Affection: April 23, 2013

Today's Word for Tuesday APRIL 23, 2013.

AFFECTION

DEFINITION: 

Fond attachment; devotion or love; emotion; feeling; the emotional realm of love.

SCRIPTURE:

Love each other with genuine affection and take delight in honoring each other. Romans 12:10.

For God is my witness, how greatly I long for you all with the affection of Jesus Christ. Philippians 1:8

Therefore if there is any consolation in Christ, if any comfort of love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any affection and mercy, fulfill my joy by being like-minded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind. Philippians 2:1-2.

KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE:

Genuine affection is demonstrated by selfless kindness that causes a person to put aside their own interests for the good of another. 

When we think of "genuine affection" we think of the relationship between David and Jonathan. In I Samuel 18:1, we are told that when they met each other an immediate bond developed between them. The scripture says that Jonathan loved David as himself. Jonathan showed his affection for David by giving him his robe, his tunic, his sword and his bow and belt.

Jonathan was Saul's son and David was his son-in-law. Saul became jealous of David's rise to fame because of his successes in battle and he wanted to kill him. Jonathan interceded because of his brotherly affection for David. Jonathan remained loyal to David and helped him escape Saul's many attempts to kill him.

Jonathan and David made fast their bond of affection to each other with a covenant. Jonathan, on his part, would keep David informed of Saul's plots to kill him. David promised to always treat Jonathan's family well after he became King. Why would Jonathan's affection for David be stronger than his affection for his own father? Jonathan saw David's faith in the Lord and saw that David tried to do what is right in the eyes of the Lord.

Jonathan did not allow his affection for his father blind him to the fact that his father's desire to kill David was wrong. Sometimes in order to stand for what is right we have to make difficult choices. Both Jonathan and David understood the meaning of the genuine affection that Paul spoke of later in the New Testament in Romans 12:10 (above). They took delight in honoring one another.

In Psalms 136, the Psalmist expressed that affection that God has for us endures forever. In Jeremiah 31:3 we are reminded of the Lord's affection to us when it is written that God has loved us with an everlasting love. It is because of this love for us that He reached out to us with loving kindness to save us from our sins. God's goodness to us flows from His deep and genuine affection for us.

God wants us to have that same genuine affection for others that He has for us. He wants us to exemplify the mutual love and commitment of true affection in our relationships with our family and our Christian friends. True affection among we who are believers will cause us to be like-minded and of one accord.

We can think back about 56 years ago when we first met each other as college students at Wheaton College. At first we shared an interest in each other but as we got to know each other we developed a deep affection for each other.

After about six months of dating we were separated for a year as Dottie finished at Wheaton and Ken went to Fuller Seminary, about 2000 miles apart.

Distance did not diminish the bond of affection between us even though communication was limited to mostly letters, as long distance phone calls were expensive. The bond of affection between us was strengthened by our shared love for the Lord and desire to honor Him and serve Him.

Our marriage has lasted because of our deep affection for each other and deep love for our Lord. We are committed to one another, we care for one another and when we disagree we seek to put aside our own interests in deference to the need of the other. We delight in honoring God and each other. Marriages fail when they are based only on physical affection and not on spiritual affection as well.

Paul describes his affection for the Christians in Philippi as being like the affection of Jesus Christ. Paul used the Greek word for affection in Philippians 1:8 because it best expressed compassionate love. Christ Jesus affection for us is most certainly compassionate love. When we truly love the Lord we will, like Paul, be able to love with the affection of Jesus. 

The scripture in 1 Peter 4:8-9 gives us Peter's description of genuine affection: "Above all things have a fervent love for one another, for love will cover a multitude of sins. Be hospitable to one another without grumbling." It is only when we have a true affection for our Lord that we can really understand what it is to have true affection for one another.

LEARNING: 

Our memory verse for this week is found in John 3:3.

Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.

PRAYER:

Thank You Lord, for Your genuine affection for me. Thank You that Your compassionate love for me will endure forever. Help me to show always my family, my friends and those I meet genuine Christ honoring affection. Help me be an example through my walk and my talk that it is the love of Jesus that gives direction to my life.