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Back to Sermons Index Back to Home Page 30th July 2006 AMTHE FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT – LOVE! Pastor Linton SmithThis week many small groups began GrowthWorks – a ten week course designed to help us grow into the likeness of Jesus. On Sundays we will be pondering the fruit of the Spirit as listed in Galatians 5:22,23. In Galatians chapter 5 the Apostle Paul makes it very clear that God wants His people to be different – from what they were as unbelievers and very different from the way of life of so many around them! Galatians 5:19-23.. The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like… But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. What a change! And it is possible because this fruit is the work of the Spirit of God in our lives. More about that later. Today we think about Love.. about the way God wants us to love. q GOD WANTS US TO LOVE THE WAY HE LOVES – WITH LOVE THAT SEES. Thousands of years ago the people of Israel were slaves in Egypt. Their life was hard and getting harder. They felt that God had forgotten them.. They were wrong. One day in the desert of Sinai God spoke to Moses.. Exodus 3:7.. The LORD said, “I have indeed seen the misery of my people in Egypt. I have heard them crying out because of their slave drivers..” God sees. His love is love that sees.. hears.. notices. Jesus was like this [remember that Jesus said, Anyone who has seen Me has seen the Father].. Luke 7:11-13.. Soon afterward, Jesus went to a town called Nain, and his disciples and a large crowd went along with him. As he approached the town gate, a dead person was being carried out—the only son of his mother, and she was a widow. And a large crowd from the town was with her. When the Lord saw her, his heart went out to her.. Jesus saw her.. and took in her situation. He really saw her. He saw our need, too! The Apostle John tells us.. 1 John 3:16,17.. This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers. If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need but has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him? Why did Jesus lay down His life? Because He saw our need.. We are to do the same.. we are to see others.. really see them.. see their need. Some years ago this truth was driven home to me. I was preoccupied with various matters and cheerily said, Hullo, to someone. A little later another person said to me, ‘Didn’t you see how that lady was hurting?’ It was a little unfair because my critic new her story and I did not.. but the message went home. Open your eyes.. see people! When we love the way God loves.. that is what we will do. q GOD WANTS US TO LOVE THE WAY HE LOVES - WITH LOVE THAT FEELS. Quite often we are told that love is good-will.. and has little to do with feeling D. A. Carson challenges this in his book, The Difficult Doctrine of the Love of God. He quotes Charles Hodge to support his argument. More than a century ago Hodge wrote, “Love of necessity involves feeling, and if there be no feeling in God there can be no love” [p33]. Let’s look again at what God said to Moses. Exodus 3:7,8.. The LORD said, “I have indeed seen the misery of my people in Egypt. I have heard them crying out because of their slave drivers, and I am concerned about their suffering.” I am concerned about their suffering. He is concerned.. He feels! Let’s look again at Jesus. A leper came to Him.. seeking His help.. Mark 1:40,41.. Filled with compassion, Jesus reached out his hand and touched the man.. When He met the widow who was about to bury her only son.. we are told.. Luke 7:13.. When the Lord saw her, his heart went out to her.. His heart went out to her. That is what God is like. He sees us.. sees our situation.. our need.. and His heart goes out to us! That is why he sent Jesus.. He saw our terrible need.. our urgent need.. to be rescued from an eternity banished from Him.. eternity spent on the rubbish dump of the Universe.. His heart went out to us.. He sent Jesus. The Apostle John writes [I quote from the King James Version because it brings out the meaning of what John wrote].. 1 John 3:16,17.. Hereby perceive we the love of God, because he laid down his life for us: and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren. But whoso hath this world's good, and seeth his brother have need, and shutteth up his bowels of compassion from him, how dwelleth the love of God in him? [King James Version] Shutteth up his bowels of compassion! That is where we feel emotions.. in the bowels. John pictures a believer.. seeing need.. beginning to be stirred.. feeling pity.. and deliberately resisting.. squashing.. the feeling.. John is talking about a feeling of pity which expresses itself in action [NICNT p195]. That is how God loves.. how He wants us to love.. To see people.. really see them.. and to allow ourselves to feel for them.. q GOD WANTS US TO LOVE THE WAY HE LOVES - WITH LOVE THAT ACTS. God sees.. feels.. and acts. When He spoke to Moses He said.. Exodus 3:8.. So I have come down to rescue them from the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land into a good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey. He came down to rescue them. He acted. So did Jesus.. The leper had said.. If you are willing.. you can make me clean.. Mark 1:41,42.. Jesus reached out his hand and touched the man. “I am willing,” he said. “Be clean!” Immediately the leprosy left him and he was cured. He had compassion.. reached out.. and touched the man.. And when He saw the woman.. His heart went out to her.. and He acted.. Luke 7:13-15.. His heart went out to her and he said, “Don’t cry.” Then he went up and touched the coffin, and those carrying it stood still. He said, “Young man, I say to you, get up!” The dead man sat up and began to talk, and Jesus gave him back to his mother. And he did the same for us..1 John 4:9,10.. 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.God saw.. was moved with compassion.. deep feeling.. and did the unthinkable.. sent His Son.. Jesus.. as the atoning sacrifice.. When we love the way God loves.. we will see.. feel.. and act! John writes.. 1 John 3:18.. Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth. q GOD WANTS US TO BE LIKE HIM - LOVING TO THE CORE. John writes.. 1 John 4:16.. God is love. He is saying.. God is loving to core. God in his very nature is love [Exp BC]. The Apostle Paul has left us the most amazing description of love.. 1 Corinthians 13:4-8.. Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails. In part that describes someone who does loving things.. but it goes deeper than that.. it is describing a loving person.. someone who is loving to the core. When I read this.. I think of Jesus.. yes.. we could put the name of Jesus in there.. Jesus is patient.. kind etc.. but put my name in there? No way., I feel like many of you will feel.. very unworthy.. and know I need to be forgiven.. and praise God.. we can be.. And more than that.. we can grow into people like that.. because.. q GOD GIVES HIS SPIRIT TO US TO MAKE THIS POSSIBLE. 1 John 4:19.. We love because He first loved us.. God took the initiative.. showed love to us.. and we love in response.. we are inspired by His love.. moved to love.. yes.. but John is saying more than that.. The Apostle Paul writes.. Romans 5:5.. God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us. When we believe in Jesus.. trust Him.. we are forgiven.. justified.. and given the Holy Spirit.. and the Holy Spirit pours out God’s love in our hearts.. And there is more to it even than that.. The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of Christ.. Christ living in us.. and living His life through us.. Paul wrote.. Galatians 2:20.. I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. He meant every word of this. Jesus died for Him.. in his place.. yes.. but on top of this.. Paul is now in Christ.. when Jesus died.. he died.. when Jesus rose.. Paul rose.. he is alive in Christ.. and Christ lives in him.. The Galatians had missed this truth.. were struggling to live the Christian life in their own strength.. by human effort.. We sometimes do the same.. and we can never do it.. But take this truth to heart.. Christ lives in us.. and welcome Him.. and ask Him.. allow Him.. to live through us.. and we are on the way to being like Him.. loving to the core.. Paul.. Galatians 5:22.. The fruit of the Spirit is love.. Love is fruit produced by the Spirit.. The Spirit of Jesus! Look at the tree in the corner of the room.. it has lights representing fruit.. why? To remind us fruit grows because the branch draws life from the tree. The lights remind us that with no electricity.. no lights. With no connection to the power.. no lights. And that is just how it is with us.. we have this glorious truth.. this glorious possibility.. Christ.. the Spirit of Christ.. living in us.. and all we have to do.. is to stay connected! How? By taking time to read the Bible.. reflect.. pray.. confess.. surrender.. Spirit of Jesus, Live your life in me and through me. Decide now.. to do that!
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