INTRODUCTION
IN JOHN 13:34 THE LORD SAYS : "A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another."
HOW CAN ANYONE, EVEN GOD, COMMAND LOVE? AT LEAST HOW CAN ANYONE COMMAND WHAT MOST OF US CALL LOVE -- THAT EMOTION, THAT FEELING OF ATTACHMENT OR ENDEARMENT TO OTHERS? MAYBE JESUS WASN'T TALKING ABOUT THAT WHICH WE TYPICALLY CALL LOVE TODAY.
A. WHAT IS LOVE ANYHOW??
MODERN MAN LOVES EVERYTHING FROM WOMEN TO FRIED CHICKEN -- AT LEAST HE SAYS HE DOES. TO SOME, LOVE IS NO MORE THAN SEXUAL DESIRE. TO SOME, LOVE IS A DEVOTION THAT IDEALIZES AND IDOLIZES THE LOVED ONE AND THINKS THEM PERFECT REGARDLESS OF WHAT THEY DO.
TO OTHERS, LOVE IS A SELFISH SENTIMENT THAT CRIES OUR FOR ATTENTION AND FLATTERY. SOME PARENTS ARE TOO STRICT BECAUSE THEY "LOVE" THEIR CHILDREN AND WANT THEM TO DO EXACTLY RIGHT. OTHERS ARE TOO PERMISSIVE BECAUSE they "love" their children and can't bear to correct them.
some marriages quickly fall apart because they are founded on a greedy, grasping, sentiment called "love" -- others last a lifetime because their love is an unselfish balance of give and take, expressed in mutual submission and sacrifice.
our present society has the connotation of love as being only an emotion or a feeling. it's that lump in your throat, or knot in your stomach when you're in the presence of that certain girl or guy.
it's a warm and passionate embrace between lovers, it's the desire to have or to possess someone as your own for all of life.
but this isn't what jesus is talking about at all. jesus isn't saying that the world will know we're christians because we're always going around kissing and hugging each other. others aren't to know we are his disciples because we always tell each other -"i love you," or because we "feel" warm fuzzies toward them.
the love christ commands is not so much something to feel, as something to do. it isn't so much an emotion as it is an action. the lord himself gave us the gist of love in the sermon on the mount when he said: "Therefore, however you want people to treat you, so treat them, for this is the Law and the Prophets." (Mat 7:12)
Jesus is talking about our behavior, about how we act toward others, how we treat them. That's why Jesus could say: "a new commandment i give to you." you can't command an emotion -- but you can command an action.
the love jesus is talking about here is an act of the will. it represents not so much an
involuntary response to conditions, as it does a deliberate choice, a calculated set of the mind. love is not an emotion, it's a policy.
christian love is not something you fall into. this is why it can be commanded. we need to begin thinking of love as a concept of action and service and ministry governed by the will and intellect, rather than as an emotion governed by fickle feelings and deceptive desires.
one of the greatest temptations on earth is to reduce love to human terms -- to talk love instead of living it. love is something you do!
words are cheap (unless you hire a lawyer). it's easy to talk love.
i saw a comic strip where a young man was declaring his undying love for his girl friend:
"i love you with all my heart," he said, "i love you more than life itself; my love would move mountains and change the course of mighty rivers for you," he says fervently.
to all this, in the second frame, his girlfriend replies, "can you come over Saturday and help me clean the junk out of my garage?"
in the final frame the guy looks up and says, "I hate people who take advantage." (SS 839)
we can talk about how much we love people -- but the bottom line is whether we care enough to know their needs and then do our best to meet them. a man was trying to read a serious book and his little boy kept Interrupting him. he would lean against his knees and say, "daddy, i love you."
the dad would give him a pat on the head and say, rather absentmindedly, "yes, son, i love you, too." and he would kind of give him a little push away so he could keep on reading.
but this didn't satisfy the boy, and finally he ran to his father and said, "i love you daddy," and
he jumped up on his dad's lap and threw his arms around him and gave him a big hug, explaining: "and i just had to do something about it!"
In the same way, as we grow in love, we aren't content with 'small talk love,' or 'pat on the head' love. we want to get involved and 'do something about it.
B. the ancient greeks had four different words for love. they didn't have to ruin one good word by making it mean 20 different things.
1.the first word was storge -- it's used only once in the new testament scriptures, AND means a "family-type love" or affection, the watchful care and concern of parents for their children and the natural bond between family members. this word is translated
"natural affection" and is not something peculiar to christians. (2 tim 3.3)
2. a second word, which is never used in the scriptures, is eros, from which we get our English word "erotic."
this was the greek word for sexual love -- not uncontrolled, animal-like passion, but merely the physical and sexual attraction between a man and woman. many have pictured "eros" as selfish sexual desire, but it meant only "sexual love" and was used of the fulfilling physical union between husband and wife, as well as of illicit sexual activities.
3. a third word, which is used frequently in the pages of the bible, is philia. this is the word for emotional love; for the warmth and affection shared by friends. we usually mean this when we say that we "like" someone. it speaks of companionship, cooperation, and sharing. this is the word that is translated as "brotherly love" in the new testament records.
4. by far the most frequently used word for love in the bible, and the love jesus is commanding here, is agape. it is godly love, unnatural, supernatural love. the kind of love that cares, and doesn't demand a reason to care.
agape was a distinctively christian word, seldom used by secular writers. aristotle caught the feeling of the world when he said, "a man cannot expect to be loved unless he is deserving of love."
but agape says: "i want to help you -- with no strings attached." it is that intelligent goodwill for one, not because of who or what he is or does, but in spite of it. it does not primarily refer to what's going on inside me (i.e. how i feel) but to what's going on outside me -- in what i do.
C. going back to our text, why would jesus say: "a new commandment i give you." WHAT'S NEW ABOUT THIS? HADN'T LOVE BEEN COMMANDED
BEFORE? WAY BACK IN LEVITICUS 19:18, GOD SAID: "you shall love your neighbor as yourself."
THE GREEKS HAD TWO WORDS FOR 'NEW'. NEOS MEANT NEW AS TO ASPECT OF TIME, LATELY MADE, RECENTLY BORN -- i.e. A _________ CAR WOULD BE A NEOS CAR. THE OTHER WORD, KAINOS, MEANT NEW IN THE ASPECT OF FORM OR QUALITY, DIFFERENT IN NATURE, NOT WORN OUT OR MARRED, BUT FRESH AND UNIQUE.
IT IS THIS LATTER WORD THAT JESUS USES HERE. HIS COMMANDMENT WAS NEW AS TO THE QUALITY AND NATURE OF LOVE.
THE LOVE HE WAS COMMANDING HAD A NEW MEASURE,..... IT WAS TO BE LIKE HIS LOVE FOR THEM.
THE LOVE HE WAS COMMANDING SPRANG FROM A NEW POWER, .... THE POWER OF THE HOLY SPIRIT.
THE LOVE HE WAS COMMANDING WAS COMPELLED BY A NEW MOTIVATION, ..... THE SELF-SACRIFICING DEATH OF CHRIST ON THE CROSS.
THE LOVE JESUS COMMANDS IS GIVEN A COMPLETELY NEW MEANING BECAUSE OF HIS EXAMPLE. "Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends." (JN 15.13)
One only needs to read I Corinthians 13 (4-8) to see how new the aspects of this Christ-like Love were. There Paul tells us : "Love is patient, love is kind, and is not jealous; love does not brag and is not arrogant, does not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered, does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never fails." He shows how this new quality is to manifest itself when he says "even as I have loved you." Our love is to be the same in its nature as His love. We are to love with the same devotion and to the same extent as did Jesus.
In John 13:1 we read that he loved His disciples "To the Uttermost" or "to the very end". This was a New command to love because there was never such love manifested before Jesus came. man didn't really know How to love -- that's why God gave the Law. Jesus came and fulfilled the law.
Love is not without Law .... rather, Love is the embodiment of all law. The apostle Paul told the Galatians (5.14) "For the whole Law is fulfilled in one word, in the statement, "YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF."
When we truly love others, No laws will need to govern our behavior or conduct, for love goes above and beyond any law.
This new commandment Summed up and Enveloped All other commandments. When one lives by this love, he fulfills all that god desires for him.
let's take a look at what Jesus had to say in our text:
I. the commandment is "Love One Another."
It may be significant that Jesus uses a verb tense that should be translated "KEEP On loving." Our love for each other isn't to be a one time act, or an occasional thing, but a constant and continuous endeavor. Elsewhere, Paul says: "Let love of the brethren continue." (Heb 13:1) Notice who is to be the object of our love -- One another -- our Christian brothers and sisters. in other places we are told to love all men & even to love our enemies, but here we're simply told to love one another. yet, this is not easy.
The Love that Jesus talks about -- the love which the bible calls agape, or unconditional, godly love -- is a love that is rooted in the will, not in our emotions.
The VERY fact that Jesus must command us to love one another means that this kind of love must be practiced under the most adverse of circumstances.
we don't need to be commanded to love people who are attractive or generous or delightful or kind or helpful or loving.
everybody loves those who love them. our love is different from that of the world.
Jesus said: (Luke 6:32-35) "And if you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. And if you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners do the same. And if you lend to those from whom you expect to receive, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, in order to receive back the same amount.
But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return; and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High; for He Himself is kind to ungrateful and evil men."
the people JESUS commands us to love are those who are unlovely, stingy, nasty, dull, selfish, or downright mean. they are the people in our families, our workplaces, yes, Even in our churches , THAT WE HAVE A HARD TIME LIKING AND GETTING ALONG WITH.
WE ALL KNOW THOSE PEOPLE WHO CAN BRIGHTEN UP A WHOLE ROOM --- JUST BY LEAVING!! PEOPLE WHO ARE SO EXASPERATING, THEY COULD GIVE AN ASPIRIN A HEADACHE!! THESE ARE THE ONES WE ARE COMMANDED TO LOVE, TO CARE FOR, TO MINISTER TO.
ALL PEOPLE NEED LOVE, ESPECIALLY WHEN THEY DON'T DESERVE IT. AND, IF WE WHO ARE CALLED BY THE NAME OF CHRIST DON'T LOVE THEM, WHO WILL?? (#2038; 1158) THEY ARE THE ONES WHOSE PERSONALITIES CLASH WITH OURS. the poet said it this way:
to live above with those we love,
oh, that will be glory.
but to live below with those we know,
well, that's another story!!!
we all know how difficult it is to love unlovely people. here is how one writer described his problem in this area: (STEDMAN 37 P. 2 A) LOVING PEOPLE IS ABOUT THE MOST DIFFICULT THING THAT SOME OF US DO. WE CAN BE PATIENT WITH PEOPLE AND EVEN JUST AND CHARITABLE, BUT HOW ARE WE SUPPOSED TO CONJURE UP IN OUR HEARTS THAT WARM, EFFERVESCENT SENTIMENT OF GOOD WILL WHICH THE NEW TESTAMENT CALLS "LOVE"?
SOME PEOPLE ARE SO MISERABLY UNLOVABLE: THAT ODOROUS PERSON WITH THE NASTY COUGH WHO SAT NEXT TO YOU ON THE BUS, SHOVING HIS NEWSPAPER INTO YOUR FACE; THOSE CRUDE LOUTS IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD WITH THE BARKING DOG; THAT SMOOTH LIAR WHO TOOK YOU IN SO COMPLETELY LAST WEEK --- BY WHAT MAGIC ARE YOU SUPPOSED TO FEEL TOWARD THESE PEOPLE ANYTHING BUT REVULSION, DISTRUST, RESENTMENT, AND JUSTIFIED DESIRE TO HAVE NOTHING TO DO WITH THEM?
HOW ARE WE SUPPOSED TO STIR UP WARM, FUZZY FEELINGS TOWARD SUCH PEOPLE? JESUS' ANSWER:
WE DON'T HAVE TO. IN MOST CASES, WE PROBABLY WILL NEVER BE ABLE TO. THE FACT IS, FEELINGS ARE NOT THE ISSUE. THE LOVE JESUS COMMANDS IS NOT A FEELING. IN FACT, YOU CAN'T COMMAND A FEELING.
The emphasis is not on feeling an emotion of love but In acting in love. C. S. Lewis has a helpful comment on what Christian love involves:
"It would be quite wrong to think that the way to become "loving" is to sit trying to manufacture affectionate feelings.
Some people are "cold" by temperament; that may be a misfortune for them, but it is no more a sin than having bad digestion is sin; and it does not cut them off from the chance, or excuse them from the duty, of learning "love."
The rule for us all is perfectly simple. Do not waste time bothering whether you "love" your neighbor; act as if you did. As soon as we do this, we learn one of the great secrets. When you are behaving as if you loved someone, you will presently come to love them.
If you injure someone you dislike, you will find yourself disliking him more. If you do him a good turn, you will find yourself disliking him less. There is however one exception.
If you do him a good turn, not to please God and obey the law of love, but to show him what a fine forgiving chap you are, and to put him in your debt, and then sit down to wait for his "gratitude," you will probably be disappointed....
But whenever we do good to another self, just because it is a self, made like us by God, and desiring its own happiness as we desire ours, we shall have learned to love it a little more or, at least, to dislike it less. "
THE ISSUE IS OBEDIENCE TO A COMMANDMENT: "LOVE ONE ANOTHER." AGAPE --TO SEEK THE HIGHEST GOOD OF ANOTHER -- EVEN OF THOSE YOU DON'T LIKE.
TO SERVE THEM - EVEN IF THEY NEVER SERVE YOU;
TO MEET THEIR NEEDS - EVEN IF THEY COULD CARE LESS ABOUT YOUR NEEDS;
TO BE KIND - EVEN IF THEY ARE NASTY IN RETURN; TO BE HELPFUL & PATIENT & CORDIAL -- EVEN IF THEY NEVER THANK YOU. AGAPE IS A CHOICE, NOT A FEELING.
LOVE IS SOMETHING YOU DO - A CALCULATED DECISION OF THE MIND, NOT MERELY AN EMOTION YOU DRUM UP OR FALL INTO. WHAT DOES IT REALLY MEAN TO LOVE OUR BROTHERS AND SISTERS IN CHRIST?
IT IS OFTEN IN THE LITTLE THINGS OF LIFE IN WHICH WE SHOW OUR LOVE: SHOVELLING SNOW OR RAKING LEAVES FOR ANOTHER, AN ENCOURAGING WORD, A NOTE SENT, GRATITUDE EXPRESSED, A VISIT OR PHONE CALL TO ONE SHUT IN, A RIDE GIVEN, A TIRE CHANGED, BABYSITTING FREE FOR A TIRED YOUNG MOM. (SS 538)
'EVERY DAY IS A MIRACLE" IS A LOVELY SONG THAT LIVES UP TO ITS TITLE. THE COMPOSER TELLS AN EQUALLY BEAUTIFUL STORY OF HOW HE WAS INSPIRED TO WRITE IT: "DRIVING ALONG A QUIET COUNTRY ROAD, I SUDDENLY REALIZED I WAS LOST. I STOPPED AT A SMALL FARMHOUSE TO ASK FOR DIRECTIONS.
I SAW AN ELDERLY WOMAN SITTING ON THE FRONT PORCH. AN ELDERLY MAN WAS WORKING AROUND THE FRONT YARD AND WHISTLING NON-STOP.
THE WHISTLING WAS LOUD AND CLEAR, BUT IT SEEMED RATHER PURPOSELESS. THERE WAS NO RECOGNIZABLE TUNE; JUST WHISTLING.
WHEN I WALKED UP TO THE MAN, I COULDN'T RESIST SAYING, "I SEE YOU ARE FOND OF WHISTLING."
HE SAID, " OH, IT'S SECOND NATURE WITH ME NOW." THEN, POINTING TO THE WOMAN ON THE PORCH, HE EXPLAINED THAT THEY HAD BEEN HAPPILY MARRIED FOR 38 YEARS WHEN SHE BECAME BLIND. COMING AS IT DID SO LATE IN LIFE, THE BLINDNESS HAD BEEN A VERY FRIGHTENING THING FOR HER AND SHE WAS STILL FEELING A DEEP INSECURITY.
THE HUSBAND SAID, "I FIGURED IF I JUST KEEP WHISTLING WHEN I'M OUTSIDE THE HOUSE, SHE'LL HAVE THE SECURITY OF KNOWING I'M STILL WITH HER. " WHAT THAT MAN WAS REALLY DOING BY HIS CONSTANT WHISTLING WAS SAYING TO HIS WIFE, "DON'T BE AFRAID! I'M HERE, I LOVE YOU."
THE SCRIPTURES MENTION SOME GENERAL PRINCIPLES CONCERNING WHAT LOVE REALLY IS.
WE CAN SEE THEM IN SEVERAL "ONE ANOTHER" PASSAGES. WE ARE TOLD TO:
*SERVE ONE ANOTHER (GAL 5.13)
*ACCEPT ONE ANOTHER (ROM 15.17)
*BEAR ONE ANOTHER'S BURDENS (gAL 6.2)
*SHOW FORBEARANCE TO ONE ANOTHER (EPH4.2)
*BE KIND TO ONE ANOTHER (EPH 4.32)
*FORGIVE ONE ANOTHER (EPH4.2)
*BE SUBJECT TO ONE ANOTHER (EPH 5.21)
*CONSIDER ONE ANOTHER AS MORE IMPORTANT THAN YOURSELF (PHIL 2.3)
*COMFORT ONE ANOTHER (1tHES 4.18)
*ENCOURAGE ONE ANOTHER (HEB 3.13)
*BUILD UP ONE ANOTHER (1THES 5.11)
*LIVE IN PEACE WITH ONE ANOTHER (1THES 5.13) *PRAY FOR ONE ANOTHER (JAS 5.16)
* BE HOSPITABLE TO ONE ANOTHER (1 PET 4.9)
*CLOTHE YOURSELF WITH HUMILITY TOWARD ONE ANOTHER (1 PET 5.5)
*GIVE PREFERENCE TO ONE ANOTHER IN HONOR (ROM 12.10)
*BE OF THE SAME MIND WITH ONE ANOTHER (ROM 15.5)
*ALWAYS SEEK AFTER THAT WHICH IS GOOD FOR ONE ANOTHER (1 THES 5.15)
WHEN WE CONSIDER THESE ADMONITIONS IT IS OBVIOUS THAT LOVE IS MUCH MORE THAN MERELY A FEELING - IT IS NOTHING LESS THAN ACTING IN ANOTHER'S HIGHEST GOOD, DOING WHATEVER IS NECESSARY TO MINISTER TO THEIR NEEDS.
THE THING THAT MAKES JESUS' COMMAND NEW IS
II. THE CRITERION THAT HE USES FOR LOVE.
IT'S THERE IN VERSE 34: "love one another, even as I have loved you," WE'RE NOT LEFT IN THE DARK AS TO HOW OUR LOVE IS TO BE EXPRESSED. CHRIST IS THE CRITERION FOR OUR LOVE. HIS LOVE IS THE MEASURE THAT DEFINES OUR LOVE.
SEVERAL YEARS AGO THERE WAS A BEST-SELLING BOOK CALLED "SITUATION ETHICS" BY JOSEPH FLETCHER.
THE BASIC PREMISE OF THE BOOK WAS THAT THERE IS NO ABSOLUTE STANDARD FOR LOVE -- OR FOR OUR ETHICAL DECISIONS.
THE RIGHT THING TO DO DEPENDS UPON THE SITUATION. FOR FLETCHER, LOVE IS CONDITIONED UPON THE CONDITIONS AROUND US. SOMETIMES, FOR EXAMPLE, IT MAY BE MORE "LOVING" TO LIE TO SOMEONE WHEN THE TRUTH MAY BE HURTFUL. THE PROBLEM WITH SUCH SITUATION ETHICS IS THAT WE BECOME GOD -- OUR OWN JUDGMENT BECOMES THE STANDARD FOR DETERMINING WHAT IS THE MOST LOVING THING TO DO IN ANY GIVEN CIRCUMSTANCE. THIS FLIES IN THE FACE OF WHAT OUR LORD COMMANDED. HIS LOVE IS THE MEASURE OF OUR LOVE, AND HIS TRUTH THE STANDARD OF OUR BEHAVIOR. THE APOSTLE JOHN SAYS: (1 John 3:16 ) "We know love by this, that He laid down His life for us; and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren."
PSYCHOLOGIST WILLIAM C. MENNINGER SAYS THAT THE ONLY WAY TO TEACH LOVE IS BY EXAMPLE -- AND THAT IS EXACTLY WHAT JESUS DID. HE CAME INTO THIS WORLD AND SHOWED US WHAT LOVE IS -- LEAVING US AN EXAMPLE THAT WE SHOULD WALK IN HIS STEPS (1 Pet 2:21) .
OUR LOVE, IF WE UNDERSTAND THIS AND RELATE TO IT, WILL BE LIKE JESUS' LOVE. I DO NOT NEED TO DETAIL FOR YOU WHAT THAT IS. IT TAKES THE WHOLE OF THE GOSPELS TO TELL OF THE MARVELOUS, WONDERFUL LOVE OF JESUS. I SEE AT LEAST FIVE CHARACTERISTICS ABOUT HIS LOVE THAT ARE WORTHY OF OUR EMULATION.
A. FIRST, CHRIST'S LOVE WAS UNCONDITIONAL.
HIS LOVE WAS WITHOUT RESPECT OF PERSONS. HE DID NOT LOVE PEOPLE WHO WERE NICE TO LOVE, AS WE OFTEN DO.
HE CHOSE TO LOVE THE UNLOVELY; PEOPLE WHO WERE REJECTED, DIFFICULT TO LOVE, LOOKED DOWN UPON AND HELD IN CONTEMPT BY SOCIETY.
HE LOVED THEM, NOT BECAUSE HE WANTED THE GOOD FEELING OF LOVE, BUT SIMPLY BECAUSE THEY NEEDED LOVE.
THIS IS THE GREAT CHARACTERISTIC OF HIS LOVE -- IT WENT OUT TO THOSE WHO NEEDED LOVE --- REGARDLESS OF WHAT THEY ARE LIKE, NO MATTER HOW DIRTY, LEPROUS, HURTFUL, PROUD OR UNDESERVING THEY MAY BE.
JESUS KNEW PEOPLE THRU AND THRU, YET HE LOVED THEM. THINK ABOUT HIS OWN APOSTLES. HE LIVED WITH THEM DAY-IN AND DAY-OUT FOR YEARS, KNEW ALL THAT WAS TO BE KNOWN ABOUT THEM, was fully aware of ALL THEIR WEAKNESSES, AND HE STILL LOVED THEM.
THE WORLD LOVES THOSE WHO ARE DESERVING OF THEIR LOVE, BUT OUR LORD LOVED PEOPLE WITHOUT CONDITION. THERE ARE NO "IFS" ATTACHED TO AUTHENTIC LOVE.
OUR SOCIETY HAS TAUGHT US TO SAY: "i LOVE YOU IF" .... YOU DO A CERTAIN THING OR BEHAVE A CERTAIN WAY. AT TIMES, IT IS: "I LOVE YOU BECAUSE" .... YOU DO, OR ACT, OR LOOK IN A WAY I APPROVE.
OCCASIONALLY IT MAY EVEN BE: "I LOVE YOU SO THAT" ..... I CAN GET SOMETHING FROM YOU.
BUT THE LOVE OF OUR LORD WAS UNCONDITIONAL: JESUS SAYS : "i LOVE YOU ... REGARDLESS .... WITH NO STRINGS ATTACHED ... I LOVE YOU -- PERIOD."
AND THAT UNCONDITIONAL QUALITY IS TO BE ONE OF THE MEASURES OF OUR LOVE.
B. SECONDLY, JESUS' LOVE WAS UNSELFISH .
HE LOVED HIS DISCIPLES SELFLESSLY. THE WORLD'S LOVE OFTEN HAS BEHIND IT THE IDEA OF WHAT I WILL GET IN RETURN -- THE HAPPINESS, THE THRILL THAT IS RECEIVED, OR PERHAPS JUST THE IDEA OF AVOIDING THE LONELINESS AND SUFFERING OF NOT LOVING ANOTHER.
OFTEN, THE MOTIVATION BEHIND WORLDLY LOVE IS WHAT IT WILL DO FOR ME, IT IS REALLY OUR OWN HAPPINESS WE ARE SEEKING. LIKE THE WELL-DRESSED YOUNG MAN AT THE AIRPORT.
HE SAT DOWN NEXT TO A YOUNG MOTHER WHO WAS COPING WITH A BABY AND TWO PRESCHOOL CHILDREN. HE STRUCK UP A CONVERSATION WITH HER, MAKING A POINT OF LEARNING THE YOUNGSTER'S NAMES.
SOON, THE BOARDING CALL CAME FOR THE FLIGHT, AND PASSENGERS WITH YOUNG CHILDREN WERE PERMITTED TO BOARD FIRST.
"MAY I HELP YOU WITH rOB AND JENNY?" THE YOUNG MAN ASKED, AND THEN, TUCKING HIS BRIEFCASE UNDER HIS ARM, HE GAVE EACH CHILD A HELPING HAND AND FOLLOWED THE MOTHER AND BABY ONTO THE PLANE. IT WAS AN ACT OF KINDNESS, BUT WAS IT MOTIVATED BY GOODWILL OR SELFISHNESS?? (#203)
JESUS NEVER THOUGHT OF HIMSELF. HIS ONE DESIRE WAS TO GIVE HIMSELF AND ALL HE HAD FOR THOSE HE LOVED.
HIS ONE DESIRE WAS TO DO SOMETHING FOR THEM, SOMETHING THAT HE KNEW THAT HE ALONE COULD DO. JESUS CHOSE TO LOVE MANKIND, WHO HAD NOTHING TO OFFER IN RETURN EXCEPT HIS OWN FRAIL, IMPERFECT, AND FALLIBLE DEVOTION.
MANY TIMES WE THINK THAT THE OPPOSITE OF LOVE IS HATE, BUT THAT'S NOT TRUE. HATE IS A LACK OF LOVE.
THE OPPOSITE OF LOVE IS SELFISHNESS. SELFISHNESS OPPOSES LOVE AS THE FLESH OPPOSES THE SPIRIT. do YOU SEE WHAT THIS MEANS?? IT IS POSSIBLE TO HATE A BROTHER WITHOUT EVER EXPERIENCING TOWARD HIM ANY CONSCIOUS FEELING OF RESENTMENT OR ANIMOSITY.
HEAR THAT AGAIN:
IT IS POSSIBLE TO HATE A BROTHER WITHOUT EVER EXPERIENCING TOWARD HIM ANY CONSCIOUS FEELING OF RESENTMENT OR ANIMOSITY.
LOVE IS CONCERN, SELFLESSNESS -- AND TO BE UNCONCERNED, TO IGNORE OR NEGLECT, TO HAVE OUR THOUGHTS AND ATTENTION FIXED ONLY ON OURSELVES --- IS NOT TO LOVE -- AND NOT TO LOVE IS TO HATE.
JESUS "SPARED NOT HIS OWN LIFE, BUT FREELY GAVE IT UP FOR US ALL." (ROM 8.32) AS JOHN SAYS: (1 John 3:16) "We know love by this, that He laid down His life for us; and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren." WHAT DOES HE MEAN?
ARE WE TO ALLOW OUR HANDS AND FEET TO BE NAILED TO A CROSS FOR A FRIEND? NO, FOR JOHN GOES ON TO EXPLAIN: "But whoever has the world's goods, and beholds his brother in need and closes his heart against him, how does the love of God abide in him?" (1 John 3:17)
JAMES ALSO SAYS: "If a brother or sister is without clothing and in need of daily food, and one of you says to them, "Go in peace, be warmed and be filled," and yet you do not give them what is necessary for their body, what use is that?" (James 2:15-16 )
SUCH UNCONCERN IS HATE -- EVEN THOUGH YOU FEEL NO ANIMOSITY . UNCONCERN SHOWS A LACK OF LOVE -- REMEMBER THE STORY OF THE GOOD SAMARITAN?? THE PRIEST AND LEVITE MAY HAVE HAD NO PARTICULAR ANIMOSITY TOWARD THE INJURED MAN, BUT THEY HAD NO PARTICULAR CONCERN EITHER. THE ONE WHO LOVED HIM WAS THE ONE WHO MET HIS NEED, REGARDLESS OF HOW HE FELT. (LUKE 17.30-37)
C. THIRDLY, JESUS' LOVE WAS UNDENIABLE .
that is, his love was expressed in deeds, not just words. Christ showed his love in practical and concrete ways that no one could deny. true love is always serving, doing, ministering, not just talking.
A "PEANUTS" CARTOON SHOWS SCHROEDER, THE INTELLECTUAL PIANIST, INTENSELY AT PRACTICE OVER THE KEYBOARDS. LUCY, ONE OF SCHROEDER'S GREATEST ADMIRERS, OFTEN INTERRUPTS HIM WITH SOME CURIOUS QUESTION.
ON ONE OCCASION SHE SAYS, "SCHROEDER, DO YOU KNOW WHAT LOVE IS?" HE STOPS HIS PRACTICING, STANDS TO ATTENTION, AND IN VERY SOMBER, STRAIGHTFORWARD TONES, SAYS, "LOVE: NOUN, TO BE FOND OF, A STRONG AFFECTION FOR OR ATTACHMENT OR DEVOTION TO A PERSON."
WITHOUT FURTHER DISTRACTION HE RESUMES HIS POSITION OVER THE KEYBOARD.
LUCY GAZES INTO SPACE IN DEEP REFLECTION. THEN SHE SAYS, "ON PAPER, HE'S GREAT."
HER SENTIMENTS CAPTURE THE WEAKNESS OF ABSTRACT LOVE. IT IS COLD AND CALCULATED, WELL-WORDED, BUT LACKING WARMTH AND GENUINENESS.
SCHROEDER DID WHAT MANY CHRISTIANS DO -- SAID THE RIGHT WORDS, BUT DID THE WRONG THING. WE MUST PUT LOVE INTO ACTION. (#186)
once again, the apostle john says: "Little children, let us not love with word or with tongue, but in deed and truth." (1 John 3:18 )
when we love like our lord loved it will not be mere TALK about love, singing songs ABOUT love, or calling oneself loving and not showing IT.
love will be expressed in deeds. REMEMBER JESUS' words at THE SCENE of the last JUDGMENT WHEN THE SENTENCE is pronounced to those on the right hand of the judge:
" 'Come, you who are blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the WORLD. FOR I was hungry, and you gave Me something to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger, and you invited Me IN; NAKED, and you clothed Me; I was sick, and you visited Me; I was in prison, and you came to Me." (Mat 25:34-36) deeds, not words, are what god LOOKS for when he checks our love. like christ's, it is the practical deeds of service that make our love undeniable.
NEXT WEEK WE'LL CONSIDER THE TWO FINAL ASPECTS OF CHRIST'S LOVE THAT HE MODELLED FOR US TO FOLLOW.
WE'LL ALSO LOOK AT HOW HIS LOVE MOTIVATES US TO LOVE OTHERS, ATTRACTING THEM TO HIM.
HOW ARE YOU DOING FOLLOWING JESUS' EXAMPLE? DO YOU ALLOW HIS SPIRIT TO SHED HIS LOVE ABROAD IN YOUR HEART -- REACHING OUT TO TOUCH OTHERS: TO SERVE THEM, FORGIVE THEM, HELP THEM, PRAY FOR THEM, AND TO BUILD THEM UP BY THE ENCOURAGEMENT OF YOUR CONCERN FOR THEM?
DON'T WAIT UNTIL YOU FEEL LIKE LOVING ANOTHER -- OR YOU MAY WAIT FOREVER. "however you want people to treat you, so treat them, for this is the Law and the Prophets." (Mat 7:12 ) DECIDE NOW THAT YOU WILL NOT BASE YOUR BEHAVIOR UPON YOUR EMOTIONS, BUT UPON THE WORD OF GOD.
"A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another." (John 13:34 ) JESUS NEVER ISSUED A COMMAND WITHOUT GIVING US THE CORRESPONDING POWER AND ABILITY TO OBEY THE COMMAND. DECIDE NOW TO OBEY THE WORD OF THE LORD.
WHO IS IT THAT NEEDS YOUR LOVE -- THEY ARE ALL AROUND US: IN OUR CHURCH; IN OUR FAMILY; AT OUR WORKPLACE; AT SCHOOL.
I CHALLENGE YOU TO BE SENSITIVE TO THOSE WHO NEED YOUR LOVE AND -- LIKE CHRIST -- DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT. "Little children, let us not love with word or with tongue, but in deed and truth." (1 John 3:18)
PERHAPS YOU'RE HERE THIS MORNING AND HAVE NEVER EXPERIENCED THE LOVE OF GOD IN YOUR OWN LIFE. IF THAT'S THE CASE, CHRIST INVITES YOU TO OPEN YOUR HEART AND LIFE TO HIS LOVE. "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life." (John 3:16)
