Regifting is not only allowed in the Christian life, it is encouraged! Read on.
REPENT – “Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God, and saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel’ “ (Mark 1:14-15). Repent (Greek word metanoeō; literally, to change your mind). Jesus proclaimed, “Change your mind about how one is made right with God. Believe the good news that I am bringing about a new way to relate to God.”
What is this good news? We are made right with God by believing in the Son that He has sent; by believing that Jesus died in our place on the cross. Jesus’ death took away our sin, and Jesus’ resurrection showed that His sacrifice in our place was sufficient. Believe this and you will receive eternal life. This new life is a gift of God’s grace!
RECEIVE – Receive the gift! Like any gift, the salvation that comes through Jesus Christ must be received. It is a gift of salvation that is richer and deeper than we often imagine. It is more than just a gift of eternal life. It is the gift of God’s love, the gift of having our sins forgiven, the gift of God’s approval and acceptance, the gift of completeness in Him, the gift of citizenship in His kingdom.
It is also the gift of all the new of God’s new covenant promise to us including a new birth, a new creation, a new identity, a new heart, a new Spirit, a new purity, a new nature, a new self, a new freedom, and a new power over sin.
If you have believed the gospel message of Jesus Christ, your REPENT and RECEIVE is complete! Did you hear that? Your REPENT and RECEIVE is complete! So what comes next? Our friend, Penny McAdams, calls it REGIFTING.
REGIFT – “The love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us” (Romans 5:5). For what purpose? So that we will experience the deep deep love of the Father and for us to share that deep love with one another. “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another” (John 13:34). We love one another with the love of God that has literally been poured into our hearts.
Loving one another is the foundation and the umbrella for all the “one anothers” of the New Testament. Practicing these “one anothers” is ONLY possible because God has loved us first and has poured His love into our new hearts. Please hear this! These are not a new to-do list dependent on our self-effort. They are simply the outflow of a heart lavishly loved by God, our Savior.
We are REGIFTING God’s love when we live according to our new identity; an identity that naturally expresses the love of the Father. We have what it takes to regift God’s love. We have what it takes to love as God loves. Here below is a reminder of what loving in that way looks like. Happy REGIFTING!
John 13:34 – …love one another…
John 13:35 – …have love for one another…
John 15:12 – …love one another…
John 15:17 – …love one another…
Romans 12:10 – …be devoted to one another; give preference to one another…
Romans 12:16 – …be of the same mind toward one another…
Romans 13:8 – …love one another…
Romans 14:13 – …let us not judge one another…
Romans 14:19 – …building up of one another…
Romans 15:5 – …be of the same mind with one another…
Romans 15:7 – …accept one another…
Romans 15:14 – …admonish one another.
Romans 16:16 – …greet one another…
1 Corinthians 11:33 – …wait for one another…
1 Corinthians 12:25 – …have the same care for one another…
1 Corinthians 16:20 – …greet one another…
2 Corinthians 13:12 – …greet one another….
Galatians 5:13 – …serve one another…
Galatians 5:26 – …let us not become boastful, challenging one another, envying one another…
Galatians 6:2 – …bear one another’s burdens…
Ephesians 4:2 – …showing tolerance for one another…
Ephesians 4:25 – …we are members of one another…
Ephesians 4:32 – …be kind to one another…
Ephesians 5:19 – …speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs…
Ephesians 5:21 – …be subject to one another…
Philippians 2:3 – …regard one another as more important than yourselves…
Colossians 3:9 – …do not lie to one another…
Colossians 3:13 – …bearing with one another, and forgiving each other…
Colossians 3:16 – …teaching and admonishing one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs…
1 Thessalonians 3:12 – …abound in love for one another…
1 Thessalonians 4:9 – …love one another…
1 Thessalonians 4:18 – …comfort one another…
1 Thessalonians 5:11 – …encourage one another and build up one another…
1 Thessalonians 5:13 – …live in peace with one another…
1 Thessalonians 5:15 – …seek after that which is good for one another…
2 Thessalonians 1:3 – …the love of each one of you toward one another grows ever greater…
Hebrews 3:13 – …encourage one another…
Hebrews 10:24 – …stimulate one another to love and good deeds…
Hebrews 10:25 – …encouraging one another…
James 4:11 – …do not speak against one another…
James 5:9 – …do not complain against one another…
James 5:16 – …confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another…
1 Peter 1:22 – …fervently love one another…
1 Peter 4:8 – …keep fervent in your love for one another…
1 Peter 4:9 – …be hospitable to one another…
1 Peter 4:10 – …serving one another…
1 Peter 5:5 – …with humility toward one another…
1 Peter 5:14 – …greet one another…
1 John 1:7 – …fellowship with one another…
1 John 3:11 – …love one another…
1 John 3:23 – …love one another…
1 John 4:7 – …love one another…
1 John 4:11 – …love one another…
1 John 4:12 – …love one another…
2 John 1:5 – …love one another…