Revelation in the Context of Love
Notes
Transcript
His last act before His death was to deny Himself in a garden. Because the first act of humanity was to exalt himself in a garden. - Steven Gill
Revealed!
Revealed!
But as it is written: “Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, Nor have entered into the heart of man The things which God has prepared for those who love Him.”
But God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God.
This year, the Lord has begun to reveal some things He has planned and prepared for us.
We have found more specific direction and as we have walked in that direction there has been confirmation.
“As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you; abide in My love.
If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love.
“These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full.
This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.
Larry Booker
“As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you; abide in My love.
The love of God for the Son is the measure of the love of the Son for believers.
But verse 12 is where he said, “I hit the curb”.
This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.
Let’s work through the passage:
“As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you; abide in My love.
Side:
For this reason I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
from whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named,
that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man,
that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love,
may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height—
to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.
If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love.
The NKJV Study Bible Chapter 15
15:10 abide in My love: Christ loves believers unconditionally (v. 9). But as believers obey Christ’s Word and abide in His love, they come to experience and understand His love for them more and more (see Eph. 3:14–19).
“These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full.
The NKJV Study Bible Chapter 15
15:11 That your joy may be full is an expression peculiar to John (see 3:29; 16:24; 17:13; 1 John 1:4; 2 John 12). It describes a believer’s experience of Christ’s love: complete joy.
This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.
The NKJV Study Bible Chapter 15
15:12 love one another: To abide, a believer must obey (v. 10). To obey, a believer must love other believers (13:34, 35).
Jeff Dutton
Jeff Dutton
A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another.
By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”
Revelation Without Love
Revelation Without Love
“To the angel of the church of Ephesus write, ‘These things says He who holds the seven stars in His right hand, who walks in the midst of the seven golden lampstands:
“I know your works, your labor, your patience, and that you cannot bear those who are evil. And you have tested those who say they are apostles and are not, and have found them liars;
and you have persevered and have patience, and have labored for My name’s sake and have not become weary.
Nevertheless I have this against you, that you have left your first love.
Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent and do the first works, or else I will come to you quickly and remove your lampstand from its place—unless you repent.
But this you have, that you hate the deeds of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate.
“He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes I will give to eat from the tree of life, which is in the midst of the Paradise of God.” ’
SHARING - New Life in Christ
SHARING - New Life in Christ
Giving - is Gain
For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it.
Then He spoke a parable to them, saying: “The ground of a certain rich man yielded plentifully.
And he thought within himself, saying, ‘What shall I do, since I have no room to store my crops?’
So he said, ‘I will do this: I will pull down my barns and build greater, and there I will store all my crops and my goods.
And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years; take your ease; eat, drink, and be merry.” ’
But God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul will be required of you; then whose will those things be which you have provided?’
“So is he who lays up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.”
Then He said to His disciples, “Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat; nor about the body, what you will put on.
GROWING - As Disciples of Christ
GROWING - As Disciples of Christ
If you grow - everything around you will grow - A CULTURE OF GROWTH
but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head—Christ—
He wants us to grow up in all things - not most things, not some things, but all things. Now, you can't grow up in all things at once, but He still wants us to ...
EQUIPPING - For the work of Christ
EQUIPPING - For the work of Christ
Equipping. It’s not just a pragmatic essential for pastoral survival; it’s also a biblical requirement. Ephesians 4:11–12 says,
And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers,
for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ,
But does the Bible have more to say?
Does Scripture provide more than generic direction about how to prepare the people of your church to do “the work of ministry?”
When we turn to the pages of the New Testament, we find that while there’s only one passage that refers to “equipping” (Eph. 4:11–12), there are about 25 passages that highlight the “work of ministry” for which believers are to be equipped.[5]
What do these 25 passages reveal about the contours and content of equipping?