Genuine Expressions Of Love

INTRO.- Genuine expressions of love.

ILL.- A man at work decided to show his wife how much he loved her, and before going home, showered, shaved, put on some choice cologne, and bought her a bouquet of flowers. He went to the front door and knocked. His wife answered the door and exclaimed, "Oh no! This has been a terrible day! First I had to take Billy to the emergency room and get stitches in his leg. Then your mother called and said she’s coming to visit for 2 weeks. Then the washing machine broke, and now this! You come home drunk!"

Genuine expressions of love. At least, that husband tried.

ILL.- Another man came home from work one day very tired, but his eyes lighted up as he stepped inside his house and saw a beautiful cake with seven candles on it setting on the kitchen table. He exclaimed, "A birthday cake! Whose birthday is it?"

"Oh," his wife replied nonchalantly, "the cake is for the dress I’m wearing. IT’S SEVEN YEARS OLD TODAY."

Genuine expressions of love.

Genuine expressions of love could be lots of things. Material gifts, but much more.

ILL.- A number of years ago (1986), U.S. Senator Jake Garn of Utah did something that most of us admire - HE DONATED ONE OF HIS ORGANS TO SAVE A LIFE.

A survey says that 73 percent of Americans approve of organ donation, but only about 20 percent actually sign donor cards and make arrangements for the donation of our organs.

In Senator Garn’s case, however, he did not wait until his death to donate his left kidney. His 27 year-old daughter, Susan Garn Horne, suffered from progressive kidney failure due to diabetes.

Jake Garn and his two sons were all found to be compatible donors. The senator insisted that he should be the one to give the kidney. Garn said, "Her mother carried her for nine months and I’m honored to give her part of me."

So, on Sept. 10, 1986, in a Washington hospital, a six-hour surgery was performed to remove one of his kidneys and implant it into his daughter. BOTH WERE FINE AFTER SURGERY.

A doctor reported after the surgery, "The senator is awake and has a bit of a grin on his face. HE SEEMS VERY SELF-SATISFIED, HAPPY AND PEACEFUL."

Talk about a genuine expression of love! You can’t get much better than that.

PROP.- From our text in II Cor. 6, I would like for us to consider some genuine expressions of love.

1- Avoid being offensive

2- Attend to others

3- Speak your love

I. AVOID BEING OFFENSIVE

ILL.- A college professor said to his students, "If there are any dumbbells in the room, please stand up.” There was a pause and a lone freshman stood up at the back of the room. The professor said, "What? Do you consider yourself a dumbbell?" The student replied, "Well, not exactly, but I hate to see you standing all alone."

Calling someone a dumbbell or a dummy would be offensive. Watch your words! Don’t be offensive with your words, because you may have to eat them! Don’t be confrontational. Not only will you offend people, but you will also end up picking on someone who is bigger than you some day.

II Cor. 6:3 "We put no stumbling block in anyone’s path, so that our ministry will not be discredited."

The Living Bible reads, "We try to live in such a way that no one will ever be offended or kept back from finding the Lord by the way we act."

The apostle Paul did not have an attitude nor need an attitude adjustment. He did not think or act, "Well, I’m going to do as I please. I’m going to do and say what I want, no matter what others may think."

That’s the attitude that some people have. They don’t care who they hurt or how they hurt others.

Whenever we go around cutting people down verbally, we are not loving them. We are being offensive. LOVE DOES NOT PURPOSELY OFFEND OTHERS.

Avoid being offensive to others. WATCH YOUR MOUTH. Watch your words. Watch what you say and how you say it.

Prov. 10:19 "When words are many, sin is not absent, but he who holds his tongue is wise."

Watch your steps as well. We offend with our words and with our actions.

Rom. 14:13 "Therefore let us stop passing judgment on one another. Instead, make up your mind not to put any stumbling block or obstacle in your brother’s way."

Paul didn’t want to be offensive. He was willing to give up things in his life if he considered them to be a stumbling block to others. The principle is this: If we love people genuinely we’ll eliminate things in our lives that might keep them from following Christ.