Sunday February 20, 2022

What a wonderful name. What a powerful name. Is Jesus. Thank God. Sent his very son. Jesus to be the savior of the world. And that's love. Not that we loved him but that he loved us, this much to send his son. This is all good news. I hope you get excited about that. We were reading the cards that we have gotten from Beverly Cooper. From time to time, we get cards that come into Thanking us for the ministry, we're doing.

Perhaps, you've sent cards to wish somebody a happy birthday or happy anniversary or just tell them. You love them. God gave us. I don't need your glasses up here, Joe. but, Do you need them? I'll throw. But we have the Bible, which is God's letter to us. About his love.

He made man and he made a woman.

I said be fruitful and multiply have kids have lots of kids feel the Earth. He provided a garden for them to eat out if he provided everything they needed. What a great God and he provides everything. You need that been give me everything I want and I could actually say praise God for that because If I got everything I want then maybe I wouldn't be the kind of man that I am, because right now I depend on God every day for every blessing. with expectation to see what kind of

Gift God's going to give me. What kind of blessing is. He going to give me? Do you wake up in the morning and look expectantly into the day to see. God meet you. Do you wake up to Greek? God in the morning? God never sleeps. He never Slumbers. The Bible tells us that. And you can't catch him by surprise. He's aware of everything. But when I wake up after a good night's sleep, that he is giving me. I look with expectation to what God is going to do in my life. And in our churches life and how he's going to go before us and behind us, and how is strong, and mighty arm is going to carry us through the day.

and this week, I've been thinking about God's love. How God loves us? but he doesn't love us just so that we can I say, oh my

I love God. God loves me and I know he loves me so that I can love others.

You know that God loves you. So that you can love others. Love God, love others. That's what he's called us to do in life. Not just to take his love and take and take and take their to Lakes. In the Bible area where Jesus grew up and ministered, the lake of Galilee, which he sailed on many times.

In the Dead Sea in the amazing thing is for the Jordan River. Flows into the Sea of Galilee and flows out of the Galilee. And they're still fishing today. Fishing boats, go out and catch fish. It's alive because the waters come in, in the waters, go out, but then that George River continues down and it goes into the Dead Sea, but it doesn't come out of the Dead Sea. And that's why it's dead. It takes, and it takes and it takes and all of this sediment and all of the minerals and

There's salt there and they say that I've not been there but they say you can throw yourself into that Lake and you won't go under. You just float cuz the sediment to the salts that are in the water boy, you up. But there's nothing that lives in the Dead Sea there. No. Fish in the Dead Sea. Nothing grows in or around the Dead Sea. Don't be the Dead Sea.

Don't just take and take and take. God has given you his life and his love so that you can share it and God is love. And that's what John wants to teach us through these passages and what better month in February? The love.

Have you taken your sweetie out? Had a date. The Love Bug. Shared your love. They're brought me a card and some chocolates. She brought me that she loves me.

Let's started to her scripture this morning. and, This is the song that I learned when I was in. Calvary Chapel for a while. There is a young boy. In our youth group, several of us found Chuck Smith and Calvary Chapel and they used to sing. And I thought what kind of worship band did they have? That we got so excited about the worship songs. There could sing for an hour before. Chuck would open up the Bible and teach for an hour. Could you imagine a bunch of teenagers and We're older people there, too.

That we sang in the end. We bring Harmony and it was just acapella chuck would just stand up there and sing beloved. Let us love one another.

And the girls would counter at say, love one another. For lovers of God, that everyone that loveth is born of God. He that loveth not know was not God for God is love beloved. Let us love one another. So I took one of those scriptures 7 and I repeated it a new here. So let's let's sing this first part of the scripture and we're going to test Bob to see if he can move from this to the next slide in the back of whatever he needs to do for us to sing. But you can sing with me. Beloved. Let us love one. Another Love One. Another Love is of God and everyone that loveth is born of God and Noah with God. He that loveth not know. It's not gehab for God is love. God is love Bowl beloved. Let us love one another 1st John 4:7 and 8. Can't sing as well as I used to. Black, go back and let's sing that again. Okay, this time with a little enthusiasm and when it comes to that part that says he that loveth not

That's where you're supposed to clap. So, get your Clapper is ready. He that loveth.

Okay.

We're not ready to go on the road yet. So Bob hold off buying the the bus going to go on tour and it will saying, okay. Hey you at home. You can join us, too. Beloved let us love one. Another love one. Another for love is of God and everyone that loveth is born of God and know it's God. He that loveth not. Just testing. No, it's not. God for God is love. God is love on me. Loving. Let us love one another 1st John 4:7 and 8. It's right out of scripture. Now that that's caught in your mind. You'll go home singing it. And yes, a pastor. What did you do to me? Got you some scripture. Isn't that a wonderful way to begin a scripture? He's writing a letter and he's writing to us as beloved. Dear ones, tender-hearted words.

When they'll send me a card, I'm sharing from my heart. when she sends me a card, she's done this since we first met each other.

It was interesting working for outreach, Dayspring greeting card, selling them to stores and every once in awhile. The Dale would want to get a card for me and I'd want to send her a card. Well, when you're traveling together, you're together 24/7. And you're in the car or you're in the bookstores or you're in a restaurant or hotel, but you're always together. You don't have a much alone time to get out and get a card, so she'd have to be sneaky to do it. And I would have to do the same. When she was out taking inventory, inventory of the card side, slip a card and buy it stuff at my coat pocket.

But every time she sent me a card. I know it's from her because it says to my beloved. What an endearing term. And that's right here and John beloved. Dear one. Let us love one another. Because love comes from God. Where does love come from True? Love? True love comes from God. He's our example of love. He doesn't love us just because we're good. There's times. What would that I could? Right, let's be real. There's times when we're not lovey.

Husbands and wives. You don't need to look into each other's eyes. But, you know, there are times when that other person is not always lovely, that other person is not always good.

And there are times you want to just haul off and tell them that. But you love them. Unconditional love. I can direct you to one thing. Go to. Ephesians.

Chapter 11, isn't it? The love chapter. I'm not looking. but, Paul says that we are to be this kind of love because that's the kind of love God is. And John is just explaining to us. That God is love. God is love. That's where I got the title for the message. God is love. And everyone that loves. With his kind of love is born of God.

It's an amazing thing. Your kids resemble you in the longer, they hang around with you. They will pick up some things from you. Hopefully good things.

When we are the children of God, we, we picked up and we act like our heavenly father. That's expected in the end. That's good. Everyone that loves is born of God and knows God, but then he goes on to this next verse and he says, he that loveth not. No, it's not God for God is love.

If you know God, you will be like God and you will show love and if you don't show love then he's just telling it. Like it is. That's John.

Then you don't know. God. You don't know God because of you hung around with him. And you knew him, you'd be like him and you would show love, love one another. Let's continue. In this was manifested or made known the love of God toward us because God sent his only begotten son into the world that we might live through him here. The dear Saint, John it is older years is Kind of free camping in retelling, what he told us in his gospel to us. John 3:16 for God. So loved the world that he gave his only begotten, son, that whoever believes in him. Should not perish but have everlasting life and he's just repackaging. That insane. In this way, love was manifest toward us. Because God sent his only begotten son into the world that we might live through him. And herein is love. You wanted to know what love is. People have sung about it for years.

Rock and rollers, even that song about this is love. Herein is love. Not that, we loved God, but that he loved us. We even when we were unlovable, we were sinful. We were full of the world.

But yet he looked beyond our faults and saw our need. And he loved us this much that he sent his son to be the propitiation for our sins. What? A big word. You're just a fisherman. Where did you pick up a word? Like that propitiation? It literally means the price. His son, paid the price, for our sins, on the cross. That's what Jesus did. When he shed his blood for us. He paid the price. Somebody had to pay the price. I watch in astonishment on the news lately. It's just like this cannot be happening. This is not real. Some guy went into a Trader Joe's ever been to a Trader. Joe's. I got some nice food nice items in their unique items from around the world. Some guy walked into a Trader Joe's in California to the meat counter. He picked out 12 or 15. I couldn't see how many but it was a big stack of the finest steaks. He could find back them up, put them into his cart and if he was going out the door with them without pain, of course.

One of the people there stopped him and said you cannot go out. You need to pay for those, go back to the counter and pay for it and he was going to proceed to go out the door and they said you can't take the card out the door. So it's backed up all of the space between his arms and his chin and walked out the door without the cart. And they didn't stop it. What a world.

Kind of world, we live in, the people are sinful.

Selfish. Full of themselves for a call to Worship in the end times. These are the end times. John said, so two thousand years ago, and we've been in these end times. But speaking of the day we're living in, people will be lovers of self. Gratifying their own wishes and wants and self needs. Taking care of number one. That's not true. Love. That's what John's talking about. If you don't have that kind of love, that loves other people above yourself that you're concerned about the needs of others above yourself.

Husbands love your wives wives. Love your husband's. Husbands and wives, love your neighbors are for those who are downtrodden. You see someone in need of a drink of water. You be the one that brings it to them. If you see someone hungry, you feed him a meal. We need to be people who are giving of ourselves and

Our time and resources. And our love. Because God loved us, even when we were unlovable. Somebody had to pay the price. And believe it or not when that bill comes due for those 12 or 15 steaks, the walked out the door. Somebody had to pay for that. It'll be the store that ends up having to pay for that man's. Arrogance and selfishness. Next scripture.

Again, with that word beloved on it. Beloved. If God so loved us. We also ought to love one another. That's just what I was saying. Caring for the needy for the Lost.

The Gaithers singing a song. It's one of my favorites that they've done that it's not as popular. It just simply says, loving God, loving each other making music with our friends. Loving God, loving each other. And the song goes on and on.

You and I are called to love God, but we're called to love each other. Go into the world care for the dying care for the hurting. Not everyone is called To Be A Mother Teresa, but we're called to care for and have compassion for those who have needs around us. Not just for ourselves.

No, man has seen God. That's true. But we've seen Christ. We've seen God, incarnate God, in fleshed in Christ.

No, man has seen God at any time. If we love one another God, dwells in us and his love is perfected made perfect in US. So if you want to see God, look at the Believers in the church, and in the community, those who love God or out, showing God to a hungry and hurting world. A broken World. Dark world. We are the light and we are his love to the nation. No, man has seen God, but we've seen God perfected in Us by his love. That's what John is saying.

Buy Wii, the dwell in him and he in us now. That's that symbiotic. Relationship. Is we live in him? He lives in US?

And his love is manifested through us to each other. Hereby, we know that we dwell in him and he and us, because he has given us, his Spirit. And the spirit of God is what we manifest, what, we show to one another, when were kind and tender-hearted and compassionate with others.

Someone stole my lunch.

God bless them. I'll go out and buy another one. But I'm not going to sit around the curse all day. Rent.

If someone stole my car. I pray for him.

because if you've seen my van, which we bought Nearly New, Many many, many moons ago. That's a 1997 Dodge Grand. Caravan was top-notch, and it's day and all the bells and whistles on it. Not so. So new anymore. Some Rust has been showing up and some of the paints kind of gone. It's got 260. What is a 264 today? Or was he, or she could tell me a hundred sixty four thousand miles on it 264. That's American made. American built Dodge and it keeps going and going and going. It gets me where I'm going. It. It does the job. If someone stole it, will God bless him. I hope it keeps running for them cuz you got to change the oil and you got to change the fluids to keep it running that long. You don't do that. It'll just seized up and die on you here by we know.

That we dwell in him and he and us because he's given us his spirit and we sensed his Spirit. We see his Spirit, we can feel his spirit.

Some people have gotten after us in the Church of God because we preach an experiential faith. It's not a religion. It's a relationship. Have you caught that hanging around me? It's not a religion. It's a relationship. He lives in me. I live in him. It's symbiotic. It's a special relationship that the Holy Spirit. Equips me teaches me encourages me and I can feel the feeling of being a Christian. It's just not head knowledge and just not heart-felt.

It's a relationship that is lived in.

I bought my guitar, which I don't have up here with me, but I just got it. Repaired. That Yari Alvarez guitar has been with me since I graduated.

And moved to work with Dayspring greeting cards Outreach Publications. After I got out of college. I got that in 1979.

So it's a classic. It it's one thing. But I can tell you that, as it gets older, it gets better. Me, not so much. But maybe. Maybe I'll get better in time. But that Qatar Mellows and it sounds more beautiful the longer that I play it. And the longer you live in the spirit, in the spirit, dwells with you, you mellow and you get better seasoned over time. They say that. Fine, Wines, and find Cheese's. Get more mellow and get better over time. But I know my guitar dust and I know that I tried to be seasoned by the spirit next scripture. And we're almost through.

And we have seen and we do testify that the father sent the son to be the savior of the world. John can say that because he walked with Christ. He knew him intimately. And because he had seen Christ and heard him speak. In his teaching, preaching and saw the Miracles that he did. He could testify. What all we do is we have received from him and from Peter, and Paul, and others, their testimonies. And they have become our testimony of this relationship between Christ and us, God and us. God lives in us through his holy spirit. And we have seen, and we testify to that next scripture. Whoever shall confess with our mouths and with our deeds and actions, whoever shall confess that Jesus is the son of God. God dwells in him and he is in God. Then again, that's that relationship. The John is talking about and I'm trying to share with you. It's about relationship, not religion. We're not following some reception and I'm just going through the rituals. We're living daily in Christ. And he in US His Holy Spirit dwelling in us that relationship and is as we confess, Jesus is Lord. He dwells in us. He protects us in our weaknesses. He makes us strong in him and we have known and we believe we believe in the love that God has for us. God is love. There's that message title again. God is love and he that dwelleth in love you all. And thank God and God and him can't say it would be better that he did. Herein is our love made, perfect, if you're not perfect. Here's John telling you how to make it perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment because as he is, so we will be in the world.

The more we live, the more we become like Christ in the world. He's seen through us. His spirit is seen through us. And we are made perfect because we keep working at it. You know, if you keep practicing something someday, you'll be good at it. I used to think that, if I kept playing the trumpet someday, I'd be, I'd be great.

I never was. So, I stopped practicing.

And then my embouchure is really bad. If I picked up the trumpet and tried to play it again, it be terrible. You wouldn't want to hear me. Try to play a song in church. So if I want to do that, I need to practice it if you practice something you'll get good at it. Let me answer your question. If you practice wickedness, do you get good at that too? Yeah. If you practice being bad, you can be really, really bad.

Here it is. Love made. Perfect. Giving us boldness in the day of judgement. For the Christian, there is no judgement day. Cuz I have you read, Romans 8:1. There is therefore now, no condemnation.

For those who are in Christ Jesus. Because condemnation has to do with judgement has to do with synth. And if we've passed out sim, and we're living for him and his love is perfected in us. When we die here, we will die and immediately we will be alive with him in his presence in heaven. That's why people have written songs like old. What a day that will be. When my Jesus, I shall see when we stand by his grace is love face to face. That will be glory. Be glory for me. People can write songs like that because they have expectation. In that relationship that when they leave this world immediately, they are in the presence of the Lord.

And that is why we come to this. Verse the pics up on that very theme. Could you read it with me? There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear because fear has to do with torment and he that feareth is not made perfect in love.

Fear has to do with judgement has to do with condemnation and in Christ. ABS, we are born again. There is no more send. It's all under the blood of Jesus. So there is no condemnation and there's no fear of judgment because we are living in Christ in Christ is living in us. That is what John is trying to teach us. Here. There is no fear in love because perfect love casts out fear because we have no fear of judgement condemnation. He's forgiving us and our sins are forgiven and forgotten.

We love him. I underscored this whole verse. We love him because he first loved us. And he called us out of sin, out of Darkness to be his children. He's adopted us into his forever family and because he loved us.

We are his. I my beloved's and he is mine. His Banner Over Me Is Love. John is teaching us that we are his because he first loved us.

Dale, and I were trying to think one time. Who fell in love with? Each other first.

It wasn't just love at first sight. But when I saw her across the Christian bookstore and my beautiful blond in that jean jacket, and I thought boy, She's a q. Gal. Little did. I know that her mom was going to invite me home for dinner and her father, invite me to spend the weekend at their home. And the relationship begin.

But she told me, she loved me first and I wasn't ready to say those words back because I really didn't know where I wanted to get to know her, but there was something inside me that said I wanted to get to know her better. and when I heard about Jesus growing up in Sunday School, there was something about his name. There was something about all of the stories that I heard that I wanted to get to know him better. I wanted to fall in love with him. He'd already fallen in love with me.

But I was 11 years old. When I gave my heart to the Lord, when I knew that, it wasn't just my parents. Religion, it was a relationship that I wanted to have with Lord. We love him because he first loved us and he gave us that love letter. If a man says that he loves God and he hates his brother. He's a liar. You can't love God and hate your brother. Can you? John is just speaking the truth here. It says, if a man says he loves God and hates. His brother is a liar.

God's love is not in him or else, he would love his brother. And if you could love God, whom you haven't seen. How is it that? You can't love your brother that you do see?

Get your life together. John says, love God. And love others. Turn to your neighbor and say, love God, love others. Love God. Love others that works. That's the way it should be our last first. And this commandment, it's not just a suggestion.

John is sharing what Jesus is saying to us? This is a Commandment that we have from him. But he who loves God loves his brother, also that just answers that whole last verse. This is a commandment. You're mandated. Love God. Love each other. Even when they're not lovable, yes. Love them anyway. I couldn't take a billion trillion can't count beyond that. I wouldn't take a trillion dollars for any of my kids. But there are sometimes I could remember when they got to that point where they exasperated me that I would have taken.

Anything for them?

I can tell on her because she's passed the glory and she's in heaven and rods not here.

but, Carolyn told me this story about her brother Cletus if you wanted to know the relationship between

The rec center in janaf Gilbert and their family Cletus. Gilbert was. Was Rod Smothers, brother?

So Carolyn. Was it Gilbert? Before she was roerich. and,

The day that Cletus died. We were all together at the rarick home. And she shared a tender story. That when her mother was pregnant.

The Cletus. Carolyn was hoping for a sister. Wanted a sister. To play with that. Have fun with. And when Mom came home with a brother, it was, oh no.

And then he was getting into everything and he was a problem. She shared this story play. This is just passed away. The families all gathered together.

Debbie Richard and her husband. Mark were there in the the kids.

Carolyn said, you know, there was a time. When I put up a sign.

I had my brother on the street. How to put up a sign. And I said,

My brother for sale. One decal.

And a man came by and said true story. Would you really sell your brother Carolyn said, you bet I would. Vertical. The man asked Carolyn said, protocol. You got a nickel, the band handed her a nickel because I don't want you. Your brother. You keep him. She was downhearted. But she says, I've kept that Nickel in my jewelry box and I have it to this very day.

And there was nothing. Nothing in this world. I would take for my brother and their relationship. We've had all these years. As she reflected her loss of a dear brother. This commandment we have from him from Christ that he who loves God should love his brother. Also. Them even when they're nasty and rude. Disrespectful uncaring unloving themselves love them because God loves them and he loves you and he wants his love. Shown through you to love your brother. Also beloved. Let us love. One another. God has sent us at this a little slide that I've got this coming up next that says love God, love others. They may not always look like us to act like us or be like us. But you beloved to them. You Be Loved? Because God loves you. He really does and he wants you to have a relationship with him. That is eternal in the heavens. This is just a short time. We're here on Earth, but we're going to spend eternity with him or without him I choose with him. Don't you? Don't you?

What is Landslide that's coming up? Is the title of our message. God is love. I want you to think about that. I want you to pray about how you can have that relationship with the Lord so much. So that people will see that there's something different in you and they want to emulate your life. They want to be like you.

They will want to be like you if you love like Christ loved. He held out his hands Nails in his hands for us.

No greater love than this. That one is willing to lay down his life for another Christ laid down his life for you. We're going to end our video at this time.

I have a song that is an invitation song. It's a brand new song. Bethel has put this out and the the two that are singing. They're the ones that wrote this song and I loved it from the first time I heard it, which was yesterday, but I knew I wanted this to be something that talks about. God's love. There is a story. Did I say it shares that? Whether it was a dream or whether it was real, he doesn't know. But he shares that he found himself in heaven.

And the angel describe the needs that were on Earth and said, who will go and share with the world. Who will go in our name and Isaiah said, here? Am I send me? You know, the story? The song it's about that kind of love for God and love for others. Listen to it. Words will be up there on the bottom if you'd like to sing along.

even with

Let's bow our heads.

Are gracious and Heavenly Father?

You stiffed us.

You look deep within our hearts and lives and, you know, us full well. When we were being formed in our mother's womb, fashioned Lord, you knew us and you had a plan for us. Plans for hoping. Plans for good and not for her.

Lord. May we choose you choose to have a relationship with you because you first loved us. And now, father, we choose. To give our lives to you live for you. May that be our pledge. Ennard.

And our commitment to you today.

Now, may the Lord bless you. May the Lord shower his peace in his grace upon you. May his love shine down upon you and through you be his light to the world because he loves you. He always has and he always will. So until we meet again. May you find him faithful even as you Faithfully serve him, in, Christ's name and everyone said, amen. God bless you and you have a wonderful day. So glad you were here.

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