Let's talk about love
Light, love and the love of God series • Sermon • Submitted • Presented • 54:15
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God’s perfect love
God’s perfect love
Love is perfected (1Jn4:17) and God’s perfect love is in us (1Jn4:12). Tonight we are going to be looking at love, that perfected love given, evidenced by the nature of love and proven by the application of the believers.
Let’s start with a question, when you think of the apostle of love, who do you think of? Why?
Could it be Paul? He wrote the love chapter 1Cor13:1-13, he uses the word love 96 times in his epistles
Or could it be John? In our passage tonight alone he uses love 20 times. So it would only be right to let love be the theme.
John declared about evidenced love (authentic Christian love) is seen in
Abiding in the light and having fellowship with Him (1Jn2:10, 1Jn1:5-7)
10 The one who loves his brother abides in the Light and there is no cause for stumbling in him.
and add to that
5 This is the message we have heard from Him and announce to you, that God is Light, and in Him there is no darkness at all. 6 If we say that we have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth; 7 but if we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin.
John has defined loved (1Jn3:16) and given us the value of love (1Jn3:18-19)
16 We know love by this, that He laid down His life for us; and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.
and then the value
18 Little children, let us not love with word or with tongue, but in deed and truth. 19 We will know by this that we are of the truth, and will assure our heart before Him
Tonight John expounds on the theme of love even more in (1Jn4:7-21)
So here is the breakdown for tonight
Evidenced love demonstrated (1Jn4:7-8)
Evidenced love defined (1Jn4:9-11)
Evidenced love commanded (1Jn4:12-16)
Evidenced love assured (1Jn4:17-19)
Evidenced love is essential (1Jn4:20-21)
We are going to glean from the scripture as we go and tough on some loving points.
Evidenced love demonstrated
Evidenced love demonstrated
Demonstrated love, it has to start with the originator to the replicator. And the replication is evidence of their sonship.
7 Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. 8 The one who does not love does not know God, for God is love.
Who is the originator of love (v.7)?
The originator of love is God; his love, his desire, is for the goodwill of man. He wants the best for us and gave us the best as seen in (v.9).
Because of the originator of it, what are we to do (v.7)?
We, as believers, as beloved, are to love one another.
Love demonstrated displays that we are “born of God” and “know God”
What is love according to (v.8)?
God is love, everything that He does is for active goodwill for man.
We do need to be careful for love does not overlook sin, for God is also light, which brings light to sin (1Jn1:5-6)
Wanting the best means to teach them not to sin, not to dwell in sin, God is love, God is just.
(illustration) - Maybe you have seen many definitions of love (words, attention, affection, gifts) but John does not want Agape love, and brotherly love our subject at hand to be misconstrued. He is going to expand on what he said:
16 By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers.
Evidenced love defined
Evidenced love defined
Who does not like a good bible illustration? John goes on to show evidenced love (agape, brotherly) love manifested and defined in our next section.
9 By this the love of God was manifested in us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world so that we might live through Him. 10 In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. 11 Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.
How was love manifested and why was it manifested (v.9)?
manifested by sending Jesus into the world
His only begotten Son as seen in Jn1:14, 18, 3:16 and 3:18 too.
14 And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.
Oh we know Jn3:16, no need to put that up, but oftentimes people don’t want to look at, remember, 3:18 and maybe should put that one up. Because we are talking about God’s love.
18 “He who believes in Him is not judged; he who does not believe has been judged already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.
So that we might live through Him.
How is love defined according to (v.10)?
Love defined by God sending Jesus
He sent His Son not because we loved Him, but because He loved us.
He sent His Son that He might be the propitiation for our sins.
Jesus came and died not just to give us the way of forgiveness of sins, but to provide the way to a new life, eternal life with the Father through the Son.
What does love command (v.11)?
As God so loved us we are to love one another.
So, what does that look like, should it look like?
This is the kind of love demonstrated, and the kind of love we should have
Love that is active, and desires the best for others
Love that is manifested unconditionally, sacrificially. Love that we love first not in response to someone else’s love.
God’s love given, God’s love received, should now be God’s love through us as children of God.
Evidenced love commanded
Evidenced love commanded
There are direct commands (i.e., 10 commandments) there are inferred commands (Great commission; MK16:15-16) and implied commands (understand the will of God; Eph5:17-19). John is building on evidenced love commanded here in this passage.
Let’s look at this passage
11 Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. 12 No one has seen God at any time; if we love one another, God abides in us, and His love is perfected in us.
13 By this we know that we abide in Him and He in us, because He has given us of His Spirit. 14 We have seen and testify that the Father has sent the Son to be the Savior of the world.
15 Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. 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.
What is the command (v.11)?
The implied command to love one another, why? Because God loved us
What is the results of the command abided (v.12)?
God’s love is perfected in us when we love one another
Another point to get is from the no one has seen God portion of this verse, which is very similar to what you can see in:
18 No one has seen God at any time; the only begotten God who is in the bosom of the Father, He has explained Him.
Though no one has seen God, they have seen God as being manifested in the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross. For God is love and that was perfect love there on the cross.
As Jesus is proof of life with the Father (1Jn1:1-4) he is also the demonstration of the Fathers love for His creation by the sacrifice.
What is the proof of the command abided (v.13)?
It’s the Holy Spirit!
The Spirit of truth that led the apostles (Jn14:21-26)
The Spirit that would remind, teach.
The Spirit made available to all who repent and are baptized for forgiveness of sins.
God’s redemptive seed (Jesus) is to bear fruit in the Christian, that fruit is love for one another because of the love given, demonstrated and commanded.
Do you see another command (v.15)? If so what is it?
Confession, confessing Jesus is the Son of God.
The results are God will abide in him who confesses.
A great fact in this verse is that this unites the humanity of Jesus with the divinity of the Son of God.
How do we come to know the love of God (v.16)?
It is in the sending His son (v.9); it is in the love of the Son given (v.11-12) and in the Spirit given (v.13)
It is because of the cross at Calvary the place where heaven and earth met. Where God’s love was perfected!
Evidenced loves assurance
Evidenced loves assurance
Perfected love brings about some assurance. Boldness for the day of judgment, fearless because the God’s perfect love cast’s out fear. And yet there is still more in this passage, so let’s look together.
17 By this, love is perfected with us, so that we may have confidence in the day of judgment; because as He is, so also are we in this world. 18 There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves punishment, and the one who fears is not perfected in love. 19 We love, because He first loved us.
Why is love perfected in us (v.17)?
It is perfected so that we can have confidence on the day of judgment.
Gods love given was perfected on the cross, and it is redemptive for you and for me, for all who believe and confess the humanity and the divinity of Jesus.
What does perfect love do (v.18)?
it cast out fear, for there is no fear (Phobia) in love (agape, phileo).
It is life giving in this world (v.17)! It cast’s out fear (phobia’s) so that we may have confidence, assurance in the perfected love of God given and the perfected love in us to live though us.
Why do we love (v.19)?
Because He loved first.
He gave us His Son
The Son gave us His life and His Spirit
His Spirit gave us His Word
His word gave us the way of salvation and eternal life with the Father through the life of the Son given.
Paul describes our unworthyness of God’s love that was given in spite of ourselves
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.
8 But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. 9 Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from the wrath of God through Him.
10 For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life.
or note down Tit3:3-7 which we have looked at many times. God wants His love towards us to be love that works through us.
Evidenced love is essential
Evidenced love is essential
The thing needed, love, is given, but in us it needs to be developed for it is essential.
20 If someone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for the one who does not love his brother whom he has seen, cannot love God whom he has not seen. 21 And this commandment we have from Him, that the one who loves God should love his brother also.
What is the problem you see (v.20)?
One claims love but hates.
The one who claims love but hates well, consider this
The one who claims to have fellowship and walks in the darkness is a liar too (1Jn1:6)
6 If we say that we have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth;
The one claiming no sin is a liar (1Jn1:10) and the truth is not in him.
10 If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar and His word is not in us.
So is the one who claims to know Him but does not keep his commandments (1Jn2:4)
4 The one who says, “I have come to know Him,” and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him;
For us to love the One whom we cannot see, first it is essential we learn to love the one’s we can see.
Failure to love the brethren makes it is lie to say you love God.
I found this when preparing by R.W. Stott a commentator about the three black lies that John exposes.
Moral (1Jn1:6, 2:4) if we say we have fellowship yet walk in darkness
Doctrinal (1Jn2:22-23) if we say we have the Father yet deny the Son
Social: (1Jn4:10) if we say we love God but hate our brother.
What is the command given (v.21)?
Love God and love your brother (others)
Look how Jesus said it:
34 “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another. 35 “By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”
The two greatest commandments love God and love others!
How can we show our love for the Father who we cannot see, by showing love to the brethren whom we can see.
(Conclusion) - - - - God’s evidenced love is:
Demonstrated in the sending of Jesus
Defined by love of Jesus on the cross
Commanded because of the love of God given, is the love for God that is to live through us
It has assurance that brings boldness and casts out fear
It is essential and must be developed.
Closing verse and call it a night.
12 “This is My commandment, that you love one another, just as I have loved you.
(Prayer) (exit)