Homecoming

It is an amazing privilege to have the opportunity to be here today. I has been great to hear so many wonderful songs and see new and familiar faces. It is a great day to be in the house of the Lord!

This morning I want to talk about something that has been lost in our society. That is, “The Love of God.” You might think that is silly to say that the love of God has been lost in our society, but I believe this is true for two reasons. Number one, it has been lost in that most of the time I hear the phrase said, its in used as profanity. Something bad happens, you stub your big toe, and without thinking, you blurt out, “for the love of...” If I am watching TV and I hear someone say, “the love of God” it is more often than not in that context. The love of God has been morphed and abused into a curse word. That’s one way that the love of God has been lost in our society. The other way it has been lost is through superficiality. Our society and culture presents a superficial understanding of the Love of God. We are in need of evaluation, correction, and redemption of our understanding of the Love of God.

Let me be clear here though it is not the Love of God that needs redemption. God’s love is ever constant and consistent. However, our conception of the Love of God needs be redeemed. We need to divorce the Love of God from profanity and superficiality. One of the definitions of redeem is, “to free from what distresses or harms.” Profanity and superficiality has distressed and harmed our conception of the Love of God. So how then can our conception be redeemed? Through the Word of God.

A few months ago we had 2 Tim 3:16 as our corporate memory verse.

2 Timothy 3:16 ESV

All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness,

Scripture teaches us and corrects us. It calls us out and points us to truth. So through the Word of God we are able to separate the false from the true. We are pointed to God. It is through God’s Word that not just our conception of God’s Love is redeemed, but also we are redeemed!

Yesterday, in a men’s discipleship group one of the members reminded us of this verse from Romans:

Romans 10:17 ESV

So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.

The Word of Christ, recorded in Scripture, are used by the Holy Spirit to give us the gift of Faith. We are redeemed, saved by the grace of God through faith in the person and work of Jesus Christ. God uses His Word to show us our need of a Savior, convict us of our Sin, and point us to the Savior. As we are exposed to the Word of God, the Holy Spirit works in us, drawing us to conviction and faith in Jesus Christ. This is the triune nature of our eternal Salvation.

But all of that can seem like a lot to take in so let me make it plainer with an example. I have been redeemed! As just a young child, I came to understand that my sin was real. That real sin goes completely against the perfect, holy God. I understood that in my sin I stood against, as an enemy towards the Holy God. The Holy Spirit worked through a conversation with my mother, to point out my need of a savior. I begun to understand that Jesus died on the cross for MY sins. At the moment, I was given faith in Jesus. I have been redeemed! God worked through His Word to draw a little boy to salvation. I know that God is the redemption business, because I have experienced it! I know that many here can give a similar testimony, because you too have been redeemed! But if you have never truly placed faith in Christ know this, it is not too late. The Holy Spirit is still working and God is still working through His Word! God is in the redemption business.

This church, Durbin Memorial Baptist Church, is another example of God’s great redemption. Last year on our 80th anniversary I shard a quote from Miss Maybel Denny’s records on the formation of the church. She said, “Mrs. Durbin invited Pastor Walker to hold services in an old store building one mile from the river, in the Clays Ferry community, a place where there was no church and was much needed. At one time I knew this store building to have a dance each week, and there was whiskey and much sin around. I believe this was the beginning of a better community to live in, a place that I loved, and where people appreciated a place to worship God.”

Durbin Memorial Baptist Church began in an store building known for whiskey, dancing, and sin, to now being a place of dedicated service to Lord and committed to serving this area. As we look at the landscape around us, I know the harvest is still plentiful, but I am grateful that God has placed Durbin Memorial right here to reach these people in this area.

God is in the business of redemption. He redeemed a little boy lost in sin. He redeemed an old store house known for sin. And if He hasn’t yet, He can redeem you too.

Redemption is the great expression of God’s love.

Romans 5:8 ESV

but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

God redeems the sinful and profane out of His great love. God’s love is too great to be misconstrued. As we look at His Word today, may our understanding of His Love be redeemed.

If you haven’t yet, open your Bibles to 1 John 4. We’re going to walk through verses 7-21. We’re going to divide this text into four sections and see what the Love of God is truly all about.

Let’s begin with the first section, verses 7 and 8

1 John 4:7–8 ESV

Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love.

Here we see that

God is Love

God is love. This is a statement that you have probably heard before. On the most basics level, no one has a problem with this. If I were to take a microphone through the streets of New York and ask people from all different backgrounds to describe God, I think that many people would give this simple explanation. God is love.

But when many people say that God is Love, what they actually are saying is the Love is God. They mean that Love is the highest governing force in all of the universe. The problem with believing that Love is God is that love then defines God. And when Love defines God, we’re in a big mess because, humans have an awful time trying to define what love is on our own. A couple weeks ago I mentioned the song, “What’s Love Got To Do With It,” well now we’re all faced with bobbing our heads and singing, “What is Love? Baby don’t hurt me, don’t hurt me no more.” We tie our definition to Love to whatever feels good in the moment. That is why you see groups supporting all types of ideologies that are contrary to God’s Word, holding up protest signs with “God is Love.” When Love is God, then we ultimately see self-gratification as the ultimate purpose and driving force in life.

But Jesus said

Matthew 16:24–26 ESV

Then Jesus told his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man give in return for his soul?

Therefore, self-gratification cannot be the be all end all. Love is integral to all things, but the human definition of Love is insufficient. Human Love is not God. But as we read in 1 John 4:8, God is Love.

Look back in verse 7

1 John 4:7 ESV

Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God.

Love is from God. Love does not come from our personal desires. Love comes from God. The only way to truly love, is to be born of God and know God. Any other love one can exude is a weak fabrication of the true love of God.

1 John 4:8 ESV

Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love.

True, genuine Love for God, His people, and neighbors is a test of true belief. John tells us that if we do not love, we don’t know God. God is love. Being redeemed and reconciled to God produces love.

But at this point we’ve only defined the negative. That is, we have defined that while God is love, love is not God. And we have stated that self-gratification is not love. That still leaves us with defining what true, reflection-of-God-love is.

We will expand on that in a moment. But first I want to share with you what a group of children responded when asked what love is. A pastor collected the results as follows:

6 year old Chrissy “Love is when you go out to eat and give somebody most of your French fries without making them give you any of theirs.”

4, Terri “Love is what makes you smile when you’re tired.”

Danny, 7 “Love is when my mommy makes coffee for my daddy and she takes a sip before giving it to him, to make sure the taste is OK.”

Bobby, 5 “Love is what’s in the room with you at Christmas if you stop opening presents and listen.”

Noelle, 7 “Love is when you tell a guy you like his shirt, then he wears it every day.”

Mary Ann, 4 “Love is when your puppy licks your face even after you left him alone all day.”

Karen, 7 “When you love somebody, your eyelashes go up and down and little stars come out of you.”

Jessica 7 “You really shouldn’t say ‘I love you’ unless you mean it. But if you mean it, you should say it a lot. People forget.”

Rebecca 8 “When my grandmother got arthritis, she couldn’t bend over and paint her toenails anymore. So my grandfather does it for her all the time, even when his hands got arthritis too. That’s love.”

All of these responses are heartwarming and carry some truth, but God’s definition and expression of love is even more impactful.

1 John 4:9–12 ESV

In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us and his love is perfected in us.

In these 4 verses:

God Shows Love

Here we catch our first glimpse at what true, God-love is. We see that love is, once again, from God. We see that love is life-giving. And we see that love is sacrifice.

John says that the Love of God was made manifest among us.

We are nearing the 1st of November which means my wife will want to start decorating for Christmas at our house. One of my favorite Christmas songs is Love has come! The lyrics say:

“Love has come, a light in the darkness! Love explodes in the Bethlehem skies. See, all heaven has come to proclaim it. Hear how their song of joy arises: Love! Love! Born unto you, a Savior! Love! Love! Glory to God on high!”

God manifested love in Jesus Christ. Jesus said in John 6 that He came down from Heaven. He stepped out of heaven. He took the form of a servant. God sent Jesus into this world. Why? so that we might live through Him! Humanity is utterly incapable of saving itself. that could’ve been the end! When man sinned against God, our creator, He would have had ever right to scrap the whole thing and move on. But instead of calling the whole thing a waste, God stepped down into this world marred by sin to be the sacrifice for our offenses against Him! God manifested His love by sending Jesus His only Son into this world, so that we might live! The love of God is sacrificial and life giving!

What great love of God it is that Jesus would come to save sinners.

While we dwell on the love of God, we must note the progression. It is not humanity loved God and just struggled here and there with sin. Look back at verse 10 here.

1 John 4:10 ESV

In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.

God’s love does not flow from our love of God. All throughout Scripture and in our society today we see a profane people that like the idea of A god but have no love for THE God. True love comes from THE God and He loved us while we were still dead in our sin. He loved us so much that He sent Christ to die for us and to be that propitiation for our sins. I know I talk about that word a lot, but its important. If you are unfamiliar, propitiation means that Christ took the wrath that our sin is owed upon Himself.

As we see in verse 10, He didn’t do such a thing because we love Him and just needed a little extra push. Christ took our sins upon Himself, love has come in Bethlehem. Love! Love! Born unto you a Savior! All glory and honor for such a love and such an action is given to God on High.

It is because God loved us that Christ died for us and took the debt of our sin on the cross. Seeing and experience the life-giving, sacrificial love of God enables you to truly show that kind of love to others.

1 John 4:11–12 ESV

Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us and his love is perfected in us.

My wife and I spent a year moving around the country month to month and even spent one month in England. After spending time in these places, interacting with the different cultures, I would always find myself adopting some of the accent in that place. It wasn’t intentional but my voice would change a bit from place to place. In South Carolina I ended up with a bit of more high pitched, fast paced country accent. Even in England I found myself mimicking their speech patterns. My wife would get on to me, especially in England, and tell me that I was going to offend someone. It wasn’t that I was trying to offend anyone, it was just being so immersed in the culture that I would end up talking like the people I was around. When we got back to Kentucky it would take a day or two, maybe a week, and then I’d be back to normal. But being consumed in a culture made audible changes in my speech patterns.

Here’s the thing when it comes to experiencing God’s love, God’s love is steadfast. The Psalmist said that God’s love is never failing. When you experience different accents it may make a fleeting impression on your speech patterns. But when you experience the love of God, it forever changes your conception and presentation of love. When you begin to understand the sacrificial, life-giving love of God, you exude that to others.

In these verses from 1 John, John tells us that if God loved us in that special way to send Christ to die for us, then of course we ought to love one another. We love one another in a sacrificial way. We serve others. We love in a life-giving manner. That is we point others to the source of true life and love, Jesus Christ. If we experienced God’s love, we can’t help but to point others to it. God’s love abides in us, that is remains in us, dwells in us, so when we show love to others we are showing the love of God. John says that no one has ever seen God. God has chosen to visibly show His love through the ministry and lives of believers. The love within the local church is a reflection of the love of God.

God showed His love through sending Christ and continues to show His love through the lives of those who believe in Him. God’s love is sacrificial and life-giving.

In the next section of our Scripture we see how

God perpetuates Love

1 John 4:13–17 ESV

By this we know that we abide in him and he in us, because he has given us of his Spirit. And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world. Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him. 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.

You might say, “Brad, God’s love is great, sure it is sacrificial and life-giving, but how am I supposed to live up to that?”

Well we see in this section that we are not alone. God gives all those who believe in Him, the Holy Spirit. Never forget that the Holy Spirit seals us unto the day of redemption.

There is no reason to doubt the love of God. God showed His love for us in that while we still sinners Christ died for us. The death and resurrection of Jesus Christ is a verifiable fact. When you truly believe that Jesus died and rose for you, when you confess that Jesus is the Son of God, the Savior of the world, YOUR Savior, you abide in God and God abides in you. The Holy Spirit lives in you.

God’s perpetuates His love through proclamation of that message. God continues to pour out His love on sinners who hear His Word and drawn to conviction and repentance. Everyone, every single one of us, who know that Jesus died for our sins, can confidently proclaim the gospel and live out sacrificial, life-giving love because we know that we are justified. Though you have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God, you have been covered by the blood of Christ.

In verse 17 John says that by believing and confessing and not only that but testifying that Jesus Christ is the Savior and Son of God, that our love is perfected. That word for perfected means matured. Our love, are capacity for sacrificial, life-giving love, grows and matures as we are consumed with the Gospel.

Here’s the secret to love, it is only truly found, sourced, and centered upon the gospel. If you want to be a husband who loves his wife, love God first. If you want to be a mother who sacrificially cares for her children, love God first. If you want to be a life-giving beacon in your community, love God first. God permeates true love through His gospel. The gospel gives us the confidence to face eternal judgment and serve the Lord for His glory until that day.

God permeates love through the gospel.

1 John 4:18–21 ESV

There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love. We love because he first loved us. If anyone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen. And this commandment we have from him: whoever loves God must also love his brother.

In this last section we see that

God ministers through love

We have already said that love is only true centered, sourced, and found in the Gospel. So then, if you have faith in the Gospel, in Jesus Christ as Lord, you are now enabled by the Spirit to love without fear. When you have been saved by grace through faith, you no longer stand condemned. You do not have to fear. You know that the BEST is yet to come. You can live sacrificially because you know the allurements of the world aren’t going to last anyways. You can preach the life-giving gospel because you have experienced the gospel!

John tells us that a lack of love for our brothers shows that we lack a true love of God.

This is the reason why I thought it was so appropriate for our homecoming sermon to be on this section of Scripture. When I first got here and even throughout the pastor search procedures, I would ask people what kind of church is Durbin Memorial Baptist Church. Just about every single person would say the same thing. Durbin Memorial Baptist Church is a loving church.

Our members have a genuine love and concern for the wellbeing of each other and the community around us. I have been able to learn more about the legacy of the church and while we are not without our faults and failures, it is a testimony to the Good Lord above that we have been, are, and will continue to be a loving church. The gospel of Jesus Christ permeates through every part of our church. We love the Lord and we love our neighbor.

But let be known that this love is not something that we have mustered up on our own through the proper programs, trainings, or outreach events. The love that we have is sourced from the Love of God. Over 81 years ago, God brought together a group of people to begin forming what would become this church. Throughout that time, hundreds of people have given their lives to the Lord. Should we boast in the church? No. Boast in the God who sent Jesus to die for us, sealed us with the Holy Spirit, and given us the confidence to work for His glory.

God ministers love through believers and I thank God that He has worked and continues to work right here at Durbin Memorial Baptist Church.

We love because He first loved us.

May the true, unadulterated love of God continue to spread through the ministry of this church.

But before we close I want to make two brief statements.

God ministers through love, absolutely. But don’t take that to mean that God only works through the formal ministries of this church. Each and every one of us are called to exude the love of God in our everyday lives. If you know the Love of God, then you are called to show the sacrificial, life-giving love of God in all that you do. Our church is committed to making disciples who take the mission Christ has given us seriously and joyfully. Evaluate your relationships and your place in your neighborhood and family. Are you exuding the love of God that you have received? If you can’t answer that with a confidence “yes” use this moment, this next hymn of response, to repent. Cry out to God, thank Him for pouring out His love on you. Ask for the Holy Spirit to guide you in love in all that you do.

And lastly, God is love. There is no real love with out God. By this God showed His love for us, in that while were still sinners Christ died for us. There are likely people here today who have attempted to feel love in vices. You look to relationships, to your bank account, to a bottle. But nothing ever fills the void in your heart. Know this, that love that you are searching for is only found in the One True God. Our sin separates us from the God of Love, but that same God loved us so much that He sent Jesus to die for us. If you call on the name of Jesus as Savior and Lord, you will be saved. If you are coming to understand that you are a sinner and that Christ died for you, respond today. Publicly proclaim that you aren’t enough on your own, but the God loves you first. He loves you enough to show your sin and call you to repentance. He loves you enough to send Jesus to die for you. During this next hymn of response, come down front and pray with me. Proclaim your faith in the gospel. There is no other love like the love of God. Come to Christ today.