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Affection for Christ

By J. A. Shodeinde
01 August 2021   |   4:01 am
Affection must be supremely set on God. In every thing we do on earth, Let Christ claim first place. God must come first.

J. A. Shodeinde

“And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment” (Mark 12:30)

Affection must be supremely set on God. In every thing we do on earth, Let Christ claim first place. God must come first. God must be loved more than all that we cherish most. It’s beautiful to love people who are blood-related to you, but loving God first secures the lives of your loved ones. Your interests in other things of life, which conform to God’s Will are also protected, if you put God first. If you love your job more than God, it will certainly take your genuine service to Christ from you. You will be too busy to study the Bible and pray, making your spiritual life to be compromised.

If you want to please God, your affection must be set upon His commandments. Following the Lord’s commandments bring about peace of mind and joy like a river, because his statutes are right. Those who love God must fear Him, for His judgments are true and righteous. The Lord and His commandments must be more desired than gold and silver. Any form of sin must not take the place of God in your heart. Meditate on the Word of God day and night, so you don’t derail. Our souls must long to always please God, because straying from His commandments causes grave consequences. Those who love God hate evil, their lives will be preserved by God and they will be delivered out of the enemies’ hands. If God is on your side, no one can be against you. If you obey God, He stands by you always. It doesn’t matter what life throws at you, He will always be there for you.

You must have affection for the house and worship of God. “Moreover, because I have set my affection to the house of my God, I have of mine own proper good, of gold and silver, which I have given to the house of my God, over and above all that I have prepared for the holy house” (1Chron 29:3). We must not jettison the house of God and nothing must be too big to offer to our God, Who has granted us His blessings. Our affection must be upon the people of God. If you love God, you must love His people.

Let’s be kind to one another and let’s honour and show real brotherly love. Let’s wipe away the tears of those weeping, and God will also wipe away our tears. There are people around us who lack food, shelter and clothing. We must not ignore them. We must bless and encourage them with what we have.

By doing this, we are doing it for God and a great reward awaits us on earth and in heaven. We must be zealously engaged for God. We must work for God with all our hearts. Evangelising the unbelievers is necessary. Our Christ-like attitude can also evangelise. Loving God makes us bear any reproach that comes with serving Him. Be zealous in doing what is good before God and without eye-service to any man. There’s danger in not putting God first. You easily forget the works of God and ignore seeking His counsel. The affection of the wicked is not sincerely set on God. We come to church every time to hear the Word of God, but do we follow or act according to God’s Word? We profess much love for God with our mouths, but our heart goes after covetousness. Let the Word of God in our lives not be like seeds fallen on the rock, which lacks root.

People in this category, hear and receive the Word of God with joy and believe for a while, but fall away in time of temptation.

Put to death canal affections. Romans 8:13 “For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live” (Romans 8:13). Provision must not be made for the flesh to fulfil the lusts thereof. Put the works of the flesh to subjection. Let’s pray for the Holy Spirit to help us. “Mortify therefore your members which are upon the earth; fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil concupiscence, and covetousness, which is idolatry (Colossians 3:5). Our life must be examined to ascertain if the Love we have for Christ is very strong or waxing cold.

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