WANT OTHERS TO KNOW THAT YOU ARE A FOLLOWER OF THE LORD?

SCRIPTURE:
“By this all men will know that you are my disciples, 
if you love one another.”  
(John 13:35)

MEDITATION:
Wouldn’t be nice if every time someone looked at a believer 
they could say, “That person is a follower of Jesus”.
If they could do that, we wouldn’t have to look for opportunities 
to tell them that we are His disciples.
The scriptures tell us that others can easily detect that we worship the Lord.
When they see us with a constant love for others, 
they will know that we belong to Him.

That doesn’t mean that we never get angry or frustrated with others.
However, it does mean that we have developed the ability 
of allowing love to override our natural reactions and emotions.
Pretty easy to do, huh?
Of course not!

Unless we are sincerely “joined at the hip” with the Lord, 
we cannot do this in our own strength.
Only God can supply the love that we must have for our fellowman.
The only true cohesive power in the world is Christ. 
He alone can bind human hearts together in genuine love.

This is just one of the reasons we need to 
continually focus on building our relationship with the Lord.
God allows us to make choices because 
He wants our relationship with Him to be a result of our love for Him, 
and not because He has forced us into fellowshipping with Him.
We are allowed to choose to love and obey Him.

When we truly love Him, 
that same love should spill over into our interactions with others.
In fact, our love for others 
should be a good measurement of our commitment to the Lord.

Additionally, a true love for the Lord should be our inspiration 
for serving the Lord and obeying all His commands (including 
bringing Him our tithes – which is an expression of trust that
many believers have trouble obeying).

The human soul is a lonely thing 
and needs to have the assurance of companionship. 
Left entirely to itself, it struggles to enjoy anything. 
God said in the beginning, 
“It is not good that man should dwell alone” (Genesis 2:18). 

The creation of Eve was the beginning of human companionship. 
God’s people are a body that is not intended to function separately, 
and not intended to be unconcerned for one another. 
The only true body in the world is the Church.
The worldly philosophy of brotherhood is, “every man for himself”. 

ACTION:
Can others tell at a glance that you are a follower of Christ?
If so, what convinces them that you love the Lord?
Is it your consistency in going to His house to worship Him?
Is it your use of your spiritual gift to serve Him and minister to others?
Is it your obedience to His commands (all of them)?
Or is it the obvious love 
that you have for others (as the scriptures instruct us)?

Pray,
“Heavenly Father, help me to realize that being devoted to You is 
much more than just expressing my belief, as outlined in John 3:16. 
Teach me to love You first of all and to love others as You love them. 
Help me to set aside my natural emotions and to allow Your love to 
flow through me. Forgive me for failing to show my love for You 
when I disobey Your commands. Remind me that when I bring my
tithes to You (as You have requested), I am expressing my love for 
You and indicating that I trust You to provide for me. Help me to 
overcome being offended whenever others remind me that I should 
obey You in all areas of my life. Help me to realize it is an expression
of love and concern they have for me.”