The Christian Standard of Love
Notes
Transcript
Sermon Tone Analysis
A
D
F
J
S
Emotion
A
C
T
Language
O
C
E
A
E
Social
The Christian Standard of Love
The Christian Standard of Love
43 “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ 44 But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 45 so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. 46 For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? 47 And if you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same? 48 You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.
Expository Preaching Outlines, Volume Seven Twenty-three, Sermon Outline
Introduction:
Righteousness is the holy expression of divine love. The scribes and Pharisees failed to draw the distinction between God’ s hatred of sin and His love of the sinner. They interpreted God’s judgment on sin as a command to hate Samaritans, Greeks, and Romans. The Lord Jesus condemned such an attitude and indicated we must show:
I. A Love Which is Dutiful In Its Ministry (5:44)
1. We Must Treat Our Enemies Pleasantly (5:44)
2. We Must Treat Our Enemies Profitably (5:44)
3. We Must Treat Our Enemies Prayerfully (5:44)
II. A Love Which is Distinctive In Its Quality (5:45–47)
1. Spiritual Love (5:45)
2. Impartial Love (5:45–47)
III. A Love Which is Developed In Its Constancy (5:48)
1. Obedience to the Word of God (1 John 2:5)
2. Dependence on the Son of God (1 John 4:17)
3. Allegiance to the Church of God (1 John 4:12)
Conclusion
The church’s greatest need at this hour is a new’ baptism of perfect love. God help us to exercise daily obedience to the Word of God, daily dependence on the Son of God, and daily allegiance to the church of God, so developing that divine quality of love.
Introduction:
Expository Preaching Outlines, Volume Seven Twenty-three, Sermon Outline
Introduction:
Righteousness is the holy expression of divine love. The scribes and Pharisees failed to draw the distinction between God’ s hatred of sin and His love of the sinner. They interpreted God’s judgment on sin as a command to hate Samaritans, Greeks, and Romans. The Lord Jesus condemned such an attitude and indicated we must show:
I. A Love Which is Dutiful In Its Ministry (5:44)
1. We Must Treat Our Enemies Pleasantly (5:44)
2. We Must Treat Our Enemies Profitably (5:44)
3. We Must Treat Our Enemies Prayerfully (5:44)
II. A Love Which is Distinctive In Its Quality (5:45–47)
1. Spiritual Love (5:45)
2. Impartial Love (5:45–47)
III. A Love Which is Developed In Its Constancy (5:48)
1. Obedience to the Word of God (1 John 2:5)
2. Dependence on the Son of God (1 John 4:17)
3. Allegiance to the Church of God (1 John 4:12)
Conclusion
The church’s greatest need at this hour is a new’ baptism of perfect love. God help us to exercise daily obedience to the Word of God, daily dependence on the Son of God, and daily allegiance to the church of God, so developing that divine quality of love.
Expository Preaching Outlines, Volume Seven Twenty-three, Sermon Outline
Righteousness is the holy expression of divine love. The scribes and Pharisees failed to draw the distinction between God’ s hatred of sin and His love of the sinner. They interpreted God’s judgment on sin as a command to hate Samaritans, Greeks, and Romans. The Lord Jesus condemned such an attitude and indicated we must show
Introduction:
Introduction:
Righteousness is the holy expression of divine love. The scribes and Pharisees failed to draw the distinction between God’ s hatred of sin and His love of the sinner. Though no such commandment existed in the Old Testament, it is not difficult to understand how such an idea evolved from the general teaching of Old Testament Scriptures, based on imprecatory passages and psalms.
They interpreted God’s judgment on sin as a command to hate Samaritans, Greeks, and Romans.
The Lord Jesus condemned such an attitude and indicated we must show:
I. Love Is Demonstrated Towards Our Enemies (5:44)
I. Love Is Demonstrated Towards Our Enemies (5:44)
44 But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,
Expository Preaching Outlines, Volume Seven I. A Love Which is Dutiful In Its Ministry
The supreme characteristic of divine love is that it is always active, creative, and redemptive. Divine love is never passive in Scripture; God is ever reaching out with selflessness and sacrifice in His concern for others.
It is comparatively easy to love our friends. Therefore, Jesus deliberately tells us to love our enemies, and He specifies three ways in which we are expected to express our love to those we would naturally hate:
The supreme characteristic of divine love is that it is always active, creative, and redemptive. Divine love is never passive in Scripture; God is ever reaching out with selflessness and sacrifice in His concern for others.
It is comparatively easy to love our friends. Therefore, Jesus deliberately tells us to love our enemies, and He specifies three ways in which we are expected to express our love to those we would naturally hate:
1. We Must Treat Our Enemies Pleasantly (5:44)
1. We Must Treat Our Enemies Pleasantly (5:44)
“… bless those who curse you …” (5:44). The word bless means “to speak well of” or “to eulogize.” When we are tempted to react adversely to their sneers and curses, we must overflow in divine love, speaking pleasantly to our enemies.
2. We Must Treat Our Enemies Profitably (5:44)
2. We Must Treat Our Enemies Profitably (5:44)
“… do good to those who hate you …” (5:44). It is not sufficient merely to speak well of them: we are to be dutiful in our ministry of love to those who are our enemies. The apostle Paul offers instructions to surrendered believers on how to do this:
20 To the contrary, “if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by so doing you will heap burning coals on his head.” 21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.
3. We Must Treat Our Enemies Prayerfully (5:44)
3. We Must Treat Our Enemies Prayerfully (5:44)
“… pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you” (5:44). The supreme example of divine love is our Lord Jesus Christ, who prayed even while He was being nailed to the cross:
34 And Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.” And they cast lots to divide his garments.
Stephen, the first Christian martyr, filled with the Holy Spirit, could pray even as the stones were pelting him to death: “…
60 And falling to his knees he cried out with a loud voice, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” And when he had said this, he fell asleep.
How often do we name our enemies before God in prayer, seeking wisdom and grace to deal with them, and requesting their ultimate salvation? If the Christ of Calvary indwells us, we can do no other than pray for them which spitefully use us and persecute us (study ).
1 First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, 2 for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way. 3 This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior, 4 who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. 5 For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, 6 who gave himself as a ransom for all, which is the testimony given at the proper time. 7 For this I was appointed a preacher and an apostle (I am telling the truth, I am not lying), a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and truth.
Illustration:
Application:
II. Love is Distinctive in Its Quality (5:45–47)
II. Love is Distinctive in Its Quality (5:45–47)
45 so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. 46 For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? 47 And if you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same?
Matt 5:
These words make it evident that Jesus was speaking of a quality of love which is not to be found in the natural heart. It is a quality which may be described as:
1. Spiritual Love (5:45)
1. Spiritual Love (5:45)
45 so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.
Love begins with God but it ends with us. Christians are “… partakers of the divine nature …” (), and since love is the nature of God it must be exhibited through our new nature.
4 by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire.
This is the whole thrust of vv. 45–47. As the heavenly Father shares His sun and sends His rain on the evil and the good without partiality, so we should share and send our love to all. Only His unconditional, selfless love can make this possible.
God did not create man because He needs love; He created him because He is love. As spiritual sons and daughters, we should exemplify and express the same quality of love through the power of the indwelling Spirit (see ).
5 and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.
Illustration:
Illustration:
… Reader’s Digest (December 1982) offers some practical advice on loving those “difficult” people in our lives:
People are unreasonable, illogical and self-centered.
Love them anyway.
If you do good, people will accuse you of selfish ulterior motives.
Do good anyway.
If you are successful, you will win false friends and true enemies.
Succeed anyway.
Honesty and frankness make you vulnerable.
Be honest and frank anyway.
The good you do today will be forgotten tomorrow.
Do good anyway.
The biggest people with the biggest ideas can be shot down by the smallest people with the smallest pride.
Think big anyway.
People favor underdogs but follow only top dogs.
Fight for some underdogs anyway.
What you spent years budding may be destroyed overnight.
Build anyway.
Give the world the best you have and you’ll get kicked in the teeth.
Give the world the best you’ve got anyway
2. Impartial Love (5:45–47)
2. Impartial Love (5:45–47)
45 so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. 46 For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? 47 And if you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same?
matt 5:45-47
Jesus is teaching here that there is no discrimination in divine love.
Augustine put it beautifully when he wrote: “To return good for good and evil for evil is natural; to return evil for good is devilish, but to return good for evil is divine.”
A.D. Lindsay’s comment on this verse is also worth noting: “What does reward mean here? Isn’t it like saying: What is the fun of stopping short at loving people that love you? Can’t you see that it is more exciting than that? This is Christ’s doctrine of the extra. To return evil for good is the devil’s way; to return good for good is man’s; to return good for evil is God’s.”
This, then, is the distinctive quality of divine love. It is spiritual and impartial. It is a quality of love which rises beyond family affection, passionate longing, and human tenderness. It is love which loves the unlovely, “that they might be lovelier.”
Illustration:
Illustration:
One Sunday a little boy looked up at his dad and asked, “Daddy, how does God love us?” His father answered, “Son, God loves us with an unconditional love.” The lad thought for a moment and then asked, “Daddy, what kind of love is unconditional love?” After a few minutes of silence his father answered, “Do you remember the two boys who used to live next door to us and the cute little puppy they got last Christmas?.… Yes.” “Do you remember how they used to tease it, throw sticks and even rocks at it?.… Yes.” “Do you also remember how the puppy would always greet them with a wagging tail and would try to lick their faces?.… Yes.” “Well, that puppy had an unconditional love for those two boys. They certainly didn’t deserve his love for them because they were mean to him. But, he loved them anyway.” The father then made his point: “God’s love for us is also unconditional. Men threw rocks at his Son, Jesus, and hit him with sticks. They even killed him. But, Jesus loved them anyway.”
III. Love is Developed in Its Consistency (5:48)
III. Love is Developed in Its Consistency (5:48)
48 You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.
matt 5:
48 You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.
Human love, however highly it is developed, tends to fail under strain and pressure, while divine love is constant and unfailing (). While that is true of God, inasmuch as “God is love,” it is necessary that it should be developed in us day by day so that we become perfect, “… just as [our] Father in heaven is perfect” (5:48). The New Testament leaves us in no doubt as to how this may be done. The apostle John is particularly helpful in this regard. Three flames over he speaks of the perfecting of love in Christian experience, and the passages that follow reveal to us the secret of developing the constancy of love.
8 Love never ends. As for prophecies, they will pass away; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will pass away.
1. There Must Be Obedience to the Word of God
1. There Must Be Obedience to the Word of God
5 but whoever keeps his word, in him truly the love of God is perfected. By this we may know that we are in him:
Obedience to God’s Word as a complete revelation is the secret of perfected love in Christian experience. The more we obey God through His Word, the more we become like God. This is what the Savior meant by being “… perfect [or mature], just as [our] Father in heaven is perfect” (5:48). When we behave like God then love has attained its end, selfishness and carnal desires are banished, and the will of God is carried out in us and through us to others.
2. There Must Be Dependence on the Son of God
2. There Must Be Dependence on the Son of God
17 By this is love perfected with us, so that we may have confidence for the day of judgment, because as he is so also are we in this world.
This means that Christ’s perfection becomes our perfection. Perfect love was displayed in Jesus Christ. He was perfect in His thoughts, words and deeds, and He is “… the same yesterday, today, and forever” (). Therefore, as we count upon Him to live His life in us and through us, our love is made perfect. To live His life is to have no fear now or in the day of judgment. Since His life ever pleased God, we know that we are ever and always acceptable to the Father when we exhibit the characteristics of His blessed Son in daily living.
8 Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.
3. There Must Be Allegiance to the Church of God
3. There Must Be Allegiance to the Church of God
12 No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us and his love is perfected in us.
The unregenerate world said of the early church: “See how these Christians love one another.” The fact is, these believers were simply fulfilling the Lord’s command, “By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another” (). The Bible says, “No one has seen God at any time …” (), but Christ came to reveal Him in terms which men and women could understand. Today that same Christ seeks to reveal the same God through the love we have for one another. The more we love each other within the fellowship of the church, the more the love of God is perfected and developed in us in its constancy and victory. In the most mysterious and miraculous way, loving one another within the church strengthens us to love our enemies outside of the church. Indeed, if we don’t love one another within the church, how can we expect the lost to believe the genuiness of our love to them?
35 By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”
35 By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”
35 By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”
18 No one has ever seen God; the only God, who is at the Father’s side, he has made him known.
Illustration:
Illustration:
… D.L. Moody tells of a little street urchin in Chicago who went many, many blocks across the frozen streets of the great city, passing numerous churches, in order to attend the one of Mr. Moody. A Sunday school teacher stopped him one morning and asked, “Where are you going?” He replied, “To Mr. Moody’s Sunday School.” “Why, that is many, many blocks away. Come to my class which is nearby.” The boy declined. Out of curiosity, the teacher asked why the boy went so far through the cold to attend Moody’s Sunday School. “Because they love a fellow over there!” Lost souls are looking for love, they are longing for love, and if they find it not in our hearts and the atmosphere we create in our churches and Sunday Schools, then they will go limping down to hell without it!
Conclusion
The church’s greatest need at this hour is a new’ baptism of perfect love. God help us to exercise daily obedience to the Word of God, daily dependence on the Son of God, and daily allegiance to the church of God, so developing that divine quality of love.