Christmas Love: The Choice to Love the Indifferent and Unaware
Notes
Transcript
Handout
What is Love?
What is Love?
I.In Bethlehem you see priceless nature of God’s Love towards us.
power purety purpose
16 “For God loved the world in this way: He gave His One and Only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life.
A. Biblical Love is rooted in the Character of God.
B. In Christ you see the Power of God’s Love.
power
6 For while we were still helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. 7 For one will hardly die for a righteous man; though perhaps for the good man someone would dare even to die.
Truthfully, I don’t always feel Christian. I don’t always feel loved, I don’t always feel loving.
But when I think on Christ’s love, when I consider His coming, His Cross, His Crown laid down, His Condescending to me, I cannot help but be overwhelmed by His love.
What saddens me is how many times I have demanded that Christ do it my way. I’ve seen people who claim to have
II. God’s love is a Purifying Love.
10 Create in me a clean heart, O God, And renew a steadfast spirit within me.
Only one Who loves perfectly can cleanse our hearts. Try as hard as we might, we can’t do it merely on our own. We need to bring our hearts to God and let Him burn away the dross.
טָהֹר
ṭā·hōr pure; ceremonially clean; ethically clean
unmixed, unalloyed; purity
pure; ceremonially clean; ethically clean
CDWGTHB
Attraction, Reflection,
3 sided approach: Attraction; Intimacy; Commitment.
There was nothing attractive about our rebellion, indifference, selfishness, and sin. What we don’t get that even if we got it right 90% of the time, Jesus has 100% consistent devotion in heaven. Nothing competes with His glory. No one distrusts His motives or intentions. No one blames Him for the bad things.
We will be attracted to what we value and work towards. We invest our efforts where we believe we will get a return.
That’s why God gives us parents. So kids get trained to see selfless love. Think about how much parents give to their kids.
II. GOD’S LOVE IS A PURPOSEFUL LOVE.
A. THAT YOU REFLECT THE CHARACTER OF GOD.
Refiners fire
10 Create in me a clean heart, O God, And renew a steadfast spirit within me.
Attraction: the wondrous Cross.
When does Jesus become attractive to people.
When do people become attractive to God.
Why? We reflect God. With the gift of His imagers.
We most love God when we look intently at Him so that we reflect him
How does a silver smith know the dross and
Reflecting God means knowing His thoughts and thinking His way is right.
That is why we study the Bible and discuss it. We want to keep refining our thoughts and getting the dross out.
We want to look like Him in the world.
INTIMACY
Intimacy doesn’t come automatically.
B. God wants you to be as COMMITTED TO HIM as HE IS TO YOU
What is love and affection. Pat MacAffee tells the story of his craziest Peyton Manning Story.
Manning found MacAffee to be a great friend and enjoyed being around him. For him the greatest story of Peyton Manning came when they both had gone down to French Lick Casino. Being the type of guy MacAffee is, he went to the Roulette Table. He played His number because that would hit. He played Vinateri Number because he kicked also. It’s close to 2 am. Peyton walks by Pat slaps his right buttocks like football players will do. He makes a gesture with his hand points at the table saying, “That red 18 looks pretty good.” He walks off to go to bed.
Pat thinks well this guy is a rock star around the world, but in Indiana he’s stratospheric. I better play 18. So Pat takes all his chips and moves people’s chips out of the way. He goes all in on Red 18. The other people look at Pat and ask was the Peyton. He says yup. So they all look and say, if QB1 said it, we all need to do it. So they pile these chips like the leaning tower of Pisa.
Next morning Pat sees Peyton. He says, last night when you said red 18 looked good, did you know it would hit. Peyton looks at me and just says, “Yup,” and walks off. At that moment Pat realized that if Peyton said jump, he’d jump no matter what.
Now that I have all you baptists attention because we know we shouldn’t be gambling, let me bring you to the conclusion of that story for Pat he finishes by saying:
AND THAT’S How I ended up swimming in the White River Canal.
He knew Peyton loved him and he loved Peyton so much that he never questioned Peyton’s intentions towards him. He received so much from Peyton on and off the field that when Peyton said jump in the canal, he did it.
Jesus loved us so much that when the Father said Jump into that dirty stable manger. Rub shoulders with those gritty people. Many who don’t think about You unless they want something or they blame you. Others use your Name so they look good rather than focusing on Your Fame.
III. YOU DON’T HAVE TO BE OUTSIDE IN A MANGER TO GROW COLD IN YOUR LOVE.
12 “Because lawlessness is increased, most people’s love will grow cold. 13 “But the one who endures to the end, he will be saved.
WITHOUT GOD’S LOVE
DOCTRINE BECOMES DRY
CHURCH FEELS COLD
WORSHIP WILL BE WEAK
SERVING WILL BE SELFISH OR NON-EXISTENT
WITH A HEART FULL OF LOVE
16 We have come to know and have believed the love which God has for us. God is love, and the one who abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him.
DOCTRINE WILL DELIGHT
CHURCH CHEERS YOU
WORSHIP WOWS YOU
SERVICE WILL BE A WILLING SACRIFICE.
God jumped off of His pure throne into a dirty manger for you. What keeps you from loving Him like that?
Where have you grown through doctrine this year?
How have you brought cheer to another believer?
How would God rate your worship of Him today?
How have you served others in His Name?
May you be filled with the wonder of Mary, the obedience of Joseph, the joy of the angels, the eagerness of the shepherds, the determination of the magi, and the peace of the Christ child. Almighty God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit bless you now and forever.