The Fruit of The Spirit is Love 07/18/2021
Today we want to continue in our series, you see it right there, victory in Jesus. And today, the title of the sermon
Is the fruit of the spirit is love. So here's what we going to do. We're going to read Galatians 5 2223, but I don't want you to turn down your Bibles. I want you to go to 1st Corinthians 13. cuz we going to put Galatians 5:22, 23 up on the screen here. I'm going to read that, but the message today is going to come from 1st Corinthians 13. Because that's the love chapter. Do you want to read a chapter in the Bible? About love is 1st Corinthians 13? But we're going to go over all of the fruit of the spirit. We going to take each one one per week and today we come to the first one. I remember we talked we talked about legalism and Hedonism living by the flesh. We talked about that and look at that first word in that verse. But now I've been saying for years, I'm going to preach on all the good, but so the Bible cost, if there's a bunch of good ones in the Bible and this is one of them. He had just gotten through talking about walking, in the flash living in the flash. Remember what the flash does, you know, jealousy, and anger, and wrath and all that. And he comes and he says buck The fruit of the spirit is love, joy, peace, long-suffering, kindness goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control against such. There is no law. So today the fruit of the spirit is love well the Bible teaches us, a great deal about the concept of love. So let me give you the four Greek words for love and what they mean? And then we're going to talk about the word for love here in 1st Corinthians, chapter 13. So, the first Greek word for love was Eros. That is a sensual sexual love. We get our word erotic from that. The Bible never uses that word, but in Greek culture, it was used a lot. Another Greek word for love or storge storge is the type of love that a parent would have for a child. The Bible never uses that word either for love. The third word for love is phileo. That is the That is a brotherly love, maybe something a love between siblings or if you have a real good friend, that you love you for Leo, but we get the City Philadelphia City of Brotherly. Walk love, that's where it comes from. The Bible uses that quite often for Leo. But today, the word we're looking at the last Greek. Word is agape. Know you probably heard me say that you probably heard other preachers. Talk about agape love. Now this this word Agape is not understood really by many people because a lot of people have painted the word love. In kind of a worldly. See it in kind of a worldly lens. Agape. Let me try to explain it. Like this agape. Love is God's love. It is his love, but he has loved us weird. It is rooted in God, it is totally selfless. If unwavering? It's undemanding. He doesn't demand that. We love him back. He just loves us anyway. It is unconditional is not conditional about what I do. How many times I read my Bible house and I pray or how many times a month I go to church. It's not conditioned on anyting. It is just God's love for mankind. He's our maker. He's our creator. And he loves his creation. That's agape, love. It is a sacrificial love. We've already talked about this morning, Jesus dying on the cross Agape. Love is a love that gives and expects nothing in return agape, love continually, love, whether that person is love back or not agape, love doesn't keep score. It doesn't count, you say what you mean by that? What I mean? Like the person who says, Well, I've called them last three times, I'm not calling them again until they call me. I've called him and call him. They never called, I'm not going to say another word to him till they call me. You see that love? There is not a guy paid because of golf, a doesn't expect anything in return. It's it. It's a giving sacrificial love. That type of Love is a selfish. Love. Well, I love them if they'll love me and I bought them something. They need to bring the baby by me, so I took them out to eat, they better take me out. Now that's that's a selfish love agape, love continues to give it determines what is best for a person and it does it. That's Agape Love without thinking about getting something in return. And noticed that love is the first word that appears on our list but the fruit of the spirit is love because love always comes first. Let me give you three points today about love, from we going to see it right here in 1st Corinthians 13. Number one is this. I want you to notice the pre-eminence of love and the other word love is pre-eminent because it in riches Us and other people that we touched. Now, let's look at it and 1st Corinthians 13. Let's look at the first three verses. Now, watch what it says here. though, I speak with the tongues of men and of angels But have not love. I have become sounding brass or a clanging cymbal. And though I have the gift of Prophecy and understand all Mysteries and all knowledge and though I have all Faith so that I could remove mountains. But have not love. I am nothing and though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, But have not love it profits. Me nothing. Well let me give you a few points here about why love is pre-eminent number one. Love is the priority command. And I remember this, in Matthew chapter 22, the lawyer asked Jesus. What's the greatest commandment? What Jesus say? He says you are to love the Lord. Thy God with all thy heart, mind and soul, and love others. As yourself. The greatest commandment the priority, When the lawyer said, what is the? What's the greatest thing I can do? Is it faith. Is it worth? Tell me? What is the greatest thing Jesus said? I'll tell you what it is. Love the Lord. Thy God with all thy. Heart mind, soul, and strength. Love others as yourself. It was love. That's. And then later on Jesus said, I give you a new commandment love others as I have loved, you is what he said. It is what that's what it is. The first commandment, the greatest is to love God. What's the second greatest to love other people? It wasn't a priority commandment given in the New Testament. Baby. Let me say this about the pre-eminence of love. It is the perfect gift. In 1st Corinthians chapter 12, verse 31. Paul had talked he's talkin about here. This chapter comes right in the middle of him. Talking about spiritual gifts and he says, yet, I want to show you a more. Excellent way to live. Well, what is that way? Well, chapter 13 love. He said, I want to show you a more. Excellent way the love chapter love is the perfect gift. According to the Bible C. Love is the permanent virtue and I think I put a scripture up. If you could go to it, Vicky 1st Corinthians 13:13, and you can look at it in your Bible or will try to put it on the screen, 1st Corinthians 13:13.
And now abide faith. Hope, love these three But the greatest of these is love, it is the permanent virtue. I'm going to say much more about that at the end of my message. But when you look at these here, all of these virtues in Galatians their hours, but when you filtro Mall down only three remain faith, hope and love, but even those that remain. One is greater than the other and that one is love matter fact. It was so important. I want to show you a scripture here of what Paul said to the Colossians in chapter 3 and verse 14, Colossians chapter 3, and verse 14. This is a illustration how important love is because Paul is using a picture. A putting on clothes. Look at this. But above all these things put on love which is the bond of perfection plus I don't care what else you that you can wear anything you want to wear blue jeans or coat a suit attack whatever you put on is fine but make sure before you leave your home everyday. Put on love, you wear love just like you do clothes, make sure that you don't leave love. Also, it's the permanent virtue d.
Love is the proof. Of your son, she at or love is the proof that we are children of God. Now, let me ask you something. How do you know who you are? How does people know that you are Christian? Do they know that you are Christian by what you say? Well not really, I can talk the talk but I don't have to walk the walk by the fact in the Bible. There's a lot of people who talk to talk and what the Lord say to them. He said, they are all y'all who preached in my name and do this and do that. He said in the end he's going to say, depart from me for, I never knew you, you say the right words, but your hearts are far from me. So no, you don't have to people don't know. We are Christians by how we talk you say, what? How about, how about? Do they know I'm a Christian Maybe? Buy all the things that I do, well Works can be deceiving as well. The Bible says, there's one way, one way only to know, for sure. A person is a Christian and it is. John 13:35. And I want you to look at this. John 13:35, if you want to know how people would know whether or not you are Christian, this is it right here.
John 13, verse 35. By this all will know that you are my disciples. In other words by this all will know that you're saved that you follow me. If you have love for one another, every one of these verses that has loved in it it is a guy pee love. If you have the love that I have loved you with by this all will know that you follow me by this. All will know that you are Christian. If you love one another it's the proof that were saved this, the proof of our sons yet. And then, lastly,
Love is. Is on a pentacle. By itself. Powerdetails, I want us to kind of go through this chapter right here, invert in chapter 13. Impulse starts with all the many gifts, here in The Graces, and the virtues all on one level. And then one by one. Paul takes them away. Until the only thing that is left is love and I want you to watch this. Look at verse 1.
Though, I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I have become sounding black brass or a clanging cymbal. In other words, Jesus is saying here, Paul is saying here love is better than any philosopher that you'll ever hear love is better than any person with great oratory skills. Now, back in that culture the Greeks were just famous philosophers and people just love to hear the Philosopher's waxed eloquently. And Paul says here, it doesn't matter if you can speak eloquently. It doesn't matter how smart you are. It doesn't matter if you can speak with the mouth of an Angel, if you do not have love, he says, you're like a clanging cymbal. It is useless. He's a sounding. Brass his words are valueless. Look at verse 2. and though I have the gift of Prophecy and understand all Mysteries, you get the process is a person who can preach Do I have the gift of Prophecy and understand all Mysteries and all knowledge? And do I have all Faith so that I could remove mountains but have not love. I am nothing, love is greater than prophecy. Paul says, being able to preach being able to foretell the future, being able to have knowledge of what the Bible says is going to happen. He says if you have all that and you are a great preacher but you don't have love. He says you're useless. Love is better than oratory skills. Love is better than prophecy. Verse 2 again says love is greater than knowledge and understanding if you have all kind of knowledge about the intricacies of God's word and you don't have love your worthless to God. Just worthless. Love is greater than Faith. He said, I don't care if you can remove mountains, without love. It means nothing. Just think about that. We're always hearing about. Do you got to have faith? You got to have faith faith without law of useless to God. Faith without love, is useless. Love is greater than Faith. He know Hebrew says, without faith. It's impossible to please. God, for the Paul saying license. He says, faith working through. Love is what he said, even Our Fate has to work through love so love is greater than fake. Love is greater. Then, all the good deeds you can do look at it here in verse 3. And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor. If you give all your money to feed poor, if you give all your money to charity, yet, you don't have law. That is useless. It didn't look what he says he eats brains that even down even more. And let me say something about these good works. Also, before we move on the Romans, they would ration out the food and they would give it to the people. And sometimes, for entertainment, the Romans would bring what we would call today, circuses, or the fair to town, and let the people enjoy themselves, and all of that. And you, look at that, you may say what? That's a loving thing to do that. Give them food and give them entertained, but friends. Let me tell you then it was not because of the love for the people that roam had is because they wanted to control the people. And the reason I say that is something that we're going through in our own culture and Nation today. There are people in this nation today who want to give you free, education and Free Housing and food stamps. And they want the government to give you everything free. They do that not because they love you, they do that because they want to control you. It's what they're doing. They want to control. You just like the Romans were doing Here, love is greater than any good deeds because most time good day, sometimes the motives are right behind it, but then Paul summarizes and said, look what he says in verse 3. He says, even if I give my body to be burned, Was he come by if you become a martyr, if you die for Christ because you stand up for the Bible, even if you do that, he said, but have not love. He says, I'm the best at the Southside. That's the ultimate sacrifice to give your life or cry. He said, you do that and you don't have love. He says it is all useless and you can become a martyr but it's not worth anything. You see in the mind of God agape, love is of supreme and it is number one. That's why we have to look at the pre-eminence of love it. In riches our lives and the lives of other. Number two, I want you to see the practice of love and love is practical because it edifies and I want you to see this and verses four through seven. So not only does love in rich is pre-eminent but it's also practical because it edifies look at it verse for love suffers long and is kind, love does not envy. Love does not parade itself, is not puffed up. Does not behave, rudely does not seek. Its own is not provoked thinks. No evil does not rejoice in iniquity, rejoices in the truth Bears. All things believes all things, hopes all things endures, all things. In other words, love, not only is number one in the list. But in every one of the other Grace's that's listed their joy and peace, and long-suffering, gentleness and goodness, and faithfulness and self-control all of that. You put all those together, they all come back to love. That's why I love is pre-eminent. This is why it is practical. So let's just think about these other Graces that he mentions in Galatians chapter 5. The first one is Joy. Where the strength of Love is Joy. He says, love does not rejoice in iniquity, but love rejoices in the truth vs here. In 1st Corinthians 13. Think about this. The stability of love if you will, is long-suffering look what it says in verse for love suffers long. Denver7 Bears, all things so is long-suffering, that's the stability of it and then we have gentleness. It says in verse five. Love does not behave rudely and other words love is always a gentle person. If you love with a guy fail of you going to be a gentle person and then reseal of his goodness was it say in verse for love suffers I was kind love does not envy. It does not parade itself. It is not puffed up, so we see that love is goodness. And love is Faith. It believes all things. It says in verse 7 hopes, all things endures all things. It's also meatless. It says it does. Love does not seek its own in verse five. And then again, in verse five self-control is temperance, it's not provoked. You see how loved all the other Grace is point right? Back to love. Well, think about it for Eminence of love it enriches. They the Practical love is practical and what does that mean? Will that just means it and if I say it builds up people is what it does. It builds up number 3, I want you to see the permanents Of love. And what I mean by that is love is permanent because love is eternal. Now, let's look at how the Bible says that in verses 8 through 13.
The Bible says, love, never fails. Let me tell you what that little phrase there means. It means Love Never Ends. That's what it mean. When it says it never fails, it means that never ends Love Never Ends. But whether there are prophecies preaching, they all fail. whether there are tons speaking in tongues, they will cease whether there is knowledge. It will eventually vanish away. Now, what is he talking about? He's talkin about. There's coming a day. When there's there's no longer going to be any need for preaching, there's no longer going to be any need for knowledge because when Jesus come by, we're going to see him face-to-face. We going to know as we have been known, we will know everything. Then no need for teachers, then no need for preachers at that time. That's why I says they'll fail. Tongues will cease. We won't need on when Jesus comes back. Alright, verse 9 for we know in part and we prophesy in part. So even those of us who study the Bible where we know some, but we don't know everything. We just kind of know in part verse 10, but when that, which is perfect has come Jesus than that, which is in part will be done away when Jesus comes back. We'll know all things, but the first 12 for now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now, I know in part, but then I shall know. Just as I also am known and now abideth Faith. Hope, love these three, but the greatest of these is love. Why is love greater Because one day you won't need Faith. Do you know that all we live by faith? Now, we always say, oh, you got to have more faith, you got to have more fun. When you see, Jesus face-to-face, your faith is going to turn from fate the site because you going to see him and you going to live with it. You no longer need faith. I tell you something else. You won't need. You won't need hope. Today. We need hope the hope of his glorious return. But friends, when he comes back, your hope will be fulfilled. You won't need faith and you won't need. Hope you ever heard people say? Well, I'm going to do this, I'm going to do that because when you die, you can't take it with you. I came into this world with nothing. I'll leave with nothing. Let me tell you. One thing that you're going to take with you to help Bumping that you have on Earth that you going to take with you to heaven and that is love. Your love will go with you to have an all these other. Things will cease. All these other things will fail, will not need them. But love will follow you to heaven. That's why I faith, hope love. But the greatest is love wife, because Love Never Fails. Love, Never Ends. Love is eternal. That's why it is so important. And why is love Eternal? Because the Bible says, God is love, and God is love. And God is eternal. Then love is E Turner. And I'm convinced that what we need most in our world today In our churches and in our homes and in our own personal lives. Is a great outpouring of agape love sacrificial. Unconditional love, it's not by accident that God, put this at the top of his list. Now, how do we get this in our lives? How do we? Because when it, when I look at my own life and I'm sure if you look at yours, you'll say what, you know, I just don't love. The way that I alter, I don't love people with a guy fail of when I love someone. I do something cuz they do something nice for me and I'll just return it, but it's very rarely. Do, I do something? Don't expect something in return. I want a love like this. This Agape. How do I do it? Will let me say this if your heart is filled with bitterness resentment hard feelings, God loves you, right? Where you are just like you are. But here's how to get that love. when you start meditating and thinking about how much God loves you, And the way that he has loved you and the way that he has seen you, through the circumstances, and difficulties of Life agape, love will overwhelm you. When you think that when you're grateful for what God has done for you, when you're thankful for his love his sacrificial death, if you will meditate upon that, you'll see that God will do something in your heart and you'll start loving others with an agape love because you're so appreciative. How God has loved you. Do you know that? Look at Romans chapter 5, in verse 5. Look what the Bible says. It will close with this. And it is before 12. Will close with. Look at that.
Now, hope does not disappoint. Because the love of God of God has been poured out in our hearts, by the Holy Spirit, who was given to us when we when you were safe. The Holy Spirit came into your heart and life. And he took a 5 gallon bucket of agape and just soaked it into your heart. That's exactly what it says in our hearts. The love of God. You've got a 5 gallon bucket bucket. Full of Agape poured out in your heart. You may not realize it. You may not think about it that way. You may think what God has been good to me my life. My circle. That's because your living below your circumstances. Once you look to God and see how good he's been to you. You'll be able to love others and you will have Victory in Jesus even in the face of pain and suffering. That's the love that we're talkin about today. It is agape love. So what is it? Love is pre-eminent why Richards? Love is practical, white size size everyone. We speak to it and love is permanent why? Because it is the only thing that will last it is eternal. Amen. Let's pray. Father, we thank you and Praise You. Lord, we want to love you today with the agape, love that you loved us with. Lord, I just thank you for your love that you've shown me and my family in this church for each one of us here. Lord, we know that we all live in different circumstances and some people have had a harder life than others but we can all look to you and see how your mercy and Grace and your love has let us and kept us. And you will continue to do that. Lord help us to meditate on that fact. Help us to think of the great love with which you have loved us with in, or we asked that the holy spirit will continue to pour out buckets of agape love. In her own heart. Forcing Christ name? I do pray. Amen. All right, well, thank you for being here today. Glad that you were here.