And it is my prayer that your love may abound more and more, with knowledge and all discernment, so that you may approve what is excellent, and so be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.
Philippians 1:9–11, ESV
As we love Christ and place Him central in who we are, it is likely that we will express His love more and more with our neighbor. We are called not to seek after selfish ambition and see others as either obstacles to overcome or as a means to be used as a stepping stone to bigger and better things. When we care for our neighbor, it is not to be done in order to look better and to gain greater respect from society. All things we do are to be meant for the glory of God. If one were to preach Christ for selfish gain, there would be those who would come to know Christ through that proclamation, and a victory would be won for the Kingdom of God. The one doing so for selfish good would find no ultimate benefit, though. There will be many who will find themselves knocking on the door to heaven, thinking that they have secured salvation, but the Lord was not with them because they were not with the Lord. Heaven is not won by the accolades and praises given by the world but only through the precious blood of our Lord that has washed over us. Our security should come in our faithfulness to the Gospel, which leads us to love. Love is not acceptance of the sinfulness that surrounds us and the approval of those who engage within it. Yet, some try to preach this as the gospel, which is truly no gospel at all. Jesus did not approve of any sin, but He accepted the one caught up in sin and called them away from it. We need not focus on the sin but seek after all who are trapped and ensnared in the lies and show them our Lord who makes them worthy. This is love. A love that never defines another by sin but seeks to clothe them in Christ and set them free. Let Christ’s love abound and proclaim His glory to all that some may hear and know His salvation.
Let us pray. I thank you, my heavenly Father, through Jesus Christ, your dear Son, that you have kept me this night from all harm and danger, and I ask you to protect me this day also from sin and every evil, that in all I do today, I may please you. For into your hands, I commend myself, my body and soul, and all that is mine. Let your holy angel watch over me, that the wicked foe have no power over me. Amen.