Abound In Love

I Thessalonians 3:11-13

       Now God himself and our Father, and our Lord Jesus Christ, direct our way unto you. And the Lord make you to increase and abound in love one toward another, and toward all men, even as we do toward you; to the end he may establish your heart unblameable in holiness before God, even our Father, at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ with all his saints.

Who can change our hearts? Can we in our great eloquence and our perfect example before others persuade them to become believers? If we plead and cajole enough will they come to Christ? Can we produce an unblameable heart within them?

The answer seems so obvious, and yet our very lives seem to proclaim the opposite. How many days do we jump out of bed and rush to face the day in our own strength? How many days do we remember to fall on our knees before our righteous and holy God and cry out for strength and wisdom to live that day?

It is not wrong for us to seek to persuade others to come to Christ, however, let us remember to bathe those efforts in prayer. Apart from Christ, all of our efforts are in vain.

Unless the Lord builds the house,
    the builders labor in vain.
Unless the Lord watches over the city,
    the guards stand watch in vain.  Psalm 127:1, KJV

For what did Paul pray in this letter to the Thessalonian believers? Now God himself and our Father, and our Lord Jesus Christ, direct our way unto you. Paul prayed that God himself would direct his way.

For what did Paul pray regarding the believers? And the Lord make you to increase and abound in love one toward another, and toward all men; . . . to the end he may establish your heart unblameable in holiness before God.

So there it is! We not only cannot produce an unblameable heart in others, we cannot even produce a heart that is blameless in ourselves! 

Go, today, in the strength and hope of the Lord, knowing that He, through the blood of Christ, can produce in you a heart that is blameless and a love for your fellow man, woman, child, or living creature of God’s creation..

Benediction:  Now God himself and our Father, and our Lord Jesus Christ, direct our way unto you. And the Lord make you to increase and abound in love one toward another, and toward all, even as we do toward you; to the end he may establish your heart unblameable in holiness before God, even our Father, at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ with all his saints. Amen