THE TRANSFORMING POWER OF LOVE (Part IV)

THE TRANSFORMING POWER OF LOVE (Part IV)

The primary evidence of genuine Christianity is the believer’s demonstration of love.  As Jesus Christ declares, “By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.” (John 13:35, NKJV) 

Since JESUS CHRIST is the ultimate manifestation of divine love, our theological definition of love is directly connected to His person and work.  LOVE IS THE CHRIST-ANOINTING – spiritually activated in our thoughts, attitudes, words, decisions, actions and ministries – for the express purpose of transforming our lives, increasing our faith, restoring our relationships and authenticating our witness.

As the express manifestation and epitome of divine love, JESUS CHRIST breaks the vicious cycle of sin, tears down the wall of separation between God and man, and gains absolute victory over this satanic world system.  In the words of The Anointed One, “These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace.  In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33, NKJV)  The Word declares that as JESUS IS in the world, so are we, who follow Him as winner-believers!

I love to preach about “The Christ Anointing” because you and I, as winner-believers, have the exact same spiritual authority and spiritual anointing that Christ walked in and demonstrated daily. YOU AND I have CHRIST’S ANOINTING…that yoke-destroying…burden-removing…POWER OF GOD!

To fully apprehend the OVERCOMING ANOINTING that JESUS has (and we have deposited within), we need to look briefly at how humankind failed to overcome when originally tempted by Satan.  We will contrast this with the manner in which JESUS handled satanic temptation and achieved absolute victory.

Prayerfully consider the following scripture passage:

Genesis 3:1-7 (New King James Version, NKJV)

¹ Now the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said to the woman, “Has God indeed said, ‘You shall not eat of every tree of the garden’?”

² And the woman said to the serpent, “We may eat the fruit of the trees of the garden; 

³ but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God has said, ‘You shall not eat it, nor shall you touch it, lest you die.’”

⁴ Then the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die. 

⁵ For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”

⁶ So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate. She also gave to her husband with her, and he ate.  

⁷ Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves coverings.

Fortunately for us, Satan has only ‘three tricks’ up his demonic sleeve!  His power is actually limited, not unlimited like God’s power, and by extension, less than our authority to walk in divine power.  I John 2:15-16 admonishes us to avoid falling in love with this world system, and further informs us of its basic limitations.  The Apostle John writes, “Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world.  If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him.  For ALL that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.”

Let’s seek to understand this more fully.  Since Satan is “the prince of the power of the air,” he is the prince and the power of this world system. (Ephesians 2:2)  Nevertheless, John informs us that, Satan’s position notwithstanding, he has only three weapons in this world system that can be deployed against us.  Only three!  “ALL” that he has in this world system are the lust of the flesh, the lust of the EYES and the PRIDE of life.

Question: How did Satan use these three worldly weapons to gain advantage over Adam and Eve?  Genesis 3:6 states “When the woman saw the tree was good for food (the lust of the flesh) and that it was pleasant to the eyes (the lust of the eyes) and a tree to be desired to make one wise (the pride of life), she took the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat.”

That is precisely how our fore-parents failed to overcome.  Tomorrow, we will discover how Satan deployed these same temptations against Jesus and totally failed.  Stay tuned…more to come tomorrow.

Sisters and brothers, be continually blessed, and please (above all else) MAKE SURE YOU ARE READY TO MEET OUR SOON COMING KING. Maranatha!