Video Transition: Word on Love - Skit guys
Sermon: Love Like Jesus pt. 2
Thesis: To be able to “Love Well” means I embrace the 4 letter word, “Love” with its original definition and application given it by God. The sad reality is the word, “Love” has been twisted and distorted by this secular world and God is reclaiming its original definition. This broken world needs to experience God’s love through Jesus and through His followers.
Jesus was God’s Love personified in the flesh for all to see, hear, touch, smell and taste! John 3:16 makes this point clear: 16“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”
Personification of love defined:
To “personify” is to represent a quality or concept by a human form. In a story, it is to have a character which embodies a character trait like “Love” or some other thing that must be communicated to the audience with clarity about what “love” looks like – acts like – or even is. That person in the story speaks and acts out what “Love” is, revealing the nature of that quality to the observers or readers. The gospels are a historical account of a man/God who embodied far more than good qualities. Jesus Christ personified the essence that sustains the universe (Hebrews 1:3) which is God who is love. The life of Christ personified Divine Love in the flesh, thus Jesus personified God Himself (John 14:9) who is “The Love.” The life of Jesus Christ provides that context for Divine Love, that it can be fully disclosed to men – you can experience it in the 5 senses. Jesus said, “No man can come to the Father, except through me.” (John 14:6) The bible says “God is Love” (1 John 4). Without meeting the Christ of the gospels, mankind has little clue as to what that means. The Love that Christ embodied described for mankind a supernatural quality, the Divine essence of God Himself. It was Christ’s life that fully revealed God, the incarnation of His Love.
This is why John says in 1 John 4: 7 Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. 8 Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. 9 This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him.
The above was taken and adapted from https://brotherreuben.wordpress.com/2012/08/16/life-of-christ-love-personified/
Scripture Texts:
Matthew 19:19: Jesus said to the rich man, “… and ‘love your neighbor as yourself.”
Matthew 22:36-40: Jesus responded to the religious leaders of the day, “36 “Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?” 37Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ 38This is the first and greatest commandment. 39And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ 40All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”
John 13:34-35: Jesus said, “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”
Introduction:
LOVE’s original definition is spelled out in Scripture – it is not complicated - “God is love” says 1 John 4:8 or to reverse this thought and make a point “Love is God!” God created and defined what Love is and what it should look like, and act like in this fallen world. John 1:1 tells us Jesus and God are one which also implies that Jesus is God’s love manifested in the flesh – in other words a recognizable expression of love in the flesh that all can see and model of God is found in Jesus.
Rick Warren in his book The Purpose Driven Life says, “Life is all about love!” “Because God is love, the most important lesson he wants you to learn on earth is how to love. It is in loving that we are most like him, so love is the foundation of every command he has given us; ‘the whole Law can be summed up in this one command; ‘Love others as you love yourself” (123)… “Love should be your top priority, primary objective, and greatest ambition” (124). Why Warren says, “Life without love is worthless” (124).
Point: Jesus is the personification of God’s love in the flesh for us to see, hear, taste, smell and even touch.
This means when we carry out an act of love it demonstrates the qualities and attributes of God modeled by Jesus who dwells in us through the Holy Spirit – Note: When we accept Jesus as our Lord and Savior the Bible tells us that the Holy Spirit moves into our temple – our body – which encompasses heart, mind, soul and spirit.
T.S. - So today I want to explore Jesus’ Exemplary Model of Loving Well.
If we really want to pursue Loving Well in 2022 then there is no better place to look than Jesus himself – God’s personification of love in the flesh to us!
One important observation we can make about Jesus’ approach to loving well is that His work with people was a process. We sometimes think Jesus spoke and people were changed immediately – Yes, that happened for things like – healing and miracles - I saw him heal people like this in Scripture with a word, command or action, I read about how he spoke to the storm and it obeyed immediately – but when it came to people and loving them well it was always a process.
Please note the following points are taken, adapted and quoted from Norman Wright’s book:
THE COMPLETE GUIDE TO CRISIS &
TRAUMA COUNSELING WHAT TO DO AND SAY WHEN IT MATTERS MOST! UPDATED & EXPANDED
© 2011 H. Norman Wright
Published by Bethany House Publishers
11400 Hampshire Avenue South
Bloomington, Minnesota 55438
www.bethanyhouse.com
Jesus model on how to love well! Last week we explored How Jesus was a role model for Love: (Summary of last week point 1-4)
1. Jesus Was Compassionate (The Mercy Giver):
a. There is an expression in the Gospels that appears only 12 times and is used exclusively in reference to Jesus and His Father.
i. That expression is “to be moved with compassion.” A basic characteristic of Jesus’ approach was His compassion for others. We see His compassion expressed in the New Testament:
1. Jesus said, “I feel compassion for the multitude because they have remained with Me now three days, and have nothing to eat” (Mark 8:2, NASB).
2. Jesus in another situation had compassion, “And when He went ashore, He saw a great multitude, and He felt compassion for them because they were like sheep without a shepherd; and He began to teach them many things” (Mark 6:34, NASB).
3. Be compassionate as your Father is compassionate (Luke 6:36).
T.S. – Jesus was compassionate – He was the love of God in the flesh – people knew He loved and cared for them - This leads us into how Jesus loved others by accepting them right where they were at – a second observation of His ability to love well is His open arm policy.
2. Jesus Accepted People (The man with the open arm policy)
a. When Jesus first met people, He accepted them as they were. In other words, He believed in them and in what they would become. The characteristic of acceptance is seen throughout the New Testament.
i. Zacchaeus, the dishonest tax collector (see Luke 19:1-10).
1. Was an outcast in his society but Jesus embraced Him and loved him – even invited himself over to his house for dinner. This act of love – outraged the religious rulers – because in their view God would have nothing to do with a person like this.
2. By the way these types of individuals were not accepted by the majority of the religious leaders of the day – or even political leaders of the day! But Jesus accepted them and embraced them.
T.S. – Jesus accepted people – he touched them, accepted them, prayed for them, talked to them and showed them love and respect and yes, He even healed them. This act of loving well in turn told everyone watching and listening that Jesus gave people value and worth! It changed many of their lives to know Jesus loved them no matter what or were they had come from!
3. Jesus Gave People value – worth (The self-esteem booster)
a. One of the ways Jesus gave worth to people was to show them their value in God’s eyes, by comparing God’s care for other creatures with God’s care for them:
i. Jesus said in Matthew 10: “28Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell. 29Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from the will of your Father. 30And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. 31So don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.”
1. At the heart of many people’s problems today in our society is a low self-esteem or a feeling of lacking any worth and value in their lives.
b. The Bible tells us we are children of God – part of the family of God!
i. How about that for royalty and value and worth?
c. Do you give people worth and or value?
T.S. – Jesus gave people value – eternal value and in the process of accepting others, valuing others He met people’s needs.
4. Jesus Met People’s Needs (The Need Buster)
a. Another characteristic of Jesus’ ministry of loving well was His ability to see the needs of people and to speak directly to them, regardless of what they might have brought to His attention in the moment.
i. Jesus feeding the crowds a couple different times as they were in remote places. Doing this miracle was loving people well!
ii. Jesus and the man with Leprosy
1. Mark 1:40-42 NIV) A man with leprosy came to him and begged him on his knees, “If you are willing, you can make me clean.” Filled with compassion, Jesus reached out his hand and touched the man. “I am willing,” he said. “Be clean!” Immediately the leprosy left him and he was cured.
a. Rick from http://todaysword.org/2012/10/08/jesus-love-personified-and-grace-exemplified/ makes this observation:
i. A Jewish leper, had an infectious and highly contagious disease that attacked his skin and central nervous system. The same laws he observed as a child – the laws he loved for making him different from the Gentiles – became laws he grew to hate as they kept him from his loved ones. Once tainted with leprosy he was no longer clean. Once branded as a leper he was no longer welcome… not even in the homes of his family members. He was a prisoner in his own dying and decaying body. As his flesh ate away at itself his heart ate away at his soul. I am sure he longed for the normalcy most loathe. He wanted so badly to be normal, to be clean, to be considered human again, to be allowed back into society.
b. He challenges us to see this scenario: Can you picture him? Can you see him? His muscles have atrophied from the harrowing effects of the disease. His eyes have dark circles around them because he can’t remember the last time he had a good night’s sleep. All his hope is gone, most of his energy is gone, and when he heard about a miracle worker it took all he had to raise his desire for what could be his last chance for a breakthrough.
i. Have you ever met a leper – I have when I ministered in India – tell, the story.
c. When the leper made it to Jesus he fell at his feet and begged for help. His statement exposes the fact that he had already resolved within his heart that Jesus was bigger than his disease.
i. Love is greater than disease – rejection – emotional wounds – loneliness.
2. Mark 8:1-4 –another instance of a leper coming to Jesus. Lepers were outcast in Jesus’ day – Jesus reached out his hand touched the leper and he was healed!
a. A religious leader or most any other person would never touch a leper!
b. But Jesus the personification of love touched the untouchable.
i. He healed numerous people of leprosy.
iii. Jesus and the Centurion – meeting the need of Roman soldier
1. Mark 8:5-13 The Centurion would have been a Roman Officer who had the faith and boldness to go ask Jesus to heal his paralyzed servant – Jesus met the need and healed the servant from a distance because of the faith of this Roman officer.
2. Jesus met the needs of all people – to the Jews the Romans were evil and they would not help them – Jesus met everyone’s need.
a. He even compliments the soldier on his faith!
Video Illustrations: From - The Chosen “Jesus Loving Well.”
#1: The healing of the Leper
#2: The calling of Matthew (tax collector)
T.S. – Jesus met the needs of people to show them He loved them and to show us how to love well too – he met needs, but he also used the right words to connect with people – Do you recall what I said about Jesus loving well? “I said it was always a process for Jesus in loving others well and trust me words matter through the process.”
(Sermon #2)
5. Jesus Used the Right Words (The Word Smith)
a. Sometimes Jesus spoke directly, sometimes even harshly. Other times He was soft-spoken. Sometimes He conveyed His feelings nonverbally: For example: And after looking around at them with anger, grieved at their hardness of heart, He said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” And he stretched it out, and his hand was restored (Mark 3:5, NASB).
i. Jesus did this on the Sabbath driving the religious leaders mad – but Jesus knew what to say and how to handle this situation – He always when confronted by the religious leaders came up with the right words to say in the moment.
1. Jesus always based His choice of words and inflection of voice on the situation at hand. If we want to love well we must do the same!
2. We must be Word Smith’s if we want to “ Love Well.”
b. The Bible has a lot to say about words:
i. Proverbs 11:9 “Evil words destroy one’s friends; wise discernment rescues the godly.”
ii. Proverbs 15:4 “Gentle words bring life and health; a deceitful tongue crushes the spirit.”
iii. Proverbs 16:24 “Kind words are like honey – sweet to the soul and healthy for the body.”
iv. Proverbs 18:21 “Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruit.”
v. Proverbs 18:4 “A person’s words can be life-giving water; words of true wisdom are as refreshing as a bubbling brook.”
vi. Proverbs 12:18 “There is one who speaks rashly like he thrusts of a sword, but the tongue of the wise brings healing.”
vii. Luke 6:43-45 “For there is no good tree which produces bad fruit, nor, on the other hand, a bad tree which produces good fruit. For each tree is known by its own fruit. For men do not gather figs from thorns, nor do they pick grapes from a briar bush. The good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth what is good; and the evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth what is evil; for his mouth speaks from that which fills his heart.”
T.S. – Jesus choose His words wisely to love others well and so should we but note he did always emphasize right behavior as a key to loving God and loving others too.
6. Jesus Emphasized Right Behavior (The Behavior Modifier) (Loving Well speaks the truth about God’s expectations of His followers)
a. Jesus said to the woman caught in adultery, “Go, and sin no more” (John 8:11, KJV).
i. He treated her with respect.
ii. He defended her to the religious leaders.
iii. He did not condemn her but forgave her with a condition “Go, and sin no more.”
1. Jesus always loved others but reminded them to obey the commandments, act right, be right.
b. Scripture: John 5: 1-15:
i. 1Some time later, Jesus went up to Jerusalem for a feast of the Jews. 2Now there is in Jerusalem near the Sheep Gate a pool, which in Aramaic is called Bethesda and which is surrounded by five covered colonnades. 3Here a great number of disabled people used to lie—the blind, the lame, the paralyzed. 5One who was there had been an invalid for thirty-eight years. 6When Jesus saw him lying there and learned that he had been in this condition for a long time, he asked him, “Do you want to get well?” 7“Sir,” the invalid replied, “I have no one to help me into the pool when the water is stirred. While I am trying to get in, someone else goes down ahead of me.” 8Then Jesus said to him, “Get up! Pick up your mat and walk.” 9At once the man was cured; he picked up his mat and walked. The day on which this took place was a Sabbath, 10and so the Jews said to the man who had been healed, “It is the Sabbath; the law forbids you to carry your mat.” 11But he replied, “The man who made me well said to me, ‘Pick up your mat and walk.’” 12So they asked him, “Who is this fellow who told you to pick it up and walk?” 13The man who was healed had no idea who it was, for Jesus had slipped away into the crowd that was there. 14Later Jesus found him at the temple and said to him, “See, you are well again. Stop sinning or something worse may happen to you.” 15The man went away and told the Jews that it was Jesus who had made him well.
1. Question: I find it amazing that Jesus asked this man if he wanted to be healed – Why would he ask such a ridiculous question. Does not everyone want to be healed? Putty has made a great case for the Integrated model of healing and the many layers of healing – if you observe Jesus you discovered healing is a process for some people and the sticks of damage or brokenness need to be pulled back a layer at a time.
a. God knows the condition of our souls by the way – And our soul is connected to our emotions and mindset which will impact our behavior.
b. The Holy Spirit sees into the soul and He knows what it is focused on and dwelling on! But, He is also willing to bring healing to the soul (which is connected to your emotions) if we let him! So the question becomes “DO we want to be healed?” If so then sometimes Jesus says do the right thing stop sinning..
2. This why Jesus asked the man at pool, “Do you want to get well” See John 15:1-15!
a. Did you notice his response to Jesus – no one will help me into the pool – sounds resentful – blaming others for not caring!
b. He even said they push me aside and get in the pool before I can get in to be healed!
i. To me he seems like he is lashing out at the others who get to the pool first.
c. I also find it interesting Jesus “Healed Him” -but he had to first pick up the mat of affliction – action point on his side of the equation for healing – then later afterwards he finds Jesus and Jesus says, “I See you are well but stop sinning or something worse may happen to you!”
i. Why would Jesus say that to this healed man?
1. What was his sin? Can I guess at it – Maybe the blaming of others for not getting his healing, resentfulness, maybe even unforgiveness to others who would not help him?
2. So, think about it! What do you think his sin was? Why did Jesus make this comment to him?
c. Jesus’ desire was that those who were seeking Him would turn from their wrong ways. He expected those who received God’s love and forgiveness would want to change their destructive ways out of experiencing the love of God. They once they experienced love they would no longer stay in their sin.
T.S. – Jesus loved well by emphasizing right behavior and by getting people to accept responsibility.
7. Jesus Encouraged People to Accept Responsibility (The Counselor)
a. In John 5, Jesus responded to the man at the pool of Bethesda by asking, “Do you want to get well?” (v. 6). By asking this question, Jesus sought to have the man accept responsibility for remaining sick or being made well.
b. In another instance, He asked a blind man, “What do you want me to do for you?” (Mark 10:51).
i. In loving someone well, the person, couple or family must see that they need to make a choice to remain the same or to change and grow; and they must make that choice before much progress will be seen.
ii. A goal of loving well, as you will see, is to help the person in need accept and take responsibility.
c. Apparently today in our society, we believe that by some magic, the law of consequences doesn’t apply to us or anyone else.
i. I can spend without getting into debt.
ii. I can lie without getting caught.
iii. I can let my temper fly without damaging my relational life.
iv. I can have a bad attitude at work and get away with it.
v. I can avoid disciplining my children without their getting spoiled.
vi. I can neglect the Bible and still know God.
vii. I can steal and not be held accountable.
viii. Our capacity to live in denial about the law of consequences is huge and is damaging to the soul. In the Bible it takes God a long time to teach the human race about this!
1. Above taken from Ortberg, John (2014-04-22). Soul Keeping: Caring For the Most Important Part of You (pp. 90-91). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.
d. Acts 5:1-11 ESV Story of Holy Spirit holding people accountable.
i. But a man named Ananias, with his wife Sapphira, sold a piece of property, and with his wife's knowledge he kept back for himself some of the proceeds and brought only a part of it and laid it at the apostles' feet. But Peter said, “Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and to keep back for yourself part of the proceeds of the land? While it remained unsold, did it not remain your own? And after it was sold, was it not at your disposal? Why is it that you have contrived this deed in your heart? You have not lied to men but to God.” When Ananias heard these words, he fell down and breathed his last. And great fear came upon all who heard of it. ...
e. READ: 1 Timothy 4:12-16, 2 Corinthians 12:7-10, Romans 8:37, Philippians 3:13-14
i. Quote devotional from https://newspring.cc/fuse/devotionals/it-starts-with-me/taking-responsibility:
1. If you want to do all that God has called you to do so that He gets the glory and you get the joy, then it starts with you taking responsibility for your life. There comes a point in time when you have to man (or woman) up and take responsibility for your own life. That time is now. No more can you blame your parents, your teachers, or lack of opportunities, for who you are or who you are becoming. The Bible tells us that “we are more than conquerors” through Christ, which doesn’t leave much room for excuses (Romans 8:37). Jesus said it, so we better believe it! Too often people allow the past circumstances to determine the future outcome. The only power that your past has over your future is the power that you give it. God has a great plan for your future so quit making excuses as to why or how you can’t get there. Take responsibility for the person you are today and trust that God will provide you with all you need to become the person He is calling you to be. Jesus doesn’t agree with our excuses nor does He affirm us when we play the blame game. As He said to Paul, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness” (2 Corinthians 12:9). Your weaknesses are simply opportunities for Jesus to reveal His grace in your life.
f. Application of this point: Do you recognize any situation, limitation, or person in your life who you’re blaming for how things have turned out for you? Instead, choose to take responsibility for your life and trust that Jesus will turn any weakness into a strength for His glory and for your joy.
T.S – Jesus encouraged people to take responsibility and he also provided them hope!
8. Jesus Provided Hope (The Hope giver)
a. Someone has wisely stated that if you could convince a man that there is no hope, he would curse the day he was born and then give up. Hope is essential in loving well.
b. To many people, Jesus gave hope: And they were even more astonished and said to Him, “Then who can be saved?” Looking upon them, Jesus said, “With men it is impossible, but not with God; for all things are possible with God” (Mark 10:26-27, NASB).
i. With God there is always hope!
c. Hope is essential – it’s a commodity missing for many in society – we need to be dispensers of Hope.
i. Got Questions.com states this about Hope:
1. The Bible has quite a lot to say about hope. Biblical hope has as its foundation faith in God. The word hope in English often conveys doubt. For instance, “I hope it will not rain tomorrow.” In addition, the word hope is often followed by the word so. This is the answer that some may give when asked if they think that they will go to heaven when they die. They say, “I hope so.” However, that is not the meaning of the words usually translated “hope” in the Bible.
2. Got questions explains the true meaning of Hope: In the Old Testament the Hebrew word batah and its cognates has the meaning of confidence, security, and being without care; therefore, the concept of doubt is not part of this word. We find that meaning in Job 6:20; Psalm 16:9; Psalm 22:9; and Ecclesiastes 9:4. In most instances in the New Testament, the word hope is the Greek elpis/elpizo. Again, there is no doubt attached to this word. Therefore, biblical hope is a confident expectation or assurance based upon a sure foundation for which we wait with joy and full confidence. In other words, “There is no doubt about it!”
a. One of the verses in which we find the word hope is Hebrews 11:1. “Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.”
3. The definition of Biblical Hope: Therefore, biblical hope is a reality and not a feeling. Biblical hope carries no doubt. Biblical hope is a sure foundation upon which we base our lives, believing that God always keeps His promises!
a. The above taken from https://www.gotquestions.org/Bible-hope.html
d. Jeremiah 29:11: 11For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.
T.S. – Jesus always gave people hope and so should we if we want to love well! But to Love Well we must be encouragers.
9. Jesus Encouraged People (The Motivator Coach)
a. Jesus regularly and inclusively encouraged people around Him: “Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you, and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart; and you shall find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy, and My load is light” (Matt. 11:28-30, NASB).
b. Jesus seemed to use three types of encouragement to love well and make disciples - according to https://rickhowerton.wordpress.com/2015/12/08/disciple-making-and-encouragement-3-practices-of-jesus/:
i. Encouragement to move forward in faith – In Matthew 14 Jesus comes walking on water. He approaches his disciples who had gone ahead of Him in the boat. When Peter sees Jesus he cries out, ““Lord, if it’s You, command me to come to You on the water.” Jesus encourages Peter to move forward by simply stating, “Come!” Scripture then describes what Peter did, “And climbing out of the boat, Peter started walking on the water and came toward Jesus.
1. Disciple makers who aid those they’re discipling to become mature disciples don’t keep them in their comfort zones, they encourage them to move into dangerous places in faith.
ii. Encouragement to embrace a new identity – Matthew 16 describes a moment in time when Jesus called Simon by his new name, Peter. The HCSB Study Bible describes what took place, “Although Matthew previously referred to Simon as Peter, this is the first time in the Gospel that Jesus did so. Jesus identified Peter as the rock on which His church would be founded.” (p.1644)
1. Jesus revealed Peter’s new identity. Peter, a man who was once flagrantly and outrageously spastic in his ideas and actions, went on to lead the early church. Jesus gave Peter a new identity and it changed Peter’s perspective of himself and his role in the Kingdom of God.
2. Each time a discipler reminds a disciple of their new identity in Christ, that they are Jesus’ ambassador, His child, His priest, and His bride, the disciple steps up and lives the life of a true disciple of Jesus Christ.
iii. Encouragement to forgive themselves.
1. Jesus did this with Peter after he denied him three times.
T.S. – Jesus encouraged people and he connected encouragement with peace of mind!
10. Jesus Emphasized Peace of Mind (The Prince of Peace)
a. Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you; not as the world gives, do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, nor let it be fearful (John 14:27, NASB).
i. If there is one thing a person who needs to be loved well and usually does not have, it is peace of mind. Jesus offered that hope. Our task in loving well is to help others discover it.
b. This world needs peace - that peace comes from Jesus and loving others well.
T.S. – Jesus connected peace of mind to renewing of the mind and how we view the world.
11. Jesus Helped Reshape, or Refashion, People’s Thinking (The Mind Renewer)
a. Jesus helped people redirect their attention from the unimportant things of life to the important (see Luke 5:22-25; 12:22-27).
b. He taught that focusing on treasures in heaven instead of on earthly treasures would lead to a joy-filled heart (see Matt. 6:19-21).
c. The truth is every one of us whether we know it or not have a worldview. There are no exceptions here everyone has one whether we admit it or not.
i. The authors of biblicalworldview.com state, “Our worldview is the set of presuppositions and beliefs that we use to interpret and form opinions and values concerning life, humanity, family, authority, justice, truth, duty, etc. Our worldview is the “big picture” and culmination of all our beliefs. It is the way we understand reality. It is the basis from which we make daily decisions.”
1. So, our worldview makes a huge difference in the way we approach and live our life! We see through politics and elections how different people’s worldviews are – and many of us say “They are so blind – how can they think that way!” The truth is that person has a different starting point than you do as a Christian. We always start with the foundation of the Bible but others do not and this is why they think differently than we do about serious societal and political issues.
ii. But we need to understand that worldviews do matter in the entire scope of any society – it determines culture – it determines right and wrong - it determines policy – it determines belief systems – family systems – political systems and many more systems in society. It will also determine the health of a society. Opposing worldviews will always collide bringing turmoil, arguments, war, fights, tensions, political dissension and disunity.
1. Do you recall the holiday gatherings when family members with different worldviews clashed over mashed potatoes and Turkey dinner? Do you recall the tension and heated arguments – the family members who left early that night or day! They were most likely clashing over opposing worldviews.
iii. There are 5 key areas which determine our worldview according biblicalworldview.com:
1. God - Is there a personal, transcendent Supreme Being to whom we are all accountable? If so, what is this God like? If not, then what? etc.
2. Creation - Where did the world come from? What sustains it all? Is there a spiritual part of reality or is it all material? etc.
3. Humanity - Who are we? What gives us any unique value? etc.
4. Moral Order - Who makes the rules? Do some rules apply to everyone? etc.
5. Purpose - Why do we exist? Who determines this?
iv. So, let’s now look at what really is a Biblical Worldview!
1. Question to explore: What is a Biblical Worldview?
a. So, what is a Biblical Worldview? A Biblical Worldview is a comprehensive understanding of the world that is formulated by the authority of the Bible (The Word of God) and the person of Jesus Christ (The Word of God).
b. According to Ken Ham creator of the Creation Museum and Ark Encounter and from his book: Divided Nation - cultures in conflict and a conflicted church – He states emphatically that there are two main worldviews in conflict in our society today – He says the battle is between – “God’s Word and Man’s Word!” He believes that you either believe the whole Word of God or you buy into one of Man’s fallen worldviews which are influenced by Satan himself.
d. Jesus sought to help people see things from God’s view! This is loving well by the way! People need to see through the eyes of God - Who is Love.
T.S. – Jesus loved well by helping people see things through a Biblical perspective as God sees and He did this speaking with authority all along the way.
12. Jesus Spoke with Authority (The Word of Life - Mighty God)
a. Another characteristic of Jesus’ approach was that He spoke with authority. He was not hesitant, backward or bashful; He was authoritative: For He was teaching them as one having authority, and not as their scribes (Matt. 7:29, NASB).
i. Why because He was God in the flesh!
b. Jesus was very conscious of His authority.
i. Those who know Christ and are called to a ministry of helping to love well have the authority of God’s Word behind them.
T.S. – Jesus spoke with authority and in doing this He loved well – giving people the truth that would set them free – so even in loving well there is also a thing called tough love.
13. Jesus Admonished and Confronted (The truth teller- The dispenser of tough love)
a. Notice how Jesus, when necessary, admonished and confronted people: And He said to them, “Why are you timid, you men of little faith?” Then He arose, and rebuked the winds and the sea; and it became perfectly calm (Matt. 8:26, NASB).
b. And if your brother sins, go and reprove him in private; if he listens to you, you have won your brother (Matt. 18:15, NASB).
c. Another example of how Jesus admonished and confronted is in John 8:3-9: And the scribes and the Pharisees brought a woman caught in adultery, and having set her in the midst, they said to Him, “Teacher, this woman has been caught in adultery, in the very act. Now in the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women; what then do You say?” And they were saying this, testing Him, in order that they might have grounds for accusing Him. But Jesus stooped down, and with His finger wrote on the ground. But when they persisted in asking Him, He straightened up, and said to them, “He who is without sin among you, let him be the first to throw a stone at her.” And again He stooped down, and wrote on the ground. And when they heard it, they began to go out one by one, beginning with the older ones, and He was left alone, and the woman, where she was, in the midst (NASB).
d. Sometimes it is necessary to confront the person you are loving well directly about his or her problem.
e. There are times you need to expose the White Elephant in the room.
Conclusion:
What do we need to know from this message?
Answer: Jesus was God’s love personified in the flesh and studying the life of Jesus you learn how to love well. His love was associated with action! To learn how to love well we have to start with Jesus and learn from Him.
Why do we need to know this?
Answer: We cannot love well if we do not do what Jesus did and learn the steps to Loving Well!
What do we need to do?
Answer: Love well like Jesus and learn from Him. Then we have to do it!
Why do we need to do this?
Answer: Because loving well is what will change the world and others. Loving well opens the eyes of others to the amazing love of God. Loving well will also change our lives!
