Defining Christlike Love (Part A)

Christlike love of course is a work of the Holy Spirit because of Jesus Christ and takes a lifetime as a Christian to develop it to get anywhere with it to move forward with it. God alone helps us identify it and practice it and I fear that sometimes God stops rebuking us when were not loving the chastening is withdrawn.

It's almost as though God is that fine what you want me to know if you this is cross-referenced with our pastor and teacher. Rick asked Rick is the pastor of Calvary Chapel Mechanicsville. Pastor Rick is currently teaching through the book of first John, please stay with us after today's message here. More information about cross-referenced specifically how you can get a free copy of this teaching, but for now let's join Pastor Rick in the book of first John chapter 4 with a new message called defining Christlike love first John chapter 4 verses seven through 11 when the drill instructor gives you the command not before verse 711.

Let us love one another, for love is of God, and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. He who does not love does not know God, for God is love in this the love of God is manifested toward us that God has sent his only begotten son into the world that we might live through him.

In this is love, not that we loved God but that he loved us and sent his son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved God so loved us, we also ought to love one another defining Christlike love. That's our assignment. John writing the gospel of John has said many of these things in that gospel. For instance, in the 15th chapter is Jesus speaking this is my commandment that you love one another as I have loved you and just in this little section this paragraph.

We just stood and read. There are 16 references to God and their 13 to love so you understand there's a hammer at work is a piledriver going on here driving this into his audience. God love God, love God, love get this Christian Satan sees Christians considering the love of Christ, and he often times sits back and mocks us here they talk love. They just don't do it. All of us at one point or another have to face it now. We will either face the Christlike love as sponges and just take it in for ourselves and that's the end of it and that would be tragic, trapping the love all we receive it like a sponge and we let it squeeze out of us spread the love. Priceless love comes from Satan, not Christ Christlike love of course is a work of the Holy Spirit because of Jesus Christ and takes a lifetime as a Christian to develop it to get anywhere with it to move forward with it. God alone helps us identify it and practice it and I fear that sometimes God stops rebuking us when were not loving the chastening is withdrawn. It's almost as though God is that fine what you want me to know you that thought if it is true or if it is possible, should be very alarming to all of us who love the Lord, the thought that God would stop correcting us because we are nonresponsive, so we have to work diligently when the apostle Paul says diligent he means hard work is a distinct feature.

This love we single it out from the Greek language which the New Testament is written in Hudson.

It's a more rich language, especially when it comes to the word love if several words for love and I'm not going to go over them all because we done that a bit but I do want to highlight the one that is being emphasized in this paragraph we know it as agape love is a distinct love is a love that comes under the authority of Jesus Christ. Now other Greek writers. There ancient writers. They use the word in their literature in classical Greek, but not until Christ came along and his apostles put Christ words into the Greek imprint did it now have a different effect on us. You could look at the life of Christ have no great just look at his life.

You get you get the message. But then when you do look at what is been preserved for us, that snapshot of time from the days of the apostles. You come away saying this kind of love. When the men of God in the New Testament speak of love. Agape love. They are saying this is the only love that comes from Christ. Because all the others.

You can find without him. You can love your family, you can love your career, you can love pop tarts: it is safer that moment.

Okay you love a lot of things without Jesus Christ unsay people do it all the time, but this love selfless love this Christlike love only comes from his touch. It has to have his fingerprints on it and it is a frustrating to find those who say I am a Christian and are the most loveless people around. Often times worse than unbelievers or their fake lovers.

They pretend to love you so long to get something from you but after you once they find out you've nothing to offer them then there they are done with you in the 19th verse of this fourth chapter he will write we love him because he first loved us. We cannot produce this law for now, it has to be given. This alone is unlike any love known to man without Christ. Romans five the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us. That's how you get it is poured into our hearts by the Holy Spirit. But remember when were leaky were like strainers. It did me.

We hold it for a while but then it seeps out, or sometimes it pours out, get in the flesh, that's the end of love. Don't become so familiar with the Bible's preaching of love and your inability to capture it to give up on that as a pastor talks about love you sort of shutdowns I've heard all this before. I know the language just as well as he does. Let the spirit of God refresh you yet again let them take you back to the beginning. If you are loveless because if you loveless than your priceless. That's what the apostle saying in this chapter, and the Holy Spirit does not apologize for him, saying the Holy Spirit as well. You know John got a little emotional when he was writing this is not really what God means not how it's the other way around. Jesus is the author and finisher of our faith through the Holy Spirit. Other loves. As I mentioned, can function apart from being born again, not this one. Paul when he writes a parallel passage on this subject. First Corinthians, he says, though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and though I have faith so that I could remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. What kind of a rebuke is in that you think love is an option.

As a Christian you think it's a secondary attribute. It's primary. It is an essential don't move without it. It is very frustrating to see people give up on love and yet still insist that you treat them or recognize them as followers of Jesus Christ and they can turn it off like that you sit down and you talk to them. Every admin sanctuary. They've got it.

What you sit down and talk to them on some critical merit matter that they feel wrong then, and it's gone now feel justified. I don't have to love him after revenge right now. This love makes us brave when we receive it from Christ is the one dependable thing in the universe.

Christian love son of God, of course, I mean with the for us this love this agape love has blood on it, maybe not for me but for Christ. In fact, the emblem we carry around around our necks, or on the walls of our homes across is an emblem of blood. Shane of apparent defeat, but ultimate victory. This love will die on the cross for Christ that is story of the martyrs and their other martyrs. They die for their causes without cause. This Christ is not a cause that the person this love will not only die on the cross, or anywhere else it will live on earth it doesn't wait for the powerful moments to show itself is supposed to be there all the time, beating like the heart of the Christian.

This is Christlike love and we're going to get it to the end of this chapter and I contemplated in preparations. Maybe I should just finished a chapter 17 because it's pretty much the same theme in the spirit of cards that I want the theme drowned out again and again until you make it through.

So maybe another two maybe one more session. We will cover it yet again. It is that important verse seven. Now, beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God, and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God.

Beloved is writing to believers. Let us love one another.

It seems that Christians can sometimes be more loving to unbelievers than fellow believers shouldn't be.

We are supposed to love you know those Christians. I don't go to church because of you because of what what can you justified on except that you are telling Christ. He's wrong and you know like what he said and you're not going to do it.

You are noncompliant is not an option for forsaking the assembling will be in our true believers. Are you really prepared to stand for Christ and say that the great prophet Elijah said that I'm the only one left God of course it excuse me at the end of the story almost I've got others that are not about the need about uncle tooting your horn and Liza received and he received it so well.

He told everyone about that my house when we ever know that that took place less. Elijah, the great prophet told us.

Let us not become self-righteous, self-righteous monks in the monastery of our living room because we don't want to rub elbows with Christians who can irritate us, offend us, challenge us.

I think sometimes some folks to don't want to go to church don't want to go because it reminded that there are better Christians than them in their view, I didn't say it but I did say it but I said, pointing to it, but I would say that I thought and hope you would to a loving way.

That's what we do.

We are not to love those or only those who we are just naturally compatible with.

I some people can just be abrasive to us. They may not even mean to be abrasive interest in their manner and we may not like to be around them. That is not does not give us the option to opt out.

Love is a choice. It's an act of the will, and it has no negotiating options that go with it is a commandment and you either choose to follow the commandment or you choose not to follow the commandment is not based on your feelings or your moods. It is based on what Jesus has commanded us. I choose to love because my Lord commanded me. That's why we love without it, the faith is false. That's what the apostle was saying if you don't have this love. If you have not this agape did you love your family. You love the things you prefer, is not agape, and it doesn't count. First John chapter 3 in verse 10 in verse 14 we read whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is he who does not love his brother. Then, verse 14, we know that we have passed from death to life, because we love the brethren. He who does not love his brother abides in death is pressed in your face if you not ready to receive it now again agape love really is not too interested in how we feel our emotions.

It would love to have them accompanying or accompany us. But it doesn't need them. It is based on what we believe it is based on truth. That's how we move forward. The other comes the feelings come because when you obey Christ is a strength that you get to we get from just obeying him. We know we getting it right.

We get stronger, and then the feelings begin to join in.

Sometimes you've got us.

You've got a step into the lions den to see the deliverance of God from the Lions you have to go into the furnace to see the deliverance of God from the fire. Speaking of that that story with Hannah and I and Michelle and Azariah, also known as Shadrach me shack and Abednego the Bible is very careful to say the smell of smoke was not on them. Some Christians go through a little bit of trial and they got the smell of smoke all at once offered, I saw that I did when we suffer for Christ. We can use those lessons we can share from them. Of course, but we don't want to act as though the smell of smoke is gotten on us.

I like to burn trees that fall in my yard. I cut down and I smell like psi reek of smoke when I come in Cleveland outside case there were any objections, but that's not the same thing as the spiritual.

This is about rolling with Christ in a way that's going to please him and we get good at complaining because complaining makes us feel strongly feel it makes us feel are we justifying our bad attitude.

I'm not saying we don't look for solutions and point out things that are wrong. We have to do those things wisely and as we would have them done to us, and it takes a lot of work to maintain this work road, but it is so worth it. Once we get it into our hearts that it is worth it. We have a newfound courage. You know nothing is rightly love this Jesus is replaced for it. If you find something that just does love so much that he now is in the backseat, not the drivers seat and God will never be your copilot. Incidentally is the pilot. He does not stop being God ever even when he was born in a manger is still God the son every bit of it.

But this kind of love as I mentioned, it makes us think it makes us pay attention more, we need to be stirred. Love is not only our duty is a mystery. Now those of you who do who maybe have served in the military you you do your duty whether you like it or not you have to do it or this. The severe consequence for no different with us as Christians. Love is our duty and it is a mystery to love as Jesus loved it is not natural. When Paul wrote the natural man does not receive the things of the spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him. Then he went on to say, nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.

When doesn't have the Holy Spirit citizen make any sense even preached them until you're blue in the face. He still does not get it because the spirit of God is not in their is not more light that the lost soul needs its site is to be able to see what the light is showing. You can turn on the lights all you want for a blind man if you don't give them site he can see. Unfortunately, we have this ability we Christians to get used to the dark. You know you going to a restaurant is darker than what you see how messy the places lights of low in your eyes adjust. Let's fine physically but spiritually we don't want to get too used to the darkness around us.

We have to remember you are the light of the world.

So this passage again, forces us to face what we otherwise would avoid the difficulty of loving difficult people. The difficulty of producing love and I myself am difficult. How many times when you're not. No one else's right is feeling you know bad some of you do some of us I should say some people are just chirpy all the time and it is up to us to stop them. Got that out.

I looked up with. Would love in a few dictionaries and I'm not going to read them because they they fall short.

Even Webster's out an 1863 at 23 edition. Whatever was the they all fall short.

They have something to do. Love is this affection they connected with things that you adore because you like them. Christian love is more than that is just some of Babbitt is a lot more than that. Otherwise every time everything. Something went bad would be justified until he got on the loving you right now. So the apostle says here in verse seven, for love is of God, what comes from him and nowhere else. This this agape love.

This is the word he uses here in the Greek. Every time he mentions love some variation of it, but it was received because it was given.

God wants to give it. Why should God knows the world is under a curse is not removing that curse until he returns. So don't look for a pass. You know we can't get into a difficult spot with God when we were expecting a miracle instead of doing our job that I don't have to work so hard because America is going to show up any moment no one a dozen jaw were frustrated with God. We have to do what we're supposed to do temptation.

What is Paul say about sexual us play run from it flee youthful laws you can shout it out so this love and the respect that is used by the apostles's new and it imitates the example in the life of Christ to love others as Christ loved them. What about when he was braiding that court of whips and drove them out of the temple ground where they were abusing the people they love them. Course he did, but that love runs out eventually. If ye be rejected. In the end John 15 as the father love me. I also have loved you, and then he says abide in me bided, abide in my love as well. They are in my love.

Learn my love and expect no cooperation from anywhere except God yourself, your loved ones.

Someone eventually is going to ruffle your feathers and I act. I went through a phase in ministry wedges sick of the cycles that there's a cycle in our time.

A time to sew a time to reap a time for peace at time from cigarette. I just want the piece I want the reaping. That's all I want and so times of peace would come as I how long is this going to last.

So that's the attitude God wants and who suffers. Others, myself. I'm in a bad mood is to severe knowledge. As you just it's like your porcupine anybody get close to you get stuck. So we fight these moves. I have a friend is a rather Pentecostal brother.

I'm in I believe in the gifts of the spirit, but one anyway. I mean, I believe there are more rules and he believes to the gifts of the spirit. But there's one thing used to say years ago to me in a something to stop us through this got pushed through and enforced yourself to sing songs and write these right. Sometimes you have to make yourself do it.

Arsenic on app dongle waiting for the Holy Spirit because he's waiting for you. Sometimes as I mentioned, you've got a step into the furnace before the miracle begins to take place that we love the Lord and love the people whom he loves Satan. We can never say that Satan helps us love what Christ loves. He will help us love what what Christ hates hatred. It will help us hate. That's what the enemy will do in the flesh would help them to. If we're not careful he'll swap out God love from Manlove Manlove needs to justify why am I loving you, what is there to love about you. You have to earn it.

That's not the way it is with God. Thank you Lord Earl's nobody would ever get saved. Manlove is useful for some things it's not sufficient and it doesn't please God, if that's all you've got believers, even Christ haters console lesser loves but it's lesser nonetheless.

John says and ended everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. What if he said everyone who has a secondary love is born of God and knows God doesn't say that he says everyone who has this highest law that's agape or) or seven.

Throughout every time the word shows up in John it's good agape.

Everyone who loves is born of God and knows God.

Everyone who has a bailout.

Not common loan not preferred loves.

Otherwise, we would say that every mother who loves her child is automatically saved thanks for tuning in to cross reference cross reference is a ministry pastor Rick Gaston of Calvary Chapel Mechanicsville in Virginia.

If you'd like to learn more about this ministry, we invite you to visit our website cross reference.com find a number of teachings from Pastor Rick available there. We also encourage you to subscribe to our podcast you subscribe will be notified of new editions of cross reference.

Just search for cross reference iTunes Google play music or your favorite podcast apps. You can also follow the links@crossreference.com. We're glad we were able to spend time with you today to the next time to continue learning from the book of first John pastor I hear cross-reference