Devotion for 11/17/21 5 Minutes "The Pearly Gate"

John 4:17-20

Good evening everyone watching by video this evening,,, it's time for our weekly devotion. I'm praying that all of you are having a wonderful week so far. As I've said the last several weeks,,, we need to continue to remember those that are dealing with this virus. Those that are sick,,, since there are many others dealing with this sickness as it continues to grow and,,, those that have lost loved ones,,, we need to continue to remember them as well. Remember the medical teams that are dealing with this and any others that must work and take a chance of contacting this virus. Also,,, continue to remember those on our prayer list,,, and our country and it’s leaders. --------------- Our devotion this evening comes from "David Jeremiah Morning and Evening Devotions". Our scripture will be 1 John 4:17-20 and I'll be reading from the Holman Christian Standard Bible. 1 John 4:17–20 (HCSB) — 17 In this, love is perfected with us so that we may have confidence in the day of judgment, for we are as He is in this world. 18 There is no fear in love; instead, perfect love drives out fear, because fear involves punishment. So the one who fears has not reached perfection in love. 19 We love because He first loved us. 20 If anyone says, “I love God,” yet hates his brother, he is a liar. For the person who does not love his brother he has seen cannot love the God he has not seen. God bless the reading and the hearing of your word this evening. Let us pray: Dear Lord,,, as we begin this evening,,, with all that are listening and watching by video,,, we ask that you open our ears to hear and our hearts and minds to receive the message that you have for us today,,, In Jesus' name I pray,,, Amen. --------------- If we as Christians today,,, are loving God,,, and neighbor,,, as we should,,, then we have nothing to fear. We have nothing to fear in this life,,, nor,,, in judgement after we leave this world. God's love is available to all,,, and He wants the best for us,,, simply because,,, God loves us! --------------- David Jeremiah titled this devotion,,, "THE PEARLY GATE". He began the devotion by asking,,, "Why does God love us?" Not because we’re lovable by nature.

Deuteronomy 7:7–8 offers this remarkable answer: “The LORD did not set His love on you nor choose you because you were more in number than any other people, for you were the least of all peoples; but because the LORD loves you.” Read that again! “The LORD . . . set His love on you . . . because . . . the LORD loves you.” He loves us just because He loves us. His nature is to love. Why do we love God? Not because we are loving by nature. First John 4:19 offers a remarkable answer: “We love Him because He first loved us.” Our love is responsive. William Tyndale, who was later burned at the stake for translating the Bible into English, was a brilliant, winsome scholar whose life was changed by finding 1 John 4:19 in the Greek New Testament. He called it “the pearly gate through which I entered the Kingdom.” Tyndale wrote, “I used to think that salvation was not for me, since I did not love God; but those precious words showed me that God does not love us because we first loved Him. No, no; we love Him because He first loved us. It makes all the difference!” Jeremiah, David . David Jeremiah Morning and Evening Devotions (p. 662). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition. ----------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------- -----------------------------------------------------------