Rev Bruce A.
Shields
Fruit of the Spirit
Part 3 – Love
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SERMON TIMELINE
1. Christ set us Free
2. Walking in the Spirit
3. Love
INTRODUCTION
Today is Sunday. August 6th, 2023
We began our series a couple of weeks ago, looking at the Characteristics of God we are endowed with when we become followers of Christ. I use the term follower of Christ rather than the overused and often misstated term Christian because belonging to the Lord is more than believing He exists. It is following His teachings.
We are called to be disciples, which means to live by a discipline taught explicitly by Christ Jesus. So it’s not just believing God is real or the Bible is true.
James 2:19 tells us even the demons believe and shudder (meaning to tremble or shake). The Greek which was translated to shudder is φρίσσω phrisso, and it only appears once in the Greek New Testament according to its lemma.
We spoke a few weeks ago about believers receiving a portion of the Spirit of God as a promise of what is to come, and with the Holy Spirit comes the benefits and blessings of belonging to the Kingdom of God.
Explicitly speaking, beyond the promise of forgiveness and redemption, this “seal” of God brings us the tools to serve the Lord while we are here.
In the next three series, we will cover these in the order of The Fruits of the Spirit, The Whole Armor of God, and the Spiritual Gifts. All different but serving the same purpose, to allow us to serve God in our unique calling to fulfill God’s Will, which is that all are saved and come to a knowledge of the truth. 1 Timothy 2:4
Last week we talked about “walking in the spirit” and how that differs from walking in the flesh. Paul describes the “fruits of the flesh,” as well as the Spirit so that none are with excuse regarding how you live your life.
It is time in the series to examine the fruits for a deeper understanding.
Today we will Learn about the Spiritual Fruit - LOVE
SCRIPTURE READING (Legacy Standard Bible)
Galatians 5:16-18 Walk in the Spirit
“But I say, walk by the Spirit and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh.
For the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another, so that you do not do the things that you want.
But if you
are led by the Spirit, you are not under the Law.”
TODAY’S MESSAGE
I. WHAT IS LOVE?
a. I Corinthians 13
i. Scripture defines what Love is and what it is not for us.
ii. I use this verse at every wedding I officiate.
iii. But it is more valuable than defining love for a newlywed couple because it expresses love for all followers of Jesus.
iv. The first part of the chapter tells us about what I call “mimics,” those who appear outwardly to belong to Jesus, and how they fall short because they lack the love of God, specifically the fruit of the Spirit.
v. The evidence that we belong to God is His seal on us, which is the Holy Spirit.
vi. Evidence of this is having Spiritual fruit in our lives, which are the characteristics of God.
vii. A mimic may deceive us with their outward appearance and behavior (especially if you do not have the Spiritual Gift of Discernment). Still, inwardly they are evident to God, for only God knows man's heart, and all is laid plain to Him.
b. So what does the Spiritual Fruit of Love look like?
i. According to I Corinthians 13, it is;
1. Patient
2. Kind
3. It rejoices with the truth
4. It bears all things – (when the storms come)
5. Believes all things – (giving the benefit of the doubt to others)
6. Hopes all things – (when all seems hopeless)
7. Endures all things – (no matter the storm and what it brings)
8. Love never fails
9. And of faith, hope, and love, love is the greatest of these
ii. Why does love never fail and is the greatest?
1. Because God IS love
c. God is love
i. 1 John 4:7-8 “Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God; and everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. The one who does not love does not know God, because God is love.”
ii. Love is the greatest because you can have faith but not be a true follower, you can have hope but not be a true follower, but if you have the love described in I Corinthians 13, according to 1 John 4;
1. You have been born again
2. You know God
iii. The one who does not love (I Corithians 13 type) does not “know” God because God is love.
iv. 1 John 4:9-15 “By this the love of God was manifested in us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world so that we might live through Him. 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. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has beheld God at any time; if we love one another, God abides in us, and His love is perfected in us. By this we know that we abide in Him and He in us, because He has given us of His Spirit. We have beheld and bear witness that the Father has sent the Son to be the Savior of the world. Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God.”
II. WHAT LOVE IS NOT
a. Paul also explains what love is NOT
i. I Corithians 13:1-3, it is NOT speaking in tongues, giving prophecy, giving your possessions to the poor…
ii. Remember, it is God’s power and might, not the servants. It is the name of Jesus that holds power and authority in ALL realms because of the cross, not the one who wields His name.
iii. IF you wield His name and do not belong to the Kingdom of God, you use His name in vain.
b. Love is NOT
i. Jealous
ii. Bragging (arrogant or conceited)
iii. Puffed up (prideful)
iv. Acting unbecomingly (inappropriately)
v. Seeking it's own (selfish)
vi. Provoked (angered)
vii. Taking account of wrongs suffered
viii. Rejoicing in unrighteousness
III. HOW THEY WILL KNOW YOU
a. The mimic
i. I Corinthians 13:1 – 3
ii. You can speak in tongues of men and angels, the gift of prophecy, knowledge, and faith, but without love, you are nothing more than a noisy gong and clanging cymbal, and nothing more.
iii. Even if you give all your possessions to the poor and sacrifice for others, without love, it is pointless and does not benefit you.
iv. Do you mean you can mimic the gifts of God and not belong to God? Yes.
1. Matthew 7:15-33 (Jesus says) “Beware of the false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves.
“You will know them by their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thorn bushes or figs from thistles? “Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears bad fruit. “A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit.
“Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. “So then, you will know them by their fruits.
“Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter.
“Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, in Your name did we not prophesy, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name do many miracles?’
“And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; DEPART FROM ME, YOU WHO PRACTICE LAWLESSNESS.’
v. The power and authority in this world belong to the name of Jesus, not the one who uses it. And the name of the Lord will accomplish many things because in it is the power and authority.
1. Do you mean false followers pretending to be followers can do these things?
2. Satan has mimicked God since Exodus when Moses addressed Pharoah.
3. Revelation 13:11-15 “Then I saw another beast coming up out of the earth, and he had two horns like a lamb and he was speaking as a dragon. And he exercises all the authority of the first beast in his presence. And he makes the earth and those who dwell in it to worship the first beast, whose fatal wound was healed. And he does great signs, so that he even makes fire come down out of heaven to the earth in the presence of men. And he deceives those who dwell on the earth because of the signs which were given to him to do in the presence of the beast, telling those who dwell on the earth to make an image to the beast who had the wound of the sword and has come to life. And it was given to him to give breath to the image of the beast, so that the image of the beast would even speak and cause as many as do not worship the image of the beast to be killed.”
4. Yes, false teachers, preachers, prophets, and Satan, can do these things.
a. How can we know what is really from God, then?
b. Read your Bible, surround yourself with faithful followers
c. It is the weak and those who stray whom the evil one hunts as prey
vi. We read in Matthew 7 that some believe they are something great because they use the name of Jesus and give prophecy, cast out demons, and perform miracles. But they were missing the most crucial key.
1. They believed or would not have used the Lord’s Name.
2. However, they used His name in vain because they were not “followers” or true disciples living by the teachings of Jesus.
3. How do we know this? Because the Lord said in Matthew 7:23, “And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness.’”
b. All of the things listed are ACTIONS
i. Biblical LOVE is how we treat others…not how we feel
ii. Biblical love may bring feelings and emotions, but feelings and emotions are NOT biblical love.
iii. Feelings and emotions are not love. Instead, what real love can produce.
iv. HOWEVER, feelings and emotions can occur, EVEN WHEN THERE IS NO LOVE.
1. Because feelings and emotions are created by our physiology
2. Feelings and emotions are NOT evidence of true love
v. This is why young people find their soul mates and true love forever every other week, especially in spring.
1. Because they mistake those feelings and emotions are evidence of love.
vi. But anyone can say “love,” it doesn’t make it so.
vii. Actions speak louder than words for a reason.
c. Biblical love is the actions (fruit) produced by the Spirit of God in our lives.
i. And is evidence we belong to God (1 John 4)
ii. And it is evidence to the world that we are Christians (true disciples of Jesus)
1. John 13:34-35 Jesus said, “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another. “By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”
iii. This is the true goal of a follower of Christ, not to just believe there’s a God and the Bible is true, or that Jesus died for our sins, but to abide in God through Christ Jesus, have the Fruits of His Spirit, love one another as Jesus commands, and be called by Jesus, not a Christian, but a disciple.
What have we learned about real Love?
CONCLUSION
I Corinthians 13 defines what love is and is not. God IS love. The Spiritual Fruit of love is evidence that we belong to God.
I Corinthians 13:4-8
“Love is patient, love is kind, is not jealous, does not brag, is not puffed up; it does not act unbecomingly, does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered; it does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth; it bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never fails, but if there are gifts of prophecy, they will be done away; if there are tongues, they will cease; if there is knowledge, it will be done away.”
Next week:
Fruit of the Spirit Part 4: Joy
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