“We are the Lord’s slaves after having become the Lord’s freemen. He delivers us from the slavery of sin, and then he introduces us to his service. And lo, we find it so blessed that we insist on our ears being bored, and our being made his slaves forever. Now obedience is the slavery of love.” – R. M. Edgar
Love without fear would subvert his authority. Fear without love would make us gloomy and discouraged. Love and fear together make the walking, serving and keeping of God’s commandments a joy.
One of the Bible’s most important concepts comes from Leviticus. When Jesus emphasizes it later, he is only elaborating on what was originally written here.
We’ve all had the experience. Initial enthusiasm gives way to persistent dissatisfaction. A marriage filled with love and excitement takes work to stay filled with love and excitement. And so it is with other things. It almost doesn’t matter what it is, the shine wears off; the new becomes routine; the fabulous becomes the familiar. The honeymoon is over. This was the story of the church in Ephesus.
Central Reflections 