Love Like God Loves

Introduction

Carla will read SHMILY - See How Much I Love You!"

-Valentines is a time when we think about expressing our love to others.

-husband or wife, our boyfriend or girlfriend, our parents or children or someone else.

-We know that we ought to love one another, but is it really love if it is not expressed?

-talk about how we express that love.

-Having love without expressing it is like winking at a girl in the dark.

-The story which Carla read is a wonderful story of a true love which lasted,

-a much better  - God has demonstrated his love to us.

I. Undeserved

-sin.

-Romans 3:23 that “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.”

-Romans 5:8 says, “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”

- How can we show love whether it is deserved or not?

-Rob      

-How about you, do you show love even when it is not deserved?

-How do you treat your sister when you find out that she has borrowed your sweater without asking and then comes to you and asks you to borrow your jeans?

-How do you treat your brother when he uses your car and doesn’t put any gas in it?

-How do you treat your boyfriend when he forgets to call?

-Real love is demonstrated even when it is not deserved.

II. Useful

- commercial on TV where the guy asks to use his wife’s power saw?

-God’s love -  what we needed.

-gift of salvation

-not about meeting his needs, but ours.

-didn’t give us a pat on the back telling us we were OK.

-didn’t overlook our sins.

-didn’t give us a good life so that we could just be happy.

-knew that our deepest need was for our sins to be forgiven and for us to have life.

-1 John 4:9,10 says, “This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.”

-socks for Christmas.

-any number of ways that fit the person.

-Luke 6:31, “Do to others as you would have them do to you.”

III. Personal

- “Hallmark.com.”

-John 1:14, “The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.”

-UMS

-you can’t send your brother to tell your girlfriend that you love her.

-You can’t ask your husband to go tuck the kids into bed and give them a kiss.

-You can’t ask your wife to attend your kids game while you do your work.

-love is always best expressed as personally as possible.

Conclusion

-I John 4:11 says, “since God loved us, we ought to love one another.”

-Valentines is a great time to think about how we love.

-God, of course, is the greatest

-when it is undeserved,

-with the person’s needs in mind

-expressed personally.

-Let us follow God’s example of love.