From John 15

From John 15

“I am the vine, you are the branches. 

 He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit,

 for without Me you can do nothing.

“If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered,

 and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned.

“If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, 

you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you.

“By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit;

 so you will be My disciples.

“As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you;

 abide in My love.

“If you keep My commandments, 

you will abide in My love,

 just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love.

“These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you,

 and that your joy maybe full.

“This is My commandment, 

that you love one another as I have loved you.

                                                                                                         John 15:5-12
In this chapter, Jesus calls His disciples friends.  If we truly love God, we are His friends.
It is our duty, as Christians, to get to know God intimately and passionately.  By doing so, we will truly know God’s will.  We will ask the Father for something and He will give it because it is what He wants also.
“If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love,  just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love. “ states Jesus.
Paul writes,
"Love suffers long and is kind, loves does not envy, love does not parade itself, is not puffed up, does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil, does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth, bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.  Love never fails. 
              1 Corinthians 13:4-7
We are going into a world, that at times will hate what we have to say.  They will persecute us and may even put us to death.  Yet, we are called to love.
Stephen, the church’s first martyr, showed how in touch he was with God’s love, when in acts when as he was being stoned he said,
“While they were stoning him, Stephen prayed, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.”  
Then he fell on his knees and cried out, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” When he had said this, he fell asleep.” 
                        Acts 7:59-60
Something to think about:
Jesus set the example: He died on the cross asking His heavenly Father not to hold what they were doing to him, against his persecutors.
That is the kind of love we must have for the world.  We may not like what they are doing to us, but we endure all things for the Gospel and show love to the world.
Do you love those around you. Can you forgive even your worst enemy.
Think about it.