This broadcaster has 856 podcast archives available on-demand.
Keep up-to-date with this broadcaster on social media and their website.
It's one of the deepest longings of our hearts to love and to be loved today on Insight for living. Chuck Swindoll continues our verse by verse study in first John is a 16 part series were calling living right in the wrong world. Today we come to a portion of this letter with chapter.
First John we find a defining treatment on the subject of love, Chuck Swindoll has titled today's message the supreme significance of love. Just before we hear Chuck's presentation begin with prayer.
Join me please for a few moments of prayer speak today.
Oh Lord and renew our minds help us grasp the heights of your plans for us truths unchanged from the dawn of time that will echo down through eternity and by grace will stand on your promises, and by faith we will walk as you walk with us speak the Lord to your church is built in the earth is filled with your glory. We long to be so different. Our father but we seem to spend hours our lives spinning our wheels we desire so much to honor you, but we look back over a week and what we remember are those things we did that dishonor you word said in haste and we would love to be able to take back but can't thoughts that revile alien foreign to our faith, but there they are. Sometime they haunt us, we find ourselves assembled with others in this place, having read what we did from your holy word and were already, even without a sermon were already convicted. We do acknowledge that you loved us first.
Otherwise we would've never learned how to do it all. We learn to like people but we couldn't love them without your help.
Thank you for continuing patiently and faithfully fashioning us and shaping us into the likeness of your son.
Thank you that you never stop you never give up on us. You never quit. It's a dark and dangerous world out there. We've lived long enough in this life to know just how treacherous it can be.
There were terrorists who would not stop anything. There are hateful women and men who take advantage of even the young, even children are those who have lost their way and in the midst of their loss, less the make a mess of their lives in so many around them.
There Christians were carnal, there are believers who were stubborn and we continue to live on. Sometimes that's us father we come to you today counting on you to hear us when we lay our lives before you bring us face-to-face with the reality of the cross. The cross reversal. The light may we remember.
While there, that the supreme price was paid, that we might live in you and you might live in us will spend the rest of our days thanking you for Jesus and today we do that again we speak for those women and men in uniform who cannot be here today to speak for themselves, provide protection in those dangerous places give us Lord ultimate victory in relief from the ravages of war and the savages who would slaughter us. Call us today our father with the truth that there is no power greater than love.
Maybe see that not his sentimentality but is truth to live by mid make a difference this week. This day, these gifts are yours and we give them gratefully and generously. We pray that you will use them and guide us to watch over these funds with great integrity. They might be used only for purposes for which they are given in the name of Jesus. We love pray everyone's to search the Scriptures with Chuck Swindoll. Be sure to download it, searching the Scriptures. Studies by going to Insight world.org/studies and other message called the supreme significance of love. So John brings it up again. He's brought it up in chapter 2 brings in chapter 3, and now chapter 4 believe he says it 3×3 times verse 711. Let us love one another and before the egg is dry. Verse 11 beloved, if God so loved us, we will also love one another at the stroke of a pen just before he's finished with that thought, he thinks it one more time.
In verse 12. If we love one another, God abides in us and his love is perfected over and over and over.
He repeats the command love one another love one another love one another. You love her, you love him. Be sure you don't overlook loving her loving that little one loving the older one. Loving the person you know very little about letting the love go, letting it show let it go. In fact, the way he writes it. It's keep on loving one another. John says we look closely at testing the spirits and being alert to error and heresy.
Melanie come back to the balance we all need to hear.
Love each other.
See when you're testing all the time you become testing so he says let's love each other what how it unfolds.
He gives us three reason's why we should do this first of the theological reason.
Second is a reciprocal reason for it as a practical reason the theological reason is versus 7 to 10. The reciprocal reason is in verse 11, and the practical is in verse 12. The theological why should I love you are why should you love me. Verse seven because love is from God, and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God.
The one who does not love does not know God, because God is love, that is nature that's the essence of his person. That's one of his attributes. One of his characteristics and when you are in God and God is in you than the same life in God was out through you is love flows through you and that love of God is revealed.
It's in his nature, and since that's true it's to be lived out through us. Verse nine. By this, the love of God was manifested in us. God is sent his only begotten son into the world so that we might live through him. In this is love. Now that we love God that wasn't first we were born telling God how much we love him we were born as rebels we grew up as rebels we got to the teenage years and our rebellion turned to craziness and in our craziness. We distanced ourselves further and further and finally in our adulthood needs God unless, of course. Somewhere along the line the message of the gospel invades us and impacts us and changes us and suddenly were under the shadow of the cross changes everything. Verse 10 in this is love, not that we loved God but that he loved us and sent his son to be the satisfaction for us in the theological reason it shows forth the nature of God.
When you love one another. There's a reciprocal reason it so we would say turnabout is fair play.
The cheap way to put it but he loved us so we love others.
Look at verse 11.
If God so loved us what we ought also to love one another, never Jesus words in the in the upper room when chapter 13 of John's Gospel, John records and were Jesus puts a towel around his waist and and gets a basin of water and and and he washes the disciples feet. Remember that scene course you do any gets all the way through washing their feet and he says to them using what I've done. Obviously they saw what he had done. He said I do this so that you would wash one another's feet. We would stand in line to wash his feet, but it's reciprocal when we do to others as he is done to us, and that's where the love fits give you a tip anytime you encounter a person with a spirit of entitlement. You have met up with an individual you can be sure who is either never been to the cross or has forgotten the impact of the cross. When the message of the cross finally comes through. You are not important. Christ is you question that Luke chapter 9 verse 23 if anyone would come after me, listen. Jesus said if anyone would come after me, let him the very first, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me know what happens when we do that love flows freely love doesn't flow freely when were the ones that are important. That's where we get a spirit of entitlement.
I got this coming. I deserve this. I've earned this. This is mine. It's only right at the foot of the cross.
I see the one who died and paid the supreme price for my sins and I'm reduced to nothing but someone covered in that blood forgiven, loved by him as he loved me.
I am to love others and there's a practical reason.
No one is seen God at any time not stay with the thought out of the blue.
John introduces this is not interesting. He talked about a theological reason 70 talked about a reciprocal reason. Verse 11.
Now he says no one is seen God at any time. What would he say that. Keep reading. Noticing God at any time. If we love one another, God abides in us and his love is perfected in us brought to completion brought to full circle since no one is seen God at any time. The only evidence of God on this earth that's left is your love and my think about since we cannot see God. It was a spirit he is chosen to abide in us and to work out his will through us and in the process to change us to be like his son and when he does that we become for those who never met the true living loving God we become for them the message of the living, loving God to tell you I cannot name an individual who is drawn to Christ apart from someone else.
Somebody was living the Christian life. Somebody was different somebody was letting on. Somebody cared for. They can't see God, but they can certainly see us and by the way the world is watching. Last time I checked, they were able to see those little symbols on the back of a car that some of you choose to put on your car. I never put them on my truck. Some of you choose to do so is a lesson for you have things on your car.
A man was being tailgated by a stressed-out woman on a busy boulevard. Suddenly the light turned yellow just in front of he did the right thing stopping at the crosswalk popping at the crosswalk. Even though he couldn't beat the red light by accelerating through the intersection. The tailgating woman was furious. Dr. Horn, screaming in frustration.
She missed her chance to get through the intersection, dropping her cell phone and make a C was still in mid grant. She heard a tap on her window looked up in the face of a very serious police officer officer ordered her to exit her car with her hands up. He took her to the police station where she was searched, fingerprinted, photographed and placed in a holding cell. After a couple of hours.
A policeman approached the cell open the door. She was escorted back to the booking desk where the arresting officer was waiting with her personal effects said to her, I'm very sorry for the mistake CI pulled up behind your car while you were blowing your horn flipping off the guy in front of you cussing a blue streak, and I noticed in the bumper of what would Jesus do sticker and the choose life license plate holder and follow me to Sunday school on the other side of the bumper sticker and even the chrome plated Christian face emblem on your trauma naturally, I assume you're still in the car we live our lives through before watching world. Don't think they don't know as soon as you identify yourself as a follower of Jesus at that moment you don't need anything on your car.
You're being watched, and it isn't the things that you do that are like them. They see that all the time. They can't change it that they see something different. They see an individual who is loving enough to ask forgiveness when you've done something wrong or loving enough to be patient when someone can't keep up or having a heart of compassion for the disabled or the broken or the kid that just so confused he just do nothing but cover his body with tattoos trying to find out who he is and what life's about was a need lecture now he's getting that love they need to know that the cross had a reason and it's change your life so that you're no longer in the spotlight is not about you. You stop looking out for your own self and just graciously and consistently when you drive when you walk when you talk when you're with folks in the office when you're around the house when you're by your neighbor's let the love go sword is love your mayor son love through me me to see beyond the silly stuff superficial stuff. Help me to see them like you saw me when you see me me to see there so not all of them have avoided the just found out has leukemia but they got a heartbreaking situation. You and I would hardly believe somehow a believer who is sensitive with this kind of love is enabled to understand how what is this divine enablement that were given. Look closely.
By this we know that we abide in him and and he in us because he is given us of his spirit, look at that God is given us his Holy Spirit has given us this person when you trusted in Christ when you came to the cross by faith in his son Jesus.
God gave us the third member of the Trinity to live inside. That's why the Bible is beginning to make sense. The spirit of God is in like illuminating. That's why you're finding there is a place for controlling your life. The spirit of God is controlling.
He has given us his Spirit. We have seen and testify that the father has sent the son to be the Savior of the world know that we could testify of it because we we been given the spirit and whoever confesses that Jesus is the son of God. God abides in him and he and God we have come to know and believe the love which God has for us. He says it again. God is love the one who abides in love abides in God and God abides in you over and over. He said it's almost like a tongue twister abides in us and we in him and he in us and his love in us and our love out to him in the spirit is there on and on until we dislike John is saying. Would you get it put what we ever get it. This enablement is provided so that my goodness he'll never leave us will never be abandoned.
No matter how low you sink as a child of God will never write you off hello I know that because he's given us a spirit he can't take his presence out of us. Now that he's in. So let me give you a couple neighbors couple never steer one you never have to worry about being abandoned or ignored or forgotten or cast out ever. You'll never be cast aside ever. Great. He'll never turn his back on you to tell you who will someone who used to be a friend will no longer be a friend for whatever reason friends can turn their backs a coach you once had that I can like he was committed to you for everything you got hurt and then some.
I two years later. Couldn't remember your name, maybe even a mentor for series of events occurs, perhaps a teacher that you thought would never forget. You can even recall your name today and I had even your own mother or father usage. That's going too far. Really look at Isaiah 49 we do that Isaiah 49 Mattias on is going to really surprise you in a minute right out of this section of Scripture in Isaiah 49 loving versus verse 14 got everybody 4940 but Zion said, the Lord has forsaken me. The Lord has forgotten me. Zion is Jerusalem. Zion is the people of the Jews are going through this horrendous time. They deserve it. Consequences for their sins.
When you go through consequences. It's harsh, it's hard, but you, you tend to think God's forgotten is he's gone forever. Look at the condition we find ourselves in. Then Isaiah answers for the Lord is can a woman forget her nursing child and have no compassion on the son of her womb. Even these may forget that I will not forget you people I have inscribed you on the palm of my hand. Your ways are continually before me. It's overwhelming to think that God could have our names written on the palms of his hands as an expression of our inseparable relationship with him. You're listening to Insight for living Chuck Swindoll titled his message the supreme significance of love and to learn more about the ministry of insight for living.
Be sure to visit us online@insightworld.org. Even though this teaching series was originally delivered several years ago. Chuck specifically wanted to present this study in first John right now. It shows the timeless relevance of God's word. These biblical principles provide the cure for culture that's at war with itself, where rage and anger seem to be overshadowing the underlying threat of a global pandemic in the spirit we are pleased to freely offer a powerful two-part miniseries called finding healing through forgiveness. When I specifically addressing the pandemic junkets at the root cause and the solution for the chaos in our culture. In his first message Chuck talks about clearing away the trash. We regret and then a second message he describes the power of forgiveness.
In addition, Chuck's wife Cynthia shares her gripping story about restoring broken relationships and her recovery from a long battle with depression.
We invite you to download these two messages today by visiting our website. Simply go to Insight.org/find healing. If you have any questions you can call us if you're listening in the United States dial 1-800-772-8888. Perhaps it goes without saying that the coronavirus has imposed financial challenges on us all, including this nonprofit ministry and were asking every listener to participate by giving a generous gift to support this ministry with a donation policy. If you're listening in the United States dial 1-800-772-8888 also give generously online insight.org and finally, as we enter the weekend.
Remember, you're invited to join the online worship service at Stone dryer community church every Sunday morning for all the details on streaming video go to insight.org/Sunday, Swindoll again talks about the soup dream significance of love Monday insight for living.
The preceding message, the supreme significance of love and the sound recording were copyrighted in 2009 by Charles R. Swindoll. All rights are reserved worldwide.
Duplication of copyrighted material for commercial use is strictly prohibited