#2 Understanding Love?

*#2 UNDERSTANDING LOVE? SOME HAVE COMPASSION

By Wade Martin Hughes, Sr. Kyfingers@aol.com

Jude 1:22 And of some have compassion, making a difference:

IF SOME HAVE COMPASSION--- IT MUST MEAN SOME DO NOT?

REAL LOVE IS VERY HARD TO DEFINE WITH WORDS...

TO BE HONEST, WORDS CAN NEVER TELL THE MEANING OF LOVE...

Webster defines love as:

1. a feeling of strong or constant affection for a person.

2. the strong affection felt by people.

3. a strong affection arising out of kinship or personal ties.

4. tenderness felt lovers.

5. the assurance of affection.

6. warm attachment, devotion, or admiration.

7. unselfish loyal concern

IN MY OPINION LOVE COULD NEVER BE DEFINED BY WORDS.

LOVE CAN NOT BE SEEN BY EYESIGHT...

I asked someone could you see love?

They said: Yes! You can see love.

I asked: WHAT DOES LOVE LOOK LIKE?

You can not see love, YOU CAN SEE THE EFFECTS OF LOVE...

YOU CAN GIVE AND NOT LOVE...

BUT YOU CAN NEVER LOVE WITHOUT GIVING... (sacrifice)

DO WE LOVE WHAT GOD LOVES? IS OUR VALUE SYSTEM GOD'S?

WE TEND TO SCRATCH WHERE THE ITCH IS...

THERE IS A PURE, UNDEFILED MINISTRY...

WHERE THERE IS LOVE THERE IS UNITY AND ACCEPTANCE OF DIFFERENCES.

WHAT IS THE WILL OF GOD IN THE MINISTRY OF LOVE?

We have many performing great task of trophies and applause.

We are professionals at ENTERTAINMENT and BUDGETS and NUMBERS...

We need all those things, but we CAN MISS WHAT GOD VALUES?

James 1:27 Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the

fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.

We can spend great hours in our offices polishing our skills.

That is great! But we must VALUE WHAT GOD VALUES...

Did the good shepherd leave the 99 for 1?

Do we go after the one dying in the bushes...

Have you ever seen people in love with themselves,

that publicly brag about their fasting..

Matthew 6:16 Moreover when ye fast, be not, as the hypocrites, of a sad countenance:

for they disfigure their faces, that they may appear unto men to fast. Verily I say unto

you, They have their reward. 17 But thou, when thou fastest, anoint thine head, and wash

thy face; 18 That thou appear not unto men to fast, but unto thy Father which is in secret:

and thy Father, which seeth in secret, shall reward thee openly.

THERE IS A LOVE THAT DEFIES LOGIC... GOD LOVE SEEKS NOT ---

Ian Pitt-Watkins adapted a portion from "A PRIMER FOR PREACHERS" ---

There is a natural, logical kind of loving that loves lovely things and lovely people.

That's logical.

BUT THERE IS ANOTHER KIND OF LOVING THAT DOESN'T LOOK FOR VALUE

IN WHAT IT LOVES, BUT THAT "CREATES" VALUE IN WHAT IT LOVES.

Luke 14:11 For whosoever exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself

shall be exalted. 12 Then said he also to him that bade him, When thou makest a dinner

or a supper, call not thy friends, nor thy brethren, neither thy kinsmen, nor thy rich

neighbours; lest they also bid thee again, and a recompence be made thee.

13 But when thou makest a feast, call the poor, the maimed, the lame, the blind:

14 And thou shalt be blessed; for they cannot recompense thee: for thou shalt be

recompensed at the resurrection of the just.

GOD'S LOVE COMES TO US AS A PACKAGE DEAL...

I CAN SAY, I REALLY LOVE GOD, I JUST CAN NOT LOVE PEOPLE!!!

1 John 4:20 If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for he that

loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath

not seen?

1 John 4:20 (NLT) If someone says, “I love God,” but hates a Christian brother or sister,

that person is a liar; for if we don’t love people we can see, how can we love God,

whom we cannot see?

IAN PITT-WATSON TELLS THE STORY OF HER YOUNGEST DAUGHTER, ROSEMARY.

Her daughter was 3 years old when she was given A LITTLE RAG DOLL.

This little girl loved her RAG DOLL so much. She carried the doll all day and

slept with the RAG DOLL at night. This girl had many more expensive toys,

but she loved her RAG DOLL THE MOST.

Rosemary played with the rag doll until it got very dirty.

The RAG DOLL became more a RAG than A DOLL.

They would try to trade her out of this rag doll. She refused.

They TRYED TO WASH THE DOLL, the dirtier the doll became---

The more the girl loved her RAG DOLL.

If they did not clean the doll, the dirt just seemed more and more.