Christ's Love - A Call To Action

Christ’s Love – A Call to Action

John 13:34-35

“So now I am giving you a new commandment: Love each other. Just as I have loved you, you should love each other. Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples.”

There are several actions steps we can take to love like Jesus loved.

Live a Life of Love

Ephesians 4:32-5:2 - Paul admonishes Christians in Ephesus to get rid of all bad behavior. “Instead, be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you. Follow God’s example in everything you do, because you are his dear children. Live a life filled with love for others, following the example of Christ, who loved you and gave himself as a sacrifice to take away your sins. And God was pleased, because that sacrifice was like sweet perfume to him.”

A Jewish Rabbi once commented to a well-known pastor that if Christians were just kind to each other he might consider the teachings of Jesus in the New Testament.

Paul gave the key to living a life of love. We are to follow the example of Jesus. “Be kind to each other…”

You live a life of love when you show consideration and politeness to others.

Not long ago I mentioned in one of our services that because I showed consideration to a waitress I had the opportunity to pray with her.

I ordered a couple sand witches to go at the Blue Rock Café. While I was waiting for the order I thought I would show kindness by giving the waitress a good tip just for bringing me the order to where I was waiting. When she brought me the order to go I thanked her and gave her a nice tip. Along with the tip I gave her an invitation card. She looked at the card and saw the cross on top of the church steeple of our church picture. She said a friend that week had given her a cross on a chain to hang around her neck.

I shared some scripture that related to the cross and asked her if she had anything she would like for me to pray with her about. She said she had two requests. First, for her teen age boys and second that she would do a good job working as a waitress. She had some other questions and she told me she needed to get back into church. I thanked her for bringing me the order and was about ready to leave. She said, “You forgot to pray with me.” So we bowed in prayer at the table where I was setting and had prayer for her teenage sons and success in her work.

Being polite and thoughtful opened doors for prayer and encouraging words.

When you are polite and look your waitress or waiter in the eye and say “Thank you.” You add vale to them. When you talk to people and look them in the eye you are saying, “I value what you have to say. I accept you and want to hear you.”

We live a life of love by following the example of Jesus. Jesus saw potential in every person who was searching for truth. Jesus saw leadership potential in ordinary fisherman. He saw the possibility of integrity in Matthew a tax collector. He saw generosity in Zachaeus who had made his living by cheating people out of their hard earned money. He saw the possibility of a transformed life in a prostitute. Jesus saw the hope of a new life in a man, Saul, who woke up every day with an agenda to arrest and put in jail all followers of Jesus. Paul became a great church planter and missionary in the Roman world.

A three year old was on the heels of her mother everywhere she walked around the house. Time and time again she’d trip over her small son. She suggested her son play with his toys, but he said he was okay and said, “I’d rather be here with you.” Then he continued to bounce happily along behind her.

After stepping on her toes for the fifth time, she began to lose patience. The mother asked him why he was acting this way and he looked up with his soft blue eyes and said, “Well, Mommy, my Sunday school teacher told me to walk in Jesus’ footsteps. But I can’t see Him, so I’m walking in yours.”

Living a life of love is walking in the steps of Jesus and doing our best to honor the Lord in all we do and say.

The first action step of Loving like Jesus loves is living a life of love. The second action step is