Love; The Way to Victory
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Transcript
Introduction
Introduction
34 A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another. 35 By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”
By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.
Quite interesting that there is a way to tell “who his disciples are” — if you have love for one another.
Let’s look even further;
13 Do not marvel, my brethren, if the world hates you. 14 We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love the brethren. He who does not love his brother abides in death.
John here, also said, “We know” — How, we know, is “because we love the brethren”.
Some more texts;
1 Therefore be imitators of God as dear children. 2 And walk in love, as Christ also has loved us and given Himself for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling aroma.
Something quite profound about everything we have read here, is that it deals with our relationship with one another, i.e. how we relate to one another. — Our love for THE BRETHEN, is how we know we have passed from DEATH TO LIFE.
HOW EVERYONE would know that we are his disciples is IF WE HAVE LOVE FOR ONE ANOTHER.
Really, there is no other way to put it, Love exists within relationships.
Relationship (Oxford Dictionary defines relationship this way); the way in which two or more people or things are connected, or the state of being connected.
Consider also when they came to Jesus and asked him a question regarding the law;
28 Then one of the scribes came, and having heard them reasoning together, perceiving that He had answered them well, asked Him, “Which is the first commandment of all?” 29 Jesus answered him, “The first of all the commandments is: ‘Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. 30 And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ This is the first commandment. 31 And the second, like it, is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.” 32 So the scribe said to Him, “Well said, Teacher. You have spoken the truth, for there is one God, and there is no other but He. 33 And to love Him with all the heart, with all the understanding, with all the soul, and with all the strength, and to love one’s neighbor as oneself, is more than all the whole burnt offerings and sacrifices.”
To love one’s neighbor as oneself, — IS MORE THAN ALL THE WHOLE BURNT OFFERINGS AND SACRIFICES.
Meaning, if one dedicates their time, effort and activities to trying to having the perfect sacrificial system, they offer the best of animals, yet, there is really no love, WHAT they have, is empty; THEY HAVE MISSED THE POINT.
Now, we can see that it always deals with how we relate with one another.
Paul would say thesame thing regarding the law;
8 Owe no one anything except to love one another, for he who loves another has fulfilled the law. 9 For the commandments, “You shall not commit adultery,” “You shall not murder,” “You shall not steal,” “You shall not bear false witness,” “You shall not covet,” and if there is any other commandment, are all summed up in this saying, namely, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” 10 Love does no harm to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.
“all summed up in this saying, namely, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself”…
Fulfilled — πληρόω plēroō; it means to bring to completion, actualize its purpose; i.e. to get to the intent of something. Meaning, the laws intent or the actual goal of the law, is love.
So, when we put all the law of God together, we find it in one fulfilment which is “love”.
Things we don’t pray for
Things we don’t pray for
One of the greatest thing in the Christian experience is know not only WHAT to pray for, but also WHAT not to pray for.
Remember our study on the New Covenant, what did the Lord promise?
7 For if that first covenant had been faultless, then no place would have been sought for a second. 8 Because finding fault with them, He says: “Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah—9 not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt; because they did not continue in My covenant, and I disregarded them, says the Lord. 10 For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord: I will put My laws in their mind and write them on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people.
God’s promise is to write his law in our hearts. — Meaning all Christians have his very law on their hearts, and that law which we have written on our very heart is Love.
Hence, this is why Jesus would say, this is HOW WE get to know his own disciples. This is how WE KNOW (John says) we have passed from death to life.
Hence, every believer, Have God’s law on their heart. Every Christian experienced this when they came into Christ Jesus — This is not what we pray for.
Let’s look at this even more;
1 Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, 2 through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God. 3 And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance; 4 and perseverance, character; and character, hope. 5 Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us.
Notice, by the Spirit, we have love of God poured out in our hearts — By the Holy Spirit who was given to us.
Hence, we all, have the very love of God in our hearts; this is not something we pray for, not even wish for.
“Say with me, God, have put his law on my hearts; Love is within my heart — Hence, my relationships are love filled, in my relationships, I am forgiving, in my relationships, I am giving, in my relationships, I am building others up.”
What love looks like
What love looks like
When we say love, we have two things we will deal with today as the expression of love;
1 Therefore be imitators of God as dear children. 2 And walk in love, as Christ also has loved us and given Himself for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling aroma.
Notice two things here — The first thing is we are called to be imitators of God.
Notice the verse started with “Therefore” — which means, he explained something before this verse; Let’s look into it;
31 Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice. 32 And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you.
Kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you — This is what we imitate God in first of all, in forgiving one another.
Secondly;
“Walk in love” — Since we all have the very love of God in our hearts, what we are to do with love, is WALK IN IT. Whilst we all have God’s love in our heart by the Spirit, we are adviced to walk in love;
Walk — περιπατέω (peripateō); to live or behave in a specified manner.
And when we look at what he explained there, “As Christ also has loved us and GIVEN Himself for us” — The Love walk is in giving of ourselves for others, JUST LIKE HE DID.
Now, when we look at the following verses, we see How the giving of ourselves for others.
3 But fornication and all uncleanness or covetousness, let it not even be named among you, as is fitting for saints; 4 neither filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor coarse jesting, which are not fitting, but rather giving of thanks.
Notice, that all he said here, are opposite of self-giving. — It is self taking. It is the failure of the love walk.
Hence, when we say love is the bed-rock of relationships, we are talking about love, put to work, lived in, walked in. — it is in giving of ourselves for others.
Hence, I might be great in my walk of love in terms of sexual immorality, but quite covetous, or your words aren’t building.
Secondly;
16 By this we know love, because He laid down His life for us. And we also ought to lay down our lives for the brethren. 17 But whoever has this world’s goods, and sees his brother in need, and shuts up his heart from him, how does the love of God abide in him?
See it again, love is in the giving of ourselves; JUST LIKE HE DID.
Here, John dealt with something, also, in sharing of our needs, this is also us giving ourselves for others.
Why is God big on relationships?
Why is God big on relationships?
If you get the teaching Bonds; The Christian and Relationships, I dealt with this alot more, but I want us to look into an aspect.
26 Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” 27 So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. 28 Then God blessed them, and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth.”
God here created mankind, here, for a purpose.
In Chapter 2, we find something interesting in the story.
7 And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being.
Then in verse 18, we see here, “helper comparable” made for man.
18 And the Lord God said, “It is not good that man should be alone; I will make him a helper comparable to him.”
Why is it “Not good”? — Why does self existence bad?
Helper — עֵ֫זֶר 1 ʿēʹ·zěr; a person who contributes to the fulfillment of a need or furtherance of an effort or purpose.
It is a word used for God alone expressly, for example, when you hear the word “Ebenezer” (1Samuel 5:12).
Primarily, man’s help is God himself, cos it is God who saw the need of man and provided an helper for man.
Notice, the helper is someone who contributes to the fulfillment of a need or furtherance of a purpose.
Meaning, God brought man into a relationship why? For the furtherance of purpose.
Meaning, relationships are God’s help for man, in furthance of purpose, if preserved, God’s cause is advanced, if relationships are destroyed, so could it derail God’s plan.
Hence, Love, is the way to Victory! It is how God wins! It is how God’s plan is advanced, why? Love is the bed-rock of relationships.
It’s quite profound that Love wins in ways that are counter to our minds or assumptions, love wins
