IDENTIFY YOURSELF
John 13:31-35: 31"Therefore, when he was gone out, Jesus said, Now is the Son of man glorified, and God is glorified in him.
32If God be glorified in him, God shall also glorify him in himself, and shall straightway glorify him.
33Little children, yet a little while I am with you. Ye shall seek me: and as I said unto the Jews, Whither I go, ye cannot come; so now I say to you.
34A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another.
35By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another."
When I was working with a company in Nigeria, I was given an identity card. But because we lived, ate and worked together in the yard, we all knew ourselves; all the gatemen and other workers knew me as a Surveyor in that company. So I did not carry any Identity Card because there was no need for it. Of what use then is the Identity Card? None you will agree with me
However, there was another company with a lot of workers; some of my friends were working with this company. They had a swimming pool, and anytime I wanted to use the swimming pool without going through their normal protocols, I would collect the ID card of one of my friends, enter their premises and make use of their swimming pool. I knew what I was doing was wrong, but I always justified myself that I was not going there to steal or destroy their properties, I was only going in to swim. The bottom line was that I used to enter the premises, enjoyed the facilities as one of the members of the staff of the company because I was putting on ID card of that company whereas I was not a member. So of what use again is the ID card? None, you will agree with me.
What identifies you as a Christian? What identifies you as a member of RCCG –Jesus Palace? Today the best way to identify Christians is that they come to church on Sundays, we carry Bibles around, speak in tongues, these are not bad, but we all know that people come to church for different reasons apart from the primary reason of loving God and seeking his presence. I want you to know that in every congregation, every character represented in the Bible from Genesis to Revelation is in the church. Some represent two or more Bible characters. So we have Adams that will be disobedient to God, we have Eves, we have Serpents, we have Cain that is a killer, we have Jacobs that are deceivers, Esaus that they are only interested in food. We have adulterers, fornicators, robbers on the right and left hands of Jesus. We have priests that are only religious. We have business men, Pharisees and Sadducees, Judases that will sell their brothers and we have Judases that will sell Jesus. The families of Sanballat and Tobiah are still with us today. The identity cards they are carrying are like the identity card I was carrying when I was entering another company premises and enjoying their facilities as if I belonged to that company. We may not know you but God knows you and your motives. The way it was possible for me to enter the company premises, so also it was possible for others to enter the same company with fake ID cards and caused problems inside.
However, at the same time, we have the Good Samaritans, Stevens, Josephs, Nehemiahs, people that were once sinners but they have repented. We have people that are looking towards achieving the character of Jesus Christ. We have Davids that are worshippers. Whom do you represent in the Bible?
The passage that we have read said “35By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.” Another version says “This is how everyone will recognize that you are my disciples—when they see the love you have for each other." Another one says “Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples.” Amplified says “35By this shall all [men] know that you are My disciples, if you love one another [if you keep on showing love among yourselves].
I want you to know that God is not a talkative, He speaks only once, let there be light, and there was light, so if God has to repeat something, it is special, if He has to say it the third time, it must be amazingly special. Between verses 34 and 35, Jesus said that we must love one another three times. In the same book of John 15:12, He repeated the same commandment that we should love one another. We can see how important the love of each other is to God.
I want to ask you, are we showing love to one another in this assembly? I want you to personify that question “Am I showing love to other members of this church?
I want to seize this opportunity to thank those that were at Sister Toyin’s house on Sunday. May Almighty God bless you real good. I want to say that I love you all and God loves you all too. I want you to know that even if Toyin or I did not appreciate you, God Almighty appreciates you. That is a way of showing love. I was proud to be a Pastor when I got there on Sunday afternoon and I saw elders of the church in tee shirts and shorts arranging one thing or the other, May the Almighty God bless you real good. The evening when that fire broke out, and I went there, I was thinking that I will be the only one there, I was surprised to see some members of this church already there helping our sister out, they did not wait for the pastor to come first, that is a way of showing love. An injury to someone in this church is an injury to all of us. That is love. I understand that some people have to go to work that afternoon and some came to church from work so they may be too tired to visit her, but I still expect you to give her a call. For those who did not go to work but only felt reluctant to go, that is not good enough. For those who have heard and have not call or shown any concern, that is not good enough. Once again I am very grateful for those who have been there and called, your labor of love will not be in vain. I do not want to mention names, but I will be happy if you can please stand up. For others, please in the name of Jesus, let us demonstrate more love to one another, let us show more love to one another, so that people will know that we are Christians.
Why must we show love to one another? Because it is the basic test of Christianity. Before I can be promoted to second grade, I am expected to pass first grade. The same way, before I can go further in my Christian race, I am expected to love my brother. The basic test of Christianity is love. Two people that were about to marry went for HIV test. They were asked to come back after some days for the results. On getting there the doctor asked the man to come in first, and he told him, that there is good news and bad news. “The good news is that you tested negative to HIV test, which means you have no AIDS but the bad news is that your “wife -to- be” tested positive, that is she has AIDS.” The man shouted Alleluia, praise the Lord. The doctor then asked the man to go and wait outside and called the “wife to be” inside. The doctor also told the wife to be, that “there is good news and bad news, the good news is that you have no AIDS, but your “husband to be” has, the bride also jumped up and shouted Praise be to the Almighty, Alleluia to God. The doctor now called the two of them inside and once again told them that “there is good news and bad news, the good news is that both of you have passed the HIV test, that is both of you do not have AIDS, but you have failed the simple basic test of love. How can you say you love each other when you are happy because you do not have any problem, but your spouse has?” How can you say that you are happy when some members of the church are not and are in need? How can you be rejoicing when your brothers and sister has just suffered a misfortune.
Some people are happy only when evil happens to other members of the church; some rejoice when others leave the church, if you are in this category, you have not passed the basic test of Christianity.
The Bible said in I John 4:20-21 20If anyone says, "I love God," yet hates his brother, he is a liar. For anyone who does not love his brother, whom he has seen, cannot love God, whom he has not seen. 21And he has given us this command: Whoever loves God must also love his brother.
Message version says” If anyone boasts, "I love God," and goes right on hating his brother or sister, thinking nothing of it, he is a liar. If he won’t love the person he can see, how can he love the God he can’t see? The command we have from Christ is blunt: Loving God includes loving people. You’ve got to love both.
Amplified version says 20If anyone says, I love God, and hates (detests, abominates) his brother [[a]in Christ], he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother, whom he has seen, cannot love God, Whom he has not seen. 21And this command (charge, order, injunction) we have from Him: that he who loves God shall love his brother [[b]believer] also.
20 If someone says, “I love God,” but hates a Christian brother or sister,[a] that person is a liar; for if we don’t love people we can see, how can we love God, whom we cannot see? 21 And he has given us this command: Those who love God must also love their Christian brothers and sisters.”
I told you that our primary reason for being here should be because we love God and to seek His presence, so if we cannot love our fellow brethren that we see together, we cannot love God. Loving man means loving God. As you cannot move to the second grade without passing the first grade, so also you cannot move up in your Christian journey without loving your brethren. It goes on to say that if you cannot love the people in this church where you call yourself a Christian, how can you love those that are not Christians that are outside?
Galatians 5:22 says that “the fruit of the spirit is love….”agape love, divine love, strong, tender and compassionate love, devotion to the well being of one another. In doing good to people preference should be given to the members of this church, not to people of your tribe, or tongue or nation. I will not be happy to hear that some people are Igbos while some people are Yorubas, that is not love. That some people are from Nigeria while some are from Ghana, that is not love. Preference should be given to members of your church over any other church.
Galatians 6:10 “As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all men, especially unto them who are of the household of faith.”
Therefore, whenever we have the opportunity, we should do good to everyone—especially to those in the family of faith.
9 -10So let’s not allow ourselves to get fatigued doing good. At the right time we will harvest a good crop if we don’t give up, or quit. Right now, therefore, every time we get the chance, let us work for the benefit of all, starting with the people closest to us in the community of faith.
10So then, as occasion and opportunity open up to us, let us do good [[a]morally] to all people [not only [b]being useful or profitable to them, but also doing what is for their spiritual good and advantage]. Be mindful to be a blessing, especially to those of the household of faith [those who belong to God’s family with you, the believers].
That means that if a member of this church has something to do, for example, some people will be getting married next month, if there is a marriage on that date for another friend who is not a member of this church, preference must be given to the one in this family of faith. Whenever anyone has something good to celebrate and he or she is a member of this church, it is your duty, it is not whether he is my friend or my tribe or tongue, it is not whether you like him or not, it is compulsory that you are there to celebrate with that person. If someone buys a house, car or any form of celebration, we are supposed to be there to celebrate with him, rejoice with him. Some people are not in the church this Sunday; do we bother to call so as to know what is happening to them? And we say we love each other. Whatever is happening to someone is happening to all of us. By this, the world we identify us as Christians.
I want to read from I Corinthians 13:1-8, then 13
I want you to collect at least 5 telephone numbers of people that you have never called before and before the end of the week give them a call. If possible pray with each other. God will help you as you that in Jesus name.
Our thanksgiving, tithes, offering, praises and worship are not acceptable to God if we have bitterness, hatred and unforgiveness towards one another. Matthew 5:23-24 says “Therefore if thou bring thy gift to the altar, and there remembered that thy brother hath ought against thee; leave there thy gift before the altar and go thy way; first reconciled to thy brother and then come and offer thy gift.” If you have a problem with a brother or a sister in this church please settle with him or her before we leave the church today in Jesus name. Also settle with others that you have problems with that are not members of this church. By this you will prove to the world that you are a disciple, a disciplined follower of Jesus Christ.
Lastly, it is difficult for our prayers to be answered if we do not love each other. It is difficult for God to love us if we do not love one another. I have told you this story before. God sent an angel of death to go and destroy a city, when he got there in the morning, some were just coming from night vigils, some were just going for the early morning service, he found them singing and praising to God, and he believed that God must have made a mistake, etc. the angel went back to God that He must given him a wrong zip code, but God said that there was no mistake, he went back again in the afternoon, he found them still praying to God and yelling that they really love God, he went back again and told God again that there must have been a mistake, but God still asked him to destroy the city, when he got there again in the night, it was still worshipping and praising the Lord, however he destroyed the city according to the instruction of God. After the destruction of the city, he asked God why He would destroy a city where they loved Him so much and God replied that “because they do not love themselves”
How can you say you love God when you do not love your brother and your sister?
Let us rise.
