by 
One of the greatest things about the way God has made us and our mission from Him is that we show our love for Christ not by bringing food items to an idol, killing innocent animals or people, or through vain repetitions, but by following His commands from the heart. Jesus goes into great depth to explain that if we love Him we will obey His commandments, and that God looks at the heart. He doesn’t want us to do something out of obligation, but because we love Him.
The Gospel, or Good News, is that God loved us so much to send us Jesus. He sent Him to die on the cross in our place. Not only did that wipe the slate clean and give us the righteousness of Christ in its place, but it equipped us to do something we never could do– to love God with all our heart, mind, soul and strength. I’m not saying that this side of glory we’ll be perfect, but we are no longer enslaved to sin, and we no longer have to fear separation from God as a punishment.
Our relationship with Christ allows us to show God’s love in our relationship with others.
Our Relationship with Our Spouse
We show God’s love to our spouse by…
- Commit to this relationship until death (Romans 7:2-3)
- Fulfill your God given position in the family (Ephesians 5:21ff)
- Love your wife as Christ loved the church
- Respect your husband and follow him as the church follows Christ
- Pray for your spouse
- Read the Bible together as a couple
- Encourage your spouse in their endeavors
- Lovingly confront your spouse when they are in sin
- Praise your spouse in public
- Refuse to talk negatively about your or someone else’s marriage
- Meet each other’s needs
- Care for each other when you’re sick
- Spend time learning how to be a better husband/wife
- Resolve conflict quickly in a Biblical manner
- Have children!
- Mentor other marriages
Our Relationships with Our Children
- Discipline them instead of letting them run free
- Teach them the things of the Lord (Deut 6)
- Be consistent so that they know what to expect
- Be a good example for them in word and conduct
- Take them to activities that exalt Christ
- Help them to develop a good devotional life
- Teach them to pray
- Model evangelism and discipleship
- Love them unconditionally
- Pray for them
- Teach them to prioritize Christ over all
- Encourage godly friendships
- Find a place for them to serve in the church
Our Relationships with our Church
- Pray for your Pastor(s)
- Pray for your Missionaries
- Send encouraging notes to Pastors
- Learn about where your missionaries are serving
- Volunteer for missions trips
- Use your musical talents as part of the Worship Service
- Serve in Sunday School
- Serve in the Nursery
- Fellowship in smaller groups
- Refuse to Gossip
- Be there for church work days
- Talk positively to the people in the community about your local body of believers
- Make sure to pray for those on the prayer chain
- Give cheerfully as unto the Lord
- Be prompt to the service
- Bring your Bible!
Our Relationships with our Workplace
- Follow your boss’ leadership
- Do not talk down your superiors
- Follow the chain of command
- Respect those under you and show them kindness
- Do not steal from your employer
- Be prompt
- State the truth about items that are before you– or to the best of your knowledge
- Know when to hold your tongue
- Avoid burning bridges
- Be aware of the resources your using
- Make sure that your boss’ priorities are yours
Our Relationship to Governmental Authorities
- Pay your taxes
- Submit to the rule of law
- Pray for your elected leaders
- Participate in the election process
- Keep yourself informed of the issues.
- Give honor to those that deserve honor
- Always model respectful behavior, even when you disagree
- Assume good motives, even if you disagree
- Work to find common ground
- Point government leaders to the cross
- Don’t allow the media to be your only source of information
- Don’t allow Social Media to be your only source of information
- Look for and promote leaders with good moral values in action
- Look for and promote leaders with good character
- Praise godly governmental leadership
Our Relationships with our Unbelieving Friends
- Help them to know the reason for your faith
- Live out your faith with actions AND words
- Be the first to be there to help
- Be the last one to leave when there’s work to be done
- Talk well about those in your church and your church as a whole
- Network your friends with believers
- Have your network praying for your interactions with your friends
- Make sure your desire to see them save is driven by your love for them
- Invite them to gospel presentations
- Invite them to informal get togethers
- Meet them where they are
- Be a good friend
- Be the friend that will tell them if they are going to do something wrong
- Model godly behavior in front of them
- Pray for them
- Pray for their family
Our Relationship with the World
- Remember that you are not of the world
- Remember that you are in the world
- Be kind in social media
- Never attack the person– keep to the issue
- Remember that it is very doubtful that you will change anyone’s mind on social media
- Remember that you are an ambassador for Jesus
- Whether you have a Christian bumper sticker, you need to drive like you do!
- The world is the enemy, be wise while you’re in it
- Be skeptical if the world seems to be on your side
- The world is different than the people in it
- Understand the world’s need of a Savior… keep the right perspective
- Stand against the world
- Stand for truth
Above all, remember that Jesus told us to love as He loved… and that’s 101!
