Sermon Tone Analysis

Introduction

Welcome and prayer

Your love for God will be expressed by your love for people and your love for people will be expressed by your love for God.

Brief summary of my points

Mark 12:28-34, Luke 15:11-32

Background and context from my passage

What is God's Concept of Love?

By Jesus’ time, the Jews had accumulated hundreds of laws—613 by one historian’s count.

Some religious leaders tried to distinguish between major and minor laws, and some taught that all laws were equally binding and that it was dangerous to make any distinctions.

As we read this text keep in mind that this teacher’s question could have provoked controversy among these groups, but Jesus’ answer summarized all of God’s laws.

Mark 12:28-34

God’s laws are not intended to be burdensome.

They can be reduced to two simple principles:

Love God and, Love others.

These commands are from the Old Testament (Deuteronomy 6:5; Leviticus 19:18).

When you love God completely and care for others as you care for yourself, then you have fulfilled the intent of the Ten Commandments and the other Old Testament laws.

According to Jesus, these two commandments summarize all God’s laws.

Let them rule your thoughts, decisions, and actions.

When you are uncertain about what to do, ask yourself which course of action best demonstrates love for God and love for others.

He Would Love First, What Would Jesus Do?

These two Jewish commands that were quoted by Jesus were intentionally joined together.

The Greek word agape (love) seems to have been virtually a Christian invention -- a new word for a new thing (apart from about twenty occurrences in the Greek version of the Old Testament, it is almost non-existent before the New Testament).

Agape draws its meaning directly from the revelation of God in Christ.

It is not a form of natural affection, however, intense, but a supernatural fruit of the Spirit (Gal.

5:22).

It is a matter of will rather than feeling (for Christians must love even those they dislike -- Matt.

5:44-48).

It is the basic element in Christ-likeness.

Your love for God will be expressed by your love for people and your love for people will be expressed by your love for God.

LET US LOVE THEM

Tony Campolo tells about some homeless teenagers from the Philadelphia streets who beat to death a Korean honor student doing graduate work in medicine at the U of PA.

His parents came to the U.S. for the trial, and sat silently through his murderers’ entire trial.

At the end, they asked for an opportunity to speak.

The guilty verdict came in, and they rose and knelt before the judge.

"Before a stunned audience these parents begged ... him to release their son’s murderers to them so that they could give the boys the home and care they had never had.

They were Christians, they explained to the judge, and they wanted to show something of the grace they had received from God to those who had done them such grievous evil."

Love is an action that is not focused on feelings

Ay old D.C. Talk fans?

They sang a song “Love is a Verb”

Our Response Is A Call To Love Through Action

In his book Mere Christianity, C.S. Lewis wrote, "Do not waste your time bothering whether you 'love' your neighbor act as if you did.

As soon as we do this, we find one of the great secrets.

When you are behaving as if you loved someone, you will presently come to love him.

If you injure someone you dislike, you will find yourself disliking him more.

If you do him a good turn, you will find yourself disliking him less."

Newspaper columnist and minister George Crane tells of a wife who came into his office full of hatred toward her husband.

"I do not only want to get rid of him, I want to get even.

Before I divorce him, I want to hurt him as much as he has me."

Dr. Crane suggested an ingenious plan "Go home and act as if you really love your husband.

Tell him how much he means to you.

Praise him for every decent trait.

Go out of your way to be as kind, considerate, and generous as possible.

Spare no efforts to please him, to enjoy him.

Make him believe you love him.

After you've convinced him of your undying love and that you cannot live without him, then drop the bomb.

Tell him that your're getting a divorce.

That will really hurt him."

With revenge in her eyes, she smiled and exclaimed, "Beautiful, beautiful.

Will he ever be surprised!"

And she did it with enthusiasm.

Acting "as if."

For two months she showed love, kindness, listening, giving, reinforcing, sharing.

When she didn't return, Crane called.

"Are you ready now to go through with the divorce?"

"Divorce?"

she exclaimed.

"Never!

I discovered I really do love him."

Her actions had changed her feelings.

Motion resulted in emotion.

The ability to love is established not so much by fervent promise as often repeated deeds.

J. Allan Petersen.

To love at all is to be venerable.

Love anything, and your heart will certainly be wrung and possibly be broken.

If you want to make sure of keeping it intact, you must give your heart to no one, not even to an animal.

Wrap it carefully round with hobbies and little luxuries; avoid all entanglements; lock it up safe in the casket or coffin or your selfishness.

But in that casket--safe, dark, motionless, airless--it will change.

It will not be broken; it will become unbreakable, impenetrable, irredeemable...The only place outside Heaven where you can be perfectly safe from all the dangers...of love is Hell.

C.S. Lewis, The Four Loves, Harcourt, Brace & World, Inc., 1960, p.169.

God's Expressed Love Toward Us

Luke 15:11-32

There is so much contrast in this parable of Jesus

The son who was lost

The son who was bitter

The father who loved them both

For us to understand point 2 and 3 today we have to understand the father in this story.

We have to understand that his love is for us even if we are son 1 or son 2

During this advent season of waiting, God waits too, for us.

God waits patiently as we wonder, rebel, go our own ways, and in various forms get lost.

As a loving heavenly parent, God waits patiently for us to come to our senses, waits patiently "for the eyes of our heart to be enlightened."

God is there, scanning the horizon for the first glimpse of you and me.

Finding first sight of us, God runs wildly to welcome the returning home.

- Br.

Luke Ditewig, Society of Saint John the Evangelist

Application

I think many of us are familiar with the “love” chapter of 1 Corinthians 13:1-8

When I look at this and think about it in my life I discover my selfish response of love toward others.

I see that love is inconvenient

Love has to change me in often painful, awkward, and uncomfortable ways

Love disrupts my life.

All of these things because love requires action.

This action of love like Christ comes from an encounter where Christ initiates the changes in our heart