Why Christmas brings life and love...

Joel Gilbert

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John begins with a passionate exhortation to his readers to “love one another,”

a phrase that is repeated three times, in verses 7, 11, and 12.

This is his great concern, and the reasons for that concern are given in connection with this threefold repetition.

Boice, J. M. (2004). The Epistles of John: an expositional commentary (p. 114). Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books.

The first reason is that love is of God’s own nature; therefore, Christians are to “love one another.”

The second reason concerns God’s gift in Christ; therefore, Christians are to “love one another.”

The third reason concerns God’s present activity in and through his people;

for this reason too, Christians are to “love one another.”

Up to this point love has been seen mostly as a duty binding upon believers.

Now it is seen for what it most truly is,

There is a driving disposition inside of all believers,

arising out of the divine nature that by God’s grace

is now also within the Christian, enabling him to love.

Let’s read the text together and then pray and ask for the Lord’s help...

7 "Dear friends, let us love one another, because love is from God, and everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. 8 "The one who does not love does not know God, because God is love. 9 "God’s love was revealed among us in this way: God sent his one and only Son into the world so that we might live through him. 10 "Love consists in this: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the atoning sacrifice for our sins. 11 "Dear friends, if God loved us in this way, we also must love one another. 12 "No one has ever seen God. If we love one another, God remains in us and his love is made complete in us.” ()

Heavenly Father, may You help Your church to hear Your word. Lord, let us adore You this morning and forever! Help the preacher and help the hearer. We need Thee now oh focus upon You and Your greatness now. We pray in Jesus Name, amen...

The title of this message is: WHY CHRISTMAS BRINGS LOVE.

Let me just break down the passage a bit so that we can all understand what God is saying.

In v7 there is an exhortation to love one another right?

Look at the rest of the verse and the next verse.

It’s asserted that those who practice love know God, while those who do not practice love do not know God.

I’m really going to resist preaching on that this morning. I fear for some of you.

Some of you seem to have so much bitterness and don’t seem to be able to understand biblical love

and thereby demonstrate that you’ve perhaps never been saved!

Then in v9-11 we see the demonstration of God’s love

in the sending of His own Son as an atoning sacrifice, and

the result is an obligation on the part of believers to love one another.

This is the section that we’ll focus upon this morning.

9 "God’s love was revealed among us in this way: God sent his one and only Son into the world so that we might live through him. 10 "Love consists in this: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the atoning sacrifice for our sins. 11 "Dear friends, if God loved us in this way, we also must love one another.” ()

You have two things in this text that produces love.

First things is Your Motivation to love one another- Is God’s love.

You Motivation is God’s love.

Look with me at the visibleness of God’s love. "God’s love was revealed among us in this way...”

This is Christmas. God’s love was manifested, made visible to us in this way...

Think of the statement in v7, that “love is from God”, so now here’s how God revealed that.

This all take place in the open public. “God’s love was revealed among us...”

This sending His Son into this world is to be seen by us and appreciated and adored by us.

14 "The Word became flesh and dwelt among us. We observed his glory, the glory as the one and only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.” ()

The love of God was shown to man when God ‘sent His one and only Son into the world’.

The sent One is described as “His one and only Son” or His “only begotten Son”.

Kruse, C. G. (2000). The letters of John (p. 158). Grand Rapids, MI; Leicester, England: W.B. Eerdmans Pub.; Apollos.

This describes the uniqueness, the singleness of Christ.

God had only one Son, and He sent Him into the world because of His love for the world.

And in v9, what’s the purpose for the Son being sent and made visible to us?

The purpose is discovered in the words, “so that”.

9 "God’s love was revealed among us in this way: God sent his one and only Son into the world [there’s Christmas] so that we might live through him.” ()

It’s so that we can have everlasting life.

The “we” in this passage is the church of Jesus Christ! The believing community.

Those who responded positively to the demonstration of God’s love by trusting alone in Christ for salvation!

“so that we might live through Him.” Life only comes through and is only found in Christ!

Here’s how Jesus summed it up:"This is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God, and the one you have sent—Jesus Christ.” ()

However, the possibility of living through Jesus required more than Him being made visible.

This is v10. We go from the visibleness of God’s love (in v9) to the greatness of God’s love in v10.

The greatness of God’s love (v. 10). The greatness of the divine love is indicated in at least four ways:

1. It is seen in the greatness of the gift which love prompted God to bestow on us: “His One and only Son” (v. 9).

Edwards, A. L., Sr. (1978). Outlines on the Gospel of John and First John (p. 56). Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Book House.

2. The greatness of the divine love is seen in the purpose of the Son’s mission: “that we might live through him” (v. 9).

3. The greatness of God’s love is brought out by a consideration of the recipients of His love: “He loved us” (v. 10a).

Those who receive God’s love are described by their former condition of NOT loving God!

Love isn’t to be understood in terms of our love for God. “Love consists in this: not that we loved God” No:

No: we had apostatized from Him; we had cast off His allegiance; we were in arms against Him; yet in this was manifested the love of God, that He gave His Son for us. Love, then, was the great mission of our Redeemer, to restore, reclaim, sanctify, save.

we had apostatized from Him;

we had cast off His allegiance;

Edwards, A. L., Sr. (1978). Outlines on the Gospel of John and First John (pp. 56–57). Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Book House.

we were in arms against Him;

Kistemaker, S. J., & Hendriksen, W. (1953–2001). Exposition of James and the Epistles of John (Vol. 14, p. 333). Grand Rapids: Baker Book House.

yet in this was manifested the love of God,

that He gave His Son for us.

Love, then, was the great mission of our Redeemer, to restore, reclaim, sanctify, save.

This love described here in being demonstrated by the death of Christ is also the them of heaven’s praises! Described as “a new song”.

"And they sang a new song: You are worthy to take the scroll and to open its seals, because you were slaughtered, and you purchased people for God by your blood from every tribe and language and people and nation.” ()

4. The greatness of God’s love is seen in the propitiatory of Christ’s death. God sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins (v. 10b).

Nicoll, W. R. (Ed.). (1958). The Sermon Outline Bible: 1 Peter–Revelation (Vol. 12, p. 183). Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Book House.

So the greatness of God’s love is seen in the propitiatory of Christ’s death.

God sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins (v. 10b).

So then, how are we to understand God’s love? This is love… “He loved us and sent His Son to be the atoning sacrifice for our sins.”

God’s only Son covered our sins and set us free from guilt.

We had incurred guilt before God because of our sin, so Christ comes and

makes atonement by the sacrifice of Himself and removes our sin so that we might have eternal life.

Note that in this last part of verse 10 the contrast is between God’s Son and our sins.

God took the initiative in showing His love to man when He sent His Son.

Boice, J. M. (2004). The Epistles of John: an expositional commentary (p. 115). Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books.

When we praise Christ for His deep love, we are come to the innumerable company of angels; we,

though still on earth, we

Nicoll, W. R. (Ed.). (1958). The Sermon Outline Bible: 1 Peter–Revelation (Vol. 12, p. 183). Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Book House.

stand within the circle of salvation, and

join in the everlasting song.

They understand its meaning better;

they utter it out of a fuller heart, and

with a deepened gratitude.

There are not so many:

drops of dew at night that distil on every plant, not so many the

blades of grass that quiver on ten thousand fields, not so many the

particles of golden light that flood the world from the sun,

as God’s thoughts of love toward those whom He saves by the gift of His Son.

And Christ has given us the grandest example of sacrifice, for “He loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood.”

The love of Christ appears in his amazing sufferings for sinners.

AMG Bible Illustrations. (2000). Chattanooga: AMG Publishers.

That love is immense, unsearchable!

The inexpressible wrath of God fell from heaven upon Him, as

Kruse, C. G. (2000). The letters of John (p. 161). Grand Rapids, MI; Leicester, England: W.B. Eerdmans Pub.; Apollos.

a tremendous thunderstorm,

from which there could be no flight,

no shelter;

so that it entirely crushed His human nature; and

The extremity of pain and anguish dissolved the bond between his inmost soul and body.

Being led with His love, was brought into the blackest regions of death and darkness,

So that we, sinners, might be brought to

the regions of His glorious light above.

What do you suppose would be the one characteristic of the person who’s been looking to Jesus for a long period of time?

They would be characterized by love. They would love God more than any one else.

And they would be the most loving people in the congregation and certainly in their neighborhood!

They wouldn’t be marked with bitterness and division and anger.

People who know and love God aren’t this way!

Love is the one grace that we’ll have for all eternity.

In heaven we won’t need repentance, because we will never sin.

We won’t need the gift of faith because there we shall see God face to face!

But love will abide forever.

Love never ceases but will outlive all the graces and run parallel with us in eternity.

So we have this motivation to follow v7. We are motivated to love one another by looking onto Christ.

God

in the sending of His Son and the Son

in dying for our sins

by taking the wrath of God for our sins.

From MOTIVATION we’re led to OBLIGATION. You have an OBLIGATION to love one another.

Look at the Character of this OBLIGATION. “Dear friends, if God loved us in this way...”

That is, God gave the best there was to give.

Nothing could be greater than this.

Nothing that can possibly be imagined can exceed this gift,

for this is that “indescribable gift”

for which Paul can only give thanks as he writes to the Corinthians ().

He motivates us then he obligates us. He explains the nature of God’s love expressed in the sending of His one and only Son as the atoning sacrifice for our sins is very practical.

In fact it’s related to the central purpose of writing the letter, which is to

reassure his readers that they are in the truth, and

to furnish them with the biblical criteria by which to evaluate themselves against.

This is the character of the obligation to love one another.

Look at the Claim of the OBLIGATION. "Dear friends, if God loved us in this way, we also must love one another.” ()

God’s claim is that if you’ve come to know and understand the sacrifice of Christ properly and

you’ve been motivated by God properly, you’re now obligated to love one another.

It’s not like John is asking the world to love one another. That’s impossible. They are incapable of doing it.

We need the divine nature within us before we can truly love one another.

God is not giving a lesson about the love of God for a theological lecture this morning, but to show

that God’s love for us must cause us to love one another.

Accordingly, he writes: Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.

Since God so loved ‘us’, there is an obligation resting upon ‘us’ to love one another.

A short way to see it, He sacrificed for us (that thought) may that preserve your love to God.

Keep that love flaming on the altar of your heart!

He Sacrificed for us so that we can Serve others. Do you see that?

Now…don’t fall in love with loving instead of actually loving.

Love greases the wheels or promotes, assists the progress of our Christian duty, which in our text is to love one another.

so that we can Serve others.

Love to the Christian life, is like

the wings to a bird or like

the sails to a sail boat.

Love carries your soul on swiftly and cheerfully on our way to glory!

Love is energetic and powerful as well as active.

Love shuns danger.

Love tramples upon difficulties.

Love is like a mighty torrent, it carries all before it.

Love doesn’t look upon itself- love is absorbed in the object of its love.

Do you love God? Is He the object of your affections? Then you’ll be absorbed in Him!

Watson, T. (1850). Puritan Gems; or, Wise and Holy Sayings of the Rev. Thomas Watson, A.M. (J. Adey, Ed.) (Second Thousand, pp. 89–90). London: J. Snow, and Ward and Co.; Nisbet and Co.; E. F. Gooch.

Do you love the church? He does.

The church is the object of His affections.

We are told to love one another.

The church is to love one another.

If you’re loving, you’re not absorbed in your self and what you want.

You’re absorbed into the people and the lives of those people who make up the church.

Faith itself has no beauty unless it works by love;

the tears of repentance are not pure unless they flow from the spring of love.

Love is the jewel Christ’s bride (the church) wears—

it is the diamond in the ring of all the graces of the Spirit: not if ye work miracles, but if you love one another you are My disciples (Jesus said)

Love is to be the badge of discipleship.

Love is the golden clamp which fastens our hearts;

the permanent cement that binds believers to each other.

It’s our love towards one another that will render the gospel as a thing of beauty for the culture to see!

The Church is Christ’s temple,

Watson, T. (1850). Puritan Gems; or, Wise and Holy Sayings of the Rev. Thomas Watson, A.M. (J. Adey, Ed.) (Second Thousand, p. 91). London: J. Snow, and Ward and Co.; Nisbet and Co.; E. F. Gooch.

the saints are living stones:

how beautiful is this temple when the stones of it are cemented together with love!

So Christmas brings love. Love towards God as His love towards us is revealed in sending Christ to come and die for our sins.

God’s love motivates us to love one another.

Then we see that God’s love obligates us to love one another. Isn’t this the actual meaning of Christmas?

Christmas is more than tinsel and toys, trees and goodies, gifts and greetings.

It is not merely a word of goodwill lightly spoken and soon forgotten in the flying wrapping paper & laughter.

Christmas is a message of peace on earth among men who are pleasing to God.

It is Immanuel, God with us.

It is God bending low to lift men up out of the sin and mire of a world

which has forgotten God and

Hobbs, H. H. (1990). My favorite illustrations (pp. 49–50). Nashville, TN: Broadman Press.

His will for lost men.

It is God in a cradle, the Eternal in a tender baby’s flesh and form.

But Christmas does not stop in Bethlehem.

It reaches beyond

to Calvary,

to the empty tomb, and

to the throne where the Savior sits,

waiting for His enemies to become his footstool.

It is the good news of salvation to all men who will receive it.

As the shepherds came to the manger, saw the Christ child, and went forth

to tell the glad tidings;

as the Wise Men came from afar to worship and

give gifts to Him,

so should the faithful today bow before Him in

worship,

praise, and

consecration; and

then go forth to declare the gospel to a lost world.

That is what Christmas is all about!

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