The Power of Love
A Lord Worth Loving • Sermon • Submitted • Presented • 40:29
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· 6 viewsMorning 11 August 24
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24 Your procession is seen, O God, the procession of my God, my King, into the sanctuary— 25 the singers in front, the musicians last, between them virgins playing tambourines: 26 “Bless God in the great congregation, the Lord, O you who are of Israel’s fountain!” 27 There is Benjamin, the least of them, in the lead, the princes of Judah in their throng, the princes of Zebulun, the princes of Naphtali.
1 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.
Introduction
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6 Set me as a seal upon your heart, as a seal upon your arm, for love is strong as death, jealousy is fierce as the grave. Its flashes are flashes of fire, the very flame of the Lord. 7 Many waters cannot quench love, neither can floods drown it. If a man offered for love all the wealth of his house, he would be utterly despised.
These two verses are amongst the most incredible expressions of love found for us in the Bible. They are a high point in the revelation of love that God has given to us. They totally outclass the sentimental, nebulous, arrogant, vacuous, ungodly and selfish view that is so prevalent in our world today. What so many say is love is just lust or foolish romantic fantasy or a nice happy feeling that changes day by day.
We have already seen true love experienced by the Shulamite in v5 now we see her speak of the Power of Love in v6 and the Permanence of Love in v7. We concentrate on the first of these today.
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6 Set me as a seal upon your heart, as a seal upon your arm, for love is strong as death, jealousy is fierce as the grave. Its flashes are flashes of fire, the very flame of the Lord.
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1. Sealed
1. Sealed
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6 Set me as a seal upon your heart, as a seal upon your arm, for love is strong as death, jealousy is fierce as the grave. Its flashes are flashes of fire, the very flame of the Lord.
The reference is to the ancient near eastern practice of wearing signet rings, stones, metal seals or cords on hands, wrists or as pendants around the neck and hanging over the heart. Frequently these would have the name or even the portrait of the beloved person engraved on them and would serve as an indication of the wearer being loved, owned or possessed by the one who had given the item. Richard Brooks
She desires to be acknowledged as belonging to him, and does not mind who knows. Richard Brooks
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2. Strong
2. Strong
6 Set me as a seal upon your heart, as a seal upon your arm, for love is strong as death, jealousy is fierce as the grave. Its flashes are flashes of fire, the very flame of the Lord.
The word here for strong, evidently, designates someone who (when being assailed) cannot be overcome and (when doing the assailing) cannot be withstood. Richard Brooks
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3. Secure
3. Secure
6 Set me as a seal upon your heart, as a seal upon your arm, for love is strong as death, jealousy is fierce as the grave. Its flashes are flashes of fire, the very flame of the Lord.
You may have seen at close quarters what devastation fire can cause. It is very powerful. That is what true love is like. What energy, what vigour! Do what you will to dampen it down, to quench it or quell it, still it thrives. It blazes; it flames. Even when you think it has died right down, the embers can be fanned into flame again and the blaze flares up once more. Gary Brady
We turn now to what we see of Christ’s love for us
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4. Sealed
4. Sealed
6 Set me as a seal upon your heart, as a seal upon your arm, for love is strong as death, jealousy is fierce as the grave. Its flashes are flashes of fire, the very flame of the Lord.
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a. Seal
a. Seal
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16 Behold, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands; your walls are continually before me.
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23 On that day, declares the Lord of hosts, I will take you, O Zerubbabel my servant, the son of Shealtiel, declares the Lord, and make you like a signet ring, for I have chosen you, declares the Lord of hosts.”
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13 In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, 14 who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory.
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30 And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.
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19 But God’s firm foundation stands, bearing this seal: “The Lord knows those who are his,” and, “Let everyone who names the name of the Lord depart from iniquity.”
6 Set me as a seal upon your heart, as a seal upon your arm, for love is strong as death, jealousy is fierce as the grave. Its flashes are flashes of fire, the very flame of the Lord.
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b. The Heart
b. The Heart
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5 The Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. 6 And the Lord regretted that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him to his heart.
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20 Then Noah built an altar to the Lord and took some of every clean animal and some of every clean bird and offered burnt offerings on the altar. 21 And when the Lord smelled the pleasing aroma, the Lord said in his heart, “I will never again curse the ground because of man, for the intention of man’s heart is evil from his youth. Neither will I ever again strike down every living creature as I have done. 22 While the earth remains, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night, shall not cease.”
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15 “ ‘And I will give you shepherds after my own heart, who will feed you with knowledge and understanding.
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c. Arm
c. Arm
6 Set me as a seal upon your heart, as a seal upon your arm, for love is strong as death, jealousy is fierce as the grave. Its flashes are flashes of fire, the very flame of the Lord.
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1 Who has believed what he has heard from us? And to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?
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Psalm 77:14–15 (ESV)
14 [Asaph] You are the God who works wonders; you have made known your might among the peoples. 15 You with your arm redeemed your people, the children of Jacob and Joseph. Selah
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13 You have a mighty arm; strong is your hand, high your right hand. 14 Righteousness and justice are the foundation of your throne; steadfast love and faithfulness go before you.
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1 Oh sing to the Lord a new song, for he has done marvelous things! His right hand and his holy arm have worked salvation for him.
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11 and brought Israel out from among them, for his steadfast love endures forever; 12 with a strong hand and an outstretched arm, for his steadfast love endures forever;
5. Strong
5. Strong
6 Set me as a seal upon your heart, as a seal upon your arm, for love is strong as death, jealousy is fierce as the grave. Its flashes are flashes of fire, the very flame of the Lord.
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a. Death
a. Death
6 Set me as a seal upon your heart, as a seal upon your arm, for love is strong as death, jealousy is fierce as the grave. Its flashes are flashes of fire, the very flame of the Lord.
No matter how irresistible death is, Christ’s love is far more so. His love for his bride caused him to taste death, to suffer death, to vanquish death and to rise from death, Richard Brooks
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54 When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written: “Death is swallowed up in victory.” 55 “O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?” 56 The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. 57 But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
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His [Christ’s] love has a constraining power that cannot and will not be denied. This heavenly bridegroom preferred his bride to his own life, and chose death rather than to be without her. How much, then, his bride should love him. Richard Brooks
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b. Jealousy
b. Jealousy
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4 “You shall not make for yourself a carved image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. 5 You shall not bow down to them or serve them, for I the Lord your God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and the fourth generation of those who hate me, 6 but showing steadfast love to thousands of those who love me and keep my commandments.
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Jealousy as one of the divine attributes needs to be understood carefully and given due weight. When giving the law at Sinai, Jehovah declared: ‘For I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God’ (Exod. 20:5), and the theme recurs throughout Scripture. He will not share his worship with anyone or anything, for he alone is the true, living and eternal God. In keeping with this, the love of Christ to his church is marked by a holy and pure jealousy. It is a possessive love. It will not stand for any rivals. It will not take second place. Richard Brooks
Exodus 34:14 (ESV)
14 (for you shall worship no other god, for the Lord, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God),
2 The Lord is a jealous and avenging God; the Lord is avenging and wrathful; the Lord takes vengeance on his adversaries and keeps wrath for his enemies.
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1 I wish you would bear with me in a little foolishness. Do bear with me! 2 For I feel a divine jealousy for you, since I betrothed you to one husband, to present you as a pure virgin to Christ. 3 But I am afraid that as the serpent deceived Eve by his cunning, your thoughts will be led astray from a sincere and pure devotion to Christ.
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It is related here to the cruelty of the grave. Just as the grave swallows up and carries off its prey, so does the love of Christ attain its object with a jealous determination and success. How magnificently this is seen in the manner in which he set about the salvation of his people, for his Father’s glory, laying down his life and taking it up again (John 10:17–18). Richard Brooks
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17 For this reason the Father loves me, because I lay down my life that I may take it up again. 18 No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This charge I have received from my Father.”
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The linking here of the three words (jealousy, cruel, grave) emphasises how Christ takes complete hold and possession of his bride, keeps her safe for himself, and so absorbs her in an overwhelming manner with that love that she is entirely taken up with him. Richard Brooks
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6. Secure
6. Secure
6 Set me as a seal upon your heart, as a seal upon your arm, for love is strong as death, jealousy is fierce as the grave. Its flashes are flashes of fire, the very flame of the Lord.
The love of Christ for his bride is no half-hearted, on and off, affair of ‘he loves me, he loves me not’. It is a burning love, hot, ardent, flaming, passionate, sparkling, consuming. He cannot turn away or cease from it. This matchless love was given full vent upon the cross of Calvary and is a love whose flames of fire continue to burn and are never extinguished. Richard Brooks
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35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? 36 As it is written, “For your sake we are being killed all the day long; we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.” 37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38 For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, 39 nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
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6 In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, 7 so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. 8 Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, 9 obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.
Conclusion
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54 When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written: “Death is swallowed up in victory.” 55 “O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?” 56 The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. 57 But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. 58 Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.