What Does Love Look Like?

Luke 10:25–37 NLT

25 One day an expert in religious law stood up to test Jesus by asking him this question: “Teacher, what should I do to inherit eternal life?” 26 Jesus replied, “What does the law of Moses say? How do you read it?” 27 The man answered, “ ‘You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your strength, and all your mind.’ And, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ ” 28 “Right!” Jesus told him. “Do this and you will live!” 29 The man wanted to justify his actions, so he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?” 30 Jesus replied with a story: “A Jewish man was traveling from Jerusalem down to Jericho, and he was attacked by bandits. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him up, and left him half dead beside the road. 31 “By chance a priest came along. But when he saw the man lying there, he crossed to the other side of the road and passed him by. 32 A Temple assistant walked over and looked at him lying there, but he also passed by on the other side. 33 “Then a despised Samaritan came along, and when he saw the man, he felt compassion for him. 34 Going over to him, the Samaritan soothed his wounds with olive oil and wine and bandaged them. Then he put the man on his own donkey and took him to an inn, where he took care of him. 35 The next day he handed the innkeeper two silver coins, telling him, ‘Take care of this man. If his bill runs higher than this, I’ll pay you the next time I’m here.’ 36 “Now which of these three would you say was a neighbor to the man who was attacked by bandits?” Jesus asked. 37 The man replied, “The one who showed him mercy.” Then Jesus said, “Yes, now go and do the same.”

What Does Love Look Like?

Luke 10: 25-37

Introduction:

A-  The world talks a lot about love.

1.    Love songs.

2.    Love scenes in movies.

B-  The church talks a lot about love.

1.    Love for God.

2.    The love of God.

3.    Love for others.

TS: What does love look like?

I-  UNOBSTRUCTED HEART. (Luke 10: 25-29)

Luke 10:25–29 NLT

25 One day an expert in religious law stood up to test Jesus by asking him this question: “Teacher, what should I do to inherit eternal life?” 26 Jesus replied, “What does the law of Moses say? How do you read it?” 27 The man answered, “ ‘You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your strength, and all your mind.’ And, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ ” 28 “Right!” Jesus told him. “Do this and you will live!” 29 The man wanted to justify his actions, so he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”

A-  The objects of love. (Luke 10:27)

Luke 10:27 NLT

27 The man answered, “ ‘You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your strength, and all your mind.’ And, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ ”

1.    The Lord.

a.  With all of the heart, soul, mind and strength.

1)    Heart = “καρδίας” = heart, inner self

2)    Soul = ψυχήa: the essence of life in terms of thinking, willing,

3)    Mind = διανοίᾳ: “the content of thinking and reasoning—‘thought, what is thought, opinion”

4)    Strength = “ἰσχύςa, ύος f: exceptional capability, with the probable implication of personal potential—‘capability, strength.”

2.    Others.

a.    As self. “‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ ”

B-  The objections to love. (Luke 10:29)

Luke 10:29 NLT

29 The man wanted to justify his actions, so he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”

1.    Wanted: A statute of limitations.

a.    Due to selfishness and prejudices.

·      This problem existed in the early church (Acts 11:1-18)

Acts 11:1–18 NLT

1 Soon the news reached the apostles and other believers in Judea that the Gentiles had received the word of God. 2 But when Peter arrived back in Jerusalem, the Jewish believers criticized him. 3 “You entered the home of Gentiles and even ate with them!” they said. 4 Then Peter told them exactly what had happened. 5 “I was in the town of Joppa,” he said, “and while I was praying, I went into a trance and saw a vision. Something like a large sheet was let down by its four corners from the sky. And it came right down to me. 6 When I looked inside the sheet, I saw all sorts of tame and wild animals, reptiles, and birds. 7 And I heard a voice say, ‘Get up, Peter; kill and eat them.’ 8 “ ‘No, Lord,’ I replied. ‘I have never eaten anything that our Jewish laws have declared impure or unclean.’ 9 “But the voice from heaven spoke again: ‘Do not call something unclean if God has made it clean.’ 10 This happened three times before the sheet and all it contained was pulled back up to heaven. 11 “Just then three men who had been sent from Caesarea arrived at the house where we were staying. 12 The Holy Spirit told me to go with them and not to worry that they were Gentiles. These six brothers here accompanied me, and we soon entered the home of the man who had sent for us. 13 He told us how an angel had appeared to him in his home and had told him, ‘Send messengers to Joppa, and summon a man named Simon Peter. 14 He will tell you how you and everyone in your household can be saved!’ 15 “As I began to speak,” Peter continued, “the Holy Spirit fell on them, just as he fell on us at the beginning. 16 Then I thought of the Lord’s words when he said, ‘John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.’ 17 And since God gave these Gentiles the same gift he gave us when we believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I to stand in God’s way?” 18 When the others heard this, they stopped objecting and began praising God. They said, “We can see that God has also given the Gentiles the privilege of repenting of their sins and receiving eternal life.”

2.    The reason: Self justification.

a.    Our reasoning to be confirmed by God.

II- UNHARMFUL IN CONDUCT. (Luke 10:30)

30 Jesus replied with a story: “A Jewish man was traveling from Jerusalem down to Jericho, and he was attacked by bandits. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him up, and left him half dead beside the road.

A-  Stopped his progress.

1.    He was not allowed to progress toward Jericho.

2.    Causing others to stop growing, or not get saved is a serious business. (Matthew 18: 6-14)

Matthew 18:6–14 NLT

6 But if you cause one of these little ones who trusts in me to fall into sin, it would be better for you to have a large millstone tied around your neck and be drowned in the depths of the sea. 7 “What sorrow awaits the world, because it tempts people to sin. Temptations are inevitable, but what sorrow awaits the person who does the tempting. 8 So if your hand or foot causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It’s better to enter eternal life with only one hand or one foot than to be thrown into eternal fire with both of your hands and feet. 9 And if your eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It’s better to enter eternal life with only one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into the fire of hell. 10 “Beware that you don’t look down on any of these little ones. For I tell you that in heaven their angels are always in the presence of my heavenly Father. 12 “If a man has a hundred sheep and one of them wanders away, what will he do? Won’t he leave the ninety-nine others on the hills and go out to search for the one that is lost? 13 And if he finds it, I tell you the truth, he will rejoice over it more than over the ninety-nine that didn’t wander away! 14 In the same way, it is not my heavenly Father’s will that even one of these little ones should perish.

B-  Severely wounded him.

1.    His wound was so severe, it left him nearly dead.

2.    Emotional and spiritual wounds run deep.

C-  Shamefully calloused attitudes.

1.    The thieves didn't care if he died.

2.    Hurting others and not caring about their hurt is sin. (1 John 4: 20-21)

1 John 4:20–21 NLT

20 If someone says, “I love God,” but hates a fellow believer, that person is a liar; for if we don’t love people we can see, how can we love God, whom we cannot see? 21 And he has given us this command: Those who love God must also love their fellow believers.

III- UNASHAMED DEMONSTRATION. (Luke 10:31-37)

Luke 10:31–37 NLT

31 “By chance a priest came along. But when he saw the man lying there, he crossed to the other side of the road and passed him by. 32 A Temple assistant walked over and looked at him lying there, but he also passed by on the other side. 33 “Then a despised Samaritan came along, and when he saw the man, he felt compassion for him. 34 Going over to him, the Samaritan soothed his wounds with olive oil and wine and bandaged them. Then he put the man on his own donkey and took him to an inn, where he took care of him. 35 The next day he handed the innkeeper two silver coins, telling him, ‘Take care of this man. If his bill runs higher than this, I’ll pay you the next time I’m here.’ 36 “Now which of these three would you say was a neighbor to the man who was attacked by bandits?” Jesus asked. 37 The man replied, “The one who showed him mercy.” Then Jesus said, “Yes, now go and do the same.”

A-  Compassionate Heart. (Luke 10: 31-33)

Luke 10:31–33 NLT

31 “By chance a priest came along. But when he saw the man lying there, he crossed to the other side of the road and passed him by. 32 A Temple assistant walked over and looked at him lying there, but he also passed by on the other side. 33 “Then a despised Samaritan came along, and when he saw the man, he felt compassion for him.

1.    Compassion moves the inner man.

a.    The Greek word means to be moved in one's inner bowels, to be stirred. Inside. In today's words, it would be a gut wrenching compassion. (Ephesians 4: 32)

Ephesians 4:32 NLT

32 Instead, be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you.

B-  Caring actions. (Luke 10: 34)

Luke 10:34 NLT

34 Going over to him, the Samaritan soothed his wounds with olive oil and wine and bandaged them. Then he put the man on his own donkey and took him to an inn, where he took care of him.

1.    Concern that overrides all else. (Mark 1: 41)

Mark 1:41 NLT

41 Moved with compassion, Jesus reached out and touched him. “I am willing,” he said. “Be healed!”

2.    Ministry in action.

3.    Using whatever is needed.

4.    Inconveniencing self to fulfill the needs of others.

5.    Taking the person where help can be found.

6.    Looking after someone until the need is fulfilled.

C-  Costly commitment. (Luke 10: 35)

Luke 10:35 NLT

35 The next day he handed the innkeeper two silver coins, telling him, ‘Take care of this man. If his bill runs higher than this, I’ll pay you the next time I’m here.’

1.    Commitment, regardless of the cost.

2.    Our example is Jesus.

Conclusion:

                  (2 Corinthians 5:14-15)

2 Corinthians 5:14–15 NLT

14 Either way, Christ’s love controls us. Since we believe that Christ died for all, we also believe that we have all died to our old life. 15 He died for everyone so that those who receive his new life will no longer live for themselves. Instead, they will live for Christ, who died and was raised for them.