I’ll be honest when I picked up the book From Eternity To Here: Rediscovering The Ageless Purpose Of God by Frank Viola, I didn’t know what to expect. Viola takes readers on a journey to reconnect people with a God who passionately loves them and has a grand mission that includes us all.

Viola explores God and three key themes that are essential to the sweeping story that is told throughout the pages of scripture. These three themes, The Bride Of Christ, God’s dwelling place on Earth, and The Body Of Christ and His family, are key in not only helping us better understand what God is doing but where we as a church and individuals fit into this picture better in this Grand Love story called the scriptures.

It’s about the church and it’s people becoming more than just attendees doing the “things” and “its” that make up a religion. But really what Viola is driving at is that the Church and its people ARE the Bride of Christ, who He passionately loves. They are His dwelling place on Earth, where God lives. They are His body and family. Christ is the center of everything that matters. “From God’s standpoint, the church’s center of gravity is Jesus Christ”

For me personally, this book really opened up an understanding of what it means to be the Bride, The dwelling place, and a part of the Body/Family of Christ. These ideas have been “thrown around” in my church experience but never really fully explained. Viola not only explains them but shows how they tie into the grand Story as a whole.

I found that the more I explored the passages and themes in this book, the more I began to understand more clearly what God’s highest passion and grand mission are and where the church and, more specifically I fit into it. As I read, I got excited as I more clearly understood what God’s passions are and how they include the church. It truly did change my “view of life, church, and our magnificent God.”

I would definitely recommend Frank Viola’s book From Here To Eternity: Rediscovering the Ageless Purpose of God…

If you would like to order the book at a discount at www.FromEternitytoHere.org – it’s also on audio book. Free discussion guide, sample chapters, interviews, and a free audio of the first chapter are available on that site also.

The following bloggers are posting a review or Q & A with Frank Viola on his bestselling book FROM ETERNITY TO HERE today, Tuesday, July 21st.

Jay Becker – www.jaybecker.org
Mark D – http://deadmanstravelog.blogspot.com

Igniting Hearts – Kimber Britner – http://www.ignitinghearts.blogspot.com/

Karyn – http://tiger-kar.blogspot.com

Barefoot Preacher – http://thebarefootpreacher.blogspot.com

Every Day Angels – www.WeAreEverydayAngels.com

FaithEngineer – http://www.faithengineer.com

Kristen Schiffman – http://dancinginthemargins.typepad.com/

CrossPointe: The Church at Bevo – http://churchatbevo.blogspot.com/
Crazy Love for God – crazyloveforgod.blogspot.com

Amazima Ministries – oatsvallteam.blogspot.com

Down to Write Honest – http://downwritehonest.com

A Beautiful Mess – http://blnorth1105.blogspot.com/

The Blakes on a Mission – www.theblakesthailand.blogspot.com

Words by Jud Kossum – http://judkossum.blogspot.com

Eric Jaffe – http://www.ericjaffe.org

2nd Cup of Coffee – http://www.2nd-cup-of-coffee.blogspot.com

Nolan Bobbitt Website – www.nolanbobbitt.com

Klappyanne – www.xanga.com/klappyanne

Daveingland – http://www.daveingland.com

Randi Jo Rooks – http://seedsinmyheart.blogspot.com

Ephesians Five – http://ephesiansonefive.blogspot.com

Michael Bayne – http://www.michaelbayne.net

Encounter Church Helena Blog – encounterhelena.org

Thoughts B4 Conviction N2 Action – tsharrison.blogspot.com

Edevotion – http://www.e-devotion.blogspot.com

Seeking After – http://seekingafter.blogspot.com

Eric Powell – www.encounterhelena.org

Borrowed Light – http://fbcnewlondon.blogspot.com

One of the things I have been struggling and studying through has to do with this idea of loving your neighbors like you love yourself.

I have heard this many times but this time the words, “Like you love yourself” really stood out to me. It seems to me as I ponder this that You need to

1. take care of yourself
2. so that you can serve others and
3. by serving others you are loving them and
4. by loving them you are expressing love toward God

Before this I always looked at this passage as I need to love my neighbor. I never really considered the second half of the verse and what that meant.

So my goal should be to keep myself in good shape so I then can be guided by the Holy Spirit to really love my neighbor in whatever way I am called to. In doing that, I am showing God honor and bring Him glory which is what He is calling me towards…

What do you think?

One of the things that God has really focused my heart toward is learning to love like God does. So today I want to begin a series of posts that first look at defining what love looks like from God’s perspective.

Then I would love to explore what it looks like for us to practically live that out day to day in the 21st century. What’d ya say? Will you join me on this journey to explore love and what the Bible says it is or is not?

First it would be good to define love. For this I dove into a recently acquired copy of the Zondervan Bible Dictionary. Here is a summary of what it said:

Love is the very nature of God – 1 Jn 4:8,16

It is essential to man’s relationship with God – Matt. 22:37-40

All the Law and the Prophets hang on love – Matt 22:40, Rom 13:8-10

In this superior attribute all other attributes are harmonized

Jesus Christ is the unique object of this eternal love – Isa. 42:1, Matt. 3:17, 17:5, Jn 17:5

Love is created in the believer by the Holy Spirit – Rom. 5:5, Gal. 5:22

Love is the chief test of true Christian discipleship – Luke 14:26, Jn 13:35, 1 Jn 3:14