The Greatest of These is Love.

Christ’s Love=Our Foundation

INTRO: What I believe The Spirit spoke to me during “fast” day

Agape vs. Phileo. I think we are for the most part mistaking the two. We are mostly phileo.

1. Love is: A commandment from God

Agape love doesn't always coincide with our natural inclinations, nor is it only for people whom we already have some natural feelings.

Agape love is always about helping.

This commandment is used 19x

1 John 2:7-8 “Beloved, I am writing you no new commandment, but an old commandment that you had from the beginning. The old commandment is the word that you have heard. At the same time, it is a new commandment that I am writing to you, which is true in him and in you, because the darkness is passing away and the true light is already shining.”

Mt 22:36-39 ““Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?” And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” “And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”

Gal 5:14 “For the whole law is fulfilled in one word: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”

Lev 19:18 “You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against the sons of your own people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the Lord.”

Did You Know??

There are actually 11 commandments, not 10.

John 13:34-35 “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.””

2. Love is: Our Foundation

Eph 3:17-19 “so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.”

Rooted and Grounded.

1 Pet 4:8-9 “Above all, keep loving one another earnestly, since love covers a multitude of sins. Show hospitality to one another without grumbling.”

Prov 10:12 “Hatred stirs up strife, but love covers all offenses.”

1 Cor 10:24 “Let no one seek his own good, but the good of his neighbor.”

3. God set the example

John 3:16 ““For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.”

Micah 6:8 “He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?”

The love chapter. The very definition of love.

English Standard Version Chapter 13

The Way of Love

13 If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. 2 And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. 3 If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing.

4 Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant 5 or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; 6 it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. 7 Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

8 Love never ends. As for prophecies, they will pass away; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will pass away. 9 For we know in part and we prophesy in part, 10 but when the perfect comes, the partial will pass away. 11 When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I gave up childish ways. 12 For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known.

13 So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love.

8 things love expels, 4 things it exhibits.

A. Love is patient

It shows great restraint, it never retaliates. Love is never in hurry to punish. David showed this kind of patience when dealing w King Saul. 24x Saul tried to murder David, Never did David try to retaliate. He waited on God’s timing.

B. Love is kind

Jesus life was spent personifying kindness. He healed the sick and set free the oppressed.

C. Love is never envious

The word used her is zeloo which encompasses both envy and jealousy. These are ugly sins, they show up often in our ministry, service or activity were in. This was prevalent in Corinth, where there was envy over their gifts.

D. Love is not arrogant.

It doesn’t like to show off and impress other people.

E. Love Isn’t rude.

It doesn't act or speak in an inappropriate way.

F. Love is not selfish

It Doesn’t demand it’s own way. Its about giving, not receiving.

G. Love is not angry

This for all the “Hot heads” out there. Love doesn't blow up on someone just because you may disagree with them. It doesn’t get all mad just because someone may have forgot to say “hello” to you.

H. Love never holds grudges

The greek word used here is “logizomai” its an accounting term. Love doesn't keep a book and record of wrong doings.

I. Love does not nurture glee to the wrong doing of others

Love doesn’t secretly enjoy the misfortunes of others who have done it wrong. OUCH! We are not to feast on the short comings of others.

The french writer La Rochefoucald said “There is something not altogether disagreeable to us in the misfortune of our best friends.” That should make us shudder a bit!

J. Love expresses itself in truth.

Love doesn’t tell lies, it doesn’t cheat or deceive.

K. Love bears all things.

It covers , it puts a roof over. Jesus sought to “cover

‘ those who nailed him to a tree. He called upon His father to forgive them. We need to remember that were 12 legions of Angels, who with swords drawn were waiting for the command from Jesus to attack .

L. Love’s faith: believes all things

This doesn't mean its gullible, that isn’t what this means. What it means is love gives the benefit of doubt, to believe in best. Love knows how to wait,

M. Love’s future: Hopeth all things

Love is optimistic, it never accepts defeat. It doesn’t forgive just 7x, but 70x7

We treat the word hope as a passive form of defeat, I believe, we use words like “I hope so.” However, hope is a strong word, Jesus second coming is referred to as our “Blessed hope.’ (Titus 2:13) Hope is loves sister, hope and love are both bred by the Holy Spirit in the believer. This was the great challenge of the psalmist in Psalm 42, “Why are thou cast down O my soul? And why are though disquieted in me? Hope thou in God : for I shall yet praise Him for the help of His countenance.” With each wave of depression, he just keeps on saying it.

N. Love endures all things.

Love is strong, it stays for the long haul, no matter what the suffering is. This is the kind of love spoke about in Song of songs 8, the love that is stronger than death, that many waters cannot quench.

This is absolutely missing in today's throw away and get a new one society. Just look at the divorce rate.

O. Love is mature, not childish

1 Cor 13:11 “When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I gave up childish ways.”

1 Cor 13:13 “So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love.”

Love takes precedence over all!

CALL UP WORSHIP TEAM!!

In closing:

1 Cor 13:1-2 “If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing.”

PRAY!!!!