The Value of Loving Christ | By This Verse by Jun P. Espina

Jun P. Espina 6 min read

Updated on June 11th, 2022

I want to explore the value of loving Christ our Lord. You may accuse me of discussing an offbeat topic for the unbelievers, but our niche leads us to discuss this type of conversation. The value of loving Christ is akin to divine security of immortality—your immortality! It is our Lord’s teaching in John 14:23: “If anyone loves Me . . . We will come to him and make Our abode with him.”

The assurance of divine presence in your life is guaranteed when Christ said: “We will come to him and make Our abode with him.” It is the value of loving Christ. Our Lord, His Father, and the Holy Spirit will make your heart the house of God. Some said this promise is unimaginable since the Holy Trinity cannot live in an imperfect person like all of us. Some said the word “ABODE” or dwelling is not literal. The Bible, however, declares that all believers who are forgiven by faith in the atoning blood of Christ are cleansed and suited as God’s temple. (I Cor. 3:16)

The apostle Paul validated this doctrine when he said: “Now He who establishes us with you in Christ and anointed us is God, who also sealed us and gave us the Spirit in our hearts as a pledge.” (2 Cor. 1:21-22) The value of loving Christ is comparable to the seal of God, the Holy Spirit in our soul, who was given as a pledge or commitment that we are owned by our Creator through Christ our Lord.

The Value of Loving Christ from an Empirical Argument

The value of loving Christ comes from our natural proclivity to worship God whoever he is. Every community has a church, an idol made of wood or stone, a Wailing Wall, an altar, or some form of structure made for the practice of religion. Why? Because everyone believes in the supernatural. The existence of water, for an illustration, is the reason for the sensation of thirst in our system.

We have spiritual needs because spiritual powers, like God or demons, exist. It is how our human circuitry works. Adam desired a wife to cure his loneliness, so God created Eve for him.

We have needs and treasured desires because nature or God has provided them.

Christianity and the Dark Ages

Some said that when Christianity ruled the world, it was named the Dark Ages. True, Catholicism spurred the era known as the Dark Ages. That is why I wrote this topic about the value of loving Christ since it is contrary to the Catholic teaching regarding the “value of loving Mary.” (Mariolatry seems to help cement the era of the Dark Ages that has transformed Christianity into a cultural effort as seen in the relics and architecture of the existing Medieval churches and other buildings.)

During the Reformation, Luther and other leaders restored the Christian faith to its apostolic foundation and teachings. People began to read the Holy Bible and found the truth of our Lord Jesus. The value of loving Christ spread across the Western world, and with it came the foundation of our modern civilization that is anchored on Christ, who is the Truth and the Guarantor of true freedom.

“So Jesus was saying to those Jews who had believed Him, ‘If you continue in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine; and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.'” (John 8:31-32)

The Departure from Biblical Christianity

Our civilization then departed from Biblical Christian teachings. Our leaders seemed overwhelmed and ensnared by the devil. They crafted anti-Christian laws and endorsed homosexuality that God hated. But everything was already written. A Great Tribulation—the wrath of God—will come. But those who loved the Lord will be snatched away from the coming great cataclysm. It is the price and treasure of loving Christ, our Savior.

For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we shall always be with the Lord. Therefore comfort one another with these words.” (1 Thessalonians 4:16-18)

What is the Value of Loving Christ?

First, you cannot love something or someone you do not know. I knew of someone who used to say, “Our beloved God.” Later in our conversation, he confessed he had no religion and that he escaped to our province after killing someone. Paul said you can be enthusiastic about God even without knowing God. “For I can testify about them [the Jews],” he said, “that they are zealous for God, but their zeal is not based on knowledge.” (Rom. 10:2) The value of loving Christ shines in your soul only after knowing from the Holy Scripture who Jesus is.

The Scripture we pointed out above is worth revisiting: “Jesus answered and said to him, ‘If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our abode with him.'” (John 14:23) It is the value of loving Christ—plain as day.

What are the benefits of loving Christ? First, you will become an obedient Christian (obedient to Christ); second, the Father will love you; and, third, Christ and Father God will live in your soul. I heard someone expounding on the need to love God without mentioning our Lord Jesus. As expected, the sermon failed to reach the hearts of the faithful since we need to love Christ first before we can love the Father.

Loving God Outside of Christ

Loving God outside of Christ is like painting a figure without paint on your brush or opening a door without a key. You can achieve nothing. Jesus is our ACCESS to the Father. “[For] through Him we both have our ACCESS in one Spirit to the Father.” (Eph. 5:18) In John 14:6, Jesus said He is the only Way to the Father, for “apart from Me you can do nothing.” (See John 15:5) Our delight in the Father also depends on our relationship with Christ according to the apostle Paul:

“And not only this, but we also exult [rejoice or celebrate] in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received the reconciliation.” (Rom. 5:11)

The value of loving Christ rolls around His role in reconciliation. Our Lord interceded so we can be friends of God through His own shed blood at the cross. Love Christ by believing and obeying His Word, and the Father will love you and They will dwell in your soul. The forgiveness of man’s sinfulness that leads to salvation only happens by grace through faith in the shed blood of Christ. The value of loving Christ remains theoretical without accepting Christ first as Lord and personal Savior.

“Now all these things are from God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation, namely, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and He has committed to us the word of reconciliation. Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were making an appeal through us; we beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.” (2 Cor. 5:18-20)

The Value of Loving Christ Resembles an Investment

The greatest good we can offer ourselves is the investment of our remaining years with God, understanding who He is—praying and worshiping Him without ceasing in our hearts. The value of loving Christ resembles an investment. Love Christ and the Father will love you and the triune God will dwell in your soul. Isn’t it wondrous? “Or do you not recognize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you? (2 Cor. 13:5) Loving Christ is equivalent to converting your body into God’s condo—with complete facilities “in time of need.” (Heb. 4:16)

If you give your money to God, you give Him nothing because He owns all things. But if you give Christ your time in prayer and meditation—you pause from your routine and close your laptop—you give your ALL to the Lord in the character of true faith.

Some love to give money to the church or their pastor, just like Buffet, giving tons of cash to charity. But they don’t love Jesus. THIS PEOPLE HONORS ME WITH THEIR LIPS, BUT THEIR HEART IS FAR AWAY FROM ME.” (Matt. 15:8)

Why is Loving Christ an Embarrassing Proposition for Billions of People?

I experienced it before: I hated everything Christ’s. It is like a Democrat hating everything true. People hate Christ because He is the Truth. The Muslim world is an example of a civilization that is putting a wall on what is true. If you teach a love for Christ in this part of the world, you put at risk your own life. But it is not the big story. You are risking your neck, too, if you preach Christ in the public square in the Western world.

The phrase “an embarrassing proposition” is just a lame description of how the world hated our Lord. “But they have done this to fulfill the word that is written in their Law,” taught our Lord, ‘THEY HATED ME WITHOUT A CAUSE.’” (John 15:25)

The value of loving Christ is the value of eternity itself. With it, you will live in heaven forever, and you will also be raised from the grave. Loving Christ is possible only if you are a born-again Christian. With the Internet, I don’t know why you are not born again yet.