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Introduction: As we continue with our
study of the believer's profile this morning, we are going to
consider the preeminent Christian virtue, love. Someone remind us
of what a profile is. Your profile is that set of observable
characteristics (both external and internal) that identify us. Paul
has told us so far in this passage that we are to be marked by seven
things:
1. compassion -
your pain in my heart
2. kindness - the
opposite of severity
3. humility - a
proper view of self
4. gentleness -
consideration
5. patience
-emotional quietness in the face of unfavorable
circumstances
6. bearing with one another
- tolerance
7. forgiveness -
just as God forgives us
Transition: Today
we are going to look at love which Paul mentions in verse 14. Read
along with me from verse 12 through 14.
And so, as
those who have been chosen of God, holy and beloved, put on a heart
of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience; 13
bearing with one another, and forgiving each other, whoever has a
complaint against anyone; just as the Lord forgave you, so also
should you. 14 And beyond all these things put on
love, which is the perfect bond of unity.
Love is something that has fallen on hard times in evangelical /
fundamental circles because of how liberal denominations abuse the
concept. For example, most of the mainline denominations in America
will tell you that homosexuality is a legitimate expression of one's
sexuality, or that there is nothing wrong with abortion. And part
of their reasoning is that as Christians we need to be more loving.
They would say that for too many years Christians have been
narrow-minded, dogmatic, Puritanical, exclusivists, and now we need
simply to start being the loving people God has called us to be.
The typical evangelical response is to overcompensate
for their error. It is just like the person who accidentally drives
off the edge of the highway. Many times, instead of only turning
the steering wheel a little bit to get the car back on the road, the
person panics and overcompensates. He violently twists the steering
wheel and ends up in the other lane or sometimes even in the ditch
on the other side of the road. And sometimes he even loses his
life. That is the danger of overcompensating for an error, and I am
afraid we have done that in this matter of love. Because the
liberals abuse it, we diminish it. Let's not let that be true of us
here at Cornerstone Baptist Church.
Definition: Before we actually get into
our discussion of love, let's see if we can come up with a good
definition. Who has one for us? The best definition of love I have
ever heard is "a sacrificial desire to meet the needs of someone
else." It doesn't have a lot to do with emotions, though there is
an emotional element to love. But love involves first of all, a
choice. It is a rational decision. It then involves sacrifice.
And finally it involves meeting a need in someone else. Of course
the ultimate expression of this kind of love is God, and the most
well known verse in the Bible expresses our definition perfectly.
Let's quote it together. "For God so loved the world that He
gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him should
not perish but have everlasting life." God chose to love us.
He didn't have to. It's not like there was anything special about
humanity that compelled God to love us - He made a rational decision
to send His Son to pay for our sins. Which is the element of
sacrifice. And finally, He did it because He was interested in
meeting our need for a savior. This is why we say that God is love.
Transition: This morning I want to remind
you of three truths about love. And I use the word "remind" because
I'm probably not going to be showing you anything you don't already
know. Along with Peter in 2 Pt. 1:13, I want to "stir you up by
way of reminder." But my objective is to take this matter of
love away from being the exclusive property of the liberals and say
with Paul, "clothe yourselves with love."
I. Love is the preeminent Christian Virtue
- 1 Cor. 13:13
There are many different virtues that should mark a
Christian. Paul has mentioned seven of them already in the previous
two verses. But note the phrase in verse 14, "beyond all this . .
." Beyond all what? Beyond the compassion, beyond
the kindness, beyond the humility,
beyond the gentleness, beyond the patience,
beyond the bearing with one another, beyond the
forgiveness, put on love. This command to put on love,
preceeded by the phrase "beyond all this," tells me that the virtue
of love held a preeminent place in Paul's thinking.
We see further proof of this point in 1 Cor. 13:13.
Turn there with me and read what Paul says about love in this
verse. "But now abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the
greatest of these is love." Did you catch the word "greatest?"
That is an adjective that is used to make a comparison. We say
things like, "That was a great meal I had last night at the Chinese
Buffet." The word "great" tells the listener that we have compared
last night's dinner to several others, and last night's was better.
Or if we were to say, "Last night's fireworks display was the
greatest I have ever seen," we are showing that we have compared all
our fireworks experiences and determined that the one we had last
night was the best. That is the significance of the word "great."
Our English prefix mega- is a transliteration of this Greek
word. A mega-mall is a bigger mall than normal. A mega-bomb is a
bigger bomb than all the rest. A megalomaniac is person who wants
more public attention than anyone else.
Now my point here is that all these virtues that mark
the believer are not equal in importance. Bigger than compassion,
more than kindness, greater than humility, Paul says, "put on love."
Love is the preeminent virtue. This desire to sacrificially meet
the needs of another person is the pinnacle of our profile.
Transition: How many of you have ever
heard a person claim to be a Christian, but you had serious doubts
about his claim? This happens all the time. We see someone who can
certainly talk the talk of a Believer, but as we analyze their lives
there seems to be a gap between the talk and the walk. The second
truth I want to remind you about is that love is the indisputable
proof of our salvation.
II. Love is the indisputable proof of
salvation - John 13:35
Look with me at John 13:35. I like the way the Bible in
Basic English translates it. "By this it will be clear to all
men that you are my disciples, if you have love one for another."
The New Living Translation says, "Your love for one another will
prove to the world that you are my disciples."
I don't believe there is anything more contrary to
fallen human nature than deciding to sacrificially meet the needs of
someone else. We just aren't that way by nature. By nature, we are
selfish. By nature, we are more concerned about our needs being met
than other's needs being met. I noticed this when we started having
children. Here was this one day old child, and the only person he
could think about was himself. Every time he got hungry he put up a
fuss and would continue to fuss and even scream until his belly got
filled. He gave no thought at all to Holly's needs. He didn't care
that it was 4 AM and that she had only had a few hours sleep in the
previous 24 hours. He gave not thought at all to her. All he could
think about was himself. That is a perfect example of human
nature. Now as we grow up we refine our expressions of selfishness
and they aren't quite so blatant as a hungry child's, but they are
still there.
Salvation changes that. 2 Cor. 5:17 in the NLT
says that "those who become Christians become new persons. They
are not the same anymore, for the old life is gone. A new life has
begun!" Salvation makes us "new people." And part of the
newness that comes with salvation is the un-natural ability to
sacrificially meet the needs of someone else. That is the thrust of
John 13:35, "your love for one another will prove to the world
that you are my disciples."
Now the application I want to make from this has to do
with the point I made earlier about love having fallen on hard times
in evangelical / fundamental circles. The Bible says we are to be
know by our love, and I'm afraid we aren't. It is possible to do
the right thing the wrong way. We can oppose the abortion industry
(the right thing) with the wrong methods (the wrong way). It is
possible to hold to the right position in the wrong manner. We can
defend marriage as being between a man and a woman (the right
position), but the way in which we defend it can negate our efforts
(holding up a sign that says "Jesus didn't die for the faggots").
Sound doctrine is to be defended, but you don't drop your gloves to
do it (that is a hockey phrase that means a serious altercation is
about to take place). And that is where we are many times as
evangelicals. I'm afraid that many times Christians are known as
being pugnacious as opposed to being loving.
Now let me clarify something. I am not calling on us to
abandon sound doctrine. I'm not calling on us to meekly appease the
opposition. I'm calling on us to be known for our love. Jesus
loved the world, and we are to be like Jesus. "By this will all
men know that you are my disciples, if you love one another."
Transiton: The final point I'd like to
make this morning is that love is to be practical in its
expressions. We know that love is the pinnacle of the Christian
virtues, that it is the indisputable proof of our salvation, and now
I want us to see that love is to be practical in nature.
III. Love is Measurable in its Expressions
- 2 John 1:6
This verse says in the NLT "Love means doing what God
has commanded us." Murray's translation of this verse is,
"This is how we show love for God, by keeping His commandments."
My concern here is that we not relegate love to the
realm of the intangible. Love is supposed to be measurable in its
expression. Love is not some ethereal, nebulous concept that is
hard to grasp; it is identifiable and tangible. Love is not like
physics, it is more like carpentry. Now I know that good carpentry
depends on the laws of physics, but you can't see or touch a stress
load. You can see and touch rafters.
I have a pastor friend whose daughter is in college, and
every once in a while she calls him and says, "Dad, when are you
going to send me some love?" What is she asking for? A tangible,
measurable expression of his love - primarily money!
Keeping God's commandments is something we do in the
practical realm. Not stealing is practical. Remembering the widows
and orphans, and honoring your parents, and not coveting, and not
committing adultery, and not having anything else more important
than God is measurable. It is seen in your actions. When we see
someone who is hungry or poorly clothed and our response is to say,
"be filled and clothed," we have just failed to love that person.
Good intentions are meaningless if they are not backed up by
action. Love is measurable.
Conclusion: So as we consider the
pinnacle of the Christian virtues, let's remember to clothe
ourselves with love. It is what marks us as Christians and it is
how we demonstrate the reality of our conversion. |
