Monday, April 4, 2011

The Dimensions Of God's Love

That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love, May be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height; And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God (Ephesians 3:17-19).


To be filled with the fullness of God is dependent upon our comprehension of the dimensions of God's love: the breadth, length, depth and height of the Father's love.

The "breadth" of God's love refers to the width or coverage of the Father's love. How wide is it? Who does it include? John 3:16 gives us the answer: "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life." God loves everyone in the world, even the worst sinner. Thus if you comprehend the magnitude and infinitude of that love, then you too can love everybody you meet genuinly.

The "length" of God's love refers to the extent or limit of the Father's love-how far can it go? Can it pursue the worst failures? Can it be stretched limitlessly in the face of provocation? The answer to all this is an emphatic YES! God's love is limitless and doesn't give up. No wonder Jesus said you must forgive if a brother offends you seventy times seven (Matthew 18:21-22). Your love must know no limits.

The "depth" of God's love refers to the intensity of His love: "But God, being rich in mercy, because of the intense love which He bestowed on us, caused us, dead though we were through our offenses, to live with Christ..."(Ephesians 2:4-5 WNT). His love is so intense that, even when we didn't want Him, He accepted us and eventually won us over! This should be your love-attitude; this should be the character of your love; you must love others passionately and intensely as God does.

The "height" of God's love refers to the loftiness of the character of your love, beyond human weakness. It means walking in love at God's high levels of excellence. It means letting your love rise above the criticisms of others! It means walking in high levels of God's love that the bitterness of others can't drown it. Your love ought to be so lofty that nothing of this world could make you condescend to the low levels of hate, backbiting and malice.

Do you want to be filled with the fullness of God? Then, you must function by the dimensions of God's love. Stay at the high level of love that thinks and talks differently; you'll be amazed at the workings of God in your life.


PRAYER

Dear Father, I pray that you would grant me, according to the riches of your glory, to be strengthen with might by your Spirit in my inner man; that Christ may dwell in my heart by faith; that I, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend the breadth, and length, and depth, and height of your love and to fully comprehend the love of Christ, which surpasses mental knowledge, that I may be filled with all the fullness of God, in Jesus' Name.



Rhapsody of Realities April 4, 2009

-Pastor Chris Oyakhilome,



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