School of Love
Basilea Schlink teaches that God's ultimate goal for believers is to learn and embody true love, overcoming bitterness through prayer and forgiveness.
In this devotional sermon, Basilea Schlink explores God's desire for believers to learn genuine love as a reflection of His own nature. She shares a personal testimony of struggling with bitterness and how persistent prayer and forgiveness transformed her heart and relationships. Listeners are encouraged to seek daily renewal in Christ's love and to become living images of God's mercy and grace. This message inspires spiritual growth through practical faith and heartfelt devotion.
Full Transcript
God lives and works today. In His great love for us, He has planned a definite goal for our lives. What is this goal? Above all, God wants us to learn how to love.
He wants us to reflect His image, the image of love. For to be able to love, really love everyone, makes a person truly happy. Do you long for this? Then listen to today's program by Basilea Schlink called School of Love.
Nothing makes a person happier than to be filled with love. And when we love, we make others happy too. However, it isn't always easy to be loving, especially when people have disappointed us or caused us great distress.
What can we do in such situations? There was a time in my life when I was seized with one longing. Oh, that my heart might be filled with overflowing love. Then I would be happy.
Then I would be able to make others happy. But at that time, I was assigned to work with an especially difficult person. And when it came to loving this person, I failed miserably.
Bitterness crept into my heart because this person spoiled everything nice for me. And with this inner attitude, of course I couldn't respond with love. I only became more unhappy and tormented.
However, one day the Lord made it clear to me that it was not this particular person who was making me unhappy. No, it was my own bitterness, my inability to forgive. Suddenly I realized that the Lord himself had deliberately brought this person into my life for a definite purpose.
First of all, he wanted to bring to light my sin against love, to put his finger on it and bring about a change in me. Instead of letting me sit around and pity myself, he wanted to lead me into repentance and into a battle of faith over my lack of love. And so I began to pray that the Lord would give me a merciful love towards this person.
It cost me a month-long battle of serious, persistent prayer, in which for 15 minutes every day, I just called upon the blood of Jesus, praising its redemptive power over my lovelessness. And God heard my prayer. I recognized more and more deeply my own guilt in the matter.
And as a result, our relationship became completely new. I can't tell you how happy this made me. Since then, my first prayer in the morning and the last prayer at night has always been, Jesus, make me into the image of your love.
For the image of Jesus, this most beautiful of all images, radiates one truth, that God is love, all love, mercy, sympathy, and forgiveness. To this image, we've been created and redeemed. Your likeness preached on me, Jesus, my master.
Let men see you in me and give you honor. Your likeness preached on me, your perfect nature. So will my nature be by love made perfect.
You have been listening to a program written by Basilea Schlink of the Little Land of Canaan. To learn more about how God lives and works today, visit us at our website, www.canaan.org. If you contact us, we would be happy to send you a free inspirational booklet. If you do not have access to the web, please contact this radio station for our postal address.
God bless you!
Sermon Outline
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I. God's Goal for Our Lives
- God desires us to learn how to love
- Reflecting God's image means reflecting love
- True happiness comes from loving others
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II. The Challenge of Loving Difficult People
- Bitterness hinders love
- Difficult relationships reveal our need for change
- Recognizing personal sin is the first step
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III. The Power of Prayer and Forgiveness
- Persistent prayer brings transformation
- Calling on Jesus’ blood for redemptive power
- Forgiveness restores relationships and joy
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IV. Becoming the Image of Love
- Daily prayer to be made in Jesus’ image
- Love as the perfect nature to emulate
- Living as a reflection of God’s mercy and forgiveness
Key Quotes
“God lives and works today. In His great love for us, He has planned a definite goal for our lives.” — Basilea Schlink
“Jesus, make me into the image of your love.” — Basilea Schlink
“It cost me a month-long battle of serious, persistent prayer, in which for 15 minutes every day, I just called upon the blood of Jesus, praising its redemptive power over my lovelessness.” — Basilea Schlink
Application Points
- Commit to daily prayer asking Jesus to shape your heart with His love.
- Practice forgiveness actively, especially towards those who have hurt you.
- View difficult relationships as opportunities for spiritual growth and repentance.