As we live our daily lives making our way to the Post Office, the grocery store, work and the gym, we often see people who are less fortunate than ourselves. Living in the United States, as many of our readers do, we have become jaded in our thoughts of wealth. Since our poverty stricken would be classified as middle to upper class in some countries, I believe we have started a mindset which causes us to miss the importance of the topic which we will discuss today. 

     In every discussion of the Judgment that I can find recorded in the Bible, there is a separation of two very distinct groups of people. The one, the faithful children of God who have overcome the temptations of this world and have shown themselves to be pleasing to the Almighty (cf. Revelation 2:10, 2 Corinthians 5:9). The other, the unfaithful/ignorant who have either chosen to ignore the commands of God or have never been contacted with the saving grace of the Lord because of one reason or another (cf. 2 Thessalonians 1:8-10, Matthew 28:19-20). This separation can be easily seen in this life by the actions and intentions of the individual (Psalm 1), but comes to a head, if you will, at the final Judgment when Jesus will judge all nations by His word (John 12:48) by dividing the sheep and the goats (Matthew 25:31-33). 

     However, our most common way by which we would attempt to ascertain the salvation of another individual, which I would argue is important for us to do since we are commanded to evangelize (Mark 16:15) and build one another up through teaching (Ephesians 5:19, Colossians 3:16, Galatians 6:2, Hebrews 10:24), is normally some sort of combination of faithfulness to the worship assemblies and the overall "goodness" of the individual. The same can be said of our own understanding of our salvation! We often think that if we make it to every worship service throughout the week and do not allow ourselves to imbibe in our "pet sin" that we have been faithful that week. But, in the context of Matthew 25:31-33, when Jesus speaks of the dividing of the two groups at the day of Judgment, He doesn't use these guidelines of faithfulness. 

     What He does use will most likely stomp all over our toes and cut straight to our hearts. No, He doesn't use the conventional set of parameters, what He uses is our servitude to our fellow man! I'll let Him speak for Himself...

     We know this though, don't we? Studies have shown that the more religious areas of our nation are the more giving when it comes to charitable donations (1). We give! I mean, when the plate is passed on Sundays, we try to drop a few bucks in there, mostly because we forgot and that's all we had in our jacket pocket from last Sunday when we remembered to bring some but didn't want to give it ALL. When we see a homeless person on the side of the road we offer to take them to get them some food or a place to stay the night, every once and a while. When Christmas rolls around we try to save up a little so we can help a family buy gifts for their children, not because the gifts are important but the feeling of being included in a societal norm is. 

     But, are we really meeting the expectations of Jesus when we are doing these small acts of giving? I'm just as guilty as anyone else in this, but I don't think so! What Jesus is discussing isn't a single instance of benevolence once or twice a month. What He's discussing is a life of helping! He's commanding a life of giving because any time we give it helps someone else, which was the reason for Him coming to earth when it is boiled down to its most basic form (John 10:10), and it shows people that His followers care. 

     I heard it said one time, "People will not care how much you know about the Bible until they know how much you care about them." So, remember, if you've forgotten, the Christian life is one of putting a jacket on Jesus. Not physically, but figuratively in every act of kindness done to the needy and helpless in our world. In what amounts to such a cold atmosphere, in that it is wholly given to idolatry (cf. Acts 17:16), sometimes a jacket is all that is needed. 

     In culmination of our study of ways in which the Scriptures tell us that we can show God our love, we come to the last 4 acts. However, remember, that just because 8 things are mentioned here doesn't mean that there aren't other ways in which we show our Father our love nor does that fact mean that whatever we decide will adequately and righteously show our love. Our praise and adoration to Him must first be found in the Bible which He gave to us to instruct us in our worship and lives toward Him. (Click here to read the first 4 points in this 2-part article)

5. Reject the World - 1 John 2:15
     No study of our expression of our love to God would be complete without a mention of this very important point. There are so many things in the world vying for our attention and love, and yet we ought to have the wherewithal to reject those things if they lead us away from loving our God. Notice, this passage cannot be speaking of the Father's ceasing to love someone if they are entangled in the ways of the world, after all, He loved us while we were sinners (Romans 5:8) and the world as a whole long before the saving grace and blood of Jesus Christ was available to us (John 3:16). No, the direction of the love mentioned by the apostle John is upward. 

     It is absolutely impossible for us to love God if we allow ourselves to be taken into a lustful relationship with the world. That's what it is isn't it? We often teach our young people about the difference between love and lust. Well, loving the world is nothing more than a relationship bent on fulfilling lusts, void of the true love which is only found in a relationship with God Almighty. The only way to have that relationship? Just as the only way to have true love in a physical relationship, specifically speaking of a marriage, is to reject all other means by which lusts can be fulfilled outside of that bond. 

     How fitting it is to say that we are married to God!

6. Be Bold - 1 John 4:17
     As is the case with any study of the topic of love, many great and insightful points can be gleaned from the pen of John. This is no exception. 
 
     While the context at hand is specifically speaking of the love that the child of God has from the Father through the salvation offered in Jesus Christ (1 John 4:12-16), I believe that the opposite direction may also be applied. If God has provided a way in which we can "have boldness in the day of judgment" because of His love for us, wouldn't it be the case that our exercising that boldness in the day of judgment would show our love back to Him. 

     How can one be bold in the Day? It's very simple. - Know that he will receive eternal life on that Day. 

     That isn't a statement that is often taken without any sort of weariness on the part of the individual, but it is true. Many people do not want to emphatically say the words, "I know that I am saved" but without that boldness, based upon the actions in one's life and whether or not they are in accordance with the Gospel of Christ (1 John 5:13, 1 John 1:7-9), then we have failed to see what God has given us. We have failed to get everything out of Christianity that God has placed in it. And, we have failed to show our love to God. 

7. Love the Brethren - 1 John 4:21
     This point is obviously well understood by the majority, but it still needs to be discussed. Anything that is done to the brethren is, by extension, done to Jesus Christ (Matthew 25:40). Because of that, any hatred which is expressed to the body of Christ (the church of Christ) or the members thereof is to be understood as being directed straight at the face of God Himself. 

     What better way to show God we love Him than to love those that are in Him (Ephesians 1:7, Galatians 3:27, Acts 2:47). 

8. Have Faith - 1 Pet. 1:6-9
     I fail to be able to look at the Bible and see any greater point than this when speaking of the love we show to God. The Hebrews writer once said that "faith.... [is] the evidence of things not seen (Hebrews 1:1)." While I have yet to have the amazing blessing of being able to see my Savior, I know that He exists. While that knowledge is based upon a correct application of the physical evidence proving the existence of the God of the Bible and the Bible's accuracy and trustworthiness, that knowledge is also based upon what the Scriptures tell me. 

     Yet, having not seen Him, sometimes I feel as though my faith is missing something. How much more faith would I have if I had been able to be at the dinner when the two sisters got in an argument over which was more important, or if I had been there when He fed the 5,000? While it may have been stronger if I had lived back then (although I hope that my knowledge that these things and many more happened leads me to have as strong a faith as possible), Peter wanted those brethren that were in the same position of not seeing Him as me to know that the genuineness of our faith can be perfect, by loving Him. 

     Our faith, the trust in God lead by the evidence and bringing us to obey His commands, is the best way that we can show our Father that we truly, whole-heartedly, undeniably, reverently love Him!

     It's the greatest command found in all of the Bible, as per Jesus' words in Mark 12:29-31 - "Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength." But, how do we do this? Is this love of which Jesus spoke to be rendered down into nothing more than an emotional feeling like that of any sane person to his freshly baked pizza sitting in front of him? I'm not the first to tell you, the answer is a resounding "NO!" The love of man for his Lord is much, much, much more than this sort of feeling.
     
     The love that is commanded and deserved by God is something which, while very difficult at times, is an action word. It is something which transcends the mere mental appreciation or even adoration that some would ascribe to it and is actually shown forth in a person's life by the actions which he does.

     Here are 5 ways in which the Scriptures tell us that our love for God is shown to Him. 

2. Give...Abundantly - 2 Corinthians 8:8
     It might be somewhat of a shock to you (as it was to myself), but it is scientifically proven that giving more (specifically regarding financial giving) increases one's own outlook on his life and his happiness. (1) However, God's commands to give have less to do with our own feelings, as our feelings do not dictate how or what we should do to obey Him, and more to do with the help of His children and those who are in need. 
     
     That isn't to say that we can gather no personal benefit from our giving of our means to the work of the Lord (cf. 1 Corinthians 16:2), but rather to say that our giving directly effects our faithfulness to Him and, according to Paul's explanation of his "testing the sincerity of...love by the diligence of others (2 Corinthians 8:8). Our giving shows whether or not we are being sincere in our love to God! I mean, what other part of worship is as secret as the giving? The only people that might know what you gave is the person cashing the checks and the elders (depending on the congregation). 

     Therefore, if we are going to love God, we are going give Him what He deserves... all of it! That means giving Him ourselves first (2 Corinthians 8:5) and then following that up with giving out of our wallets to help His cause. He doesn't need the money to save, but His church needs the money to preach that salvation!

3. Respect His Workers - 1 Thessalonians 5:13
     In a section of Scripture often read quickly and studied briefly, Paul makes mention of something which might or might not be done within our lives very often. While I am a preacher of the Gospel and therefore get somewhat uneasy when writing or speaking on such things, Paul emphatically commands that the workers in the Kingdom of Christ (i.e. the "ministers" or preachers) ought to be "esteemed" very highly for their work's sake. Not that preachers are somehow better or more important that the "average member" (I hate saying that, but for lack of a better term...) but the work of the preacher is something which should be respected. 

     Notice, that esteem given to the preacher because of the work which he has taken upon himself (i.e. the education and edification of the body of Christ) is to be done in love, showing this command to be, by extension, a love to God. Since God has set the way by which He instructs mankind to be through the Word which is preached by men today (Romans 10:14-17), the words spoken by those men are to be understood as the very words of the Almighty (provided the man is preaching the Bible and not his opinions or man's doctrines). 
 
     That goes the same for those who Paul describes as "over" the brethren - the elders. While I believe that sometimes, preachers are shown the esteem that they deserve for their position in the church, I'm also convinced that many times elders are not given the same. If you don't believe the need for good, qualified, strong elders, attend a congregation who is not afforded the ability to have such because of a lack of men or some other circumstance and you will quickly see that the only way that a congregation can truly thrive is under the oversight of faithful men of God - elders. 

4. Endure Temptations - James 1:12
     Yet another way that we can readily show our Father that we love Him, aside from respecting His workers, giving back to Him and obeying all of His commands, is to endure the temptations of this world. James connects those who endure to those who love the Almighty in James 1:12. Why, you might ask? Because James 1 is all about trusting in Him for everything that we need. Whether the need is help through some outward trial which leads us to be tempted to sin or whether it is in our every day lives understanding that we much follow His word in order to have the full and abundant life of which the Christ spoke (James 1:21-27, John 10:10). 

     What better way to show God that we love Him then to, by our works and less by our prayers even those are vitally important as well, trust Him through our difficult times? How many Christians have in essence told God that He wasn't what they needed by deserting Him in their low points in life, turning to their own ways to "make it through"? God created us to worship Him (Ecclesiastes 12:13) but at the same time, He created us to need Him and if we give up and into our temptations, we've rejected all the help that He has promised and is poised to give at the moments notice (1 Corinthians 10:11-13).