What Love Will Do For You
Notes
Transcript
Introduction
Introduction
11 For this is the message that ye heard from the beginning, that we should love one another. 12 Not as Cain, who was of that wicked one, and slew his brother. And wherefore slew he him? Because his own works were evil, and his brother’s righteous. 13 Marvel not, my brethren, if the world hate you. 14 We know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren. He that loveth not his brother abideth in death. 15 Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer: and ye know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him. 16 Hereby perceive we the love of God, because he laid down his life for us: and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren. 17 But whoso hath this world’s good, and seeth his brother have need, and shutteth up his bowels of compassion from him, how dwelleth the love of God in him? 18 My little children, let us not love in word, neither in tongue; but in deed and in truth. 19 And hereby we know that we are of the truth, and shall assure our hearts before him. 20 For if our heart condemn us, God is greater than our heart, and knoweth all things. 21 Beloved, if our heart condemn us not, then have we confidence toward God. 22 And whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because we keep his commandments, and do those things that are pleasing in his sight. 23 And this is his commandment, That we should believe on the name of his Son Jesus Christ, and love one another, as he gave us commandment. 24 And he that keepeth his commandments dwelleth in him, and he in him. And hereby we know that he abideth in us, by the Spirit which he hath given us.
Do you want to have the assurance that you are Heaven born and Heaven bound?
Do you want to have great boldness in your faith? Boldness that gives confidence that you absolutely know your prayer will be answered?
Do you want to have sweet communion with the Lord? For the Lord to not be somebody you just read about or hear about, but for the Lord to be real in YOUR life?
We all need assurance, confidence, and communion in our every day lives, and there is a key to having those three things; that’s what we are talking about tonight…The key is LOVE!
Let’s take a look at these verses tonight on the thought of “What Love Will Do For You” -
Before we can get into the main thought of the message, there is a foundation that must be laid...
Verse 11 tells us that John is not preaching a new message, but the same message we have heard from the beginning…Things have not changed!
He begins by giving us a Biblical illustration of a picture of what love is not…
Adam had two sons: one was a MARTYR and the other was a MURDERER. Cain slew Abel back in Genesis 4...
The first murder was over religion. That is what the Bible says here.
Cain hated Abel’s religion and Able was a martyr for the faith. False religion is almost always murderous—you know why? It comes from the Devil. In Jn. 10:10, Jesus said the devil is a thief that comes to kill and steal and destroy.
Hatred is a trait of the world…Verse 13 tells us to not be surprised at, overwhelmed with, or taken back by the fact that the world hates you!
Even if the world hates us, we are still to love others and live for Jesus.
Now, you might say, preacher, I’ve never killed anyone. But John goes to say in verse 15 that if you have hate in your heart, God put it down in His Word that it’s murder.
There are many people in our churches today that say they are children of God, yet they have hatred in their hearts for their fellow man. I’ve even hear it from Pastors and preachers, but the Bible says you can’t have it that way!
To build this foundation, we have murder, we have hatred, then we have indifference in verse 17...
Many people would say, I am not a murderer. I don’t hate people. I just go my way. I do my thing and I let them do their thing. You are indifferent and that is not of God.
A true child of God doesn’t have these traits according to Scripture, a true child of God doesn’t have murder, hatred, or indifference, but they have love!
Let me tell you what love will do for you…It’s not murder, hatred, or indifference, but we are going to see that love will give you a good conscience, a great confidence, and a gracious communion.
I-A Good Conscience
I-A Good Conscience
And hereby we know that we are of the truth, and shall assure our hearts before him.
What causes your heart to condemn you? Lack of love.
When you have malice in your heart; when you have hatred in your heart; you have a condemning heart.
The words “conscience” and “heart” are used to describe the same thing.
When you have love in your heart, you will find your conscience is going to be clear. Your conscience is not your enemy. Your conscience is your friend.
It is something unique God put us...
Man has a conscience. It is that part God put in you to contemplate your actions and make moral judgments.
The Bible teaches we should all have a good conscience.
19 Holding faith, and a good conscience; which some having put away concerning faith have made shipwreck:
16 And herein do I exercise myself, to have always a conscience void of offence toward God, and toward men.
There is absolutely no way you can have a good conscience without love. When you love you will make it right.
If you don’t have assurance; if you are doubting your salvation and you have given your heart to Jesus Christ, you better check up and see if there is some bitterness in your heart; some unforgiven sin in your life —it will destroy your assurance. You’ll have assurance if you have a good conscience!
19 And hereby we know that we are of the truth, and shall assure our hearts before him. 20 For if our heart condemn us, God is greater than our heart, and knoweth all things.
Your heart will condemn you and you will never, never have a good conscience until you learn to love.
When you love, truly love; when you have made it right, you are going to have that sweet assurance.
This is the first legacy of love and these are going to build one upon another.
II-A Great Confidence
II-A Great Confidence
And hereby we know that we are of the truth, and shall assure our hearts before him.
For if our heart condemn us, God is greater than our heart, and knoweth all things. Beloved, if our heart condemn us not, then have we confidence toward God.
Notice how one falls into another.
First of all, my heart does not condemn me and when my heart doesn’t condemn me I have confidence toward God—boldness.
This confident heart that comes out of a clear conscience is what helps you to pray and get your prayers answered,
There is nothing like living life pleasing to the Lord. When we know that we have obeyed the Lord Jesus: done what He wanted us to do, said what He wanted us to say, given what He wanted us to give, went where He wanted us to go, and lived as He wanted us to live, then our hearts have great confidence in coming to the Lord in prayer.
I once read a story about an evangelist had preached on the Christian home.
After the meeting a father approached him. He said, ‘I’ve been praying for a wayward son for years and God has not answered my prayers.
The evangelist read Psalm 66:18, “If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me.” He asked the man, ‘Be honest with yourself and the Lord, is there anything between you and another Christian that needs to be settled?’ The father hesitated and then said, ‘Yes, I’m afraid there is. I’ve harbored resentment in my heart against another man in this church.’
The evangelist counseled the man to go and make it right and then he prayed with the man. Before the revival was over, the father saw his wayward son come back to the Lord.”
How do you get your prayers answered? Have a good Conscience. Well, what does that do? It gives you great Confidence.
You can come to God and ask in His name and get your prayer answered.
Love gives a Good Conscience and then love gives a Great Confidence.
Thirdly, we see...
III-A Gracious Communion
III-A Gracious Communion
And this is his commandment, That we should believe on the name of his Son Jesus Christ, and love one another, as he gave us commandment. And he that keepeth his commandments dwelleth in him, and he in him. And hereby we know that he abideth in us, by the Spirit which he hath given us.
When I learn to love and live by love, I am going to have a good conscience.
And when I have a Good Conscience I am going to have a Great Confidence and then I can have a Gracious Communion.
The Holy Spirit is the One that enables and empowers us to live for Christ, serve Him, and love others. He helps us to have a living message. He lives or abides within the Christian and the Christian abides in Him.
Lehman Strauss wrote, “Right belief will result in right behavior. It is useless for one to try to testify of his faith in Christ if he has not love for Christ’s own. The two are regarded here as inseparable. Therefore it is useless to look for brotherly love unless there be first faith in Jesus Christ.”
Reader’s Digest shared a story about Gail White who wrote about an exchange she had with her husband that would elicit an empathetic groan from most women. She came down with the flu and needed some housekeeping that needed to be completed, so she tried a little reverse psychology on her husband.
With a sickly voice she said, “Honey, I’m sorry I’m leaving you with such a mess. The laundry needs to be done, the dishes need washed, and the floors need to be cleaned.” Then, as only a man could, he sympathetically responded, “Don’t you worry, it can wait until you feel up to it.”
Sometimes Christians are just like her husband. They don’t get the message. They don’t understand that they belong to the Lord and that His Spirit lives within them. They fail to live their lives for the Savior and leave their lives in a mess because of their sinfulness.
Conclusion
Conclusion
You will never love as you ought until you give your heart to Jesus. Remember, Love is not the way to God, God is the way to love and Jesus is the way to the Father.
Love will give you a good conscience, a great confidence, and a gracious communion.
If you’ve never experienced the love of God, right now is a good time to.