Love Conquers all

Communion Scripture:

1 John 3:1 (CSB)

See what great love the Father has given us that we should be called God’s children—and we are!

Sermon:

I was probably about ten years old when I did something that changed my life. I was at home after school with my two younger sisters. Our tiny brother was with our mom. I had responsibility for them and the sister that was about 5 years old was not doing what I said. I have no idea what she said that made me so angry, but I picked her up and threw her up against the wall. She started crying and my anger scared me so badly that it took years for me to fully understand that on that day I began to shut down any anger inside me. I was afraid of my own anger.

15 years later, at age 20, my sister died. We had reconciled and I never did anything like that again, but it still makes me sad to know I treated her that way when we were young.

I tell you this story because today I will talk about love.

1 Corinthians 13:5 (NASB 2020)

It does not act disgracefully, it does not seek its own benefit; it is not provoked, does not keep an account of a wrong suffered,

On that day so long ago, I...

Acted disgracefully

Sought my own benefit

Was provoked (easily angered)

Proved I was keeping score of each time she wronged me

On that day, I did not LOVE my sister!

I must share with you a second story that happened when is was a young man. Cathy and I were visiting her grandparents with our three young children. At that time, I was in school, studying the Bible in preparation to become a pastor. I had only preached a few times and it was an honor when the small church which Cathy’s grandparents attended asked me to preach on the Sunday we were there.

I made a huge mistake! I didn’t understand much about people back then and was blind to the fact that Cathy’s grandpa was an angry, bitter old man. Knowing that I was going to preach, he filled my mind with stories of how bad and sinful the church was. We attended that Sunday and I preached them a sermon about how much wrong and evil they had and how much they needed to repent.

But I did not preach with LOVE!

1 Corinthians 13:4 (NASB 2020)

Love is patient, love is kind, it is not jealous; love does not brag, it is not arrogant.

On that day...

I was not patient

I was not kind

I was filled with pride

I was arrogant

Today, I want to talk with you about the power of love in the church. Over time, God has been changing my heart. He has taught me to listen — REALLY LISTEN — to people before I judge them. It is easy to be angry at people who disagree with us, but we must learn to hear their hearts and love them. That is the way Jesus loves!

LOVE CONQUERS ALL

What love does not look like.

1 Corinthians 13:5–6 (NASB 2020)

5 ... does not keep an account of a wrong suffered,

Has someone wronged you in the church? Do you continue to tell others about how the person hurt you? Do you secretly hope for the person who hurt you to be hurt? All of these show you are not loving as Jesus taught.

Luke 6:27–29 (CSB)

27 “But I say to you who listen: Love your enemies, do what is good to those who hate you, 28 bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. 29 If anyone hits you on the cheek, offer the other also. And if anyone takes away your coat, don’t hold back your shirt either.

6 it does not rejoice in unrighteousness...

Let’s say you were hurt by someone, then you see that person in a car accident. Do you quietly rejoice that they have been hurt since they hurt you before?

That is NOT love!

2. What love does look like.

1 Corinthians 13:6–7 (NASB 2020)

6 ...rejoices with the truth;

What if a fellow believer says to you..

I hate my neighbor.

I’m struggling with addiction.

I stole money from work.

What does it mean to rejoice in those things? Many years ago, a man in our church came to talk with me. He confessed that he was struggling with sexual desire for other men. As he shared his story with me, he went all the way back to his childhood. A family member he deeply loved was very depressed and had lost all hope. The man explained that he was a young boy at the time and was playing outside. His family member was inside the house. Suddenly a loud bang came from inside the house and the boy ran inside, discovering his loved family member had committed suicide. The man was in his 30s when he told me the story and was still broken.

How could I rejoice in that truth? Looking back, this man was able to open up to me about his childhood pain and his sexual struggles. He wasn’t instantly delivered that day, but it was a beginning for him to know how much God had always loved him. The truth sets people free. Love rejoices in people opening up about their hurts and struggles.

7 Love keeps every confidence,

If someone shares something private with you and you share it with another, THAT IS NOT LOVE. People need to trust you as someone who will hear their painful stories, pray with and for them, and not go talking about them to others.

Love believes all things,

Belief (or trust) is one of the first gifts we should offer people. If someone has proven to lie over and over again, we need to speak the truth in love. “I want to trust you, but you will need to earn that trust again by telling the truth and keeping your word.”

If someone comes to you and gossips about someone you love, you can either believe what you know about the person you love or you can believe the gossip. Sometimes, you must say to the gossip, “I won’t be a part of this conversation.”

Love hopes all things,

When we really love someone, we will hope for the best in them.

Love endures all things.

When someone we love is struggling, we will want to stand with them and help them find their way through the difficult time.

If this is what love looks like, why is there so little of it in the church? Why do we judge and criticize each other without really listening to the struggles we each have? Why are we so quick to speak without listening? Why do we not open our hearts to each other? Why do we often fear what others will think or say if we are honest about what is happening inside us?

Matthew 22:39 (NASB 2020)

The second is like it, ‘YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF.’

Could this be our problem? That we don’t love ourselves correctly? Loving ourselves means having a deep level of affection for ourselves. We can never know that kind of confidence-building love for ourselves if we don’t believe in God’s love for us.

1 John 3:1 (CSB)

See what great love the Father has given us that we should be called God’s children—and we are!

Here is an important question:

Are you still trying to be good enough for love which God has freely given you?

Before you were born, He loved you!

Before you ever sinned, He sent His only son and died for all your sins!

Before you ever knew you needed Him, He sought you and invited you to come to Him for His love and forgiveness.

Before you repent of sins, He is already looking forward to forgiving you and setting you free.

All these things we have read about love ARE THE WAY HE LOVES YOU!

People were so attracted to Jesus, not because He was a great teacher and did miracles, but because He loved! He loved because He was confident in the love His Father had for Him. Do you have that kind of confidence or are you still trying to earn His love? The more we know Jesus, the more we are free to love others and hope for the best from them.