DAY 321 – LIVING AND ABIDING IN LOVE ------------------------------------------------ “To him who overcomes I will give to eat from the tree of life, which is in the midst of the Paradise of God.” – Rev 2:7. This is a wonderful promise. Please note that those who lose their first love fall, but those who abide in love are made to stand. In contrast to the fall which took place in the Paradise if God, we have man eating of the tree of life, and so living forever. If we overcome the common tendency to decline in love, then we shall be confirmed and settled in the favour of the LORD. By eating of the tree of knowledge of good and evil we fell, by eating of the fruit of a better tree we live and stand fast forever. Life shown to be true by love shall be nourished on the best of food - it shall be sustained from the garden of the LORD himself, gathered by the LORD’s own hand. Note (from Genesis 3) those who lose their first love wander far off and depart from God. But the LORD says to you, if you keep your first love you shall not wander, but you shall come into close fellowship. He will bring you nearer to the centre. He will bring you to eat of the tree of life which is in the midst of the Paradise of God. The inner ring is for those who grow in love, and the centre of joy is only to be reached by much love. We know God as we love God. We enter into his Paradise as we abide in his love. What a great reward love has! Do you know how we fell? The woman took of the fruit of the forbidden tree, and gave to Adam, and Adam ate and fell – and so we all fell. The reverse is the case in the promise before us: the Second Adam (Christ Jesus) takes of the divine fruit from the tree of promise, and hands it over to his Spouse, me and you (the Church), she eats it and lives forever. The reward of love is to eat of the tree of life. This is just the lifting of the corner of the veil, nothing more. It is just the glimpse at the promise. The LORD will bring us into his innermost joys if we keep up our first love, and go from strength to strength therein. Wonderful and marvellous things are locked up in the case where love has the key. Sin set the angel with a flaming sword between us and the tree of life in the midst of the garden – but love has removed that sword and now the angel pleads with us to come into the innermost secrets of paradise. We shall know as we are known when we love as we are loved. We shall live the life of God when we are wholly taken up by the love of God. The love of Jesus answered by our love for Jesus makes the sweetest music in the heart. No joy on earth can equal the joy of being loved by Christ. Most people if they had a choice in life would choose to be a president, or be a millionaire, or be famous – but power, wealth and fame bring with them sorrow and anguish. I would rather choose to have nothing, but to love my LORD Jesus – and to do things pleasing to him out of love for him. Heaven on earth is living and abiding in the love of Jesus. Loving Jesus, who is the first and the last, is the first and the last delight. Yes, to love Jesus is another name for Paradise. I wish I could truly know this by continual experience. There is bitterness in declining love and the soul is consumed by it – and it makes us weak, faint and hopeless. But true love is the pinnacle of glory. May the LORD of life lead all those who are faithful to him through the power of the Holy Spirit. I pray that what you have read may be blessed by the LORD and may the Holy Spirit apply it to your souls, so you may love the LORD as you ought to love him.
Posted on: Mon, 17 Nov 2014 18:38:07 +0000
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