Loving People

Scripture

John 13:34–35 ESV

34 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. 35 By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”

Introduction

I would like to begin by asking you a question.

What do you look for in a church?

Especially imagine if you are someone looking for a church to join what would be priorities for you when you think of such a church?

What are some key elements that you would like to see in this church.

What would make you comfortable to call this church your home church?

There are lots of people who have no home church.

They go from church to church and could never seem to stay in 1 church

No church is perfect but there are obviously elements we all look for in a church before joining it

Today, I want to talk about one of the most fundamental and transformative commands in the Christian faith—loving each other. This command, simple yet profound, is at the very heart of our calling as followers of Christ. It is easy to say, "Love one another," but living it out in our daily lives can be a challenge.

Love is a powerful force that can mend broken relationships, bridge divides, and bring about profound change in our communities and beyond. It is the essence of our faith, woven throughout the teachings of Jesus. In John 13:34-35, Jesus says, "A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another."

Notice that Jesus didn't just tell us to love; He showed us how to love through His actions—sacrificially, unconditionally, and abundantly. His life was a testament to what genuine love looks like, and He calls us to follow His example. Today, let's explore what it means to love one another as Christ loves us, and how we can embody this love in our everyday interactions.

Let us open our hearts and minds to the message of love, allowing it to transform us and guide us in our journey of faith. As we dive into this essential aspect of Christian living, may we be inspired to love more deeply, more sincerely, and more like Jesus.

The Importance of Loving people

if people don’t feel the Love they will not stay in your church

Loving People is also very important and it shows

What sense does it make knowing truth and speaking truth but you have no love for people?

What sense it makes saying we love God but not his people.

If we can’t love people who we see, we wont be able to love those who we cannot see.

it makes no sense you can speak so well if you do not have love

People will say practise what you preach

A young man sent a love letter to his girlfriend. It read " Darling, I'd climb the highest mountain, sail the widest ocean, cross the hottest desert just to see you. P. S. - I'll be over Saturday night if it doesn't rain. "

It have many churches today spending millions of dollars on their buildings but nobody showing up to their services ?

Why is this?

More important than the buidlign itself is the people in the church

If the people do not have love or show love - it will be a turnoff for a lot of people

I know some people who wanted to join a church and even liked the Pastor and his sermons but it had 1 individual who had a stink attitude and becuase of this they chose to go to another church instead

The world is looking for the church to show them love in their times of desparation

How loving are you as a Christian?

Sometimes we will have disagreement as believers

But we have to learn to forgive them for the greater good of all

Yuh vex me I vex yuh back

No we have to try to reconcile....

It not always easy at times....

But we have to make it work

They shall know that we are Christians by our love......

Sometimes people can forget all the good you did for them in the past and 1 mistake you made and they quick to write you off....

I mess up every day and so do you...

We Grieve the Holy Spirit

WE grive the Lord Jesus Christ

But my Bible doesn’t say that Jesus goes to the Father and tells him to wipe my name out of the Lamb’s book of Life

My bible says that he is intereceeding for me.....

Same way we need to interceed for others......

Sometimes it could be 1 person who is part of the church that causes people to not come

It could be a member who likes to gossip who can bring down an entire church

as Sanjay would say - spread the gospel and not the gossip

I hope that nobody would say that that 1 person is you....

You are the biggest hindrance to them because you are a gossiper.....

You are someone who doesnt show love

What are some ways we can show Love to Each other ?

Speak the Truth

There are times in our lives when we need to speak the truth in love to people

When you love people and see them going down the wrong path you have to be truthful with them

Some of them may not like to hear it but it is a way to show your love for them

No parent can say they love their child but never give them a good buff now and then for going astray

You may have to do so because you love them and don’t want them going down the wrong path in life

I have a couple of friends who, it seems, were treated very cruelly by their family doctor. You see, they went to their doctor after the doctor ran some tests and the doctor said the most cruel thing imaginable. This is what the doctor said to friends of mine, you have cancer. Isn’t that cruel? How horrible for a doctor to say something that horrendous to a friend.

You go, Skip, that’s what doctors do, they run tests and they tell people the truth. That’s my point. One of the most loving things you can do is to tell people the truth, not to hide it from them. It wouldn’t do a person any good if the doctor said, oh, don’t worry about it, go home and take a couple of aspirin, you’ll feel better in the morning. No, you have an aggressive form of cancer, we need to treat this aggressively.

In the same way as a doctor will tell a person the truth so they can heal and not die, 1 way of showing our love for each other is telling people the truth.

WE need to speak the truth IN LOVE

When addressing conflict in the church, remember to speak the truth in love. Acknowledge the hurt or disagreement, but communicate with kindness and compassion. Instead of reacting defensively, actively listen to the other person's perspective. Approach the situation with humility, seeking understanding rather than pushing your point of view. By speaking the truth in love, you can foster reconciliation and unity within the church community.

Encourage People

There is a saying. How do you know someone needs encouragement?

They are breathing.

There are basically 2 types of people in every church. One type seeks to find all the fault with others and the work of the church they can and then they do their best to tear others down. The other type seeks to build up their church and fellow believers and they seek to help them to grow in the Lord. Which description best fits your life and your dealings with others?)

ANother way of showing love to each otehr is through encouragement

We need to encourage each other

The words we speak to each other and about each other can either bring life or destroy life.

Diandra was speaking to the Youths this Friday about the power of words and how we need to be careful of the words we say about people cause it can in fact take root ane be a reality in their life

If we keep telling people they will amount to nothong

Guss what happens

They can really be a failure and amoutnt to nothing in the future

Bill Glass is a Southern Baptist evangelist. Bill Glass one time was speaking in a prison to 1,000 prisoners, and he asked them this question: he said, "How many of you were told by your parents that one day you would end up in prison?" Almost every one of them lifted his hand. Every one of those prisoners, almost to the man, had parents who said, "One of these days, you're going to end up in prison." Some encouragement that was. It was self-fulfilling prophecy.

One psychiatrist said that 70% of today's population suffers from chronic loneliness

One of the highest of human duties is the duty of encouragement…. It is easy to laugh at men’s ideals; it is easy to pour cold water on their enthusiasm; it is easy to discourage others. The world is full of discouragers. We have a Christian duty to encourage one another. Many a time a word of praise or thanks or appreciation or cheer has kept a man on his feet. Blessed is the man who speaks such a word.

William Barclay

Attend small group meetings regularly and actively participate by sharing your own struggles and victories. By being vulnerable and open with your experiences, you create a safe space for others to do the same, fostering an environment of mutual encouragement and support.

There are times for each of us when our battery runs flat. Encouragement means the coming alongside and the inputting of courage or perspective or attitudes that makes us get up and get going again.

All of us are humans at the end of the day

David was a strong man but he had around 37 Mighty Warriors by his side

Josheb-basshebeth, Eleazar, and Shammah.

Be an elevator and take people up

We need to live in unity

· Not be fighting among ourselves

· who has the better car or better house etc

· This is what we are doing today.

In your day-to-day interactions at work or in your community, practice active listening and offer a listening ear to those who may need encouragement. Sometimes, all it takes is someone to truly listen to another person to provide much-needed support.

Care for one another

Many times people are going through their oown hurts and struggles in the church but do we actively care for them or their situation

We need to go further on than just a simple - well I go pray for you

That is the christian response to evertyhing

I go pray for you

But when we truly care we will take it a step further than a simple I will pray for you

Plemty [people who say I will pray for you - don’t even pray for you

Sometimes people need a little more than that

We can care for people by being there for them

Sometimes it may mean having to leave our homes and paying them a visit

or making a phone call and spending an hour talking to them

Sometimes it may mean giving money from your own pocket to help them in their time of need

It goes deeper than a simple I go pray for you

Do we really care about each other or are we just wraopped up in our lives and only care about ourselves and our immediate family

Adrian Rogers Sermon Archive IV. Care for One Another

Oh, there are so many people in this community that are hurting. There are so many people that need to be cared for. Every member of this church is to be a minister, to be ministering to other people. You say, “Well, Pastor, that’s what we pay the staff to do.” No, you don’t pay the staff to minister for you. In the first place, we don’t have enough money to hire that many staff. In the second place, they cannot do that, because they have to do the ministering that they must do as for their own responsibility. And you can’t hire anybody to minister for you. You must minister. You can’t pay anybody to show love to other people on your behalf. God has called us to care for one another.

All of us are called to care for each other

That’s not just the pastors and leaders responsibility

In Luke 10, Jesus tells the story of the Good Samaritan who stopped to help a stranger in need. Just like the Samaritan, we show care for each other when we go out of our way to help those who are hurting.

Make a commitment to pray for specific individuals in the church regularly. Ask God to show you how you can best support and encourage them in their faith journey. Sending a thoughtful text, offering a helping hand, or simply being present in times of need can make a significant impact.

John Jesus Predicts Peter’s Denial / 13:31–38 / 212

Jesus said that our Christlike love will show that we are his disciples. Do people see petty bickering, jealousy, and division in your church? Or do they know you are Jesus’ followers by your love for one another? Love is more than simply warm feelings; it is an attitude that reveals itself in action. How can we love others as Jesus loves us? By helping when it’s not convenient, by giving when it hurts, by devoting energy to others’ welfare rather than our own, by absorbing hurts from others without complaining or fighting back. This kind of loving is hard to do. That is why people notice when you do it and know you are empowered by a supernatural source

Conclusion

As I look to wrap up this message I want to ask you a question

Heard this from Diandra on Friday

Can you love God but not love his Children?

That is how many Christians are today

They love God but they don’t love his people

in churces today there is too much division among church people

We cannot accomplish the vision when their is division

We need to be united

We need to learn to love other , care for each other

Encouage one another

How many people today are no longer in a church because of church hurt

How many people have given up on church because nobody cared for them

How many people have left because of the negative words brethren have spoken about them

We need to learn to love as Jesus loved

The Gospel according to John (King James Version) C. The Departure of Jesus from This World, 13:31–38

When the love of Jesus dwells in the heart of a believer, several things happen. The believer has a love that causes him …

• to bind his life to the lives of other believers

• to tie his life to the same purpose as other believers

• to surrender his will and to be of the same mind as other believers

• to understand and feel with other believers

• to forgive other believers—always

• to sacrifice himself for other believers—always

• to seek the welfare of other believers before his own

• to deny self completely

1 John 3:16 ESV

16 By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers.

Are we willing to love like Jesus loved

Lay down our life for the brethren

Help someone out in their time of need

God is calling you and God is calling me to learn to love the brethren

None of us here is perfect

We all have our ways but God still loves us and so we ought to love each other