Relationship

'I know your deeds and your toil and perseverance , and that you cannot tolerate evil men, and you put to the test those who call themselves apostles, and they are not, and you found them to be false; 3 and you have perseverance and have endured for My name's sake, and have not grown weary. 4 'But I have this against you, that you have left your first love. Rev 2:2-4 (NASB) Whether we want to admit it or not, the outward expression of our Christianity is heavily influenced by our culture. Those of you who have traveled at all have probably seen this as you've observed the worship and daily expression of the faith of other cultures. American Christianity is greatly a works-based Christianity. We love the book of James and the idea of showing our faith through our works. Unfortunately, in making sure our works and actions reflect our faith, we often get caught up in the works rather than in the motivation from which the works should naturally flow. This passage in Revelation jumped out at me over the weekend, and as I have mulled over it I'm reminded of many other passages, such as 1 Corinthians 13 and John 14:15 where we are explicitly reminded that the motivation for all we do must be love. I am a task-oriented person. I am also a "do-right" person. I frequently want to do the right thing simply because the right thing is what I'm supposed to do. It appeals to my sense of morality, something that I've had for as long as I can remember. If I think anyone would think of something as wrong, I don't want to do it - even if it's an okay thing in my own mind. I am challenged to maintain my right choices, but to reevaluate my motivation. Am I acting simply out of that sense of morality and duty, or am I acting out of a passionate love for my Savior that manifests itself in my daily behavior? If I'm truly doing it out of love, then it won't even seem like work - it will be an outpouring of my love for my amazing Master. It will be an attempt to show the world, in a miniscule way, how much I love my Lord.