PORTRAITS OF LOVE
There is a
story about a priest who painted a picture of Christ. He was very proud of the
picture and wanted other people to notice it as well. So, he invited the famous
author Leo Tolstoy to come over. The priest thought that if Tolstoy liked his
painting, then the other priest would admire it as well. Tolstoy came into the
room and sat in front of the painting. For an hour he just sat there and stared
at it. The priest was getting really excited.
Then, as
Tolstoy stood up to leave, the priest asked, “So, what do you think?”
And Tolstoy
looked at him and said, “If you would have loved him more, you would have
painted him better.”
God doesn’t
want us to do stuff for him because we’re gonna get rewarded or praised or
famous for doing it. Instead, he wants our love for him to motivate us to do
great things for him.
Don’t let
Jesus say to you one day, “If you would have loved me more, you would have
served me better.”
“But
if anyone has enough money to live well and sees a brother or sister in need
and refuses to help-how can God’s love be in that person? Dear children, let us
stop just saying we love each other; let us really show it by our actions” (1
John 3:17, 18).
From the Book:
How to Smell like God
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