True Love Reigns Sermon I: Let God's Love Reign In Your Life Series

LET GOD’S LOVE REIGN IN YOUR LIFE

With the dawning of the Christian era, the mystery of history was solved. No longer did believers in the LORD God wonder why we are here and whether there will be a hereafter.

Jesus Son of God solved that mystery by His birth like no other . . . life like no other . . . death like no other . . . resurrection like no other . . . ascension like no other.

History (His Story) was/is the working out of the will of God our Creator until, as Paul put it, “the gathering together of all things in Jesus Christ” (Ephesians 1). The goal of history, therefore, is unity in Jesus Christ! From the beginning to the end of our own story, Christians are involved in His Story. And Love has been, is, and always must be the theme of that amazing story!

“For”, the Bible says, “God is love . . . so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son . . .” And Jesus said. “The Father loves me because I lay down my life . . . As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now, abide in my love.”

Obviously the goal of the Christian life is to abide in our Lord’s love! How is it possible? Granted: God is love . . . “Jesus loves me, this I know, for the Bible tells me so” . . . The thirteenth chapter of I Corinthians tells us what love is. “But I’m not God . . . Jesus . . . perfect! How can I be expected to love like that?”

Jesus was aware of that seemingly insurmountable challenge which would be faced by His chosen ones, so He painted a word picture prior to, leading up to, His command that we abide in His love – John 15:1-10 . . .

As He so often did, Jesus here referenced something which was a part of the religious heritage of the Jews. Over and over again in the Old Testament the nation of Israel is pictured as the vine or the vineyard – familiar sights everywhere in Palestine!

But now Jesus calls Himself the true vine . . . You thought all you had to do was to be born a Jew and thereby you would inherit the kingdom of God. However, your vine has withered, been corrupted, gone to waste. So, my Father planted me in your vineyard so that you can connect to me and become branches of the real vine – one that is everlasting – IF I (Jesus) abide in you and you abide in me.”

As mystical as this sounds, folks, it is so easily understood if we put our minds to it with yet another analogy with which we can identify:

Suppose a person is weak, falls into temptation, begins to spiral downward spiritually. Then he is befriended by a person of Christian character whose influence becomes evident, so that when he is in the company of (hanging out with) that spiritual-minded person, he finds himself becoming more and more like his friend and he begins to “straighten up and fly right”.

As long as he is in the presence of his friend, he is okay, but if the two of them part company for a period of time, that old tendency to sin rears its ugly head and tries to bring him down again. What is the solution to his problem? Spend as much time as he can with friends whose loveliness of character and propensity to do right rubs off on him! Obvious!

What is Jesus saying to us? Stay connected to Me, the true vine. Maintain constant contact with me - the source of spiritual life, the epitome of true love. “Hang out” with me, a friend like no other. What’re you doing? Hanging out with Jesus!

Choose to be in company with Me until you soak up my nature . . . become a product of my nurture, then choose to share the joy of being loved . . . Love is a choice! Choose love in your relationships – John 15:11-14 . . .

“Love” in the Bible is a complex word. There are several variations of it – and they don’t all mean the same thing. To say “I love you” can be an expression of friendship . . . the parting of ways . . . sympathy . . . intimate relationship.

In couples counseling we have identified “love languages” - which differ from one relationship to another, and even between two people who say they love each other. “Why did you two get married?” Inevitably comes the answer, “because we loved each other” - most often with the emphasis on the past tense.