A Life of Love

Does your life show Christ’s love? There is a song called “Do they see Jesus in me”. And it talks about how the person singing once people to see the love of Christ in them. And I want you to think about that, does your life show Jesus? Like I mentioned last week, as far as we tend to talk

John is writing to these believers and is confronting false doctrine. Remember these teachers did not view morals and love as a priority compared to intellect. So last week we talked about the fact that these teachers by their lifestyle were exposing themselves and we understand that we as Christians should be miserable living in habitual sin because of the Holy Spirit. This week he connects following God’s commands to specifically loving others. We should not be surprises because of Matthew 22:36-40 “Master, which is the great commandment in the law? Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.” So we fulfill the law by loving God and loving our neighbors. John is saying that the message they heard from the beginning was loving each other. John 13:34-35 “A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.” Our lives need to show God’s love.

How should our lives should God’s love?

Bad example

What do we know about Cain, he killed his brother. Because he was jealous, resentful, angry and bitter at him for his sacrifice

What does that represent? The world. V. 13 John is saying that we need to not be like Cain, and he is telling them that the world resents Christians. Hate of the world is the exact opposite of the love of God. Christians won’t be bitter for the same reasons that the world is bitter but can be bitter.

Matthew 5:21-22 “Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not kill; and whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of the judgment: But I say unto you, That whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment: and whosoever shall say to his brother, Raca, shall be in danger of the council: but whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall be in danger of hell fire.”

Just as lust is to adultery, hatred and anger is to murder. And just as Cain was bitter against Abel God, so can Christians be bitter against their brothers and sisters, and that bitterness will lead to anger

Can a Christian murder someone? While he was not a Christian, he was a man after God’s own heart, David was a murderer. But a Christian should not have a life that is habitual in hate, if that is the case than they should have doubts about salvation

Hate is incompatible with the Christian life. A live of a Christian should be marked by love.

1 Corinthians 13:1-3 “Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal. And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing. And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing.”

Which is why we need to put those sins of malice and wrath and anger off,

Ephesians 4:31-32 “Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice: And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you.”

Illustration: Anger can cause damage that you don’t realize. I tried to replace our phone batteries, because I use to work on them before at a place where we sold used cell phones online, and I would change some batteries. One time someone accidentally punctured and smoke came out. It can cause explosions. Same way with us. We can be so filled with anger, and bitterness that is just blows up.

Application: Does your life show more anger towards brothers and sisters in Christ? Are you jealous and resentful? Is there bitterness in your life?

Good example

After the bad example of how to love, John gives us a good example, and it is the ultimate example. It is God Himself who shows us what love is, and we need to follow suit

1 John 4:10-11 “Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another.”

Many times we think that love is, but it really is not what the Bible says it is. Entertainment has conditioned us to think that love is a feeling. Well it is not, it is a concerned for one’s well being, and it is an action that gives.

Illustration: When Jesus was tempted by a lawyer who wanted to justify himself, he was asked “who is my neighbor”. Jesus then gives the parable of the Good Samaritan, who gives of his time, and money to help the man who was beaten. That is how we love our neighbor.

John is saying that whoever is able to help someone and does not, than how do they know what love is? If a business man was able to donate some money, but does not, then it shows he loves his money more than people. He loves his money so he gives up his reputation

Application: Are you willing to give up things for your brothers and sisters in Christ? Are you willing to give up your spot, or give up comfort to talk to a new kid? Are you willing to give up your pride and be hang out with someone you are not fond of? Are you loving enough to be patient? Or are you willing to give a little money so someone at camp can get a souveneir? Are you willing to give up your pride and forgive someone who has hurt you? These are ways we can love

James 2:15-16 “If a brother or sister be naked, and destitute of daily food, And one of you say unto them, Depart in peace, be ye warmed and filled; notwithstanding ye give them not those things which are needful to the body; what doth it profit?”

Conclusion: We should love because God showed us love by sending Jesus to die on the cross