Paul prayed a very powerful prayer over the church at Philippi. He wrote it out for us, which means this came by the unction of the Spirit, something we must pay close attention to. He said, “That your love may abound yet more and more in knowledge and in all judgment: that ye may approve things that are excellent; that ye may be sincere and without offense till the day of Christ, being filled with the fruits of righteousness, which are by Jesus Christ, unto the glory and praise of God” (Phil. 1:9-11). This is our mission as believers. It is a solemn task we must seek to honor and obey. “And we have known and believed the love that God hath to us. God is love, and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him.” - 1 John 4:16 In his first epistle, Peter mentions one of the seven valued words of encouragement for us to follow found in chapter 4, verses 7-11: to have fervent love among us as Christ’s body. The word “fervent” is described in the Greek as ektenes, and it means to love deeply, to strain or stretch, just as an athlete makes a strenuous effort to reach the finish line. It is like a rope you pull as tight as possible, leaving no slack. As believers, we must make this our aim. We cannot afford to let anything lessen the love we are committed to keeping by allowing it to grow slack. There is an intensity to love that seeks to grow more and more. That is what Paul was admonishing the church at Philippi. He prayed that their love would abound not only in application but also in revelation. In other words, making love our aim and allowing it to stretch us to give our all to it brings us into a place of growth and maturity, where the level of knowledge and insight becomes acute. I love the way the Amplified Bible renders Philippians 1:9-11. It reads, “And this I pray: that your love may abound yet more and more and extend to its fullest development in knowledge and all keen insight [that your love may display itself in greater depth of acquaintance and more comprehensive discernment]; So that you may surely learn to sense what is vital, and approve and prize what is excellent and of real value [recognizing the highest and the best, and distinguishing the moral differences], and that you may be untainted and pure and unerring and blameless [so that with hearts sincere and certain and unsullied, you may approach] the day of Christ [not stumbling nor causing others to stumble]. May you abound in and be filled with the fruits of righteousness (of right standing with God and right doing) which come through Jesus Christ (the Anointed One), to the honor and praise of God that His glory may be both manifested and recognized.” What a mouthful! Love is the key to bringing us into so many areas of spiritual growth. It is like waiting on some immeasurable download that has divine opportunities and capabilities. Think of it as a door into the vast knowledge and understanding of spiritual things. What we cannot see with our natural eyes or hear with our natural ears becomes visible and audible when love is the focal point of our commitment. It is our gateway to the greatness of our redemption. Everything that has been wrought for us on the cross now rests within the confines of love. If we want access, then love is our passageway. However, it takes more than just a decision to love. We must make the effort to strive earnestly, fervently, with a deep commitment, as if love holds the reins over everything. Nothing we say or do can be stated or achieved unless love is the motivating factor. It must govern us entirely! John clearly states, “God is love, and he that dwells in love, dwells in God.” The closeness that love brings us to God is immeasurable. Who can know the depth, the length, the breadth, the height of this love if we never make the effort to gain what love possesses? When Jesus said, “A new commandment I give you, that ye love one another as I have loved you,” He raised the bar beyond our natural ability. The law states that we are to love our neighbor as ourselves. We might be able to do that to some degree, but to love as He loves us? That we could never do. Clearly, the love He seeks for us to walk in is a divine love that knows no limits. The only way we can ever fulfill this commandment is to enter into and abide in a deep devotion to loving Him. The more we center our affection on Him and become rooted and grounded in His love, the more we will come to know and understand the depth, the length, the height, and the breadth of His divine love. That is what will bring us increased discernment, a greater depth of acquaintance, the ability to sense what is vital and of real value, to recognize the highest and the best, and to distinguish the moral differences. This is what we have to look forward to when we decide to pursue fervent love. Everything about God is love, and as we grow closer to Him, we step into greater levels of love. If we want to measure where we are in our relationship with Him, all we have to do is locate where we are in love. If we are still struggling with attitudes, motives, patience, compassion, mercy, and such like, then we need to take a good look at how we can improve our relationship with the Lord. There is no better way to gauge our pursuit of love than to closely examine how we think, speak, act, and treat others. This was John’s reasoning: “If a man say, I love God, and hateth (disregards, becomes indifferent, chooses to dismiss, and denies, or become loveless toward) his brother, he is a liar: for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen?” (1 John 4:20). I remember a time when the Lord was teaching me the importance of making a more solid commitment to following love. He reminded me, “My church is My body, the temple I have chosen to dwell in.” Then He said to me, “If I approve of living in them, then disapproving or rejecting them is to disapprove and reject me!” If there is one thing you can always say about love, it is this: “love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, and endures all things” (1 Cor. 13:7). Only as we choose to become fervent in love can we begin to truly understand what all of this means. DEFINING MOMENTS The more we learn to stretch and strain ourselves to make love our aim, the more we will come to know the heart of God. The Holy Spirit once said to me, “You will never know the height love wants to take you, until you know the depth love went to apprehend you.” Aren’t we glad love has never given up on us? It is truly amazing how rich God’s love is and how He is always so willing to forgive us time and again. Why should we choose to live any lower in our relationships with others than He does with us? CONFESSION I am so glad the Holy Spirit shed abroad in my heart the love of God. I carry in me such divine love that I can make this my aim to fervently love as He loves me. PRAYER Father, you made me a vessel of love. Now it is up to me to let it flow. I make a commitment to you to live this life of love every day, and no matter what may come my way, I choose love over every other emotion or issue that tests, tries, and tempts me. In Jesus’ name, I pray. Amen. Permission Granted David and Betty Dunning Faith Harvest Church 221 Executive Drive, Unit 6 Savannah, GA. 31406 pastor1@fhcsavannah.org u GLAD TIDINGS 5 AUGUST 2026 FERVENT LOVE PASTORS DAVID AND BETTY DUNNING Along with the celebrations, the White House presents "The Story of America," an original video series of America's history which, according to the President, embodies freedom. "The story of America makes everyone free," President Trump said. Both President Trump and the Secretary of State Marco Rubio acknowledge that America's freedom started with the official Declaration of Independence. "With a single sheet of parchment and 56 signatures, America began the greatest political journey in human history," said President Trump. "That Declaration and that pledge were the beginning of the most significant political event in the history of the world, the American Revolution," Rubio joined. Permission Granted CHRISTIAN BROADCASTING NETWORK CBN News will provide livestreams of certain events happening around the 250th celebration. Check out our YouTube page for regular updates and live video feeds. u FREEDOM 250 - Con’t
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