Latest / Your Daily Portion with L. David Harris / 09 22 2026 The God of Love

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09 22 2026 The God of Love · Your Daily Portion with L. David Harris

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  Speaker 1: Most of us eat every day, some of us too much,
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  Speaker 1: because yesterday's food is not enough to supply energy for
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  Speaker 1: today's needs. Why then do some of us expect yesterday's
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  Speaker 1: portion of heavenly manna, the word of God, to keep
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  Speaker 1: us through today's challenges? On this program, we are going
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  Speaker 1: to change all of that. Let's experience God's words today
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  Speaker 1: and receive the power we need to live healthy, vibrant lives.
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  Speaker 1: Welcome to Your Daily Portion. with your host, author, speaker, L.
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  Speaker 1: David Harris.
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  Speaker 2: Good morning, good morning, good morning. It is Tuesday, September 22, 2026. Hello,
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  Speaker 2: my name is L. David Harris. I am your host,
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  Speaker 2: and this is your Daily Portion, where we give you
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  Speaker 2: God's Word every single day, and today is no exception.
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  Speaker 2: We are continuing in the final week of our lesson
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  Speaker 2: study series through the books of 1 and 2 Corinthians,
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  Speaker 2: and our caption for today is the God of love.
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  Speaker 2: The God of love. Before we get into that, I'd
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  Speaker 2: like to ask you to please go over to YourDailyPortion.com.
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  Speaker 2: I know that many of you are doing it. If
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  Speaker 2: You've not done so already, and this could be of
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  Speaker 2: value to you. Stop guessing what to do with your life.
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  Speaker 2: That's what I put on my screen. I know you're
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  Speaker 2: on the radio or on a podcast. You don't see it.
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  Speaker 2: But stop guessing what to do with your life. Discover
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  Speaker 2: God's design for your life. If you click to begin
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  Speaker 2: that assessment, after you've invested a few minutes, just a
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  Speaker 2: few minutes, you will come away with a personal blueprint,
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  Speaker 2: a clear picture of how you are gifted, the word
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  Speaker 2: behind each gift, and... a first step toward using the
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  Speaker 2: gifts that God has given you. That's a blessing. And also, please, please,
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  Speaker 2: will you contribute to your Daily Portion Ministries? Because we
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  Speaker 2: are a listener and viewer-supported ministry. Let's go ahead and pray,
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  Speaker 2: and then we will get underway. Father, we thank you
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  Speaker 2: for giving us the privilege of coming together on this morning. God,
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  Speaker 2: I'm asking you now to give us.
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  Speaker 2: Awareness. Give us a deep connection to the fact and
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  Speaker 2: reality of your love. In Jesus' name I pray.
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  Speaker 1: Amen.
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  Speaker 2: And amen. Again, the God of love. We focused on
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  Speaker 2: the love yesterday. Now let's focus a little bit more
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  Speaker 2: on the God who does love. Okay. And so to begin,
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  Speaker 2: let me just start here with the most important thing.
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  Speaker 2: You know, it's in my notes. Our God is not
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  Speaker 2: a God who must be appeased. And that becomes very
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  Speaker 2: important and critical today. when you think about God loving
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  Speaker 2: the world so much that he gave his only begotten son.
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  Speaker 2: So Jesus said in another place, he said, God, the Father,
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  Speaker 2: the Father loveth you. So I don't have to advocate
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  Speaker 2: Jesus speaking. I don't have to advocate for you because
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  Speaker 2: there's an angry Father in heaven that's going to send
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  Speaker 2: lightning bolts if I don't get in the way.
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  Speaker 1: No.
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  Speaker 2: Remember, God is the one who makes the first step.
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  Speaker 2: The Father is the one making the first step, and
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  Speaker 2: he is so in love with us that he gave
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  Speaker 2: us all that we need so that we can be saved.
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  Speaker 2: So it's not like those false gods or those movies
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  Speaker 2: where somebody has to do something because if they don't,
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  Speaker 2: then the big scary tyrant in the sky is going
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  Speaker 2: to send destruction. And now we need an advocate in
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  Speaker 2: that way. No, that's not how it works. God and
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  Speaker 2: the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost are in union. They're
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  Speaker 2: in unity to give us the life that Jesus deserves
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  Speaker 2: so we can be saved. That's the goal. That's the outcome.
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  Speaker 2: And it came from God, not that he needed to
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  Speaker 2: be appeased or convinced somehow. He is the God of
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  Speaker 2: love and peace, and every blessing flows from who He is,
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  Speaker 2: not from what we can offer Him. And so, we
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  Speaker 2: begin now with the Bible book of 2 Corinthians, 2
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  Speaker 2: Corinthians chapter 13, and I will read in verse 11.
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  Speaker 2: 2 Corinthians chapter 13, and I will read in verse 11.
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  Speaker 2: The Bible reads, Finally, brethren, farewell. Be perfect. Did you
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  Speaker 2: get that part? Be perfect, be of good courage or comfort,
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  Speaker 2: be of one mind, live in peace, and the God
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  Speaker 2: of love and peace shall be with you. And so
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  Speaker 2: God is saying, he's talking about through Paul, agape, that
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  Speaker 2: kind of love, that agape love that is self-giving, unconditional,
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  Speaker 2: that seeks the good of the others above the good
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  Speaker 2: of ourselves. Paul uses this word to characterize God himself. So,
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  Speaker 2: we're not talking about just the action of God, which
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  Speaker 2: is critical because we're talking about God here. But he
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  Speaker 2: is using that term, the God of love, it's only
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  Speaker 2: here in Scripture, like it's nowhere else, making it one
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  Speaker 2: of the most concentrated theological statements that Paul has ever written.
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  Speaker 2: So the God of love is agape. He is the
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  Speaker 2: unconditional lover. He is the one that is seeking 100%
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  Speaker 2: the good of those whom he loves. And this is
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  Speaker 2: why Paul uses it. And so the ancient world feared
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  Speaker 2: its gods. I gave allusion to that a little bit earlier.
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  Speaker 2: Paul introduces a God who is love in his very nature,
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  Speaker 2: not love as a reaction to our goodness, not love
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  Speaker 2: as a reward for our obedience, but love as the eternal,
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  Speaker 2: intrinsic character of the one who made us and redeemed us.
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  Speaker 2: This changes everything about how the believer approaches God. So
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  Speaker 2: we're not tiptoeing into his presence, hoping that he won't
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  Speaker 2: destroy us like in the Old Testament when... You know,
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  Speaker 2: the woman who was married to the king appeared before
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  Speaker 2: the king. Like if he extends his scepter, then you're good.
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  Speaker 2: If he doesn't, you're destroyed. That's not what we're talking about.
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  Speaker 2: God is the one who rolls out the welcome mat
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  Speaker 2: through Christ. So we can approach the throne of grace
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  Speaker 2: where we find grace to help in the time of need.
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  Speaker 2: And so what I want you to do thinking this
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  Speaker 2: way now is not to take him lightly, please. That's
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  Speaker 2: not where we're going with this. But approach God today.
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  Speaker 2: I'm talking about go to the throne of grace to God,
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  Speaker 2: not with a posture of someone who's trying to appease
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  Speaker 2: an unpredictable God. You know what I mean? Dodging firebolts
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  Speaker 2: or wondering, like, what is God's will? And I hope
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  Speaker 2: I can say just the right words in my prayer
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  Speaker 2: so I can possibly get what I'm after and avoid
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  Speaker 2: the thing that I hate. That's not it. That's not it.
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  Speaker 2: That's not it. Approach him as a child coming to
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  Speaker 2: a loving father whose very nature is love. Bring your need,
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  Speaker 2: bring your failure, bring your uncertainty to the God of peace.
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  Speaker 2: You don't have to try to appease him by calling
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  Speaker 2: him every name that you have ever read in scripture,
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  Speaker 2: in your lexicon, or your Bible concordance. There are people
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  Speaker 2: who have a habit of doing that, but really you
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  Speaker 2: approach him as Abba. That's an endearing term that simply
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  Speaker 2: means your father. Some of us didn't grow up with that,
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  Speaker 2: and it may be something that you're not accustomed to,
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  Speaker 2: but God is giving us all the opportunity right now
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  Speaker 2: to see him as the loving, loving and endearing father
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  Speaker 2: who only has our best interest at heart. Bring your need,
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  Speaker 2: as I said. Bring your failures. Bring your uncertainty. To
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  Speaker 2: the God of love. Let me read you a quote
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  Speaker 2: now from the book Steps to Christ. That is my
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  Speaker 2: favorite book other than the Bible. Steps to Christ. And
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  Speaker 2: I am going to read from page 11. The book
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  Speaker 2: Steps to Christ. And I will read from page 11.
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  Speaker 2: And it reads, God is love. I like it. This
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  Speaker 2: is his character. The element in which he dwells. His
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  Speaker 2: heart of infinite love is moved by a deep yearning
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  Speaker 2: for those whom he has made. He sends his son
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  Speaker 2: not to condemn, but that the world through him might
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  Speaker 2: be saved. He didn't come to, he didn't send his son.
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  Speaker 2: She's reading it right out of the Bible. God did
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  Speaker 2: not send his son into the world to condemn the world.
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  Speaker 2: but that the world through him might be saved. Aren't
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  Speaker 2: you glad that God loves you so much that he's
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  Speaker 2: doing everything necessary to save you? And so today, I
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  Speaker 2: want you to pay it forward, as we say down
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  Speaker 2: here on planet Earth. Love someone today in a way
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  Speaker 2: that reflects the love within God, the Godhead, freely given,
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  Speaker 2: not earned, not conditional love. And at some personal cost,
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  Speaker 2: let that act be your act of participation in the
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  Speaker 2: life of the God who is love. Y'all make it
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  Speaker 2: a great day.
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  Speaker 1: Thanks for joining us, listening friends. Always remember, we cannot
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  Speaker 1: live by bread alone, but by every word that comes
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  Speaker 1: from the mouth of God. This has been your daily
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  Speaker 1: portion with L.
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  Speaker 2: David Harris.
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  Speaker 1: Make it a great day.