And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. Colossians 3:14 ESV
We’ve been talking about the fruit of the Spirit being a necessary ingredient in the Christian life. We know you can’t plant an apple tree and get lemons. You won’t find apples on a grapefruit tree. Luke 6:44 tells us we can’t pick figs from thornbushes, nor can we pick grapes from briars.
We are told in 1 Timothy 6:10 the love of money is the root of all evil. But we are told in 1 Corinthians 13 true godly love brings forth goodness in our lives.
The interesting thing about love is that it is the root of the other fruits of the Spirit. Today I want to talk about how love produces peace and joy. Proverbs 3:3-4 says, “Let not steadfast love and faithfulness forsake you; bind them around your neck; write them on the tablet of your heart. So you will find favor and good success in the sight of God and man.”
Steadfast love refers to a love that is solid and never-ending. It’s not a temporary fling. It doesn’t end because someone gets mad. God loves us with a steadfast love. He loves us despite the stupid things we do. We are instructed to love others with that same kind of love.
If we have a godly love, it is easier to have faith in him. We must truly understand God and know His characteristics to truly love Him. When we have this understanding, we will find it much easier to believe in Him and be faithful. This love and faith will produce a life of peace and joy.
If we are honest with ourselves, we often seek to please others. We want our friends to think well of us. We want our enemies to envy us. We want to appear to have it all together. But to do this, we must obey God’s commandments.
I spent years of my life trying to create happiness for myself. This was based on who I spent time with and what we did during that time. I’ve come to realize there is a big difference between happiness and joy. Happiness is fleeting and reliant upon my circumstances. True joy is unending because it is reliant upon the relationship I have with my Lord and Savior.
Your circumstances don’t matter when you know He is handling it all. It allows you to relax and have peace and joy.
Trying to create happiness often left me brokenhearted. Trusting in Jesus gives me peace that is sometimes hard for others to understand (Philippians 4:7). It also gives me everlasting joy. My joy doesn’t change just because of my circumstances.
These are things we must work at, I still work at being joyful when things go awry. It takes me praying and realizing that God is working it all out for my good (Romans 8:28).
The most important thing I have learned in this process is that my peace and joy are rooted in my love. My love for Him comes first and my love for others second. I have to love the Lord with all I’ve got and trust in Him to have this peace and joy that He promises.
True love means true surrender. I had to surrender to the way He wanted me to do things. There are still times when I fail or fall short, but I’m so thankful that He is right there to pick me up.
We are told in Isaiah 41:10 says, “Do not fear, for I am with you; do not be afraid, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, I will help you; I will hold on to you with my righteous right hand.”
Replace your fear with faith and love Him with all you’ve got. 1 John 4:18 tells us there is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment and whoever fears has not been perfected in love.
If you want to experience true peace and joy, you must first love.
Have a great day!