FIRE BY NIGHT

"Reflections Upon Reflections" [of The Father's Heart]


...."You, in Your great compassion, did not forsake them in the wilderness; The pillar of cloud did not leave them by day, to guide them on their way, nor the pillar of fire by night, to light for them the way in which they were to go".... Nehemiah 9:19 NASB


       JANUARY 29TH


       THE LOVE OF GOD ALWAYS SEEKS TO BENEFIT OTHERS BEFORE ONESELF


Words of Prophecy:


* To the degree that My children abide in My Word, thus allowing that word to divide between that which of the spirit and that which is of the soul, it is to that degree that they shall be able to distinguish between "needs" and "wants" - which are motivated by a "spirit of lust" [the desire for things and people apart from My Will].

...."For the Word that God speaks is alive and full of power [making it active, operative, energizing, and effective]; it is sharper than any two-edged sword, penetrating to the dividing line of the breath of life [soul] and [the immortal] spirit, and of joints and marrow [of the deepest parts of our nature], exposing and sifting and analyzing and judging the very thoughts and purposes of the heart".... Hebrews 4:12 The Amplified Tranlation

*       Soulish affection [desire] is the spontaneous by-product of a "soulish love" - which, in reality, is simply "selfishness refined" [disguised].

"soulish love" - a desire for people and/or things that has its origin in the soul;

"disguise" - to change the appearance or guise of so as to conceal [in this case, unconsciously - because ALL that proceeds from the flesh is deceived into believing that it is "good" in itself which it is NOT - and, in fact, has NO capacity whatsoever to love with a divine Love]; to conceal or cover up the truth or actual character of; misrepresent;

        ...."It is the Spirit [Who is the Spirit of Love] Who gives life [He is the Life-giver]; the flesh conveys no benefit whatever [there is no profit in it]".... John 6:63 The Amplified Translation

...."For I know that nothing good dwells within me, that is, in my flesh".... Romans 7:18a The Amplified Translation


...."Love is patient, love is kind, and is not jealous; Love does not brag and is not arrogant, does not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered, does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never fails".... 1 Corinthians 13:4-8a NASB

...."Now we have not received the spirit [that belongs to] the world, but the [Holy] Spirit Who is from God, [given to us] that we might realize and comprehend and appreciate the gifts [of divine favor and blessing so freely and lavishly] bestowed on us by God. And we are setting these truths forth in words not taught by human wisdom but taught by the [Holy] Spirit, combining and interpreting spiritual truths with spiritual language [to those who possess the Holy Spirit]. But the natural, nonspiritual man does not accept or welcome or admit into his heart the gifts and teachings and revelations of the Spirit of God, for they are folly [meaningless nonsense] to him; and he is incapable of knowing them [of progressively recognizing, understanding, and becoming better acquainted with them] because they are spiritually discerned and estimated and appreciated. But the spiritual man tries all things [he examines, investigates, inquires into, questions, and discerns all things], yet is himself to be put on trial and judged by no one [he can read the meaning of everything, but no one can properly discern or appraise or get an insight into him]. For who has known or understood the mind [the counsels and purposes] of the Lord so as to guide and instruct Him and give Him knowledge? But we have the mind of Christ [the Messiah] and do hold the thoughts [feelings and purposes] of His heart".... 1 Corinthians 2:12-16 The Amplified Translation

...."Do not love the world nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world".... 1 John 2:15-16 NASB


Those who walk in the love of the Lord will always be misunderstood [to a degree] by those who retain their own selfish interests [self-desire] as their prime motivation for living [and even their "service" to God]. As the faithful and obedient servants of God go forth speaking the truth in love all those who maintain and foster a dependence upon their own understanding [darkened wisdom] will in NO way be able to "discern" the Love that dwells in the hearts [and guides the words] of those that the Father has sent to them - those who live ONLY for God and the carrying out of His Will. Indeed the "fallen" nature of man has within it only the capacity and capability to misunderstand the heart and mind of the Father and His Word. The world's view of "love" is rooted in a bondage to fear and pride, and its deepest motivation ALWAYS [no matter how well hidden] seeks for the benefit of "self" before all others. The love of God [which is continually shed abroad in the hearts of all those who truly love God] has its root in absolute freedom [perfect liberty], and ALWAYS seeks to benefit others at the expense of self. The world's love which, in reality, is "lust" [lust being defined an an excessive desire for things that are apart from God's Will] desires only to benefit self at the expense of others, because lust desires only to "get" [obtain for its own selfish purposes], and is the reciprocal action to the love of God which desires only to benefit others at its own expense - because true love desires only to "give" [that which it has been blessed with by God]. There are many children of God who, through a lack of diligence towards the Word [Will] of God, have settled for the lower life of the fallen nature instead of opening their hearts wide to receive the love of the Father - and, thus, a revelation of His heart towards them. It is that same dependence on one's own understanding [the flesh], and the continued pursuit of self-desire that causes many to reject those whom God has sent to them to minister His love and wisdom, and because of this rejection [reproach] of His servants many have been found to be fighting against God in this most critical hour! Let us be found entering into the place of "abiding" in the Word of God in order that His wondrous Love might be shed abroad in our hearts continually [Romans 5:5]. And let us remain open and pure vessels of that love that we might be found blessing others at all times with the love of God that we, ourselves, have been blessed with in abundance.