LOVE COVERS A MULTITUDE OF SINS!

1 Peter 4: 8 
Above all, keep fervent in your love for one another, because love covers a multitude of sins.

James 5:20 
let him know that he who turns a sinner from the error of his way will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins.

This statement of scripture that LOVE COVERS A MULTITUDE OF SINS has been something the Holy Spirit has been speaking to my heart about of late. There is so much to learn about this great love and about this great gift.

The revelation the Lord pressed upon my heart was this.....The love that Jesus expressed by going to the cross was the greatest example of what it means when scripture says "Love covers a multitude of sins".  This verse was the example of Jesus dying on the cross for you and for me.   King Jesus took on MY sin.... ALL sin..... EVERYONE'S sin!  He loved me and covered all mine and everyone elses' sins!  WOW! I CRY TEARS OF JOY AND SADNESS OVER THIS.  I do not deserve this, but that is the mercy and grace of my Savior.  To have the mind of Christ is to love, for it is the greatest gift of all the gifts. (1 Cor. 13:13).

I heard a sermon recently by Bayless Conley and he said that Love compelled Jesus to action.  He gave an example: He said that we can hear about a trial or situation in someone's life and that we may feel compassion toward a person or situation and say oh how sad and even feel sad about it but unless it moves me to action, its just words.  I'm so glad Jesus didn't just have words or feelings of sadness over my eternity, but that He was compelled by Love towards me and everyone else and that by His going to the cross on my behalf was the only way I could experience His love in action.

As I have been wrestling through this, the Holy Spirit revealed some areas of my life of sin that Jesus covered with His love for me.  Sin in which I must repent of and be open to God changing and transforming in me.  Help me Jesus!

My sin is judging others
My sin is unforgiveness
My sin is keeping a record of wrongs done against me
My sin is faithlessness which cannot please God
My sin is not loving my neighbor as myself
My sin is simply not allowing myself to love others as I have been loved by Jesus
My sin is thinking more highly of myself than others
My sin is jealousy
My sin is selfishness
My sin is self-righteousness
My sin is a Multitude!

I awoke to this message on my heart from the Lord on Sunday, September 19, 2010 at 4:10 a.m., and wrote out this prayer to my Savior.

Dear sweet, kind, compassionate and most loving Jesus,

My Lord and My Savior.  Thank you for covering my multitude of sins with your PERFECT LOVE!  Your expression of love for me and the whole world is too much to fathom completely.  Help me Lord Jesus to let Faith, Hope and Love abide within me for your glory!  Your love is great and greatly to be praised!  May I love others as you first loved me!

In Jesus' sweet precious name I pray.
Amen