MEASURING THE IMPACT OF OUR SALVATION

BIBLE PASSAGE:
“And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God
is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them.”
(1 John 4:16)

MEDITATION:
How can we measure the impact that our salvation has had on our lives?
In other words, how can we know that our commitment to follow Jesus
has really made a difference in who we are, and how we approach each
day of our lives? Have we really allowed God to become an active part
of our life? According to 1 John 4:16, we can measure the effects of our
salvation by our capacity and efforts to show love.

We can look at the life of Paul and see how God genuinely changed
his life. Paul was no longer a persecutor of those who believed in the
Lord, but he had now become the object of persecutions. Instead of
making life miserable for those who followed the Lord, Paul had a
lifestyle of love focused on encouraging others to believe in Jesus.

What was his primary motivation for becoming this dramatically new
person? It was love – love for God, and love for others. No longer did
Paul view those who believed in Jesus as objects of his persecutions.
He now saw ALL people as individuals with souls who needed to have
the Lord in their lives.

Paul was no longer a ruthless man who was bent on persecuting
Christians; he had become a gentle, caring, and loving individual
with a desire to lead others to the Lord. He discovered God’s love
and it changed his life by giving him a new reason for living.

Does this mean that Paul had transitioned from being a strong man
to a weakling? By no means! Paul had become a loving person with
a gentle strength. Paul shows us the amount of strength we can have
when we allow God’s love to permeate our lives.

He suffered many persecutions because of the new life he had
chosen after his encounter with Jesus. He showed that he was
able to endure his persecutions because he had a new strength,
and a new focus, which made his sufferings secondary.
    I consider that our present sufferings are not worth
    comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us.
    (Romans 8:18)

We may have this question:
    Can God’s love change people today
    in the same manner that He changed Paul?
The answer is:
    Of course it can; if it could not,
    then the scriptures could not be trusted.

There was a man from my hometown who was once known as the
“meanest man in football”. He was a small man who overcame the
challenges of his stature through his tenacity for excellence. In fact,
his efforts were so intense that he was runner-up to the famous Joe
Namath as “Rookie of the Year” in the NFL.

John Bramlett was a self-centered person who was strictly focused
on himself and his own accomplishments. He could probably drink
more alcohol than many of those he associated with, and, if anyone
needed an instructor in profanity, John was qualified to teach it.

In the midst of his selfishness (some called it his self-destruction),
John’s soul was crying out for our Savior, Jesus Christ. He used
alcohol and his intense desire to excel to silence the cries of his
soul for years, but there came a point when the cries could be
heard by the Lord in spite of John’s selfish desires and actions.

I knew about John and the type of person he was, but I had never
met him personally until I started attending the Fellowship Of
Christian Athletes weekly breakfast. I discovered that he was a
person who was kind, gentle and caring (three characteristics of love).

I also found John to be a very humble person (another characteristic
of love) with a gentle strength that gave him the capacity for putting
others first.
    “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit.
      Rather, in humility value others above yourselves,
      not looking to your own interests but each of you
      to the interests of the others.”
      (Philippians 2:3-4)

John would serve as a waiter and deliver meals from the kitchen
to those in attendance before he would sit down to eat his own
breakfast. He didn’t just talk about putting others first, he
showed that he ‘considered others above himself’.

John and I had several discussions and one of them revolved
around his younger brother. He openly discussed with me the
problems and the lost condition of his brother, who wanted to
follow in John’s footsteps in the field of sports.

His brother and I played on a recreational basketball team together,
and I could see the tenacity that was similar to John’s, but I could
also see how his soul was searching for something bigger than sports
or anything else. Bobby came to our house once and wanted to talk
about his faith. I’m not sure how long we talked, but it was easy to
see that his soul was restless and still looking for answers.

John told me that he and Bobby had talked about faith and the
changes he needed to make in his lifestyle and his choices. John
said he was always encouraging him to surrender his life to Jesus,
but he knew Bobby was far away from the Lord. Physically, he
was doing great, but spiritually he was very sick.

The last time I talked to John, he said Bobby was still struggling
spiritually. It was easy to see the inner heart of love John had for
his brother, which revealed how much John himself had changed.
I’ve often wondered if Bobby changed after the Lord called John
home.

Just being around John, it was easy to see how he had learned to
‘live in love’, how he ‘lived in God’, and how God ‘lived in him’.
With God living in him, John became a dynamic preacher with
a desire to see others find what he had found in Jesus.

The sermon he preached was basically always the same message.
He wasn’t what would be called a “polished preacher”, but his
message was effective because it wasn’t complicated, and it was
delivered with a passion that had an impact on many people. In
later years, his health was declining, but his passion for sharing
the Lord with others and his desire for their salvation never lost
its intensity.

John was transformed from a selfish to a selfless person because
he ‘knew of’, and ‘relied on’ the love that God had for him. We
crossed paths a few times after our initial meeting and he was
always the same gentle, caring and loving person I met at that
first breakfast meeting. During our conversations, it was easy
to see that John was an intense listener. To me, this showed the
depth of his consideration and concern for others.

If you want to learn more about John Bramlett (whom God has
called home), look for his book, “Taming The Bull”. You may
also want to read his wife’s book, “Always Too Soon To Quit”
(written by Nancy Bramlett) which is her perspective of living
a life with the “Bull”.

Just as God changed the lives of Paul and John Bramlett,
He can change everyone’s life and give each individual a
new capacity for love (which is a good measurement of a
changed life). Love is more than just a word, it includes
actions.

What are some of the evidences of love?
Here is a brief list (I’m sure many others could be added):
– Love is patient
    (it means we allow others time to change)

– Love is kind
    (it means we are able to lift the spirits
     of others through our words and actions)

– Love does not envy
    (it means we are happy and content with our own blessings)

– Love does not find delight in evil
    (it means we prefer what pleases God)

– Love trusts God always
    (it means we have confidence that God is the source of our strength)

– Love hopes always
    (it means we have a sincere and trusting faith in God
      and the impact He can have on the lives of everyone)

– Love does not boast
    (it means we are not defined by what we own or our accomplishments)

– Love is not self-seeking
    (it means we are not selfish and self-centered;
     we can sincerely consider the importance of others)

– Love is not easily angered
    (it means we can use self-control, especially with anger)

– Love is not proud
    (it means we are humble and not egotistical;
     we don’t have to ‘outdo’ others in getting attention)

– Love is not rude
    (it means we are considerate of others; we listen respectfully
     and allow them time to finish what they are saying without
     interrupting them)

– Love rejoices in God’s truth
    (It means we delight in reading the Bible)

– Love perseveres
    (it means we are confident that God is in control, and that
     love can be the solution to many confrontational situations)

– Love never fails
    (it means that we have a desire to be
     consistent in loving God and loving others)

– Love keeps no records of wrongs
    (it means we don’t spend time looking for the faults in others;
     instead we look for the good in them and find ways to encourage them)

– Love protects
    (it means we have an intense desire
     to see others surrender their lives to the Lord)

– Love is forgiving
    (it means we are not controlled by the disappointments
     we feel from the unkind treatment we receive from others)

– Love is compassionate
    (it means we are interested in, and genuinely care about others)

– Love does not seek revenge
    (it means we have an ability to absorb wrongful actions
     from others, rather than looking for ways to retaliate)

ACTION:
Have you discovered the love God has for you personally?
Do believe that you are living a life of love? Can you sense
that God is living in You? Do you feel that you are living
in Him?

Can others identify you as someone with the characteristics
of love? Do you have confidence that God is in control, and
that’s all that matters? Have you given God total control of
your life? Does His love flow through you into the lives of others?

Take a moment and think about your interactions with others.
Do you treat them all as if they are more important than you?
Have you allowed disappointment in others to create bitterness
in you? Are there times when you have a desire to get even with
someone who has wronged you?

Is there someone you have decided you cannot forgive? Did God
and Jesus forgive you? Do you have someone in your life that you
need to forgive for things they did either unintentionally, or even
intentionally? Do you easily find fault with others, but overlook
your own faults? Do you find yourself blaming others for your
own bad decisions?

Look over the brief list of the characteristics of love above
and see which ones describe you. Also, think about the ones
that are missing and how you can develop them in your own
life (with God’s help).

Pray,
“Heavenly Father, I could never find enough words to fully
thank You for showing Your love for me. Your Word tells me
that if I live in love, then I will live in You, and You will live
in me. My greatest desire is to live in You and for You to live
in me, so I ask You to help me set aside my selfishness, and
allow You to create in me a greater capacity to love. You have
shown the world (and me) that you are consistent in Your love
for us, and we can depend on the presence of Your love always.
Help me to show others that they can depend on my love to be
consistent toward them. I pray that it will be one way they can
see that You truly are living in me. Teach me how to absorb the
unkind treatment and wrath of others, instead of seeking revenge
or retaliation. Show me if I am failing to ‘own’ my bad choices,
and are blaming them on someone else. Thank You Lord for
Your love and forgiveness of me, and for absorbing the unkind
ways I have treated You. Forgive me if I have taken for granted
the blessings You have given me. Help me to love You more each
day, so I can love others as You do.”

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