What's Love Got to do with it?
John 3:16
For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten son that who so ever believes in Him shall not perish but have everlasting life.
In July 1984 pop singer Tina Turner released a hit song, "What's Love Got To Do With It?" It won a Grammy Award in 1985 and became the title of a 1993 movie about the life of Turner and her escape from an abusive relationship with her husband.
Although an important milestone in Turner's career the song hardly carved out new territory in society's misunderstood notion of love. Turner's song called it "a second hand emotion." Elton John wondered if you can "feel the love tonight." Dolly Parton crooned that she would "always love you."
Songs about love are really not about love at all, but rather about affection, longing, goose-bumpy types of emotional thrills at the thought of someone who means a lot to us. This love runs hot, it runs cold, it runs lukewarm. It brings tears of joy, tears of depression, screams of excitement and hollers of disappointment.
But what I'm talking about this morning is a different kind of love. Not Philio but Agape love. The love through hell or high water love. The love that the bible speaks of in John 15:23 when it says that greater love has no one than this, that he lay his life down for his friends.
Our text today in John 3:16 is a familiar one to us all. We have memorized it, and quoted it all of our lives, But I want to point out what it shows us today.
For God so loved the world, shows us that He has feelings for its people. We are the world and we were made in the image of God and if one can not truly love others until they love themselves first is proof of how God loves us because it's written.
Love is a action word it doesn't describe it moves it does something first and it does something in return. To love is to put yourself last. It's not about you but it's about the loved one and here we are in the text and God so loved us that He gave us Jesus.
His only son. Not for a show. Not for a religion. Not for a separation of people. But He gave His only son to die for us, to save us, to have a relationship with us. God wanted His people reconciled back to Him and to get us there he had to love us enough to send a sacrifice.
What have you sacrificed? What have you given up in the name of love. The bible tells us that love endures all.
My question to us this morning is does it really? Or have we changed love to meet our right now needs?
When things are good, I love you. When you are doing all I want you to do, I love you.
When my bills are being paid, I love you. As long as it's for me and about me, I love you.
But when things become bad, and the honeymoon is over, when I stop doing you and focus someplace else. When I run out of money and out of time. When I can no longer cope with day to day.
What often happens now is that someone has to be replaced. Families fall apart, friendship die, relationships and marriages break away. Out with the old and in with the new is the way now. Boo thing and side chick are here. New clicks of friends are here and some of us even move and change locations.
We have gotten in a habit not wanting to put up with certain obstacles or people in life. We give up. But God, our model for everyday life won't give up on us. His love is unconditional. No matter how we act, talk, walk or think, he's still right there.
Am I my brothers keeper?
Yes Cain, you are your brothers keeper.
We are suppose to help keep each other. The village is still needed to raise a child.
But love is required for all of that to take place. With love the homeless are housed.
With love the beggar is fed.
With love the back biting stops.
With love the overlooked are seen.
With love the darkness turns to light.
So what's love got to do with it?
John13:34 says
A new commandment I give unto you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another.
So with this love grace also has come and it's by this grace, faith, and love we are saved.
Jesus brought with him grace, and our faith alone in him activates His grace for us.
Jesus also came with him love. Love for all people, all races, all backgrounds. He didn't care if you were rich, poor, sick in body, or sick in mind. He came full of love.
We are all Gods children, and God loves all of his children.
***Here in lies the problem. The children don't love or won't love each other back.
No we fight against each other, trying to tear down the others hopes and dreams.
We look down on the poor in spirit, we fight and argue with our brother and sister, throwing rocks and hiding your hand. Some call it throwing shade
The latest gossip that's going around coming from the mouths are breaking up homes and hurting careers of others.
Our children are being bullied at school, bullied on Facebook, bullied on the playground, and even bullied at church.
Where are the up lifting words?
Where is the love?
We who are Christians are called to a higher standard. To be set aside to be the light in darkness.
To know God is to know love, because God is love.
1 John 4:20 says whoever claims to love God yet hates his brother or sister is a liar. For whoever does not love their brother and sister, whom they see cannot love God, whom they don't see.
God is saying how can you not love and get along with people you can see and touch daily, but fallout in church over him on Sundays and you've never laid your eyes on him?
When you truly love God and follow him, he gives you a new heart, a new mind, and you can't help but love others in spite of. And we need some in spite of Christians today. Christians who will love in spite of, Christians who when slapped will turn the other cheek. Christian who when persecuted, would pray for the one that persecuted them. Christians who talked through the issues rather than talked behind the others back. Christians who apologized and who accepted apologies.
So what's love got to do with it?
Love is a language that speaks to the heart of those it encounters.
Love can be heard by the deaf man. Love can be
Seen by the blind man and felt by the man who has no feelings.
The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King said “Love is the only force capable of transforming an enemy into friend.”
Love each other anyhow the way God loves us.
God speaks to his people through people! He loves his people through people! But he can't use you when you don't do people!!
So what's love got to do with it?
****Close****
The command is clear
Christ said a new commandment I give unto you, that you love one another, as I have loved you, that ye also love one another.
Well how can I love someone that mistreated me and someone that hurt me?
That's a good question
The bible says in Matthew 5:44 to love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.
Jesus prayed for his friends,
Jesus prayed for his enemies.
In the Garden of Gethsemane the bible said Jesus prayed to his father. “Father, if be thou will, let this cup pass from me. But nevertheless, not my will but your will be done.”
It was love from the Father that sent him to the sin filled world, it was love from Jesus that sent him to the cross.
It wasn't the nails that held him to the cross, he could have gotten down, but the world would still be lost. It was love that held him on the cross.
He gave his life on the cross just for you and I. Because of a love that he shared with his father for his children. A love that will never die.
No matter how bad we've been
No matter how good
But a love that's worth dying for. A love that's worth the sacrifice
Even on the cross. His love had him pray, father forgive them, for they know not what they do, father forgive them
Right then he stood in the gap for all your wrongs, right then he stood in the gap for all your rock throwing, right then he stood in the gap so you would not die but so that you can live with him for eternity
If Jesus can forgive while dying on the cross we can forgive too.
We must die on our own cross everyday then pick it up and follow him. Amen
