Purposed To Love

Text: 1 John 3:11-18

Introduction

If there is any attribute of God that has been on attack from the very beginning, it is the love of God. The world today has had a hay-day with shifting the nature and meaning of God’s love. We have witnessed “love” to mean whatever people want’s it to mean. The authority behind it’s meaning and purpose has shifted to the individual instead of the supernatural; God. So, it is easy to see, there is a lot of darkness surrounding “love” in our day in age.

The desire God has for you today is this: Living with assurance that God has purposed you, not to live with hate, hurt, grudge, bitterness, malice, or envy, but to live out an active love from the inside out toward fellow Believers.

WARNING — To live disobediently to this command is like driving down the road with the e-brake on; you are going forward with a great hinderance on spiritual progress and joy. Furthermore, if you have little to no desire to extend a Christ-like love to every Believer, John writes, “is not of God!”

We have now reached a new test of which reveals to us whether or not you are born again and living out God’s predetermined purpose. This is not a test of negotiations, but rather an ultimatum. The Spirit did not come down to live within you to negotiate, He came down and took ownership of your soul.

The new test is this: Do you love your brother? Are you actively engaged in the love of Christ toward EVERY Believer?

John is primarily speaking about the practice of the divine love we see through the life of Jesus. The object of that love MUST be God’s children.

1) The Example & Victory Has Been Provided

Verses 1-3

A. Set your heart on Jesus’ love

Dear Christian, the Apostle Peter begins chapter 3 by saying, “Behold, what manner of love the Father hat bestowed upon us…” In other words, “Get a good look at the love that has shaped your future and purposed your present living.”

Notice verse 2…Yes, we will one day see Jesus has He really is, but until then…do all that you can to see Him as He is TODAY!

Some Christians spend more time seeing others against their own standards than gazing upon Jesus in order to readjust their own misaligned love.

This message was nothing less than the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

(v1) “the Father hath bestowed” — This love came from a Sovereign love!

As God sovereignly places His love on sinners (rebels, wicked, depraved, enemies of God) so we are presented the opportunities to place the Spirit’s love also on those who are undeserving.

LISTEN… “Don't allow difficult people at work to harden your heart toward God's people." Jesus never allowed hard people to make Him stop loving YOU!

God’s love is NOT a WEAK love!

Many of us operate with the wrong paradigm: You respond to your inconsiderate brother as if you are only equipped with a weak love.

1 Peter 4:8 (KJV 1900) — 8 And above all things have fervent charity among yourselves: for charity shall cover the multitude of sins.

APPLICATION — Speak well of believers who aren't present!

"If you wouldn't say it while they're sitting beside you in this pew, don't say it after lunch."

Love guards a person's reputation.

It is only the UN-believer who understandably lives outside of practicing a divine love.

B. Jesus has enabled you to love like Him

“we should”

1 John 2:9–11 “9 He that saith he is in the light, and hateth his brother, is in darkness even until now. 10 He that loveth his brother abideth in the light, and there is none occasion of stumbling in him. 11 But he that hateth his brother is in darkness, and walketh in darkness, and knoweth not whither he goeth, because that darkness hath blinded his eyes.”

You are empowered to love with an unconditional love; a gospel love.

Every believer has been freed to love like Jesus.

1 John 4:7 “7 Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God.”

WHO? People just like you!

APPLICATION — Love your church family before criticizing it.

Many Christians complain about the church while contributing very little to it.

Are you encouraging?

Are you serving?

Are you praying?

Are you giving?

Are you forgiving?

Love builds…Criticism tears down.

Write this down: The Father provided it SOVEREIGNLY, the SON executed it PERFECTLY and the SPIRIT imputed it COMPLETELY!!!

2) The Command Has Been Given

A. Engage in a Christ-centered love

(v11) “message (commandment) ye have heard from the beginning…” is a reference from:

Leviticus 19:18 “18 Thou shalt not avenge, nor bear any grudge against the children of thy people, but thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself: I am the Lord.”

You have to remember, those alive during the writing of Leviticus were Israelites who had been shaped much by the Egyptian culture of which was all about shifting one’s emotional responses due to power and control.

God wanted them to step into a love that was covenantal! A love like His!

Oh how many times those Jewish people gave God every reason to hate them, despise them, and just pour down fire from heaven and consume them all……BUT GOD WAS WRITING A STORY OF GRACE FOR THE WORLD!

The great test of your love is to compare it to Christ! (v16)

John 15:13 “13 Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.”

APPLICATION:

Q — What has your love actually cost you lately?

Maybe...

your money

your comfort

your convenience

your reputation

your free time

your preferences

If love costs nothing......it's probably only sentiment.

B. Reject an emotional driven love

If the love you practice is based on your emotions, God’s children are at risk being hurt by you! However, if you are surrendering yourself to a Christ-centered love, God’s children will be encouraged when they are around you.

John provides us with a great example contrast (v12-14)

Cain was a child of the devil.

Abel was a child of God

Hebrews 11:4 (KJV 1900) — 4 By faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, by which he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts: and by it he being dead yet speaketh.

2 Corinthians 4:6 (KJV 1900) — 6 For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

3) The Opportunities Will Be Provided

Verses 17-18

A. Your spiritual siblings will always be in need

Quote: “To live above, with saints we love, that will be glory. To live below, with the saints we know, that’s quite a different story!”

THEREFORE, YOU ought to lay down YOUR LIFE for the BRETHREN.

“lives” = healthiness, happiness, exuberance, energy, vitality, etc...

John uses Jesus’ sacrificial act of providing saving grace to show us how we can live out practically a life of giving life’s necessities to those of the brethren who are in need.

James 2:15–16 (KJV 1900) — 15 If a brother or sister be naked, and destitute of daily food, 16 And one of you say unto them, Depart in peace, be ye warmed and filled; notwithstanding ye give them not those things which are needful to the body; what doth it profit?

(vv17-18) Those who “SEES” their brother in need are those who are WATCHFUL (spending time with them).

Jesus lived out a life of PURPOSEFUL and PERSONAL interaction.

APPLICATION — Love is demonstrated more by inconvenience than by intention.

Most of us don't struggle with saying we love people. We struggle with letting our schedule be interrupted because we love people."

Practical examples:

A doctor stays a few extra minutes to comfort an anxious patient instead of rushing out.

A teacher notices the quiet student who seems forgotten.

A construction foreman patiently teaches the young employee instead of embarrassing him.

A farmer stops his work long enough to help a neighbor whose tractor won't start.

A retiree drives someone to a doctor's appointment.

A parent puts the phone down and listens to their child.

Application Question — “Whose burden has God interrupted your schedule to help carry this week?"

B. Your spiritual siblings need truth and action

The divine gospel love is a WORKING LOVE (v18)

DEED alone - you will become a Simon sword swinger

TRUTH alone - you only become an intellectual

God’s love operates with both attributes fully intact and blended with each other.

James 1:22–25 (KJV 1900) — 22 But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves. 23 For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass: 24 For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was. 25 But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed.

Conclusion

Believer — "Tomorrow morning our church will scatter across Russell County. Some of you will walk into hospitals. Some into classrooms. Some onto construction sites. Some onto farms. Some into offices. Some will spend the day mowing yards or caring for grandchildren. Wherever God sends you tomorrow, don't merely represent Clear Springs Missionary Baptist Church—represent Jesus Christ. Ask yourself one question throughout the day: 'How can I intentionally display Christ's love to another believer?' If every member of this church answered that question with action this week, our fellowship would be stronger, our witness would be brighter, and Christ would be glorified."

Unbeliever —