Giving Without Expectation

But love ye your enemies, and do good, and lend, hoping for nothing again; and your reward shall be great, and ye shall be the children of the Highest: for he is kind unto the unthankful and to the evil. Be ye therefore merciful, as your Father also is merciful.

Luke 6:35-36

Love is a word that often times is misused… Paul defined love in His 1 epistle to the church of Corinth; it is in the 13^th chapter that we find these words recorded, “Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away.” When we utter the word love to a close friend or relative it should be without conditions; we should be speaking to one whom we desire the very best for and will in no way change our desires or motives to serve… Love is a word that can be spoken very easy but carries a high standard which is very hard to live up to… This gospel of Luke exposes some of the challenges that face a Christian along there journey in growing and maturing in the will of God... Often times we talk about how much we love and adore God, but Luke informs us today that we must demonstrate our Love toward God and the love that lives within us by extending a loving hand (not only to our family and friends) but to our enemies and adversaries as well… How hard is it for you to love someone who doesn’t love you back, or to give something to someone who will not repay your efforts? As hard as these two tasks may seem to be, these are two of the main objectives that a true Christian is to live by… Jesus healed many throughout His life that didn’t’ deserve His blessings; He died on the cross to save our souls and I know (speaking for myself) that I was not worth of that sacrifice nor can I ever repay Jesus for what He has done… The bible says, “While we were yet sinners, Christ died for us…” Jesus wasn’t expecting anything in return; He isn’t waiting in heaven for Judgment Day to hold His hand out seeking a payment for His services… He died because of the Love for His father and us, He died to fulfill the will of God and provide a chance for Salvation to all mankind and we are reminded that as we journey through this life we must take on the mindset of Christ and not seek exaltation through the eyes of mankind nor material things… Too often we go through life trying to find our own happiness, trying to see what positives we can gain from our efforts! The truth of the matter is that your rewards should not be worldly blessings, but rather eternal prosperity. Jesus didn’t die on the cross to gain a mansion on this earth, or to become wealthy. He died so that we could live; He died so that we can have an opportunity to choose our own fate in this world and our eternal destination. Because of His obedience (the willingness to love), Jesus now sits at the right hand of the father with all power in His hand making intercession on our behalf… It is by loving unconditionally and looking beyond faults that we align ourselves within the kingdom of God… Today’s scripture says, “Your reward shall be great and ye shall be children of the Highest…” Your reward will be great when your life is complete on this earth, your reward will be great when you have shown love to your enemies and favor to your challengers… Looking back to Jesus, we see that the same people who mocked Jesus were the ones He cried out for on the cross and said, “Father forgive them!” The same ones that yelled crucify Him, were the ones He now extends open arms too. We are to be children of the most high and it is time that we live by his example and act like it. Do to His unfaltering love toward His enemies; Jesus was rewarded by God and able to declare that all power was given unto him! These words came forth after His suffering; He spoke these words after being ridiculed and scorned, after giving to the needy and seeing nothing in return. The last part of this scripture says, “Be ye therefore merciful, as your Father also is merciful…” I am sure that we can look at our lives and know that God has shown mercy in and through us, God has withheld punishment that we truly deserved and given us a second, third and even a fourth chance… Today remember the mercy that has been bestowed upon your life, remember the forgiveness that God has shown you and extend mercy to others… “When I stand before God at the end of my life, I would hope that I would not have a single bit of talent left, and could say, I used everything you gave me".

BE BLESSED!!!