Building a Heritage of Love
BUILDING A HERITAGE FOR THE FUTURE
“Building a Heritage of Love”*
Selected Scripture
If I were to ask you what the greatest thing in the world is what would your answer be? Some of you might be thinking, “A nice porterhouse steak with a baked potato, and a double chocolate dessert!”
However, you have to remember you are in church. So, when I ask you what love is your answer should be 1 Corinthians 13:13 (NAS):
13 – But now faith, hope, love, abide these three; but the greatest of these is love.
Why would Paul say that the greatest thing around is love?
I. WHY IS LOVE THE GREATEST THING?
There are a couple of reasons.
1. Love is What We Long For.
Every single one of us long to be loved. It is a universal need.
It is central to all relationships. Whether it is with:
Ø Husband and wife
Ø Mother and daughter
Ø Father and son
Ø Timmy and Lassie
Because of love we seem to be able to go through life more complete and happy and we are stronger.
We all long to be loved.
2. Love is What We Need to Change our Lives.
There is no debate that love can change our lives. Those of you who know Jesus Christ as your Savior know the difference that came into your life when you discovered that God loves you.
We change because we are loved!
I could go into a lot of detail about how my life changed when I realized I was in love with Jo Ann. I know a lot of things changed. She lived in Waco and I lived in Fort Worth. As a result, my phone bill changed, my gas bill changed, and the miles on my car changed.
3. Passing on Love to Others Leaves a Heritage.
When we think about a heritage we think something that someone passes on to us. We don’t think about what we are doing now being a part of a heritage we pass on to others.
The question I have is what are we doing right now to leave a heritage for others who will come in the future to Village Baptist Church?
IF there is one thing that I hope we will continue to be able to pass on to many generations to come here at our church it is the heritage of loving our Lord Jesus Christ supremely and loving each other unconditionally!
Love is the greatest thing around. Think about the three things Paul mentions in this verse. Two of the three we will not need forever. We will not need faith when we get to heaven. We have our faith in things unseen. However, in heaven we are going to be in the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ. We will see Him face-to-face.
We will not need hope. Everything we are hoping for will be given to us. There is no reason for us to hope for anything else.
However, in heaven we will be experiencing love like we never have before. Love is eternal.
Love is the motivating factor for everything we do! When you realize that all the stuff we do around this church is because we love the Lord Jesus Christ and we love each other, then you come to realize that this place is for real.
I have often been told by people that when they visit our church that they feel a sense of love and Christian fellowship here. They wonder if it is real or if they are just trying to impress a visitor. Let me assure you – it is for real!
For some of you, though, you have been a LOVEE long enough. It is time for you to become a LOVER! It is time for you to become one of us and start doing the loving!
In 1 Corinthians 13:3 the Bible tells us:
3 – And if I give all my possessions to feed the poor, and if I surrender my body to be burned, but do not have love, it profits me nothing.
Our Lord commanded us – this is a command not a suggestion – in John 13:34-35 (NLT):
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.”
We can learn all the evangelism programs we want. We can try our best to tell the world that Jesus Christ is real. However, the thing that will convince a person who is looking to find God is the love we have for one another.
There is so little world in the world, when someone really experiences the love of Christ they will notice the difference.
If we were to administer a little test around here and ask everyone to give some concrete evidence that the love of God is in your life, what would you say? You could probably say that you carry your Bible in a holy fashion. That is evidence. Maybe because you come to church more than three times a month. Would that get it?
In James 2:14-17 (NLT) the Bible says:
14 – Dear brothers and sisters, what’s the use of saying you have faith if you don’t prove it by your actions? That kind of faith can’t save anyone.
15 – Suppose you see a brother or sister who needs food or clothing,
16 – and you say, “Well, good-bye and God bless you; stay warm and eat well”—but then you don’t give that person any food or clothing. What good does that do?
17 – So you see, it isn’t enough just to have faith. Faith that doesn’t show itself by good deeds is no faith at all—it is dead and useless.
Now it is time to apply what we have been talking about. How do you leave a heritage of love? And, how do you become a more loving person?
II. HOW TO LEAVE A HERITAGE OF LOVE.
1. We Must Learn the Meaning of the Word Yes.
Learning to say yes to God can be one of the most difficult things in life. The reason is because obedience can disrupt your life.
Obedience has a real enemy. It is called convenience.
We love convenience. Every time we turn on the television there is another product designed to make life more convenient for us.
Did you know they have a new soup on the market that is a self-heating soup? All you have to do is shake the can and it is instantly hot!
It is so convenient you don’t even have to use a microwave any more. Now all Jo Ann has to do is bring me a spoon and a can and I don’t even have to get off the couch and miss any of the ball game!
Now if they could figure out a way to get Jo Ann to shake the can for me and then put the spoon in my mouth it would be great!
Think about telephones.
ª Do you remember when you used to have to crank a handle to get an operator? Then she would ask what number you wanted and she would connect you.
ª Then we went to a much faster and more convenient way of doing it. We got dial phones. We would die and number and then wait till it came back around, then a second number, then a third, etc.
ª Then we moved a much faster way. We moved to touch tone service. We punched in the number. That was faster.
ª Then we got cell phones. That way the phone was always with us as long as the bag was plugged into the car and we could find a tower.
ª Then we got digital cell service. Now we just say the name of the person we want to reach and we are almost instantly connected.
We want convenience and we want it now!
Our lives are built on convenience. However, if you will analyze why we demand more and more convenience you will find out it is tied to human selfishness. We want everything for us and we want it now!
Selfishness is not God’s plan for obeying Him. It is not about us. It is about God! God’s plan is found in Matthew 22:37-40 (NAS):
37 – And He said to him, “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.’
38 – “This is the great and foremost commandment.
39 – “The second is like it, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’
40 – “On these two commandments depend the whole Law and the Prophets.”
Let me tell you how wonderful God’s grace is. How would you like to 613 different facts. If you lived in the Old Testament days that is what would have happened because that is how many laws there were in the Old Testament.
However, when Jesus came along He took those 613 laws and reduced them down to two!
Have you ever wondered why God would reduce it to two instead of one? Doesn’t it seem like one would be easier to keep than two? The reason is because you can’t love God without loving others.
While convenience is about me, loving others is takes time and we learn how to love God!
Of course, one of the things that people struggle with is defining what love is. I have a new love affair around my house. I have fallen in love with my digital video recorder. That is my DVR.
When I first got it I wondered how it would be any better than my VCR. It is like daylight and dark. You record a show and never have to watch a commercial! It is great! I am in love!
There is something else I love. I love Sunday afternoon naps!
I need to mention that I love our dog.
And, I also love Jo Ann!
You see, love means many different things. However, the Bible describes it to us in 1 Corinthians 13:4-8 (NLT) the Bible says:
4 – Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud
5 – or rude. Love does not demand its own way. Love is not irritable, and it keeps no record of when it has been wronged.
6 – It is never glad about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out.
7 – Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance.
8 – Love will last forever….
Let me ask you if that describes your attitude toward other people?
The Bible says I’m to love my wife like Jesus Christ loved the church – without condition. That means I am to sacrifice for her and serve her, even when I’m tired. That is what obedience is.
It is demonstrating that you love people, because you can’t say you love God and not love people.
Here is another example of convenience. Let’s suppose it has been a hard day of work. I am tired. So, as soon as I walk in the door I throw myself on the couch, turn on the television, and lay there watching people talk!
Jo Ann comes in and she has worked just as hard, if not harder, than me. After she got home she started fixing my supper. However, all day long she has done nothing but talk to a bunch of fifteen year old teenagers. Do you know what she wants? She wants to have a conversation with an adult and I am the closest thing to one in her life at that moment.
There is nothing wrong with talking with teenagers, but it is different than talking to adults. One thing that is different is that you don’t have to spend as much time talking about body functions.
If I am to demonstrate love then I am going to sit up and give my full attention to Jo Ann. I will actually listen.
I may not feel like it, but I have to make a choice. Do I want what I want, or do I understand the feelings of Jo Ann and simply listen to her.
Love is always a choice! It is an act of our will that comes in the moment when we choose to obey God!
Our Lord made a very difficult statement for us all. In John 14:15 (NAS):
15 – “If you love Me, you will keep My commandments.”
There is the statement of proof! We will show that we love God by doing what He says. That is a choice we have to make!
John wrote an interesting statement in 1 John 5:3 (NLT):
3 – Loving God means keeping his commandments, and really, that isn’t difficult.
Keeping God’s commandments really isn’t that difficult! The problem comes when we try to make it difficult! We do that by trying to do everything our way, instead of God’s way. We want our impulses, our hungers, our thirsts satisfied instead of God’s.
What is the most difficult exercise to do? It is the first one. When we have laid off exercising for a while we get out there and try to lift weights and we huff and puff and tell people you are about to die! However, the more you do it the easier it gets!
The same is true of keeping God’s commandments. At first we will complain and gripe and say it is impossible. What we are doing is fighting against our will. We wrestle with our own fleshly nature. However, the more we love God the more we will obey His commandments and the more we obey His commandments the more we love God and the more we love God the less difficult it is!
In Romans 7:24-25 (NLT) Paul wrote:
24 – Oh, what a miserable person I am! Who will free me from this life that is dominated by sin?
25 – Thank God! The answer is in Jesus Christ our Lord. So you see how it is: In my mind I really want to obey God’s law, but because of my sinful nature I am a slave to sin.
ª Show Love Through Your Words.
Here is something else. It is one to do love, it is just as important to say love. You need to learn to tell folks that you love them.
This is especially true for the men who are here today. I don’t know why it is so hard for men to tell the ones who are close to them that they love them – especially to their kids and grandkids.
If you have never told your kids that you love them you ought to go home and call them and tell them you love them. They will probably pass out and you will hear a thud when they hit the floor, but it will change their lives.
ª Show Love Through Acts of Kindness.
Here is another way that you can increase your obedience to God. Practice small acts of kindness.
What are small acts of kindness? They are the little things you do to demonstrate the love of Christ. It could be helping someone carry in their groceries, picking up something someone drops, letting someone have the parking spot you raced to get, or many other little things.
These become like a training ground for show bigger acts of kindness.
There is a second quality involved on learning to be obedient to God.
2. Learn to be Filled with God’s Love.
There are two ways you can look at how you can experience God’s love in your life.
ª Your life is a bucket.
ª Your life is a fountain.
ª The Bucket System.
The bucket system is when we call out to God, “Lord, fill me with your love.” We surrender ourselves to the Holy Spirit and we seem to be overflowing for love for God and people. Then, we go to Wal-Mart. We start to park our car. We see a parking place right at the door, but just as we get there someone darts in front of us and gets the spot. We mutter under our breath all sorts of things about the man’s past and his parents.
You know what just happened? Our bucket just got a hole in it and it is leaking.
Sometimes our buckets get more leaks and we try to stop them, but it is like the little boy who tired to stop the leak in the dam by sticking his finger in the hole. It becomes an impossible task.
We wonder what goes wrong. All we have to do is remember the parable Jesus told of the seeds and soil. In Matthew 13:19-22 (NLT):
19 – “The seed that fell on the hard path represents those who hear the Good News about the Kingdom and don’t understand it. Then the evil one comes and snatches the seed away from their hearts.
20 – The rocky soil represents those who hear the message and receive it with joy.
21 – But like young plants in such soil, their roots don’t go very deep. At first they get along fine, but they wilt as soon as they have problems or are persecuted because they believe the word.
22 – The thorny ground represents those who hear and accept the Good News, but all too quickly the message is crowded out by the cares of this life and the lure of wealth, so no crop is produced.”
There is a second system.
ª The Fountain System.
The fountain system is where we learn to love God and as a result we overflow with His love. The Bible describes this in Psalm 1:2-3 (NLT):
2 – But they delight in doing everything the LORD wants; day and night they think about his law.
3 – They are like trees planted along the riverbank, bearing fruit each season without fail. Their leaves never wither, and in all they do, they prosper.
In the parable of the soils Jesus describes us in Matthew 13:23 (NLT)
23 – The good soil represents the hearts of those who truly accept God’s message and produce a huge harvest—thirty, sixty, or even a hundred times as much as had been planted.”
The way we start enjoying God’s love is by spending time in His Word. As you do, you find your love expands as you see His work in your life and you learn to walk in obedience.
You will learn that there are three qualities to God’s love.
THREE QUALITIES OF GOD’S LOVE
1. God’s Love is Personal.
God loves each of us individually. It isn’t like it is a group love. I could say that I love this church. That means I love people in this church, but there it is a different thing to say “I love every single one of you. Each of you mean so much to me.”
God loves every one of us individually equally!
2. God’s Love is Transformational.
One of the hardest concepts people deal with the concept of how do you change your life to conform to the way the Bible tells us a Christian lives.
The problem comes when we are the ones trying to change our lives. In 2 Corinthians 5:17 (NIV) the Bible tells us:
17 – Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!
We become like the person we spend time with. And when we spend more time with God, then He will transform us.
3. God’s Love is Sacrificial.
When our Lord sacrificed Himself on the cross He demonstrated how much He loves us.
In Romans 5:8 (NIV) the Bible tells us:
8 – But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
That is what sacrifice is all about. He was willing to sacrifice Himself in order to show us what love is all about.
Here in just a few weeks we are going to turn in our commitment cards. When we do you will have prayed through a process of deciding how much you will be committing to our church. The question will be how much does the commitment represent sacrifice? It is a way we demonstrate love!
In Ephesians 5:2 (NLT) Paul wrote:
2 – Live a life filled with love for others, following the example of Christ, who loved you and gave himself as a sacrifice to take away your sins. And God was pleased, because that sacrifice was like sweet perfume to him.
If there is any heritage I would like for us to leave for the future of our church it would be that we would continue to love one another and love the Lord Jesus Christ. No greater gift could we give than that.
God drew a picture for us of what love is like. How do we fit in the picture?