“Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we also have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and so we rejoice in hope of the glory of God. Not only so, but we also boast in tribulation, knowing that tribulation produces patience, patience produces character, and character produces hope. And hope does not disappoint, because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who has been given to us” (Romans 5:1-5).
If you have ever flown on an airplane, you have likely heard the safety speech given at the beginning of the flight. The crew always tells you that in case of an emergency, oxygen masks will drop. The attendant tells you to put your own mask on first before you assist anyone else.
Life is like a flight. Jesus is our captain. Our relationship with Him is our proverbial oxygen mask. On Jesus Airlines, when the storms hit and lightning strikes, there will be times of turbulence until we land in His kingdom.
When these times occur, we need to get our proverbial oxygen mask on first. We need to live in the healthy, life-giving power of God’s love before we can be helpful to those around us. Jesus talks about this in Mark 12:28–31, saying that we need to love God first and love our neighbor second.
Christianity is about many things, but one of the most important things is love. In 1 Corinthians 13:13, Paul says that the greatest thing in all the world is love. Love is sometimes what you feel, sometimes what you say, but always what you do. Ultimately love shows forth in action. True love unselfishly acts in the best interest of the beloved. This results in acts of service and sacrifice, much like Jesus Christ who served by sacrificing His own life as the greatest act of love the world will ever know.
How do we access the love of God? We obtain the love of God by the Spirit of God. The Bible teaches this in Galatians 5:22, “The fruit of the Spirit is love.”
When God the Holy Spirit rains His love down on you, it cools down and refreshes, washes away filth, and brings beautiful life. You need God’s love because without it, you wither and die in a desert.
Furthermore, the people in your family and life need God’s love to flow through you to them. When you are filled with the Spirit, God’s love begins to transform you into a loving person. In this way, God’s love flows down on you, wells up in you and then flows through you to others. {eoa}
Mark Driscoll is a Jesus-following, mission-leading, church-serving, people-loving, Bible-preaching pastor and the author of many books, including Spirit-Filled Jesus, which you can order here. He currently pastors The Trinity Church in Scottsdale, Arizona, with his family. For all of pastor Mark Driscoll’s Bible teaching, please visit markdriscoll.org or download the app. You can download a free devotional e-book from Pastor Mark here.
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