “I want you to look at that tree of knowledge of good and evil. don’t eat from it.” as HE gives him this command, GOD gives us a pattern for all the commands that HE gives to us. first HE says, “you can eat of all the other trees. you’re free to do that. but don’t eat of this tree.” that’s the pattern for GOD’s commands in the scripture. HE says, “here’s what you are free to do. here’s what will make you happy. just don’t do this one thing. that will make you miserable.” and guess what we always want to do?

GOD’s not trying to keep us away from something good; HE’s trying to protect us from the hurt that HE knows comes from sin in our lives. HE says, “here’s all the things you can do. just these other things stay away from because there’s no joy there.” the more i grow as a believer, the closer i get to HIM, the more i realize that HE’s just doing it for my good.

HE gives then a command, what we’re free to do and what we’re not free to do. the things that we are free to do are the things that we’re designed to do. they are sort of GOD’s specifications for our lives.

just a thought from the front porch…

love is not optional…

so what is love? for one the bible says that love is a command.

GOD commands that we love each other. it’s not optional. if we don’t do it, the bible says that we are sinning. the bible says this in 2 john 1.6 (nlt), love means doing what GOD has commanded. HE has commanded us to love one another.

some of you say, “i can live without love.” no, you can’t. you can exist without love, but you can’t live without it. and you can’t please GOD without it because the bible says GOD has commanded us to love each other.

because it is commanded, that brings up a corollary, and it is this: love is not a feeling. we know that because you can’t command a feeling. you can no more command a feeling than you can command the wind.

have you ever said to a little kid that is upset and crying and really frustrated: “i command you to be happy! i command you to stop crying!” you can no more command a feeling than you can command the mountains to move. feelings cannot be commanded.

love is not a feeling. it creates feelings. it produces feelings. love causes feelings, but love is not an emotion. if you think it is, you have a very shallow understanding of love. it creates emotion, but love is not an emotion. so you need to understand that. when people say, “i feel love,” you’re feeling an emotion, but love is more than that.

GOD would never command you to do something that HE doesn’t give you the power and the ability to do. and you can’t always control an emotion.

just a thought from the front porch…