Matthew 23:8-10 (NLT) “Don’t let anyone call you ‘Rabbi,’ for you have only one teacher, and all of you are equal as brothers and sisters. And don’t address anyone here on earth as ‘Father,’ for only God in heaven is your Father. And don’t let anyone call you ‘Teacher,’ for you have only one teacher, the Messiah.”
After Jesus Christ was baptized by John the Baptist, he was led into the wilderness by the Holy Spirit to be tempted there by the devil. We might ask why this had to be done, because Jesus Christ is the Son of the Living God and shouldn’t need to be baptized or tempted. Jesus Christ answered this question himself in Matthew 5:17(NKJV). He said, “Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill.” Jesus Christ fulfilled every letter of the law without exception. He was perfect in every way, and Jesus always did the Will of the Father. He never stepped outside God’s Will. So, he was perfect, his blood was perfect, and he perfectly fulfilled the law when he took our sins to the cross and gave his perfect life as a sacrifice for them.
Hebrews 4:15-16(NKJV) says, “15 For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin. 16 Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” Our beloved Lord and Savior is our High Priest. The office of priest is a sacred and holy position of authority that in the Old Testament was assigned by God to serve and worship Him, to preform sacred rituals, and to minister to His people. The Bible tells us in Genesis 14:18-19 that Melchizedek, the king of Salem, was a priest of God Most High. It was he who blessed Abraham and received Abraham’s tithe.
Jesus Christ is our High Priest, and he is a Priest who was tempted in all the ways we are, but he passed every test. He knows what we’re going through down here on earth, and he is in heaven meditating in the Courts of Heaven on our behalf. It is precisely because we have such a perfect and loving Savior that we can come boldly to God’s throne of grace and obtain His mercy and help. Through the sacrifice and resurrection of Christ, God has accomplished the work of our redemption and salvation. 1John 4:10(NLT) says, “This is real love—not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins.” God has demonstrated His unconditional and limitless love for us by giving the life of His only begotten Son as a sacrifice for our sins.
Jesus Christ is our Big Brother, because God made us His children through Christ. Romans 8:29(NLT) tells us, “For God knew his people in advance, and he chose them to become like his Son, so that his Son would be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters.” Now that we are children of God and have His seed, the Holy Spirit, dwelling within us, we can have the kind of relationship with Him that He desires. We must recognize that this relationship we have with God is based on our faith in Him. Putting our total trust in God, depending on Him as our Source, and believing in the sacrifice and resurrection of His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ, is how we show our love for our Heavenly Father.
We must be prepared for the reality that our love for God is going to be challenged. There are people that will try to get us to compromise our stand on God’s Word. For instance, in college, Carlos made lots of friends. He’s fun loving, kind, and loves the Lord. One of his closest friends became offended during a conversation they had about Jesus Christ. His friend said he believes in God but doesn’t believe that Jesus Christ is the only begotten Son of the Living God. As Carlos witnessed to him further, his friend became more offended and said they couldn’t remain friends if he insisted on talking about Jesus. Carlos was hurt about this but was committed to pray for his friend.
This friend presented Carlos with a choice. He could continue to be friends with this guy, but only if he didn’t talk about Jesus Christ when his friend was around. This was one of those subtle situations that if we’re not careful, we could make the wrong choice, signal the heavens that we’re not putting God first, and harm our relationship with Him. 2Corinthians 6:14(NIV) warns, “Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness?” If we are true disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ, we must stand our ground and be confident that God backs us when we do.
Jesus Christ commands us in Mark 12:30(NIV), “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ God doesn’t compromise His love for us for any reason, and we should never compromise our love for God for anyone or anything. We should continually pray that God will open our eyes to any situation that is sent by satan to cause us to fall. God is our only Father, and Jesus Christ is our only Lord and Savior. We must always stand firm on this truth and know that nothing is worth compromising it. God commands us in Proverbs 3:5-6 to trust in Him with all our hearts, and instead of leaning on our own understanding, we must acknowledge Him in all that we do. He’s the only One that can make our paths straight, and He does this as we seek Him first and give Him the glory, love, and honor He so richly deserves. ■
Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
“Never Compromise Your Love for God”, written by KLizzie, edited by Reverend Fran Mack, for Sundie Morning Sistas ©2023. All rights reserved. All done to the glory of God through Jesus Christ, our Lord! SMS is dedicated to inspiring and encouraging Christian Women through the Word of God.