"All you need is love." Though far from being on my favorite movie list, there's something compelling about the story line of Moulin Rouge. The entire movie centers around this idea that "all you need is love." And if you can just find love, you've found everything that was meant to be found.
So why am I concerning you with Moulin Rouge? Maybe it's because I think the writer was right on when it comes to what life is all about. All we need is love. All anyone is looking for is love. And unfortunately, what most people are finding is anything but love.
What got me started on this? Well, God's Word has got me thinking (funny how that happens). As I was reading through a portion of Jesus' Sermon on the Mount, His words stuck out to me in Matthew 5:22, 23-24. In the passage, Jesus is talking about anger and how we need to get our hearts & relationships right. And as I read through & began really studying what He was saying, I decided to look up some related Scriptures (a good thing to do). And well, here's what I found...
"The LORD, the LORD, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin." -Ex 34:6-7
"The LORD is slow to anger, abounding in love and forgiving sin and rebellion." -Num 14:18
"But you are a forgiving God, gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love." -Neh 9:17
"But you, O Lord, are a compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness." -Ps 86:15
"The LORD is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love." -Ps 103:8
"Return to the LORD your God, for he is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love." -Joel 2:13
You know, I think God's trying to make a point here. Kind of like teachers do in school. When they really want you to get something, they repeat themselves over and over and over. And while you may think it's annoying...the fact of the matter is, you remember it! They've made it important enough & emphasized it enough, that it just kind of sticks with you.
The LORD is gracious, compassionate, faithful, and forgiving. He is slow to anger, abounding in love!
So back to Jesus & the passage in Matthew. Jesus lived a life of love- EVERYTHING He did was out of love. Imagine if we lived every moment of our life out of love...love for God. WHAT IF, we lived a life of love?
Jesus couldn't have been more clear that "All we need is love." That's why the greatest commandment is "LOVE the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. And the second is like it: LOVE your neighbor as yourself." -Mt 22:37-39
WHAT IF, we lived a life of love? WHAT IF, everything we did was because we LOVE God and want to live like Jesus?
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