It Begins And Ends With Love

 

 

 

 ¹³ By this we know that we abide in Him and He in us, because He has given us of His Spirit. ¹⁴ We have seen and testify that the Father has sent the Son to be the Savior of the world. ¹⁵ Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. ¹⁶ We have come to know and have believed the love which God has for us. God is love, and the one who abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him. ¹⁷ By this, love is perfected with us, so that we may have confidence in the day of judgment; because as He is, so also are we in this world. ¹⁸ There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves punishment, and the one who fears is not perfected in love. ¹⁹ We love, because He first loved us. ²⁰ If someone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for the one who does not love his brother whom he has seen, cannot love God whom he has not seen. ²¹ And this commandment we have from Him, that the one who loves God should love his brother also."

I John 4:13-21

 

 

Good Morning my beloved,

 

We welcome you to worship this Lord's day! We're so pleased to have you join us today. We continue to lift all of you up in our prayers. We respectfully ask that you would pray for this ministry to continue to reach the lost, the broken and the hopeless. And for us. We are so grateful for those of you who have been sharing the ministry website with all of your family and friends. Your faithfulness to share God's Word with others has brought about tremendous results. Where will God's Word be heard today? With your help, and God's blessing, it will reach those that need it most. May God richly bless you for helping spread His Word.  

 

In our society today, it seems everyone is looking for love. Not only love, but that perfect love. In this age of instant connectivity and 5G network speeds, one would think that love is in the air. With the increase of technology, the rise in apps and online match making sites, apparently many people think that finding love is a numbers game, a matter of swiping right or left. More and more people today insist on outsourcing love. 

 

Worldly love is often associated with intense feelings that are selfish, self-centered and noncommittal. When love is so shallowly rooted in emotions or physical desires, it turns off as easily as it was turned on. In today’s sex-saturated culture, as casual sex gets easier to have, true love gets harder to find. The Bible however, gives us a much different picture of love. True love is of God.

 

However, only those who abide in God will find God's love being perfected in their lives. God’s love is a selfless, sacrificial love. When we love, as we should, our love reveals God to a love starved world. God reveals Himself to others through us. As the love of God is experienced and expressed in and through our lives, His love will become perfected in us. Through us, God's love reaches the world.

 

Let us pray

 

Heavenly Father,

 

Father, thank You for Your Word. Thank You for this rich reminder, that love is not an emotion or feeling toward someone, but genuine care, compassion, sacrifice, service, selflessness. Lord, thank You for humbling Yourself to love us who are so unworthy. Help us, that we might humble ourselves to show love to those around us. This is the greatest evidence that You are in us. Lord, we know that trying to find it outside of Your design, only leads frustration, dissatisfaction and disillusionment. Grant us the fullness of this perfected love that only comes from You. We pray that You might use this message in, mighty, and powerful ways, all for Your increase in the kingdom.

In Jesus' precious name we pray

Amen

 

Today's Message: It Begins And Ends With Love

 

Within the church, there are always going to be true Christians and false ones living together, sometimes, they are indistinguishable. In Matthew 13, Jesus warned that the enemy comes and he sows tares among the wheat. And, since they are indistinguishable at certain points of development, if you were to go out into your field and try to remove the tares, you’d find yourself ripping out the wheat. That's why Jesus said we  have to wait until the judgment when the Lord sends the reapers, and God will sort out the wheat from the tares.

 

I do not believe that there is a more important matter in the world today than salvation. In fact, that's why the church exists. Our task is to proclaim the message of the gospel to the lost in the world. That is the reason that I teach you the Word of God, for the purpose of building you up so that you’ll be a more effective, more impactful witness to the glory of the gospel. This is why I so faithfully do what I do.

If you stop and think about it, it is really inconceivable how much time, how much money and how much energy has been committed to this task. I mean, the church has been engaged in this mission through all of its history. All for the purpose of bringing sinners the good news of the forgiveness of sins the hope of eternal life and reconciliation with God, through the work and person of Jesus Christ.  Calling, pleading, and begging people to come to Christ. 

 

It seems to me that it is just a tragedy that even the most influential, the most wide spread of these ministries falls short of being make the truth of salvation known enough so that someone can believe.

In modern contemporary Christianity, there seems to be very little emphasis on confronting people who profess Christ and calling them to examine themselves to see if that profession is genuine. It is devastating to me how many are deceived about their true spiritual condition.

 

There is no question the validity of that claim. In most cases, even a minimal claim of affirming Christ is sufficient because apparently God will accept whatever it is you affirm as enough. I cannot understand how there can be this much time, energy, manpower and money being spent and no one even bothers to assess the validity of the results. 

 

The results are very often only half-converted or people who are not converted at all, living under some kind of delusion that they're saved. If you are not abiding in Him and He in you, then you are not saved. The importance of this matter cannot be overstated, we must therefore, examine and question because Satan is always sowing tares among the wheat. And, if people don't realized they're not saved, they are in the same danger of the same hell as those who reject Jesus Christ!

Open with me your Bibles to I John chapter four, today in our study we will be looking at verses thirteen through twenty-one. Jesus said in Luke 9, "If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow Me." Jesus eliminated the half-committed by the hard truth of the gospel message. Jesus eliminated the superficial by calling for repentance and self-denial. That’s just not a common practice in the church today.

I believe that a faithful pastor must be responsible to confront profession with a call to self-examination. What good is a shallow profession followed by an unexamined life and a false salvation? I realize that sounds harsh, its intended to be, so that no one would be deceived about his own spiritual condition. I believe that is something for which I’m responsible before God.

 

 I invite you to follow along with me as I read these final five verses to set the text in our minds, while we prepare our hearts for what the Spirit of God has is saying to each of us. Listen for the voice of our Lord. I John 4:13-21.

 

"By this we know that we abide in Him and He in us, because He has given us of His Spirit. We have seen and testify that the Father has sent the 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. We have come to know and have believed the love which God has for us. God is love, and the one who abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him. By this, love is perfected with us, so that we may have confidence in the day of judgment; because as He is, so also are we in this world. There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves punishment, and the one who fears is not perfected in love. We love, because He first loved us. If someone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for the one 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, that the one who loves God should love his brother also."

 

I John was written to call us to self examination by which we could test our faith. Many profess to believe in Jesus Christ, but believing in not necessarily enough, this epistle was written so that you can know whether or not your faith is the saving faith that brings forth eternal life. Through his epistle, John has been laying out a series of tests.

 

Some were doctrinal tests, so that you would have the right perspective of sin. So that you would have the right view of Jesus Christ, who He really is, and what He has done. Christ came to be the propitiation for the sins of the world.

 

There were some moral tests. There were some behavioral tests. John is saying don’t just look at what someone claims, look at how they walk. If we say we belong to Christ, but we walk in darkness, we are a liar and do not practice the truth. It essentially comes down obedience to the Word of God and love for the Lord and His people. These tests are critical. By these, examine the validity of your profession.

 

If you haven't noticed, John has a way of circling back around through the same themes. And, each time the circle gets wider and wider. He adds to it, he broadens it, he enriches it.

 

Verse 13, "By this we know that we abide in Him and He in us, because He has given us of His Spirit.

 

We are commanded to love one another and we should be commanded to do that, because we have been given the capacity to love. Love is the evidence that our salvation is real. Keep in mind, John is not talking about worldly love. He is referring to biblical love. Love that is caring, compassionate, and sacrificial. Love that can only come from God, who is love. Habitual, self-sacrificing, serving love. If you can love this way, then that’s evidence that God is in you.

 

I'd like you to notice that John does not separate truth from love or put love above the truth. God is both truth and love. I'd also like you to notice, that John does not say that God has given us His Spirit, although that is true. He says, "He has given us of His Spirit." God has imparted to us out of His Spirit truth and love.

The Christian life is far more than doctrine, which it certainly includes that. It is more than refraining from sinful practices, while adding godly ones, which it does require that. Christianity is receiving new life from the Holy Spirit, who comes to dwell within you, leading to a transformed life. The abiding presence of the Holy Spirit in our life is proof of God's presence in our life. Therefore, we should look for and expect to see evidence of the fruit of the Spirit in our lives.

Paul says in Romans 8:9, "However, you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. But if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Him."

 

If you are a true Christian the greatest change that will ever happen to you in your life has already happened. Through your salvation, you have passed from darkness to light.From death to eternal life. You are already a new creation. If God is love and He is, and if God lives in you and He does, then for you to love each other is a very reasonable command. Because God is love. And, if Christ gave you His life, than you had ought to walk as He walked. Unfortunately, your new life remains trapped, incarcerated in the old unredeemed flesh.

 

In verses 14-15, John says "We have seen and testify that the Father has sent the 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."

 

How can I know that the Holy Spirit abides in me? I cannot see the Holy Spirit. In John 3:8, Jesus said "The wind blows where it wishes and you hear the sound of it, but do not know where it comes from and where it is going; so is everyone who is born of the Spirit." 

John gives us the answer in verse 15, "Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God." That’s so very important.In other words, because I believe what can only be believed if it is revealed by God.You know that the Holy Spirit has taken up residency in you because you believe the gospel. That is to say that you believe the Father sent the Son, to be the Savior of the world. You believe that Jesus is the Son of God. You believe that Jesus is God incarnate. You believe

in the Trinity. You believe that salvation is by faith not works. That's how you know, that’s the evidence of the Holy Spirit.

 

Then, verse 16, "We have come to know and have believed the love which God has for us. God is love, and the one who abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him."

 

God only gives His Spirit to those who belong to Him. You cannot believe apart from the Holy Spirit. Because I believe, I have come to know and have believed all of this is because of the love which God has for me. That's why God sent Jesus to be the Savior of the world, because of His love. So, I have come to know and understand the great eternal love that God has for us. And, the culmination is you love God, you love Christ and you love others. That includes your enemies. After all, He loved all of us when we were yet His enemies. If you are God’s, you are characterized by love. Because God is love.

 

Verses 17-18, "By this, love is perfected with us, so that we may have confidence in the day of judgment; because as He is, so also are we in this world. There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves punishment, and the one who fears is not perfected in love."

 

We are commanded to love because love is our confidence in judgment. Confidence in the anticipation of the day of judgment comes from perfect love being your experience. By linking love to confidence in the day of judgment, John is showing us how important it is that we learn to love one another. By abiding in God and His love, "love is perfected with us." 

In verse 18, John is saying that if we fear the day of judgment, it is evidence that we have not loved others as God has intended for us to do. Therefore, His love is not perfected in us. It is by our practicing the love of Christ that gives us confidence in the day of judgment. If you love like Christ, you don’t fear the return of Christ. You do not need to fear standing before the throne of God. Because Jesus has  covered you with His righteousness. You can live without fear. How amazing is that, that we can live this life with that absolute confidence!

 

Let me put it another way, the Christian who fears Christ's return, may well not a Christian at all. Because if the Holy Spirit has come, and taken up residence in you, if He has enlightened you to the gospel, and if you’ve embraced it, if you’ve believed it, if He has flooded your life with love for Christ, and love for God the Father, you're not going to fear it, you're going to long for it. God doesn’t want His children to live in terror and fear of the judgment. He wants you to live in love, confidence, and hope. However, a Christian who is disobedient, and fallen into a habitual pattern of sin, can lose that confidence.

 

The Bible is very clear,  there is a coming day of judgment! So, you want to make sure that you have a biblically based confidence as you face that day.  When we see God’s love flowing through us to others, in sacrificial service, that is evidence that His life is in you and that you are in Him. 

 

Verse 19, "We love, because He first loved us." This is the basic principal of love. We love because He first loved us. We love because God has shed His love abroad in our hearts. Unbelievers have neither the fear of God or the love of God. Even though they are literally one heartbeat away from eternity in hell, they don’t fear God!

 

In typical black and white John fashion, in verse 20, John says " If someone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for the one who does not love his brother whom he has seen, cannot love God whom he has not seen."

 

John knows it's easy to fall into hypocrisy or make excuses when it comes to the practical matter of loving others. If you are struggling to love someone, especially someone who has wronged you, meditate on God’s love as it was shown to you at the cross. Remember, you didn't deserve His love. You deserved His wrath and judgment. You cannot claim to love God whom you cannot see, and not love the God who is in His people. The one who genuinely loves God, loves others with an unconditional love that accepts and forgives, a love that bears the pain of others, a self-giving love that practices sacrifice, and a righteous love that tolerates no sin.

 

In verse 21, John closes this chapter with a command, just as he began it. "And this commandment we have from Him, that the one who loves God should love his brother also." Notice that John is saying it’s not my command. It’s His! We're not talking about a human love, that based on physical attraction or emotion. We're talking about a love that extends toward anybody who has a need, particularly those in the family of God. A love that is unknown by the unbelieving world. It is a whole, complete love, that God manifest in Christ to us. A love that is our testimony and the assurance of our salvation.

 

In Closing.. 

It is easy for someone to claim they love God, however, we cannot separate these two commands. A genuine love for God will reveal itself in love for others. I do not claim that loving others will be effortless or easy, I'm simply stating that it's not optional.

When God gave us this commandment to love others,  He didn’t provide us with a list of exceptions! The more you see God’s love manifesting in your life toward others, the greater your confidence will be that He abides in you and you in Him.

May it be so..

And now may the Lord bless you and keep you;

the Lord make His face shine upon you,
And be gracious to you;

The Lord lift up His countenance upon you,
And give you peace.

Now and forever, in Jesus' name
Amen

 

 

 

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