Love as a Divine Command: Living Out Christ’s Sacrifice in Everyday Relationships

[00:00:29] [SPEAKER UNKNOWN]:
.
[00:00:33] .
[00:00:33] .

[00:01:43] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_05]:
.

[00:01:47] [SPEAKER UNKNOWN]:
.
[00:01:47] .
[00:07:09] The Gospel of the Lord
[00:08:59] Let us pray.
[00:09:08] Let us pray.
[00:11:06] and Reformation.

[00:11:51] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_06]:
Let the joy of Jesus fill you with all your praise.

[00:12:37] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_05]:
and more.

[00:13:28] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_06]:
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.

[00:13:46] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]:
Amen.

[00:14:33] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_07]:
Thessalonians 5.18 And everything give thanks, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.

[00:15:03] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]:
With a grateful heart give thanks to the Holy One Give thanks because He's given Jesus Christ His Son And thanks with a grateful heart give thanks to the Holy One Give thanks because He's given Jesus Christ
[00:15:44] And now, let the weak say, I am strong.
[00:16:02] Let the poor say, I am rich.
[00:16:02] Because of what the Lord has done for us.

[00:16:20] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_00]:
Psalm 45 You have multiplied, O Lord my God, your wondrous deeds and your thoughts toward us.
[00:16:31] None can compare with you.
[00:16:34] I will proclaim and tell of them, yet they are more than can be told.
[00:16:41] Psalm 45

[00:17:36] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]:
Let your blessings see what God has done.
[00:17:41] Count your blessings in a one by one.

[00:17:47] [SPEAKER UNKNOWN]:
Count your many blessings see what God has done.

[00:18:08] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_03]:
In Jesus' name we pray.
[00:18:09] Amen.
[00:18:14] Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me.
[00:18:20] Bless his holy name.
[00:18:22] Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits, who forgives all your iniquities, who heals all your diseases, who redeemeth thy life from destruction, who crowneth thee with loving kindness and tender mercies, who satisfies your mouth with good things, so that thy youth is renewed like the eagle's.
[00:18:43] That's good news today.
[00:18:46] Let's all stand and ascribe to the Lord the glory.
[00:18:50] Do His name worthy of worship.

[00:18:59] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_05]:
Worthy of worship.
[00:19:06] Worthy of praise.
[00:19:09] Worthy of honor.
[00:19:10] Holy, worthy of all the glad songs we can sing, Worthy of all the offerings we bring,
[00:19:37] Sanctification, Propitiation, Propitiation, Deuteronomy, Deuteronomy, Deuteronomy, Deuteronomy,
[00:20:11] Deuteronomy, Deuteronomy, Deuteronomy, Deuteronomy
[00:20:41] Holy and wonderful, worthy of worship and praise Almighty Father, Master and Lord, King of all kings and Redeemer
[00:21:09] Father, Creator, friend, Savior and source of our life without end, you are worthy.
[00:21:25] Father, Creator, you are worthy.

[00:21:37] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_02]:
and Wonderful, worthy of worship and praise.
[00:21:49] Good morning!
[00:21:51] It's great to see you here in the house of the Lord on this beautiful Lord's Day He's given us on this Sunday before Thanksgiving 2025.
[00:22:01] And we're so thankful that you're here to be a part of our time of praise and worship as we are just lifting up our voices in honor and praise to Him.
[00:22:09] And didn't the children do a great job this morning in leading us today?
[00:22:13] Boy!
[00:22:16] Just singing out, we're grateful for them and just their leadership as they kicked us off this morning.
[00:22:22] Well listen, if you're visiting with us, we want to bid you a warm welcome in the name of the Lord and on behalf of our Trinity Baptist family, we're so thankful that you've come to be a part of this worship service this morning.
[00:22:33] In fact, our deacons have
[00:22:34] We want to invite you to take a moment fill that out
[00:22:50] We also want to reach out to welcome those of you that are joining us via live stream this morning
[00:23:16] Right here in the sanctuary of Trinity Baptist Church in Mooresville, North Carolina.
[00:23:21] And we're thrilled that you too have come to be a part of what God's doing here in this place today.
[00:23:26] And so wherever you're listening from this morning, we want you to know that you're invited to participate in every aspect of our service.
[00:23:34] When we sing, sing along with us.
[00:23:36] When we pray, we invite you to God's throne in prayer.
[00:23:39] and then when we come in a few minutes to open God's Word hopefully you'll take a copy of the Bible open it up with us to the Gospel of John and study along with us this morning as the Lord speaks to our hearts right here in this place so again a beautiful time to be in the house of God a great day to lift up our voices and praise and thanksgiving to Him and I want to invite you to join with me as we go to the Lord in prayer and ask Him to speak to our hearts this morning
[00:24:07] Father, we do thank you on this very special week as we come as a nation to celebrate Thanksgiving.
[00:24:16] We're just reminded as believers and followers of Christ that every day is a day of giving thanks.
[00:24:23] Every day is a time to stop and just sort of just revisit, Lord, the many, many blessings that you have given to us and do give to us.
[00:24:35] And Lord, none greater than just your presence in our lives.
[00:24:40] Lord, knowing that there's not a single moment in any given day that you are not in our midst, living in us, working through us, speaking to us, protecting us, guiding us,
[00:24:57] And Lord, our prayer today is that even as we worship you this morning, that you will continue to do the work in us that you desire to do.
[00:25:07] I pray that today as we open your word in a few minutes, that you would just teach us from your word, that you would instruct us, that you would challenge us, Father,
[00:25:18] To be who you've called us to be, every one of us in this room and those that are listening by live stream or television, Father, every single one of us is a work in progress.
[00:25:30] We're a work that have come to know you as personal Savior and every day we thank you for the power of your Holy Spirit that just chips away at the flesh and brings more and more of yourself to be evident
[00:25:48] In each and every one of our lives.
[00:25:51] So I just pray that you would instruct us in that this morning as we gather here.
[00:25:54] I pray that you would touch every individual under the sound of my voice this morning, meeting us where we are, and then, Father, taking us to where you want to lead us.
[00:26:07] and Father we just love you today we thank you for your faithfulness in all things as we celebrate this morning we worship in Jesus name and all God's people said
[00:26:22] Amen well listen if you have children with you preschool through third grade we want to invite them to make their way here to the front to my right and your left they're going to be welcomed into children's church and we want you to stand right now turn around and shake a few hands hug a few necks welcome each other here to the house of the Lord as the children make their way here to children's church just make one another welcome

[00:27:30] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_05]:
I sing praises to your name, O Lord, praises to your name.
[00:27:42] For your name is great and greatly to be praised.
[00:28:00] I sing praises to your name, O Lord, praises to your name, O Lord.
[00:28:02] For your name is great and greatly to be praised I give glory to your name, O Lord Glory to your name, O Lord For your name is great and greatly to be praised
[00:28:32] I give glory to your name, O Lord, glory to your name, O Lord, for your name is great and greatly to be praised.
[00:28:57] Thou art worthy, thou art worthy,
[00:29:25] And for Thy pleasure they are created For Thou art worthy
[00:29:54] of the Lord, Thou art worthy, Thou art worthy, Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory,
[00:30:29] All things created, as all things created, Thou hast created all things, And for Thy pleasure they are created, For Thou art good.
[00:31:06] Praise God, from whom all blessings flow.
[00:31:14] Praise Him, all creatures here below.
[00:31:21] Praise Him, above ye heavenly hosts.
[00:31:29] Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.

[00:31:46] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_03]:
Amen.
[00:31:46] Amen.
[00:31:46] You may be seated.

[00:31:58] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_08]:
This is the time in our service when we bring our first fruits, our tithes, and our offerings to the storehouse as we've been commanded to do.
[00:32:05] And those that prefer to give online can do so at trinitybaptist.com.
[00:32:09] So let's pray for our offering.
[00:32:12] Father in heaven, we give thanks for the many blessings that you just continue to pour out upon us.
[00:32:16] We thank you for this day that you've given us together with fellow believers to praise and worship you.
[00:32:21] And we continue with our worship by bringing our tithes and our offerings to the storehouse as you've commanded us to do.
[00:32:28] Lord you bless us so much both individually and as a church family and your word says to those that have been given much, much is required.
[00:32:37] And I pray that we'll be found faithful in spreading the gospel message to others and be good stewards of what you entrusted to us.
[00:32:45] We ask that you bless and multiply our tithes and offerings for the expanding of your kingdom and bringing others to the saving grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
[00:32:54] Lord, as we enter this Thanksgiving season when we'll be gathering with friends and family, we pray
[00:32:59] For opportunities to share our faith with others that maybe through leading in a prayer of thanksgiving or just sharing around the table but I pray that we'll be found faithful as those opportunities arise and now be with our pastors who bring some message we know that your word that goes out doesn't return without accomplishing what you intend it to and we know that hearts and lives will be changed as we leave here today let us draw closer to you and be better prepared
[00:33:28] In the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, we offer these prayers.
[00:33:37] Amen.

[00:33:58] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_05]:
Jesus,
[00:34:14] God did not cling to his rights as God, but laid aside his mighty power, his mighty power and glory, taking the form of a servant and becoming like men.
[00:35:06] He humbled himself, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even death.
[00:35:44] At the name of Jesus At the name of Jesus Every knee shall bow in heaven and in earth
[00:36:09] At the name of Jesus At the name of Jesus Every knee shall bow In heaven and in earth

[00:36:37] [SPEAKER UNKNOWN]:
That every knee shall bow And every tongue shall confess that Jesus Christ

[00:37:01] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_05]:
Every knee shall bow And every tongue shall confess That Jesus Christ is Lord At the name of Jesus

[00:37:44] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_02]:
Well, amen and amen.
[00:37:45] Thank you so much, choir, for blessing our hearts this morning.
[00:37:50] Turn in your Bibles, if you will, to the Gospel of John.
[00:37:52] The Gospel of John chapter 15 is where we find ourselves this morning.
[00:37:58] And we're going to be looking at verse 12, picking up at verse 12, where we left off last week.
[00:38:05] and reading down through verse 17 actually is where we're going to focus this morning in John's Gospel beginning in chapter 15 verse 12 and as we've learned through our series in John thus far chapter 13 through chapter 17 are the words of the Lord Jesus actually in the most intimate
[00:38:29] of settings and he is speaking in chapter 13 through chapter 17 to those that he called his own you know them as the disciples the most intimate closest followers of the lord jesus and as we study these chapters it's interesting for me to notice how the words that jesus uses and the phrases that he uses
[00:38:55] are many of the same words that we so often hear people want to strive for today you keep hearing Jesus use words like peace words like joy words like love those are things that all over the world people seem to be striving for seem to be just hungry for it seem to be looking for any of those things love
[00:39:25] Joy, peace, and yet it seems to be evading them at every point.
[00:39:37] And so we find the Lord Jesus here, stand if you will in honor of the reading of the word of God, picking up in verse 12 of John chapter 15.
[00:39:49] He said, this is my commandment, that you love one another
[00:39:55] as I have loved you.
[00:39:56] Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one's life for his friends.
[00:40:06] You are my friends.
[00:40:09] If you do whatever I command you,
[00:40:12] No longer do I call you servants, for a servant does not know what his master is doing, but I have called you friends.
[00:40:22] For all things that I heard from my Father I have made known to you.
[00:40:29] you did not choose me but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should remain we saw that last week that whatever you ask the father in my name he may give you and then verse 17 these things I command you that you love one
[00:40:55] Another.
[00:40:57] Father, I just pray in these next few minutes that you would just speak to our hearts, that we would respond to you in faith and in obedience as you speak into us.
[00:41:09] And I pray personally that you'd let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight.
[00:41:15] In Jesus' name I pray, amen.
[00:41:18] You may be seated.
[00:41:20] You know, when you think about that word love that shows up so many times here, it's a word that just keeps occurring over and over and over again in the words and in the teachings of Jesus.
[00:41:34] For instance, you'll recall back in chapter 13 verse 34 and 35, just turn back to it if you will, right there in verse 34 and 35.
[00:41:44] of John chapter 13 look what Jesus said he said a new commandment I give to you that you love one another as I have loved you that you also love one another and then he goes on in verse 35 to say by this all will know that you are my disciples if you have love for one another
[00:42:12] Isn't that interesting?
[00:42:14] And Jesus says that love is the identifying factor.
[00:42:22] Love is the identifying mark that really, when you stop and look at it, it's the evidence.
[00:42:33] If you have love one for another, it is the evidence to the world that you belong to Jesus Christ.
[00:42:42] In other words, love is always the evidence.
[00:42:48] We see that all over our world if you think about it.
[00:42:51] Not the fact that a church builds a big building.
[00:42:53] That's not what proves the love of God.
[00:42:57] It's not that people give huge amounts of money necessarily that proves the love of God.
[00:43:04] Jesus said, the way people will know that you are my disciples is because of the demonstration of love that you have one for another.
[00:43:17] And even if you go and look at John chapter 14, one chapter back, you see in verse 15, he said, if you love me, what?
[00:43:27] Keep my commandments.
[00:43:31] The evidence, the proof that we love Jesus Christ is that we have a desire to obey His commandments.
[00:43:44] The fact that we treasure His commandments.
[00:43:48] And then when you look here in this same chapter, in chapter 15, in verse 9, he said, As the Father loved me, I also have loved you.
[00:43:58] Abide in my love.
[00:44:05] You say, Preacher, what are you trying to say?
[00:44:06] I'm trying to say love is the very atmosphere that the people of God live in.
[00:44:20] And if it's not, something ain't right.
[00:44:25] Love is the very atmosphere that the people of God live in.
[00:44:32] Now, I realize love is not an easy word to define in 2025.
[00:44:38] In fact, it's a word that has become so used and in so many contexts and situations.
[00:44:44] Just think how it's used.
[00:44:46] How many of you have ever said it?
[00:44:47] I love ice cream.
[00:44:50] Yeah.
[00:44:52] I love football.
[00:44:54] Anybody say that?
[00:44:56] I love my dog and my wife.
[00:45:04] We hear that all the time.
[00:45:07] We use it in those contexts.
[00:45:09] People use the word love in all of those connections and it really makes it hard to understand and identify what they're actually talking about.
[00:45:19] We also know it's tough because the word love has become distorted.
[00:45:25] What many today call love is really lust.
[00:45:30] And when some people in our culture today, many people in our culture today say, I love you, what they really mean is I love me and I want you.
[00:45:40] And you've got to somehow have the wisdom to make the distinction.
[00:45:46] Because some people misuse and have distorted the word love.
[00:45:52] So listen, maybe instead of trying to define love, it can be understood clearer
[00:45:59] By a demonstration of love.
[00:46:02] Because get this, though we may struggle to define it, just about all of us in this room and all of us listening by live stream or television, all of us recognize it.
[00:46:18] When love is seen, when love is experienced, we're able to know it.
[00:46:26] And those of us
[00:46:28] Here in this room who've come to experience the love of God can merely in wonder and in amazement and in grace see the love of God as it has been demonstrated.
[00:46:46] And that's why for the next few minutes this morning, and I can't think of a better subject
[00:46:51] On the Sunday before Thanksgiving, when we try to think what we're grateful for and most thankful for, what I want to do this morning is key in on verse 13 and really share and drill down on what Jesus means when he talks about no greater love.
[00:47:13] And if you're a note taker this morning, I want you to jot down several things with me.
[00:47:16] Number one, I want you to notice the instruction of love here in John 15.
[00:47:24] When you notice in verse 12 that we just read, he said,
[00:47:31] then I'm sorry that's verse 13 verse 12 this is my commandment that you love one another as I have loved you now I want you to underline that phrase and I'll tell you why did you notice that Jesus instructs us to love actually you can say it this way Jesus commands us to love
[00:48:02] You might remember that one time some folks came to the Lord Jesus and they were testing Him to see about His knowledge of the Scripture.
[00:48:11] And you'll recall the Pharisees asked Him, they said, well, what is the greatest commandment of all?
[00:48:17] And you'll recall Jesus answered them by saying, there are two key commandments.
[00:48:24] Love the Lord your God with all of your heart, all of your soul, and all of your mind.
[00:48:30] And he also said, and the second is like unto it, love your neighbor as yourself.
[00:48:39] And what Jesus did in answering those who had come to attack him, in answering their question, Jesus impressively took the Old Testament law and distilled them into two great instructions, two great commandments.
[00:48:56] A commandment to love God,
[00:48:58] and a commandment to love one another.
[00:49:02] So let me ask you this this morning.
[00:49:05] Isn't it amazing that you, sir, and you, ma'am, have to be commanded to love?
[00:49:18] Isn't that an astounding concept?
[00:49:21] That love is commanded?
[00:49:27] Have you ever thought about that?
[00:49:31] You ever thought about why that's true?
[00:49:35] Let me tell you why.
[00:49:38] It's because love is not primarily an emotion.
[00:49:44] Oh, don't get me wrong.
[00:49:45] I know that there is an element of feeling to love.
[00:49:50] There is emotion in love.
[00:49:53] Love would be dry without emotion.
[00:49:57] But ladies and gentlemen, love is far more than emotion.
[00:50:05] Love is a decision.
[00:50:08] We've said that before.
[00:50:10] Love is not something you say.
[00:50:13] Love is something you do.
[00:50:17] In fact, love is not merely a feeling.
[00:50:21] Love is a decision you make.
[00:50:25] and listen when you you can choose to love you can make up your mind to love and that's the reason we find here Jesus in his instruction is commanding us to love and there's a lot of wishy-washy thinking when it comes to this whole idea of love I meet people all the time that say well I want to get a divorce
[00:50:51] Why, I ask?
[00:50:53] Well, I just don't feel love for her anymore.
[00:50:57] I don't feel love for him anymore.
[00:51:01] Well, I've got news for you, sir.
[00:51:02] I've got news for you, ma'am.
[00:51:05] You've got to decide to love.
[00:51:08] And when you make that decision to love, you have put yourself on a course that sometimes will mean sacrifice.
[00:51:18] Sometimes it will mean difficulty.
[00:51:21] A lot of times it will involve pain and a lot of times it will incur problems and inconveniences.
[00:51:37] That's not what the world wants to hear.
[00:51:42] Love, my friend, is a decision and we need to get away from this wishy-washy thinking about love.
[00:51:51] And I think when Jesus makes the command in the instruction to love, He's speaking specifically to several relationships we have.
[00:52:03] I think He's a call here that we are to love our special family.
[00:52:08] And when I say special family, I'm talking the family with which you got up this morning.
[00:52:14] I'm talking the family that you have gathered around your table.
[00:52:18] I'm talking about the family that you shared a bathroom with this morning.
[00:52:22] I'm talking about the family that lives in your home, your special family.
[00:52:27] Did you know the Bible says, husband, you are to love your wife?
[00:52:33] Did you know the Bible says that wives, you are to love your husband?
[00:52:38] Did you know that the Bible instructs parents to love your children?
[00:52:43] The Bible instructs children to love your parents.
[00:52:48] Why is that?
[00:52:50] Because, ladies and gentlemen, love is the super glue that holds the special family together.
[00:52:59] Let me shoot straight with you this morning.
[00:53:02] In the modern family, that, my friend, is the missing link.
[00:53:10] I don't find much love between husbands and wives as much as we used to.
[00:53:17] You don't find much love between a parent and a child as perhaps we used to.
[00:53:23] In fact, in so many of our homes in 2025, we've got more luxuries than we've ever had before, but probably less love than we've ever had before.
[00:53:36] And you want to know how I know that?
[00:53:39] Because your home, sir, your home, ma'am, is the great laboratory.
[00:53:45] Your home is the lab where you put love to the test.
[00:53:51] It's inside that home where you learn to love one another.
[00:53:57] It's inside that home where you learn to sacrifice for one another.
[00:54:03] It's inside that home where you learn to be inconvenienced for one another.
[00:54:11] The reason we find
[00:54:13] Today, such a lack of respect for authority.
[00:54:18] The reason we find today such a lack of respect for other people, in fact,
[00:54:24] The fact that we today find such a lack of respect for human life period is because as a whole in this nation we have tended to sell out our homes and sell out our families and we have closed up the laboratories where love is actually learned.
[00:54:47] When you're wondering why the nation seems to be going to hell in a handbasket,
[00:54:52] Look no further than the breakdown of the family in this nation.
[00:54:59] Because it's that breakdown, it's that laboratory that has been closed up.
[00:55:08] And when you close up the lab, you've closed up the place where love is learned.
[00:55:20] I'm tremendously concerned today about the fatherless families in America.
[00:55:27] Did you know this morning, to a large extent, fathers have bailed out on their family?
[00:55:34] Some years ago, you may recall I told you about a prison I heard about in Florida.
[00:55:40] And when Mother's Day was approaching, they decided they were going to offer inmates Mother's Day cards.
[00:55:46] So they announced over the public address system that they had Mother's Day cards available for all of the inmates.
[00:55:55] And did you know there was such an absolute stampede of prisoners to get to those Mother's Day cards that they ran out and they didn't have enough.
[00:56:06] Well, it went so well that the warden said, I'll tell you what,
[00:56:09] This was May, let's do it again in June for Father's Day.
[00:56:14] So they got a whole bunch of Father's Day cards and they announced, in fact bought more Father's Day cards because they had run out of the Mother's Day cards.
[00:56:24] Guess what?
[00:56:28] Not one Father's Day card was requested in that same prison when that same offer was made a month later.
[00:56:49] That, my friends, is a serious message about our nation and about our families.
[00:56:58] Something is wrong when fathers think that all to being a father is just biologically bringing a child into this world and then walking away from that child.
[00:57:12] Son, if you've brought that child into this world, you are the father of that child and you have a responsibility to stay in that family and to love those boys and love those girls as God instructed you to love.
[00:57:28] Why?
[00:57:28] Because love is a decision.
[00:57:31] It is a decision.
[00:57:35] And it's a decision that every one of us has to make.
[00:57:45] Love is a decision.
[00:57:49] When Jesus instructs us to love, He's not only calling us to love our special family,
[00:57:57] But he also is calling us to love our spiritual family.
[00:58:01] Look here if you will.
[00:58:02] Hold your finger here in John and turn over to 2 Peter for a moment if you will.
[00:58:07] 2 Peter chapter 2 and verse 17.
[00:58:11] 2 Peter, I'm sorry, 1 Peter chapter 2 and verse 17.
[00:58:18] Look what he says.
[00:58:19] Honor all people.
[00:58:23] Love the brotherhood or love the brethren, some of your translations say.
[00:58:28] Fear God, honor the king.
[00:58:31] I want you to underline and circle that phrase, love the brotherhood.
[00:58:37] In other words, he's saying you ought to love your church family.
[00:58:42] That's what Jesus is getting at right here.
[00:58:45] primarily in verse 12 of John 15 when he says, this is my commandment that you love one another.
[00:58:55] Remember, he's talking to the disciples.
[00:58:58] Isn't that interesting?
[00:59:00] Jesus has to command Christians in the body of Christ to love one another.
[00:59:09] Wow.
[00:59:11] You know, I can almost imagine that when Jesus said
[00:59:16] this statement you know by this all men will know that you are my disciples that you have one love one for another in my own mind I've had to think Peter must have glanced over there at John and he thought do you mean that I gotta love that starry-eyed John or I imagine John had to glance over at Peter
[00:59:46] Do you mean I got to love that loudmouth, show-off Peter?
[00:59:54] That had to be what they thought.
[00:59:57] Because it's one thing to say that I love my brothers.
[01:00:02] It is another thing to demonstrate that and to live that out and put it into practice.
[01:00:09] and yet the Bible says we are to love all the saints.
[01:00:15] That means all the saints that are compatible with us and all the saints that are incompatible with us.
[01:00:23] That means love all the saints who are lovable and yep, love all the saints who are unlovable.
[01:00:35] Love is that oil.
[01:00:37] that makes the machinery of a New Testament church run smoothly.
[01:00:47] And many of you have experienced, and you know it's true, that it's the saddest thing in the world when you come to a church of the Lord Jesus Christ and find people filled with backbiting, condemning,
[01:01:07] and Criticizing one another.
[01:01:11] That's a sad state of affairs.
[01:01:15] And Jesus is saying we are to love one another.
[01:01:20] We're to be patient with one another.
[01:01:24] Oh yes, we are to love our spiritual family.
[01:01:29] But one other thing that I think he's pointing out here
[01:01:32] is that we need to love our social family.
[01:01:34] You say, what do you mean social family?
[01:01:36] Well, when I say social family, I'm talking about reaching out to all of those folks that we come in contact with in society as a whole.
[01:01:47] You say, now preacher, you've stopped preaching and gone to meddling now.
[01:01:53] When you say that, when you think about all of our societal contacts,
[01:01:57] Well, when Jesus responded to the question that he was asked about the commandments and Jesus had said, love God and love your neighbor as yourself, you remember there was a guy in the crowd that said, hey, you answered well.
[01:02:13] But just one more thing.
[01:02:16] Who is my neighbor?
[01:02:22] Any of you remember how Jesus answered that question?
[01:02:26] In case you don't remember, that's where he gave the parable of the Good Samaritan.
[01:02:35] That's when Jesus told the story of the Good Samaritan that was on his way down to Jericho and thieves caught up with him and they beat him and they robbed him and they left him for dead.
[01:02:48] And Jesus said the priest came by, wouldn't touch him because he didn't want to, you know, mess up his clothes.
[01:02:56] The Levite came by.
[01:02:58] Wouldn't touch him.
[01:03:00] Couldn't be bothered.
[01:03:02] Because he was on his way to church visitation.
[01:03:06] Then the Good Samaritan came by.
[01:03:08] He had compassion on him.
[01:03:13] He bound up his wounds.
[01:03:16] He cared for him.
[01:03:19] He even took him to a hotel.
[01:03:22] Pay for the room, checked him in, and told the guy at the desk, make sure that he's got everything he needs.
[01:03:31] It's on me.
[01:03:35] The bottom line, this good Samaritan was inconvenienced and went to a lot of trouble to extend love to another person that he didn't even know.
[01:03:52] And then Jesus said, that's what loving your neighbor is all about.
[01:04:06] That is what loving your neighbor is all about.
[01:04:14] Don't you see?
[01:04:16] What Jesus wants us to take home from this is we are to love people anywhere, anytime in our society.
[01:04:26] They are all our social family.
[01:04:29] And we're to love those who, quite frankly, may not know Jesus as Savior.
[01:04:34] And it's our responsibility to get interested in them and to love them.
[01:04:41] In fact, if you think about it for a minute,
[01:04:46] If somebody in this room this morning actually had discovered the cure for cancer, and you've kept that cure concealed, you've kept that cure to yourself, buddy, we would prosecute you for inhumanity to man, would we not?
[01:05:10] If you had the cure to cancer and you refused to share it with anybody else, and yet, many of us sit in this building this morning, we know the love of Jesus.
[01:05:27] We know the love that has forgiven our sin.
[01:05:30] We know the love that brings a person to salvation.
[01:05:37] And yet, when we keep it in this building,
[01:05:40] and we keep our mouths closed and we never tell others around us about this wonderful love, there's really no difference than having the cure to cancer and keeping it to yourself.
[01:05:58] You see, there's a whole world out there that doesn't know that God loves them.
[01:06:04] There's a whole world out there that it's never occurred to them that God loves them.
[01:06:09] It's never occurred to them that God will forgive them for their sin.
[01:06:13] It's never occurred to them that God wants to give them a full and meaningful life.
[01:06:21] I gotta tell you, I pastored and been leading churches nearly four decades now.
[01:06:32] And it's probably got to be one of the most frustrating things when I stop and realize how much we sit in here and talk about love versus really getting interested in and reaching out to those who need to know the love of Jesus Christ.
[01:06:58] That's the challenge.
[01:07:00] That's the frustration.
[01:07:03] Jesus instructed these disciples, love your special family, love your spiritual family, love your social family.
[01:07:16] Now can I be very transparent with you for a moment?
[01:07:21] I'm not capable of that kind of love on my own.
[01:07:31] I'm not.
[01:07:33] I'm just not.
[01:07:38] I need God's love in me.
[01:07:43] Seriously.
[01:07:44] The only way you can obey this command of John 15 that Jesus gives to love is to experience God's love yourself.
[01:08:00] To experience God's love in and through you that can begin to flow out to others.
[01:08:11] Because truthfully you're never really going to love sinners without the love of Jesus working in your life.
[01:08:19] I hear it all the time from missionaries.
[01:08:21] Missionaries don't go to the uttermost parts of the earth
[01:08:26] because they love the people at the uttermost parts of the earth.
[01:08:31] No, they go to the uttermost parts of the earth because they have fallen in love with the Lord Jesus Christ and they have had that call on their heart and when they get to the uttermost parts of the earth they find that God gives them a special love for those people that they never had before and frankly they can't explain it now.
[01:08:54] They can't explain it.
[01:08:58] And that's the way many of us oftentimes feel about people around us in the world.
[01:09:07] And that's Jesus' point.
[01:09:11] You can't love others unless you've experienced my love.
[01:09:21] You can't really, really care about people
[01:09:27] As Jesus desires until He's working in you.
[01:09:34] Don't ever forget salvation's an inside job, right?
[01:09:38] I mean, we dress up, we look nice, we come to church on Sunday, we go through the motions, we sing the songs.
[01:09:44] That doesn't make us a Christian.
[01:09:46] Salvation's an inside job.
[01:09:48] He changes our hearts.
[01:09:50] He changes our minds.
[01:09:52] He changes the way we look at the world.
[01:09:54] He changes the way we look at other people.
[01:09:56] He changes us from the inside out.
[01:10:01] And so when I look at everybody, I think, wow, y'all look good.
[01:10:07] It's really what's going on on the inside that reflects to the outside that Jesus said,
[01:10:18] I command you to love, but I'm not going to ask you to do something that I'm not going to do through you.
[01:10:27] But not only is there this instruction to love, real quickly, he talks about this illustration of love I want you to see quickly.
[01:10:35] I mean, he tells us to love others, and then you say, but how?
[01:10:40] Well, look what he said in verse 12.
[01:10:43] This is my commandment that you love one another.
[01:10:46] What are those next five words?
[01:10:49] As I have loved you.
[01:10:55] Underline that phrase.
[01:10:57] That's huge.
[01:11:00] Jesus illustrates love.
[01:11:03] Jesus uses himself as a great example of love.
[01:11:10] I mean, you never see love clearer and understand it deeper than when you look and see how it was demonstrated in the life of Jesus Himself.
[01:11:18] You see love by the mere fact that He even came into this world.
[01:11:23] What brought Jesus to this world to begin with?
[01:11:27] It was love that brought Him here.
[01:11:30] He came all the way from heaven's glory to a lowly manger that we're going to be celebrating next month.
[01:11:37] He came all the way from the riches of glory all the way to a peasant's house.
[01:11:43] He came all the way from being in the presence of angels to facing the jeers and the curses of angry mobs.
[01:11:53] You say, Mark, why in the world would anybody do that?
[01:11:57] Because He loved.
[01:12:00] His mere coming to earth
[01:12:06] Demonstrates his love.
[01:12:11] His love is illustrated by the very contacts that he had on this earth.
[01:12:18] Look at the love that he had for his mother.
[01:12:20] Remember when he was dying on the cross?
[01:12:23] That's all he could think about.
[01:12:27] Was he told, John, take care of my mother?
[01:12:29] He loved her.
[01:12:34] He knew she was hurting.
[01:12:36] He knew she was suffering in what he was going through.
[01:12:42] You look at the love that he had for his disciples.
[01:12:45] I mean, that was a motley crew, was it not?
[01:12:48] If there was ever a bunch of losers, it was those guys.
[01:12:52] When you looked at them on the outside,
[01:12:55] But Jesus had time with them and they weren't grasping what he was teaching and from time to time they just looked totally impossible but he just kept loving them, he kept loving them, he kept loving them and now the night before he goes to the cross in verse 15 Jesus says, I call you friends.
[01:13:21] Man, that's amazing.
[01:13:24] Friends.
[01:13:26] Because Proverbs 17, 17 says, A friend loveth at all times.
[01:13:36] You do know the definition of a friend, don't you?
[01:13:40] Definition of friend is someone who knows all about you and loves you anyway.
[01:13:50] That's a real friend.
[01:13:53] And that's the kind of love that Jesus has
[01:13:56] for these disciples.
[01:13:58] And then look at the love that he had for sinners.
[01:14:02] I think one of the greatest compliments Jesus ever received was in Luke 734 when they called him a friend of publicans, not republicans, but publicans and sinners.
[01:14:14] You say, but Mark, they meant that as a criticism.
[01:14:17] Yes, they did.
[01:14:18] But I tell you that there was no greater compliment of the Lord Jesus that he ever received
[01:14:26] See, the difference between the Pharisees and Jesus was real clear.
[01:14:34] The Pharisees hated the sin and hated the sinner.
[01:14:39] Jesus hated the sin.
[01:14:41] Oh, how he loved the sinner at the deepest point.
[01:14:51] See, you may hate sin today,
[01:14:56] But do you love the sinner?
[01:14:59] See, Jesus illustrated His love just by His mere coming to earth.
[01:15:05] He illustrated His love by the contacts that He had.
[01:15:10] But there was no greater love in His illustration than by the cross to which He suffered.
[01:15:21] Look at verse 13.
[01:15:25] Greater love has no one than this than to lay down one's life for his friends.
[01:15:39] What Jesus is saying here is, look, what I'm gonna do on the cross, there is no greater illustration of love that has ever been performed in the whole history of humanity.
[01:15:56] In fact, Romans 5.8 says that God demonstrates His love toward us in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.
[01:16:07] By the way, that term demonstrates is really two Greek words.
[01:16:12] It means to place, or it means alongside of.
[01:16:18] And what it is saying is if you really want to see
[01:16:22] If you really want to see where God demonstrated, where God proved His love for you, you've got to make a visit to an old hill called Golgotha.
[01:16:46] Because I'll tell you something, sir, ma'am, whoever you are,
[01:16:52] If you can just catch a glimpse of Golgotha and that old cross, you will be convicted that God loves you.
[01:17:08] In fact, I would argue that nobody can ever begin to understand the love of God until you see Jesus hanging on that old cross for your sin.
[01:17:18] Until you can recognize the nail prints in His hands.
[01:17:22] Until you can see the spear wound in His side.
[01:17:26] Until you can envision the crown of thorns on His head.
[01:17:30] Until you can see His back beaten unmercifully till it looked like a freshly plowed field.
[01:17:36] You will never really understand love until you can see God's demonstration of that love by giving His own Son, Jesus, to die in your place.
[01:17:53] Buddy, God proves His love.
[01:18:00] He proves His love.
[01:18:03] And that's why right here Jesus gives the instruction to love.
[01:18:06] He gives the illustration to love.
[01:18:08] And I close with this.
[01:18:10] He gives a simple invitation to love.
[01:18:14] I want you to again hold your finger here and go over to Romans for just a minute.
[01:18:18] This is where I want to close.
[01:18:20] I want you to go to Romans chapter 5.
[01:18:25] And listen, when Jesus says love one another as I have loved you,
[01:18:31] I want you to see what he's really doing here.
[01:18:34] He's really inviting.
[01:18:36] He is inviting you to personally experience his love.
[01:18:44] And here in Romans chapter five, picking up at verse six of Romans chapter five,
[01:18:53] You see how God personally invites us to experience His love.
[01:18:57] Look what He said.
[01:18:58] For when we were still without strength.
[01:19:03] Underline that phrase.
[01:19:05] We were still without strength.
[01:19:09] That's us that He's talking about there.
[01:19:13] You say, Preacher, I want to live a life of being a loving person, but I can't do it.
[01:19:18] I don't have the power to do it.
[01:19:20] Well I've got great news.
[01:19:22] God's love reaches down to people without strength.
[01:19:26] People that don't have any strength.
[01:19:29] Look how he continues.
[01:19:31] Without strength, in due time,
[01:19:35] Christ died for the ungodly.
[01:19:38] I want you to circle that phrase, in due time.
[01:19:43] And I also want you to circle that phrase, died for the ungodly.
[01:19:47] That word ungodly means to have absolutely no reverence for God.
[01:19:55] See, I meet people all the time, I really do, believe it or not, that say I have no interest in God.
[01:20:01] I've met people that say I have no concern for God.
[01:20:05] I've had people that say I have no respect for God.
[01:20:09] And I can point them to Romans 5 and I can say well I've got some great news right here.
[01:20:14] God's love even reaches you.
[01:20:16] It even reaches you.
[01:20:19] He died for the ungodly.
[01:20:23] And then if you keep going,
[01:20:25] Drop down to verse 8 if you will.
[01:20:27] But God demonstrates His own love toward us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
[01:20:38] Circle that word sinners.
[01:20:41] Sinners means misses the mark.
[01:20:47] Sinner means to feel like a failure.
[01:20:51] Let me ask you something.
[01:20:53] Have you ever felt like a failure?
[01:20:57] I bet you everybody in here, if we're honest, has felt like a failure.
[01:21:03] Well, I've got great news.
[01:21:06] God's love reaches out to the failure.
[01:21:12] And that's the reason verse 9 says what it says.
[01:21:19] Having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him.
[01:21:35] Please underline that.
[01:21:40] God's love today is a personal invitation
[01:21:48] Not only to reach out to you, but to rescue you.
[01:21:59] You say, rescue me from what?
[01:22:02] From the wrath of Almighty God.
[01:22:06] You say, but how, Mark?
[01:22:08] Well, when Jesus hung on the cross,
[01:22:11] He was made sin for us.
[01:22:14] And all of our sins were placed on His chest in one big black bundle of sin.
[01:22:22] And as He hung on that cross, becoming your sin, the holy wrath of God, think of it this way, all hell itself was burned up on Jesus Christ.
[01:22:42] He took your wrath, my friend.
[01:22:47] And He's inviting you to accept His invitation.
[01:22:53] Some time ago I heard about a prairie fire that swept across hundreds and hundreds of acres of land in West Texas.
[01:23:02] And after the tragic fire and the disaster was coming to an end and five men who came inspecting the burnt land, they came over a place and they found a mother hen that was there.
[01:23:18] That mother hen was burnt to a crisp.
[01:23:23] One of them took his boot and he turned over that mother hen and when he did,
[01:23:31] Three little chicks went running away from that scene.
[01:23:41] They found that the mother hen had bore all of the heat and all of the flames and all of the fire to protect her little chicks.
[01:24:03] There is no better illustration of what the gospel of Jesus Christ is all about.
[01:24:14] When by faith we come to the cross of Golgotha and what Jesus did for us on that day when He died on the cross and all the fire that was laid upon Him, all the forgiveness
[01:24:34] All of the grace and all of His mercy was placed upon us.
[01:24:45] That's the reason it's called the gospel.
[01:24:48] Gospel means good news.
[01:24:52] And that is the good news for every single one of us.
[01:24:57] And I can't think of anything more fitting on Thanksgiving week
[01:25:05] Then to say, thank you, Jesus.
[01:25:09] Thank you, Jesus, for the cross.
[01:25:17] Thank you, Jesus, for loving me.
[01:25:24] Thank you for allowing me to be one of your disciples.
[01:25:32] And oh, dear God,
[01:25:36] Help the world to know that I belong to you because they see your love in me.
[01:25:49] Would you bow your heads right where you are, please?
[01:25:54] Listen, if you're here this morning and you've never given your heart to the Lord Jesus Christ,
[01:26:04] It's my prayer that today would be your day of salvation.
[01:26:10] It's my prayer that today would be the day that you find the hope you've been looking for.
[01:26:15] That you find the peace that you've been looking for.
[01:26:19] That you find the joy that just seems to be evading you in so many places.
[01:26:30] See, as believers and Christians, followers of Christ, we really are called to be different.
[01:26:38] We're not to have the attitude of this world.
[01:26:42] We're not to have the spirit of this world.
[01:26:55] It really is a whole different kind of life
[01:27:02] that's found in Jesus.
[01:27:15] Father, in just the silence of this moment, in the quietness as the instrument softly plays, I just ask you to bring
[01:27:32] Bring to the surface right now any sin that needs to be rebuked.
[01:27:43] Bring to the surface any attitude that needs to be corrected.
[01:27:49] Bring to the surface any spirit and negativism that is destroying individuals' lives.
[01:28:01] Lord bring to the surface what's happening in our own homes that need to be addressed Lord we didn't get here overnight but we know that you change one life at a time
[01:28:29] and you can restore those laboratories that we call homes where love is to be taught.
[01:28:47] Help us Lord, help us today to see our lives and our families
[01:28:58] Our communities, our churches, our nation restored.
[01:29:07] And so much of it comes back to that one statement where we began.
[01:29:12] Love is a decision.
[01:29:16] And we've been duped by a world that is lost.
[01:29:22] And we bought into the lie too many times.
[01:29:29] God, speak to each of us today as we wait upon you.
[01:29:36] In Jesus' name I pray.
[01:29:39] Amen.
[01:29:40] Would you stand to your feet as Brother Chase comes to lead us in our hymn of invitation.
[01:29:46] This altar is open.
[01:29:48] I invite you to come.

[01:30:04] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_05]:
I can hear my Savior calling I can hear my Savior calling
[01:30:18] I can hear my Savior calling Take my cross and follow me, follow me Where He leads me I will follow Where He leads me
[01:30:47] Where He leads me I will follow I'll go with Him, with Him, all the way I'll go with Him through the judgment I'll go with Him through the judgment
[01:31:15] I'll go with Him through the judgment I'll go with Him, with Him, all the way Where He leads me I will follow Where He leads me I will follow
[01:31:47] God bless you.

[01:32:01] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_02]:
Thank you for worshiping with us today.
[01:32:02] We pray that the Lord has encouraged your heart.
[01:32:05] We will not be having any activities on Wednesday evening here at the church as folks anticipate Thanksgiving and I hope that you have a very blessed Thanksgiving with family and friends.
[01:32:31] Be a meaningful time.
[01:32:32] and as brother Bob prayed in the in the offertory prayer look for opportunities to share about this love of Christ because it's got to change things have got to change at our very home levels and that's where families are so critical so crucial in this hour and in this day in which we live and that will be the answer
[01:32:55] to seeing things turned around in society as a whole.
[01:32:59] So share the glove of Christ as we go into this great holiday week.
[01:33:04] Brother Robert's gonna come and offer a closing word and then Chase will sing us out of here.

[01:33:13] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_01]:
Amen.
[01:33:14] Thank you so much, Pastor Mark, for a beautiful message on love and a clear call to cast our eyes on Christ and His cross where that love was displayed.
[01:33:22] Church, our benediction today comes from the book of 1 John 4, starting in verse 7.
[01:33:29] Behold the word of the Lord.
[01:33:31] Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God.
[01:33:37] And whoever loves has been born of God and knows God.
[01:33:42] Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love.
[01:33:48] In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent His only Son into the world, so that we might live through Him.
[01:33:58] In this is love, not that we have loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins,
[01:34:09] Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another.
[01:34:15] No one has ever seen God.
[01:34:18] We love one another.
[01:34:20] If we love one another, God abides in us and His love is perfected in us.
[01:34:26] Would you pray with me?
[01:34:29] Holy Heavenly Father, God, as we close out this service,
[01:34:33] We truly do praise you, Father, as the giver of life's greatest gift, love.
[01:34:41] Father, your word tells us clearly that no one has ever seen God, and a lot of the world doesn't know God.
[01:34:47] But Father, just as love became flesh and dwelt among us, may your love take on our flesh this week as we seek to live you out so that others could behold what it means to know Christ, what it means to know you, Father.
[01:34:59] And you told us pretty clearly in your word, by this the world will know that you are a disciple of Christ in the way that you love one another.
[01:35:06] So fill us with your love and send us out to be poured out into a world in need of it, God.
[01:35:11] We ask this in the power of Jesus Christ, our Messiah.
[01:35:15] Amen.

[01:35:23] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_05]:
There's a sweet, sweet Spirit in this place And I know that it's the Spirit of the Lord There are sweet expressions on each face And I know that it's the presence of the Lord
[01:36:02] Stay right here with us Filling us with your love And for these blessings We lift our hearts in praise Without a doubt we'll know That we have been revived When we shall be displaced

[01:37:11] [SPEAKER UNKNOWN]:
We have a question.