COVET SPIRITUAL VIRTUE

 


Rev. Michael Benson Ajayi

1 Cor 12:31 KJV "But covet earnestly the best gifts: and yet shew I unto you a more excellent way."
  The scriptures speaks of God’s love for mankind demonstrated in the atoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ for our sins.  No greater love has any man than he should lay down his life for another man. It was God’s desire for fellowship and family bonding in an atmosphere of unconditional love that necessitated the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross.
       Jesus Christ did not come to condemn but to save the world by reconciling us back to God . The process of reconciliation can only be attained when we value a relationship. You want to be as far as possible from someone you detest. Sometimes this could be as a result of not knowing the person enough to gain their trust and vice versa. Ironically, the average person tends to hate persons that we know little or nothing about. It would amaze you to know how loving some of the persons we despise are if we got a little closer to them in fellowship.
     Nature abhors vacuums that is why it is very easy to be suspicious of persons when there is a break in communication between us .  It is for this reason that many persons are afraid to make a commitment to serve God because of what religion portrays him to be : a person with no desire for a relationship whose only interest is to have humans as slaves . This is far from what Jesus Christ displayed during his earthly ministry. He shared in human emotions as proof that God is emotional, he enjoyed the company of friends, attended weddings , burials , wept and so on.
     The human emotions is a gift from God designed to better appreciate creation and one another and should be employed in worshiping God . We tend to value what we are emotional about . It is for this reason that the scriptures says in 1 Corinthians 12:31 that we should covet spiritual virtues . This is how we bond with the father . The word  ‘covet’ is the Greek  word ‘Zeloo ‘ it means : to have warmth of feeling for or against. To give an idea of the meaning of this word : imagine what happens when you are hugged by someone you love, maybe a dear friend, parent , mentor, spouse etc . There is an emotional exchange that is beyond scientific description. You cannot deny the feeling, it is tangible, intuitive, volitional, magnetic . That’s is what keeps us yearning for the presence of such persons in our lives .
     It is  our yearning for spiritual values that unveils the beauty of God’s holiness and the resurrection power of Jesus Christ . This is how we overcome materialism and selfishness which is behind the chaos in the world . The revelation of God’s word to the believer should be as exciting as receiving financial riches  , Ps 119:14 says “ I have rejoiced in your laws as much as in riches.”  Also Ps 119:162-163  TLB “I rejoice in your laws like one who finds a great treasure” . in our daily prayers we should ask the lord to help us become more heavenly minded , Colossians:3:2 NIV says  “Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things .”  
   It easy to be heavenly minded when we realize that in reality God is not impressed by our earthly achievements , the word of God says in  Jer 9:23-24  TLB The Lord says: "Let not the wise man bask in his wisdom, nor the mighty man in his might, nor the rich man in his riches.  Let them boast in this alone: That they truly know me, and understand that I am the Lord of justice and of righteousness whose love is steadfast; and that I love to be this way. “
Prayer : Heavenly Father forgive me of my sins against you, I believe Jesus Christ died and was raised again for my salvation I  receive him as lord and savior and receive an ever increasing appetite for the fruits and gifts of the Holy Spirit in the name of Jesus Christ .
+2348035536911 +2348098536911 email:michaelbensonajayi@gmail.com

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