Good Shepherd Community Chapel

These thoughts influenced in large part from the New Bible Commentary, Third Edition, W. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co. and the Matthew Henry Commentary.

“Love – Activity in Many Forms”

Sermon delivered by Jerry Johnson, Sunday Morning Service, 02/12/06

Love – The ruling principle of Christian Living. It is the characteristic term of Christianity.  Its defining quality is unselfishness: a focus on the highest good of others and not on the low desires and pride in one’s own self. 

Love is to be directed to

1)      our fellow members of the Family of God [John 13:34-35],

2)      our neighbors in the world [Matthew 5:47] and,

3)      our enemies [Matthew 5:44].

Love is imparted from God to the believer by the Holy Spirit who lives in our hearts [Romans 5:5].  By the empowerment of the Holy Spirit given to us we live fruitful, loving lives before God  [Galatians 5:22-23].  This love is like grease to the wheels of obedience to God.  Without such love we are nothing, no matter how vocal, how “super spiritual” or, how zealous we may be [1 Corinthians 13:1-3].

This godly love is usually denoted in Scripture by some form of the Greek word, agape, conveying much more than a fleeting impulse or passion of the flesh. 

{Please note:  We must be careful to guard against being over-simplistic and trite on the one hand or speculatively theoretical on the other.  God is love...and God is infinite!}

Agape implies, in the context of Scripture, a love issuing from God, showing itself as a quotient of reason and will and feeling, these three working together to intensify each other, naturally producing outward manifestation in word and deed, these characterized by a fundamental desire for all other’s highest good.

Godly agape is akin to the “mercies of God” in Romans 12:1 as we come to know, experience and express that mercy in our own lives.  This is why Paul exhorts us:  His mercy demands and should rightly invoke a gripping response by our whole being – a response to truly worship Him in word and in deed.  (True love worships truly!)  Have you ever just sung a love song to God…just you and Him all alone, maybe in the car or washing dishes or cutting the grass? 

Activities of Love -  Romans 12: 9-12, 1 John 3:18

Vs. 9: Godly agape, in its genuine form is void of hypocrisy; it is pure and sincere in its outpouring; and it will stimulate activity in the believer in many forms in the Church family and in secular society.

Vs. 9:  Genuine love loathes evil and hungers after good and righteousness and holiness.  Why would we want to hurt our precious, beloved Savior with wicked thoughts and deeds?

Vs. 10:  Love will inspire a mutual affection in the church family.  What can be sweeter this side of heaven than to love and be loved?

Vs. 10:  Love will honor the other fellow Christian in whom Christ is mysteriously present for me!  We must not flounder as Lone Rangers or Super Spiritual Heroes outside the context of our home church where the Father has placed us in His Family.  He has His Hero, His name is Jesus; now He is looking for a body, The Bride of Christ!  There we find Him ministering to us and counseling us and encouraging us and strengthening us through the lives of our fellow Christians.  There we learn to love without prejudice.  There we learn to love in the good times and in the bad.  There we learn to prefer others over ourselves.  There we learn what Christ meant when He said, If you want to be great in the Kingdom of God, learn to be servant of all.  It is in the context of Christian fellowship that we learn to forgive, and keep on forgiving.

Vs. 11:  Love will never flag in zeal.  Picture a flag drooping on the flag pole in the absence of an imposing wind.  Love is not a fair weather friend.  Love doesn’t need to be propped up by constant babying and flattery.  Love just keeps on going.

Vs. 11:  Love will be aglow with the Holy Spirit.  Think about it.

Vs. 11:  Love will serve the Lord Jesus Christ – the power to obey!  His commands are not burdensome.  That little sixteen year old girl in love with Johnny doesn’t need to be fussed at to get the phone when it rings. 

Vs. 12:  Love takes great joy – it actively rejoices – in the reality of the Christian Hope.

Vs. 12:  Love endures in suffering (remember, it does not flag).

Vs. 12:  Love perseveres in prayer – love does not give up praying for the souls of the lost and the needs of others.

Vs. 12:  Love shares of its means in the needs of Christian brethren.

Vs. 12:  Love practices hospitality – it does not just open the door, it puts the “Welcome” mat out.

The story of the little handicapped boy: (told on the Focus on the Family radio program some years ago, retold here to the best of my memory)

This young man was of early school age – maybe 8 or 9 years old.  He was mentally challenged, but his loving mom had persevered with the officials to keep him in the mainstream school system this long. 

Valentine’s Day was coming.  The teacher in class had told everyone to go home and make Valentine’s Day Cards for their friends.  You probably remember how this works.  All the popular kid in the class get a bunch of cards and the less popular get a few, or even none. 

Our little friend got the picture right off and he came home very excited.  He prevailed on his mom to take him to the store to get scissors, colored construction paper, white glue, glitter and magic markers.  His mom was very concerned: she feared that he would be devastated when he did not get any cards! The kids at school made fun of him and played tricks on him.  None had befriended him as far as she knew.  She had heard the snide remarks and the cruel laughter at her son as he stumbled off the school bus.

Well, he made his list.  He poured over it to make sure he didn’t leave one fellow student in his class out.  And he made them all a special valentine…the very best he could do, cardstock, glue, glitter and all. 

Come Valentine’s Day, he rushes off to the school bus stop all excited with his lunch box in one hand and a bag full of Valentine’s in the other.  His mom looked ahead to his coming home that afternoon with dread.  She figured the least she could do was to make his favorite cookies and put them out at his place at the table with a tall, cold glass of milk for when he came home.  Maybe that would help cheer him up.

When the time came for the little fellow to come home on the bus, his mom went out this time to meet him, even though the other children really teased him when she did that.  As the bus pulled up to the curb and stopped, she saw his little head bounce down the aisle with the ball on his stocking cap flapping.  She could hear him calling to her, “Not one, Mama, not one!”  Her heart sank; she knew her worst fears were realized, that he did not get any Valentine’s Day Cards.

As he rounded the turn down the steps of the bus, oh, how surprised she was:  with a huge, animated smile on his face, he hollered, NOT ONE, MAMA, NOT ONE!  I DIDN’T FORGET ANYBODY IN THE CLASS FOR A VALENTINE’S DAY CARD!

How few cards his classmates gave him was no issue.  His simple, unselfish love for his friends brought him all the joy he could contain.

God gives that kind of love.  Open your heart up to Him.  Invite Him to flood you with His unselfish love and empower you to share that love with everyone you meet, especially among your brothers and sisters in the Family of God.