Romans 8:37-39
New Life Version (NLV)
37 But we have power over all these things through Jesus Who loves us so much. 38 For I know that nothing can keep us from the love of God. Death cannot! Life cannot! Angels cannot! Leaders cannot! Any other power cannot! Hard things now or in the future cannot! 39 The world above or the world below cannot! Any other living thing cannot keep us away from the love of God which is ours through Christ Jesus our Lord.
None of us are islands unto ourselves, even if you think you are...you're not. Everything around us affects us. And we affect everything around us. Our society, our family, our church, our friends, our not so friendly's, even sometimes ourselves. Good or bad, positive or negative. It's all there. It's all part of life.
I live in the same spot as everyone else. Affected by everything around me. And I've had a day or two where those things have touched my life in such a way as to make me almost forget who, what, where, when and how. But according to the Word, nothing, nothing! can separate us from God, who is love. Nothing!! (I chose the NLV version because of all the exclamation points!)
So, think about the people who have hurt or offended you. Think about the situations and circumstances that are seemingly not going your way. Think about the doubt you may be experiencing yourself. Got all that handy? Well, now insert those things and people into this scripture and put an exclamation point at the end of them. And then remind yourself - they cannot! keep you from the Love of God.
None of us are islands unto ourselves, even if you think you are...you're not. Everything around us affects us. And we affect everything around us. Our society, our family, our church, our friends, our not so friendly's, even sometimes ourselves. Good or bad, positive or negative. It's all there. It's all part of life.
I live in the same spot as everyone else. Affected by everything around me. And I've had a day or two where those things have touched my life in such a way as to make me almost forget who, what, where, when and how. But according to the Word, nothing, nothing! can separate us from God, who is love. Nothing!! (I chose the NLV version because of all the exclamation points!)
So, think about the people who have hurt or offended you. Think about the situations and circumstances that are seemingly not going your way. Think about the doubt you may be experiencing yourself. Got all that handy? Well, now insert those things and people into this scripture and put an exclamation point at the end of them. And then remind yourself - they cannot! keep you from the Love of God.
Beautiful.
ReplyDeleteYou are a gifted writer, Susanna.
ReplyDeleteJust wanted to comment, that the only thing that can come between us and God really, is ourselves. We must be careful not to allow bitterness to spring up in our hearts for instance when people have offended us in some way, because it could eventually crowd out our whole heartedness toward God.
I wholeheartedly agree with you. The Bible says in 1st John 3:20-21, "...if our heart condemn us, God is greater than our heart, and knoweth all things. Beloved, if our heart condemn us not, then have we confidence toward God." When we truly trust in the Lord Jesus and "do those things that are pleasing in his sight..." (See verse 22) then nothing can separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus.
ReplyDeleteOf course, a couple of scriptures do not cancel out the rest of the Word and the path of salvation. However, I do believe this scripture says nothing can separate us from the love of God. If we were to go away from God and die in sin, we would die loved by God. That's the extreme example. But the everyday example is that all of the distractions or distractor's cannot come in-between us and God's love. My husband and I have personally been the target of other people's judgement and, in my opinion, malicious attacks, which, if I believed those people had any bearing on what God thinks, might put a barrier between God's love and myself. But, I read these scriptures and feel encouraged that NOTHING! can do that! Nothing. I don't believe that we only have God's love when we are doing right and behaving ourselves. I believe we have His love even in our sin and in our despair and in our hurt...to me, that is the whole point. The whole hope.
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