Love that Connects, (I)
(Romans 12:9-12)
1. This past week, Hannah had a little trouble with her car…..it would grind when she turned…..thought to check the power steering fluid…..
2. One of our friends in the Chicago area is terrible about maintaining things…..older car…out of oil….burned out the engine…
3. In a sense, the church is like a car engine. A bunch of parts must work together in a coordinated fashion.
4. And, like a car engine, the friction can destroy the machinery if the oil is low.
5. And that oil, folks, is the type of love that comes from bonding together.
6. How does today’s text fit into context? We talked about finding a Biblical self-esteem through involvement in the church.
7. The church should give ample opportunities for folks to use their gifts and talents.
8. But sometimes the hand says to the foot, “I don’t need you.” Maybe the hand doesn’t value what the foot brings. This is a common problem in churches today.
9. The solution is the oil of love.
Main idea: Most Americans cannot fathom a group of unrelated people of different age groups, classes, and cultures with differing talents and interests who have been glued together by a common faith in Jesus Christ. But this kind of bond -- the kind God wants a church to have -- can become reality if we follow God’s directions.
I. We Must Love Without HYPOCRISY (9-10)
1. Examples
• Negatively: JUDAS and his kiss
The Greek word for “hypocrisy” literally means to take the role of a play actor
• Positively: JESUS who gave His all for us
2. This love must be SINCERE, not play acting
• Racial, social, or ethnic prejudice are examples of hypocrisy
• Islam is famous for ignoring race because of a common faith; Christians, unfortunately, do not have that track record.
The pilot was Jewish, and the co-pilot was Taiwanese. It was the first time
they had flown together, and it was obvious by the silence that they didn’t
get along.
After 30 minutes, the Captain finally spoke. He said, "I don’t like Chinese."
The co-pilot replied, "Ooooh, no like Chinese? Why is that?
The pilot said, "You guys bombed Pearl Harbor. That’s why I don’t like
Chinese."
The co-pilot said, "Nooooo, Noooo... Chinese not bomb Pearl Harboh. That
JAPANESE, not Chinese."
The pilot answered, "Chinese, Japanese, Vietnamese... it doesn’t matter.
They’re all alike."
Another 30 minutes of silence. Finally the co-pilot said, No like Jew."
The pilot replied, "Why not? Why don’t you like Jews?"
"Jews sink Titanic."
The pilot tried to correct him. "No, no. The Jews didn’t sink the Titanic. It
was an iceberg." "Iceberg, Goldberg, Rosenberg. No mattah..all same!
From Sermon Central
• Love means we do not just care what people do for us, but we care about THEM personally….
3. It thrives on DEVOTION
Greek: kolla’omai = “to glue, cement together”
• Too many Christians are like wooden blocks rather than plywood: they detach themselves and continuously recombine; they cannot seem to get attached.
4. It seeks to HONOR others
• Just as the opposite of love is not really hatred but indifference, so the opposite of honoring others is ignoring others; if you ignore people in the church, if you do not make an effort to get to know them, you are not honoring them….
• It is human nature to be obsessed with honoring ourselves…but the church is about developing others, not just ourselves…
• Whenever we take our focus off of developing others and demand the church meet our needs or wants, we have missed the boat….
• Honoring others is not just speaking honorably, although this is included; it is holding their spiritual well being in esteem
Application: This kind of love takes blatant honesty with ourselves! We must recognize that we are selfish creatures and, rather than live in denial, choose to check ourselves…
this kind of bond -- the kind God wants a church to have -- can become reality if we follow God’s directions.
II. Our Zeal Should Be GENUINE (11)
1. Example: MIRIAM (cf. Ex. 15:20-21)
2. The Greek word literally means BOILING (Ze’o)
3. It includes spiritual FERVOR
4. It demonstrates its genuineness in SERVICE to the Lord It is the opposite of spiritual slothfulness.
• Some Christians think of God’s work as slipshod and anything goes. I am not into the “excellence” thing, but I am into the “put your heart into it” thing. What we do for God, we should try to do well.
5. Must be grounded in truth (Romans 10:2)
Application: This takes monitoring. Confession. Prayer. Times alone with God…and lots of good spiritual input…..and serving. People who serve grow in zeal; people who sit on the sidelines grow in demands…and criticize those who are serving…
this kind of bond -- the kind God wants a church to have -- can become reality if we follow God’s directions.
III. Our Approach to Life Ought to Be POSITIVE (12)
For some of us, this comes naturally; for others, it is hard work to stay positive!
1. Example: Paul through many hardships said, “Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead… (Phil. 3:13)
2. Joyful in HOPE,
The opposite is to be miserable without hope, and to think the worst of situations.
3. PATIENT in affliction
Patience is connected to hope. Patience basically is a variation on the theme of delayed gratification; we endure now because we believe good times are invariably ahead – if not in this life, then in the next…
3. FAITHFUL in prayer
Faithfulness is simply faith put into action for the long term. If faith is a sprint, then faithfulness is a marathon….
To be faithful in prayer means to stick with it…to develop good routines
Some people find one or more the following helpful:
(1) Scripture prayer books and other written evangelical prayers….Ken Boa books
----“Making it Happen” for family prayer…booklets on the counter
(2) Intercessory prayer lists and our e-mail prayer chain…
(3) Praying with the family or a prayer partner….
4. Put them together, and what do you think of you when hear: Joy, Patience, and Faithfulness? The kind of person you want to be, and the kind of person you want to marry, and the kind of person you want for a friend!
this kind of bond -- the kind God wants a church to have -- can become reality if we follow God’s directions.
CONCLUSION
So where are you? Are you going out of your way to connect, to care, to cultivate.
Or is church just a compartment that is part of your life, like shopping?
The New Testament church was more than a congregation. It was a community. Are you a practicing part of it?
