Milo

February 5
IMMORTAL LOVE–FOREVER FULL
John Greenleaf Whittier, 1807–1892
To know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. (Ephesians 3:19)
Love is Silence—when your words would hurt.
Love is Patience—when your neighbor’s curt.
Love is Deafness—when a scandal flows.
Love is Thoughtfulness—for others’ woes.
Love is Promptness—when stern duty calls.
Love is Courage—when misfortune falls.
—Unknown
The Bible teaches that the three cardinal virtues of the Christian life are faith, hope, love, with love as the greatest (1 Corinthians 13:13). These virtues in a person’s life are the most convincing evidences of a personal relationship with Christ. True faith must always lead to a life of love for God and others. It also gives purpose for this life and the glorious hope of spending eternity with our King of Love. Our love relationship with others should be characterized as sacrificial, sensitive, and sharing. We should relate to people even as Jesus did. He loved individuals simply for themselves and met and accepted them at the place of their personal need.
In 1867 John Greenleaf Whittier, a Quaker and recognized as one of America’s finest poets, wrote a 38 stanza poem titled “Our Master.” This hymn text with its emphasis upon the constancy of God’s immortal love was taken from that poem. It was Whittier who once stated “a good hymn is the best use to which poetry can be directed.” The musical setting by William V. Wallace, a Scottish violinist and composer, was adapted from a longer love song, “Waft, Ye Winds,” written by Wallace in 1856.
Immortal Love—forever full, forever flowing free, forever shared, forever whole, a never ebbing sea!
We may not climb the heav’nly steeps to bring the Lord Christ down; in vain we search the lowest deeps, for Him no depths can drown.
But warm, sweet, tender, even yet a present help is He; and faith has still its Olivet, and love its Galilee.
The healing of His seamless dress is by our beads of pain; we touch Him in life’s throng and press, and we are whole again.
Thru Him the first fond prayers are said our lips of childhood frame; the last low whispers of our dead are burdened with His name.
O Lord and Master of us all, whate’er our name or sign, we own Thy sway, we hear Thy call, we test our lives by Thine!

For Today:

Psalm 139; Jeremiah 31:3; Romans 8:38, 39; 1 John 4:19

Reflect on the constancy of our Lord’s immortal love as you meditate on this thoughtful hymn text.

February 4
LOVE DIVINE, ALL LOVES EXCELLING
Charles Wesley, 1707–1788
This is how God showed His love among us: He sent His one and only Son into the world that we might live through Him. (1 John 4:9)
We must never underestimate the power of love in our human relationships—whether marriages, family, business associations, or friendships. The divine love of God for man far excels all other forms of love.
“Love Divine … ” is another of the more than 6500 hymns by Charles Wesley, the “sweet bard of Methodism.” This fine text —written in 1747—touches various elements of Christian doctrine. It extols the love of God as expressed in the incarnation of Christ. Then it refers to the Wesleyan concept of entire sanctification—that any believer might live without consciously sinning and thereby find the promised “rest” mentioned in Hebrews 4:9. The “Alpha and Omega” of verse two (first and last letters of the Greek alphabet) also reflect this Wesleyan teaching, that the experiences of conversion and sanctification are thought of as the “beginning of faith” and the “end or object of faith.” The third stanza emphasizes the truth that the Spirit of God indwells the temple or body of each believer, while the fourth stanza anticipates the glorious culmination of our faith when “we cast our crowns before Thee, lost in wonder, love and praise.”
Although Christians may have differences of interpretation regarding the doctrine of sanctification, we can agree on this basic truth: It ought to be a normal desire for each believer to grow in the grace of our Lord.
Love divine, all loves excelling, joy of heav’n, to earth come down; fix in us Thy humble dwelling; all Thy faithful mercies crown. Jesus, Thou art all compassion; pure, unbounded love Thou art; visit us with Thy salvation; enter ev’ry trembling heart.
Breathe, O breathe Thy loving Spirit into ev’ry troubled breast! Let us all in Thee inherit; let us find that second rest. Take away our bent to sinning, Alpha and Omega be; end of faith, as its beginning, set our hearts at liberty.
Come, almighty to deliver, let us all Thy life receive; suddenly return, and never, nevermore Thy temples leave. Thee we would be always blessing, serve Thee as Thy hosts above, pray and praise Thee without ceasing, glory in Thy perfect love.
Finish then Thy new creation; pure and spotless let us be; let us see Thy great salvation perfectly restored in Thee. Changed from glory into glory, till in heav’n we take our place, till we cast our crowns before Thee, lost in wonder, love and praise.

For Today:

John 3:14–21; Philippians 1:6; Colossians 1:28; 1 John 3:11–24

God’s love must dominate our hearts, minds, and wills. Pray that this will become increasingly true in your life. Carry this portion of the hymn with you—

February 3
O THE DEEP, DEEP LOVE OF JESUS
S. Trevor Francis, 1834–1925
I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ. (Ephesians 3:17, 18)
Who can fully grasp the dimensions of God’s great love for us? Yet the Scriptures teach that we are to have a growing awareness of divine love. Love is the very heart and essence of God, not only for the lovely but for the vilest of sinners. Christ did not die merely to display God’s love—He died because God is love (1 John 4:8). If the New Testament teaches us anything, it teaches us about God’s love in searching for lost men. Becoming a Christian in a very real sense is simply putting ourselves in the way of being found by God—to stop running from His loving pursuit.
As we mature in the Christian faith, we begin to realize that every situation that comes our way is an opportunity for God’s love to be made more evident in our lives. Once we realize this, our attitude changes dramatically toward suffering people as well as toward ourselves when we are called to suffer. Then even during those times when our spiritual fervor declines and our devotion to God subsides, despite these shortcomings, God’s love remains unfailing—continually working for our eternal good.
The author of this text, S. Trevor Francis, was a prominent lay leader with the Plymouth Brethren in England and was known as an effective devotional speaker throughout Great Britain and around the world.
O the deep, deep love of Jesus—vast, unmeasured, boundless free! Rolling as a mighty ocean in its fullness over me, underneath me, all around me, is the current of Thy love—leading onward, leading homeward, to my glorious rest above.
O the deep, deep love of Jesus—spread His praise from shore to shore! How He loveth, ever loveth, changeth never, nevermore. How He watches o’er His loved ones, died to call them all His own; how for them He intercedeth, watcheth o’er them from the throne.
O the deep, deep love of Jesus, love of ev’ry love the best! ’Tis an ocean vast of blessing; ’tis a haven sweet of rest. O the deep, deep love of Jesus—’tis a heav’n of heav’ns to me; and it lifts me up to glory, for it lifts me up to Thee.

For Today:

Romans 5:8; 8:35–39; Ephesians 3:14–20; 1 John 4:8; Revelation 1:5, 6

Ask God to enlarge your understanding of His great love and the ability to share it with others. Reflect on this musical truth—

February 2
JESUS, THOU JOY OF LOVING HEARTS
Attributed to Bernard of Clairvaux, 1091–1153
Translated by Ray Palmer, 1808–1887
I have told you this so that My joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete. (John 15:11)
This song is another of the fine hymn texts that originated during the Middle Ages. It is thought to have been written by a monk—one of the most prominent religious leaders of his day. An important part of the medieval church was the role of the monks and their monasteries. Since these churchmen were among the few who could read and write, their institutions became powerful influences in shaping the religious and cultural development of Western civilization.
As a young man, Bernard became abbot of the monastery of Clairvaux, France. His influence was soon felt throughout Europe. It is said that he commanded kings, emperors, and prelates—and they obeyed him. In 1146 he was commissioned by the pope to lead a second preaching crusade against the Moslems. Because of his eloquence and strong preaching, great crowds followed him. One of the conditions for those joining the Crusade was a personal conversion experience. It is recorded that multitudes of vicious men were dramatically changed through Bernard’s preaching. They carried a cross unashamedly as a symbol of their commitment to Christ and this crusade.
Bernard wrote a number of books, chiefly on such subjects as church government, monasticism and other church-related topics. It is generally agreed that he wrote a long 192-line poem titled “Dulcis Jesus Memorial” (“Joyful Rhythm on the Name of Jesus”). In 1858 Ray Palmer, an American Congregational preacher, translated from the Latin a portion of this medieval poem attributed to Bernard for the hymn “Jesus, Thou Joy of Loving Hearts.” This hymn text aptly describes the preciousness of Christ in each believer’s life.
Jesus, Thou joy of loving hearts, Thou fount of life, Thou light of men, from the best bliss that earth imparts, we turn unfilled to Thee again.
Thy truth unchanged hath ever stood; Thou savest those that on Thee call; to them that seek Thee, Thou art good; to them that find Thee, all in all.
Our restless spirits yearn for Thee, where’er our changeful lot is cast; glad when Thy gracious smile we see, blest when our faith can hold Thee fast.
O Jesus, ever with us stay; make all our moments calm and bright; chase the dark night of sin away; shed o’er the world Thy holy light.

For Today:

John 6:35; Ephesians 2:14–18; Colossians 1:13, 14; 1 Peter 1:8

Live with the awareness that even with the “best bliss that earth imparts,” without an intimate awareness of Christ, life will be empty. Make His presence the goal of your activities.

February

• God’s Love to Us • Our Love for God • Love for Our Fellow-man

February 1
WALK IN THE LIGHT
Bernard Barton, 1784–1849
But if we walk in the light, as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, His Son, purifies us from every sin. (1 John 1:7)
How beautiful to walk in the steps of the Savior
Led in paths of light.
—E. Hewitt
Walking in the light means walking as Christ walked while here on earth—seeking to imitate His life style in all that we do. When we walk in the light, our paths become illuminated and purposeful, and there is a glow of warmth and love in our lives that makes us want to care for the needs of others. This life of love is not merely a soft sentimental feeling—but rather a life of action.
Sometimes we as Christians seem to minimize this basic quality in our lives. We spend our time seeking the unusual and “deep” truths of the Scriptures or arguing with those with whom we may differ. A life devoid of Christ’s tender love for others, both fellow-believers and non-believers, can negate much of our Christian witness. The Bible teaches that a life without love, counts for nothing (1 Corinthians 13:1–3).
Walking in the light is in the present tense. It is a new experience with God each day. It is always helpful to recall God’s faithfulness and leading in the past. But our past blessings must always be blended into the present wonder of walking this day with the Lord.
The author of “Walk in the Light,” Bernard Barton, was known as England’s “Quaker Poet.” Although he never rose above the position of a bank clerk, his reputation as a man of letters was recognized by many literary leaders of his day. In all, Barton had 10 books of verse published, from which about 20 hymns came into usage.
“Walk in the Light” first appeared in Barton’s Devotional Verses, published in 1926. Make walking in the light your experience today.
Walk in the light! So shalt thou know that fellowship of love His Spirit only can bestow, who reigns in light above.
Walk in the light! And thou shalt find thy heart made truly His, who dwells in cloudless light enshrined, in Whom no darkness is.
Walk in the light! And thou shalt own thy darkness passed away, because that light hath on thee shone in which is perfect day.
Walk in the light! And thine shall be a path, though thorny, bright: For God, by grace, shall dwell in thee, and God Himself is light.

For Today:

Psalm 36:9; John 8:12; Romans 12:10; 2 Corinthians 4:6

Consciously leave time in your schedule to be responsive to the needs of another. Share Christ and His love with them.