What Does Love Look Like Series

WHAT DOES LOVE LOOK LIKE?

(Servants and Sacrifice)

Part 1 of 2 part series

INTRO-

Good morning Cross Pointe Church!

Let me begin with, there is a good chance that I will say something that upsets you today.

I might as well go ahead and get it out of the way.

I am not a fan of Valentines Day. It is another one of those made up Hallmark Days designed to take your money or make you feel guilty if you don’t get your spouse something for Valentines Day.

Let me also add, that if you need Valentines Day to show your spouse you love them, you’re doing something wrong!

-Whew, ok. Let’s get to todays’ word!

Key verses are found in Romans 13:8-10

John 13:34-35

Throughout every day, I say to Lisa, “I love you”. I say it so often that it becomes an annoyance to her.

So, sometimes I’ll jazz it up and say “I love you Lisa Louise Hoyland Lentz”. And boy, that gets her every time. It is all she can do to hold back the tears in response to my terms of endearment.

But the truth of the matter is this:

I’m expressing three kinds of love to her when I say “I love you”.

These are all derivatives of Greek words for love.

Philia: deep friendship- She’s my best friend! And you don’t have to get your best friend Valentines Day gifts

Eros: romantic love-maybe a Valentines Day gift here and there wouldn’t hurt, if ya know what I mean!

Agape- which is a sacrificial and unconditional love

Today, we are going to look at that 3rd example of love-agape

The title of today’s message is:

What does love LOOK like?

When I began looking at the word love in the bible, I discovered a few things, that I want to share with you today.

There are 59 “one anothers” in the NT. These all teach us, exhort us, and admonish us how to treat each other.

Let’s look at a few of the “one another” verses beginning with John 13:34-35.

Stand with me as we honor God while reading His Word

In those 2 verses we see “love” or some tense of the word 4 times, and 3 of those are “love one another”.

Think Jesus is trying to tell us something?

Jesus says “a new commandment I give you”, because we have a new standard-the love of Jesus.

A servant-like, selfless love that Christians display toward one another as witnesses to the world as His disciples.

To love one another, we must be unified in Christ.

Paul puts it like this in Ephesians 4:13-15, 29 (bible)

This type of love, agape love; is not a natural love, but rather a super-natural love given to us through the Holy Spirit.

Listen to what Jesus tells us in John 14:15-17 (bible)

We cannot rely on our own human qualities to achieve this higher standard, we must ask for it from God.

Read John 14:12-14

The epistle to the Romans has always been a “power book” for me. On a couple of occasions I’ve mentioned power verses, but Romans is a “power book”.

-What does love look like? Bearing others burdens

Romans 15:1 “we then, who are strong, ought to bear with the scruples of the weak, and not to please ourselves”.

You really have to read ch. 14 to get a grasp of what Paul is conveying here, but a couple of points to consider:

“We then, who are strong”…what makes us strong? I believe what makes us strong is our reliance on Gods’ grace for our salvation. Our FAITH makes us strong!

Here’s another thought that came to me “Could an aspect of Outreach be to bear burdens of strangers”?

Romans 15:7 NASB “Therefore, accept one another, just as Christ also accepted us, for the glory of God.

One day we will be flawless, but in the meantime, we are to accept one another, for God’s glory!

-What does love look like?- Accepting one another!

Let’s look at Colossians 3:16-17 (bible)

Admonish- caution, reprove, warn

Teaching

Wisdom-Greek “skilled in the affairs of life”

For whatever reason, after I read this verse;

Acts 16 came to me.

As a reminder, let me set this up:

Slave girl with a spirit of divination, following Paul, Silas and others.

Finally Paul had enough of her declarations, and told the spirit to come out of her.

Her masters were upset because she was the golden egg.

Went to authorities and told them Paul and Silas were breaking Roman law, and they were arrested.

After arrested they were beaten with rods.

Acts 16:25 “but @ midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God (listen to this)

“and the prisoners were listening to them”.

Read Colossians 3:16-17 (bible)