Pastor Philip Nissley has been the Senior Pastor of New Hope Assembly for 24+ years. He has a passion for the Downriver community and Detroit to be changed by the power of God.
SPIRITUALITY AND FAITH
LIVE A LIFE OF LOVE
IN 2020
Article by Pastor Philip Nissley,
New Hope Assembly of God, Taylor, MI
Our world is desperately in need of love, and LOVE is the defining attribute of the Christian life. LOVE is the first attribute of the Fruit of the Spirit because it is the most vivid expression of the character of Christ. “Living a life of love” is a CHOICE requiring us to do what Paul says in Ephesians (see 5:1-2) “Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children, and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.”
WE ARE CALLED TO LOVE
A. We are called to love, with the love He gives. One sign of spiritual vitality that tells us how healthy and mature we are is our love expressed for God and others. I John 4:7 says “Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God.” That’s because God is love and if He dwells in us, then the outflow of our must be a life of love. You see, love defines us, for Jesus said in John 13:35, “By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”
B. We are called to forgive as God has forgiven us. This Godly love and forgive-ness was on display at a very unusual military funeral in California in Dec. 2013. Sgt. First Class Joseph Gantt, who fought in World War II and the Korean War, was laid to rest. He had been captured in Korea in 1950 and died the following year. But his body was not returned until 2013 and his death never confirmed by the North Koreans. His wife, Clara, waited for decades for her husband to come back. She regularly went to meetings with government officials seeking info about what had happened. Clara even bought a house and had it professionally landscaped so all Joseph would have to do when he came home was go fishing. She was 94 years old when his remains were finally brought to the USA for a military funeral with honors. It wasn’t the homecoming she dreamed of, but she finally knew his fate. In a reporter’s