Participants: Shelley Quinn
Series Code: 13HC
Program Code: 13HC000006
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00:46 Welcome. From around the world
00:48 wherever you're watching we welcome you today. 00:51 We're coming to you live from 3ABN's Worship Center 00:55 in Thompsonville, Illinois. 00:56 And it is such a joy to have you join us 01:00 by television, by Internet, by radio. 01:03 And we're just thankful for our live audience here. 01:06 Ya'll just had a good lunch, yes? 01:08 Yeah. Well we're glad that you're here. 01:10 I believe the Lord's got some more spiritual food for us. 01:14 And today's presentation I will have the privilege 01:17 of bringing that to you. And it is called 01:21 The Power of Love. 01:23 I want to share a story. I'm not sure I ought to, 01:26 but I'm going to tell on myself. 01:28 When I was a little girl 01:30 I was a precocious child. 01:34 I was always kind of ahead of myself. 01:36 And when I was 6 years old my grandparents came 01:39 to stay with us. My father had just passed 01:42 several months earlier. They were his parents. 01:44 And they came to stay with us, and I had to give up my bedroom 01:49 while they were there for the week. 01:51 I was sleeping in a little cot. 01:53 And I remember that first night as I'm sleeping in a cot 01:56 by the dining room window and I was looking up 02:00 at this full moon and in the other room I could hear 02:02 ...snoring sound... 02:05 And I thought: "Oh, my poor grandma. 02:07 You know, how does she sleep through that? " 02:10 Then I heard my grandfather say: "Wake up, Claudia, 02:14 and give me a head start. " You know? 02:16 So... But that snoring kept me awake. 02:21 And while I was awake I wrote my first poem. 02:26 Would you all like to hear the very first poem I ever wrote? 02:29 This is the poem of a 6-year-old. 02:33 True love has come to me 02:37 Oh glory of harmony 02:40 O can it be? O let it be 02:43 really and truly true love for me. 02:47 Six years old. Don't you know my mother was worried 02:49 the next morning when I read that to her? 02:52 I was an incorrigible romantic. 02:57 My mother watched romance programs. You know, 03:01 the old movies that were so sweet and romantic. 03:07 And I was an incorrigible romantic. 03:12 Then I got married... and that cured me. 03:16 Now don't get me wrong... my sweetheart has his moments. 03:20 But the point is that we come 03:25 with certain expectations that are probably unrealistic 03:28 because we are "tainted" if you will - 03:31 little girls' minds are tainted by what goes on in Hollywood. 03:35 I remember J.D. - who's sitting in the audience - 03:37 on our third anniversary I told him: "Oh honey, 03:41 it just gets better every year. " 03:43 And you know what he said? 03:44 "Oh honey, your expectations just get lower every year. " 03:51 Love is what we're going to talk about today. 03:55 What is it? What is its source? 03:59 What is the power of love? 04:01 Now we're not going to be talking about romantic love 04:05 which is fueled by attraction. 04:07 We're going to be talking about unconditional committed love. 04:12 There are two forces at work in the great controversy. 04:17 There is the force of evil 04:23 and hatred which is fueled by pride 04:27 and there is the source of goodness and light 04:32 which is fueled by God's agape love. 04:35 And just after our very own Jill Morikone plays for us... 04:39 Jill's going to be playing a medley of It Is Well With My 04:43 Soul and Great Is Thy Faithfulness. 04:46 Just after she finishes then we're going to dig a little 04:50 into God's Word and consider God's love. 08:57 Amen! Thank you, Jill. That was beautiful. 09:03 Well I have to tell you a quick story. 09:06 I had cataract surgery a month ago 09:09 and I haven't been able to see since. I went in seeing well 09:13 not knowing I have cataracts. But I have a little condition 09:16 where the membranes behind the lens is filled with fluids. 09:19 So I'm not seeing very well for four weeks now. 09:24 And when it came time for Camp Meeting I say: "Oh, there's 09:28 no problem. I know what I'm going to speak on. 09:30 This is something that's familiar to me and I will not 09:32 have to use any notes. And what happened, though, 09:35 is God called an audible. 09:38 I had a plan but God called an audible. 09:41 So just about 10 days before Camp Meeting 09:45 somebody popped their head into my office 09:48 and said: "What are you speaking on? " 09:51 And from my... getting ready to say one thing 09:55 and then what came from my lips was: The Power of Love. 09:59 And I thought: "Oh Lord, what is that? 10:02 What am I going to speak on? " 10:04 Now remember I can't see, so it's hard to put something 10:07 together. And last Friday I sat down and I was praying 10:12 and I said to the Lord: "You're going to have to show me 10:15 what You want me to speak on. 10:16 What do You mean "The Power of Love? " 10:18 And so this message that we'll be... 10:23 I feel it's coming straight from heaven. 10:27 And I... You sit down and you think: "Oh, what am I going to 10:31 talk on? " And then it ends up this big and this big 10:34 and this big. So I've chopped it in half 10:36 and chopped it in half again and it's still too long. 10:39 But we're going to develop it as well as we can today. 10:43 And it dovetails so well 10:46 with what David Asscherick has been teaching. 10:51 And I just... just say this with me right now: 10:55 I John 4:8. 10:57 "He who does not love does not know God 11:03 for God is love. " 11:07 That is a noun. As David was pointing out 11:10 earlier this isn't an adjective. 11:12 It's not saying God is loving. 11:15 It is saying that God is love. 11:19 And in the Greek the word that is used 11:22 there is agape. 11:24 And you know what agape means? 11:26 It means an unconditional self giving 11:32 self-sacrificing love. 11:35 A completely selfless love. 11:40 And when we think about that it means that the subject 11:46 of devotion 11:48 is not necessarily desirable. 11:52 Not necessarily deserving. 11:55 God doesn't love us because we were so desirable. 12:01 He doesn't love us because we're so deserving. 12:05 He loves us because He can do nothing else. 12:09 And the importance... I just want someone watching at home 12:13 today to know this: you're sitting there and you can't 12:17 believe that God could possibly love you 12:20 because your opinion is so low of yourself. 12:23 And I have to tell you: you are worth nothing 12:27 less than the price that God paid for you 12:31 with the precious blood of His Son Jesus Christ. 12:37 In contrast to this agape love 12:42 is the love that is a conditional kind of love 12:46 and it is spawned by self-interest. 12:48 It is spawned by an attraction to something 12:52 that you believe is going to give you a benefit. 12:56 You can have a love of knowledge, 12:58 a love of truth even. 13:00 You can have a love... a romantic love as we started off 13:04 speaking of. But this is not the kind of love 13:09 that God is speaking of here. 13:12 "God is love. " These three simple words 13:16 define the reality, the essence, 13:23 of God's being... 13:25 the essential nature of God. 13:31 If we have a God who is love, 13:37 that means that everything that God does, 13:42 every action that He takes, 13:46 is compelled by love. 13:50 Hold that thought in your mind for a moment. 13:53 We will come back to this. 13:56 But a poor perspective of God 14:01 gives us poor doctrine. 14:05 It gives us wrong doctrine. 14:08 Any time we come to the Bible 14:12 and we see something that we don't understand 14:16 or perceive it as being love 14:21 then we need to step back and we need to pray 14:25 and say: "God, explain to me, show to me 14:30 Your love in this situation. " 14:34 "Lord, put on the lens of love. " 14:38 Everything that we look at as we are reading 14:41 or getting to know God we need to be looking 14:44 through the lens of love because that is His essential nature. 14:49 When I say "essential nature" it means... 14:53 Love is not an attribute of God. 14:57 Love... God IS love. 15:01 We can't say "love is God. " 15:04 But God IS love. 15:07 So it's not just an attribute. 15:10 It's the fundamental quality of God. 15:15 And from that fundamental quality - that essential 15:20 nature - the fundamental being of God 15:25 from love comes all the rest of His attributes. 15:30 His longsuffering... His patience with us. 15:33 His mercy; His kindness; His righteousness. 15:39 Everything comes from love. 15:44 When Moses passed... or God passed before Moses 15:49 hiding Moses in the cleft of the rock... 15:52 Moses had said: "Show me Your glory. " 15:55 And I've always said before 15:57 the glory of God is His character. 16:00 This time the Lord has impressed me to say this something 16:05 a little differently: the glory of God is His love. 16:10 It's love. That's who He is. 16:13 Love is His glory 16:16 from which all the attributes of His character come. 16:19 The Lord passed before Moses proclaiming 16:23 these very words coming out of His mouth 16:26 from a God who cannot lie. And here's what He said: 16:29 "The Lord, the Lord God, merciful and gracious, 16:33 longsuffering, abounding in goodness and truth, 16:37 keeping mercy for thousands, 16:39 forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin. " 16:46 The point that I want to make: God also has said 16:48 "I am the Lord, I change not. " Right? 16:52 That means love is His essence. 16:57 Love has always been His essence. 17:02 So God has been love from eternity. 17:07 But by definition love is relational. 17:11 David touched on that today. 17:14 Love is relational. 17:17 It cannot exist 17:21 without an object of devotion. 17:26 Love... This to me is a great evidence for the trinity. 17:32 God could not be love 17:35 if He didn't have an object to devote that love to. 17:42 So it was the Father, the Son, and the Spirit. 17:47 This is the essence of love... this relational love. 17:53 You know, I have tried so many times - 17:56 and I know we all do... 18:00 The idea of three beings in one 18:04 is almost inexplicable, is it not? 18:08 We've heard all kinds of... You know, people come up with 18:11 all kinds of analogies and illustrations 18:15 to explain what we call "the Trinity. " 18:18 The word trinity's not in the Bible, but we come up with 18:20 all kinds of analogies for that, 18:23 and I'm going to offer you one. 18:26 None of them are perfect. 18:28 But if there's anything... When you think of how can 18:32 three be one? This is the biggest 18:37 the biggest hurdle to overcome 18:40 if you're ministering to a Muslim 18:43 because they believe in one God: the God of Abraham. 18:47 It's also a big hurdle to overcome if you're ministering 18:51 to a Jew. They believe in one God: the God of Abraham. 18:55 How can three be one? 18:59 If... What shape - if you can see this shape - 19:02 what shape am I making here? 19:04 A triangle. 19:07 This triangle if it were equilateral... 19:10 what is an equilateral triangle? 19:13 It's equal on all sides. 19:15 So if you think of three equal sides 19:21 if I have a triangle, how many objects am I holding? 19:24 I'm holding one. 19:27 God the Father, the Son, and the Spirit 19:32 are co-eternal, co-equal, 19:36 and He could not have existed unless 19:43 the three had been one from this essence of love 19:49 sharing this relationship of love from eternity past. 19:54 Aren't you thankful for the Bible? 19:57 What is the Bible? 19:59 It's nothing more than the unfolding revelation 20:02 of the love of God the Father, the Son, and the Spirit. 20:06 And when we think about knowing God... 20:10 Jesus said in John 17:3 20:12 "This is eternal life: 20:14 to know the Father and the One whom He has sent. " 20:19 God's greatest revelation to human beings 20:22 was made in the person of Jesus Christ. 20:25 His person, His life, His ministry 20:29 actually reveal to the human race the innermost 20:33 essence of God. And you know, for me - 20:38 I've shared this before - the reality of God 20:42 the Father was the most difficult 20:49 concept for me to grasp. And I'll tell you why. 20:54 We... first of all let me say this: 20:56 we say "God is love. " You believe that? 21:00 But is it more up here or is it in here? 21:04 See, I would say "God is love" and then what I was brought up 21:09 to believe in and heard about all the time 21:12 was the wrath of God. 21:15 How God was going to just do away with all of the sinners 21:20 and how He would burn people eternally. 21:23 And I remember when I came to the Lord 21:26 and accepted His call to full-time ministry 21:29 God told me to forget what I think I knew 21:33 come sit at His feet and He would teach me. 21:35 And the first thing He did was He took me in a study 21:38 of the sanctuary. 21:40 And I fell in love with this God of love 21:44 as I studied the sanctuary. 21:46 It's the first time I understood grace 21:48 as I studied the sanctuary. 21:51 But then I remember so distinctly asking Him 21:55 because it was just being impressed upon my mind 21:58 "If there's something you don't understand, ask Me. " 22:01 And I was like: "Father, if You are a God of love, 22:04 how could You burn someone forever? " 22:07 And then He began to unfold to me 22:11 His essential nature. 22:14 And I'll never forget when He brought me to Hebrews 1:3 22:19 which in this verse it was really a verse that 22:23 turned me around. Hebrews 1 and verse 3 22:26 says that Jesus is "the brightness of His glory. " 22:32 That Jesus is "the expressed image of His being. " 22:38 What does that mean? 22:40 It means that anything we believe about the Father 22:43 must come from our information that we have 22:47 about Jesus. 22:49 Do you understand what I'm saying? 22:52 If your idea of the Father is in any way in contrast 22:57 to the truth, the love, the beauty 23:02 of Jesus Christ, then you've got misinformation. 23:07 You've got bad doctrine somewhere because Jesus 23:12 told Philip: "to see Me is to see the Father. " 23:18 Jesus is the express image of God. 23:23 But more than that 23:26 Jesus said: "to see Me is to see the Father. " 23:31 More than that, to see Jesus is to see the Spirit. 23:36 What? Wait a minute. 23:38 That sounds like heresy, doesn't it? 23:41 Did you know that Jesus Christ in I John 2:1 23:45 is called our "parakletos. " 23:49 Let me read this to you. 23:51 I John 2:1: "If anyone sin, 23:54 we have an advocate... " The word there in the Greek 23:57 is parakletos. 23:59 A parakletos is a person. 24:02 "We have an advocate with the Father: 24:06 Jesus Christ the righteous. " 24:11 Jesus Christ the righteous was our parakletos. 24:16 And what does he say in John 14:16? 24:20 He promises us that He will send another 24:25 parakletos. Listen: 24:28 "I will ask the Father and He will give you another 24:31 Comforter. " Another parakletos, an advocate, 24:35 a counselor, a helper, an intercessor. 24:39 Now in the Greek there's two words for another. 24:43 There's heteros - which means something of a different kind - 24:48 then there's allos, A-L-L-O-S, 24:52 for another. And that word allos 24:57 it does show a distinction, a numerical difference, 25:02 but it means one of the same kind. 25:08 Jesus was promising us 25:11 "I will send you One just like Me. " 25:17 "I'm your parakletos. I will send you 25:22 allos parakletos... " another Comforter... 25:26 "just like Me. " 25:30 Only the person of the Holy Spirit 25:34 could replace the person of Jesus Christ. 25:40 Why is that so important? 25:41 Because we have brothers and sisters in our own church 25:45 who believe that the Holy Spirit is nothing more than a power. 25:51 The Holy Spirit is the person of God. 25:57 He is - if we were too look at that triangle shape 26:02 and take it into the pyramid shape, a geometric 26:05 pyramid shape - there are three sides 26:10 leaning in joined. They are one substance, 26:15 one purpose, one thought, one action. 26:19 You can't move the Father... If I move... 26:22 If I move this pyramid here, 26:26 how many sides of it have I moved? 26:29 All three. I cannot move the Father 26:33 without moving the Son and the Spirit. 26:36 We cannot move the Spirit without moving the Father 26:40 and the Son. In the first place we can't move Him, can we? 26:44 Other than maybe we move His emotions. 26:47 But does this make sense to you? 26:51 Do you see this? Because it is so important 26:53 we know how to answer our brothers and sisters 26:56 who don't believe that the Holy Spirit is a person. 27:00 And why is it important 27:02 that we believe the Holy Spirit is a person? 27:06 It is important so that we can yield to Him. 27:10 It is important for us to know. 27:13 We talk about the Holy Spirit indwelling us. 27:16 Do you realize God Almighty lives inside of you 27:19 if you're a born-again Christian? 27:22 Oh how different... If we could get this in our mind 27:25 how different we would be. HOW DIFFERENT WE WOULD BE! 27:30 We wouldn't be looking over our shoulder to see if 27:33 anyone else was watching what we were about to get away with. 27:37 We would know that God is within us; 27:39 that God knows everything; that we are the living temple 27:43 of the Living God because Christ has sent allos parakletos... 27:49 another just like Himself. 27:54 It is so amazing, and when we stop resisting 27:58 and surrender to His mighty working 28:02 we're yielding to the power of His love. 28:05 Romans 5:5 is one of my favorite verses 28:09 and I see it a little differently. I looked it up 28:12 in some other Bible commentators. I see it 28:15 differently. The Lord showed me differently. 28:17 I'll let you decide. In Romans 5:5 28:24 here's what Paul says. 28:26 "Now hope does not disappoint 28:30 because the love of God 28:33 has been poured into our hearts 28:36 by the Holy Spirit who was given to us. " 28:42 Now most commentators - I think all of them - 28:46 said that is the assurance that we have 28:48 is that God's love is in us. 28:51 I see it differently. 28:53 Here's what I see. 28:56 "God is love. " 28:59 The Holy Spirit is not just the Spirit of holiness, 29:03 which I'm going to show you in a moment 29:06 that the power of love, even the attribute of holiness, 29:10 comes from love. God is love. 29:14 His Holy Spirit is the Spirit of holiness, yes. 29:18 But if He's God He is what? 29:22 Love. So when we open our hearts to God 29:27 and the Holy Spirit is shed abroad into our heart, 29:32 when the Holy Spirit comes in, 29:34 the Bible says here that God 29:39 had shed His love abroad into our hearts. 29:44 Aren't we to become like Jesus? 29:48 Isn't that our destiny? Romans 8:29 says that. 29:52 "Those He foreknew He predestined to be conformed 29:55 to the image of Jesus. " 29:57 Then to become like Jesus what do we need to become? 30:01 Love. We need an essential nature 30:07 of love. How do you know when someone's filled with the 30:11 Holy Spirit? The more loving they are 30:16 the more of the Spirit they have in them. 30:21 Jesus said this in John chapter 13 verses 34-35. 30:26 He said: "A new commandment I have given you 30:28 that you love one another. 30:32 As I have loved you 30:34 you also love one another. 30:37 By this all will know that you are My disciples 30:41 if you have love for one another. " 30:44 Let me ask you: "What's new about that commandment? " 30:48 Didn't Moses command the people 30:52 "You are to love the Lord your God with all your heart, 30:54 with all your mind, with all your soul, 30:56 and love your neighbor as yourself? " 30:58 Didn't Jesus tell the scribe who came to Him and said 31:03 "What is the greatest commandment of all? " 31:05 Didn't Jesus say this? "Hear, O Israel, the Lord 31:08 our God is one God. 31:11 You shall love the Lord with all of your heart, 31:13 with all of your soul, with all of your mind, 31:14 with all of your strength, and you shall love your neighbor 31:16 as yourself. " 31:18 So Jesus affirmed what Moses said: 31:23 that love is a commandment. It's the greatest commandment! 31:27 Yet here He says: "A new commandment I give you. " 31:33 What is new about it? 31:35 I'll tell you what's new about it. 31:38 He said: "As I have loved you 31:42 you shall also love one another. " 31:45 He has taken it to a new and unparalleled 31:52 plane. 31:54 And you know what? 31:56 It's impossible... it's impossible. 32:02 How can I love you 32:04 as I love... as Jesus loved you? 32:09 I can't unless I open my heart 32:12 and let God pour out His love, 32:16 His essential nature into me 32:20 by the power of the Holy Spirit. 32:22 Then like Jesus I can love the unlovely. 32:27 I can forgive the unforgiveable. 32:30 And like Jesus 32:32 I can do away with any selfishness. 32:38 Turn to Ephesians chapter 3. I want to show you something. 32:42 Ephesians chapter 3. 32:53 I love Paul's writings 32:57 and I love it when he says something that seems to 33:00 contradict something else he said 'cause as you dig a little 33:03 deeper you find that Paul explains himself so well. 33:07 It's just his... 33:11 Sometimes his initial presentation of something 33:13 catches us off guard. But Ephesians 3. Let's look at 33:16 verse 16. Paul is telling the Ephesians - 33:21 the church at Ephesus - "this is what I'm praying for. " 33:24 "I'm praying that He - God - would grant you according to 33:27 the riches of His glory to be strengthened 33:30 with might through His Spirit in the inner man. " 33:33 That's dunamis power. 33:36 "in the inner man. " How are we strengthened? Through whom? 33:43 Through His Spirit. Why? 33:47 He says: "Let him be strengthened with His Spirit 33:51 in the inner man so that... " 33:54 and oh, it's emphatic in the Greek - 33:57 "in order that Christ may dwell in your hearts 34:01 through faith. " 34:04 So the first thing when we open up our hearts 34:06 to the Holy Spirit and He is dwelling in our hearts 34:09 Christ dwells in our hearts through faith. 34:12 But then it goes on... Paul goes on to say 34:16 "that you... " And any time we see that 34:20 Paul's saying "in order that. " 34:22 This is the reason why. Let the Holy Spirit 34:25 dwell in you that you may be strengthened 34:30 in your inner man 34:32 so that Christ can dwell in you through faith 34:36 and so that - in order that - you may be rooted 34:41 and grounded in love. 34:45 You can't be rooted and grounded in love 34:48 if you don't understand God's essential nature. 34:51 You can't be rooted and grounded in love 34:54 unless the Holy Spirit is indwelling your heart. 34:58 And then he goes on to say 35:00 that when we are rooted and grounded in love 35:03 "so that we may be able to comprehend with all the saints 35:08 what is the width, the length, 35:11 the depth, and the height of God's love. " 35:15 What is he saying here? 35:17 That God's love is measureless. It is as high as the heavens. 35:22 It is as deep as any depth of despair that sin has ever 35:27 taken man to. 35:30 It is as wide as the entire universe. 35:34 Not just the world but the entire universe 35:37 and it is absolutely endless. It is eternal love. 35:42 So he's saying in verse 19 35:45 "that you may know the love of Christ which passes knowledge 35:49 so that... " or in order that... 35:54 "you may be filled with all the fullness of God. " 36:01 How are we going to be filled with the fullness of God? 36:05 When we're filled with God's love. 36:08 Oh I hope you're getting this. 36:12 It is amazing. He goes on to say: 36:14 "Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly 36:17 above all that we ask or think 36:19 according to the power that works in us. 36:23 To Him be glory forever and ever. Amen. " 36:27 When we experience anything of love's fullness 36:32 which is the fullness of God 36:36 if we're filled with love we're like our Father. 36:41 If we're filled with His love. 36:43 But when we experience any of this fullness 36:47 we must demonstrate love's practice 36:51 by following love's pattern. 36:53 Flip over to Ephesians 5. 36:55 Paul says: "Therefore be imitators of God. 37:01 Imitate God your Father as dear children. " 37:07 Children do imitate their parents, do they not? 37:12 And he is saying: "You'll become what you behold. 37:15 Imitate your Father and walk in love. " 37:20 I want to ask you a question. Don't raise any hands. 37:24 But are you walking in love? 37:28 When our Christian experience becomes one of walking in love 37:33 everything will be changed. 37:35 Life will be the abundant life. 37:40 He says: "Walk in love as Christ. " Imitate Christ. 37:46 "Love others as Christ has also loved us and given Himself 37:51 for us an offering and a sacrifice to God 37:54 for a sweet smelling aroma. " 37:57 Let me tell you something. 37:59 If we did this, our churches would be filled. 38:05 There would not be... We'd be knocking out walls 38:09 and adding on additions. 38:11 If we would learn to open our hearts and say 38:15 "Father, pour out Your love into me 38:17 by the power of Your Holy Spirit. Your essential nature 38:22 is love, Lord. Pour it into my heart. 38:24 Let me be loving. 38:26 Forgive me for being selfish. " 38:29 And you know... Oh, this is something that we all have to 38:34 just claim as Romans 6:11 that we are dead to sin 38:37 and live to God in Christ Jesus. 38:40 Because selfishness is sin. 38:43 And it is so funny. I have to tell you: 38:46 I'm putting this together last Friday. Right? 38:50 And I was tired and really with my eye struggle 38:53 it's very difficult. I have to put everything 38:55 on the computer up to... I'm using 20 pt. font right now. 38:59 But everything on the computer I've got it turned up 39:01 like 300% and trying to struggle and see. 39:05 And I was kind of weary at the end of the evening. 39:07 Sabbath was rolling in and I got a phone call. 39:11 It was from somebody that I knew would drain me. 39:16 And I thought: "Oh, not tonight. " 39:20 "Lord, it's the Sabbath. I'm going to rest. " 39:23 And I didn't answer it. 39:25 Guess what... was that loving? 39:30 Was that love? 39:32 I mean, there's times that we have to pull apart, 39:34 but the Lord then had me call back this person. 39:39 There is power in love. 39:42 If the root or source of all of God's attributes 39:47 is the source of His... If it's the source of all of His 39:51 attributes - if love is the source - 39:53 then love is the source of His power. 39:56 Did you hear me? 39:58 Love is the source of His creative power; 40:02 love is the source of His saving power. 40:06 The reason there was power to create because there was 40:10 power of love, and love is relational. 40:14 So God - when He looked at us - 40:18 He breathed His very essence into man 40:23 which was love. 40:26 Now I have to just say this so I won't forget to say it. 40:30 Growing up believing that God was a God of wrath 40:37 was difficult. 40:39 I have to tell you: did you know wrath is not 40:43 an attribute of God? 40:47 Wrath... He never... You never see a wrathful God, 40:53 that God is wrathful. 40:55 What wrath is is an expression of love. 40:59 It is God's reaction to the pain that sin causes. 41:06 So God is not motivated to harm the unrighteous. 41:11 Not at all! 41:13 What God wants to do... There will come that day 41:17 when He has to put an end to the pain of sin. 41:20 But in Ezekiel 33 and verse 11 41:23 He says: "As I live I have no pleasure 41:25 in the death of the wicked 41:27 but that the wicked would turn from his way and live. " 41:31 He says: "Turn... turn from your evil ways 41:35 for why should you die. " 41:37 So see, when we think 41:40 as we interpret this 41:44 if God's love is in us 41:48 is our wrath, 41:51 is our anger 41:55 something that we are pouring out on people 42:01 just because they have hurt us? 42:04 Is it a righteous indignation toward sin and its pain? 42:08 Or are we being selfish in our wrath? 42:12 That will even change. 42:14 Have you ever considered what a strange and terrible day 42:17 it is going to be for the God of love and grace 42:20 when He must execute justice on the wicked 42:23 to put an end to sin? 42:25 It's unbelievable. 42:27 The power of love is not mere rhetoric but it's action. 42:32 How did God demonstrate His love for us? 42:37 Romans 5:8. 42:39 "God demonstrated His love for us in that 42:42 while we were yet sinners... " 42:46 While we were unlovely, 42:48 undeserving enemies of God... 42:51 "Christ died for us. " 42:55 God is love, and love is expressed in relational action. 43:01 But what God is asking us 43:04 if He's putting His love and developing His nature 43:07 of love in us, He's asking us to walk in that same love 43:12 and He's asking us then to demonstrate that love. 43:18 John writes in I John 3:18 "Little children, 43:21 let us not merely love in theory and in speech 43:28 but in deed and in truth. " 43:31 In practice and in sincerity. 43:34 It is so easy to tell someone 43:37 "Oh, I love you sister. " 43:39 "I love you brother. " 43:41 And then they have a problem and they're calling you 43:45 late at night and you're thinking: "Oh, no. " 43:49 We've got to put love into motion. 43:53 Love cannot... As a matter of fact, 43:56 you know, when we were over in Israel 44:00 we were at Dan where the water is coming down 44:05 from the mountains and the Jordan River is beginning 44:09 and all these springs are coming together. 44:11 And this water is rushing down. 44:13 This living water that's supposed to be flowing out of 44:17 our hearts, right? 44:19 And it comes to the Sea of Galilee. 44:22 And the Sea of Galilee has so much activity around it; 44:25 it is so wonderful. 44:27 And there's great industry and great activity there. 44:31 And then the outlet for the Sea of Galilee... 44:35 It goes on down through the rest of Israel 44:38 and it comes to the Dead Sea. 44:41 What happens to that living water when it reaches 44:44 the Dead Sea? Dies. Why? 44:50 There's no activity. 44:52 There's no outlet. 44:54 If we receive God's love, 45:00 the love of God... If we receive the God of love 45:04 in our hearts and we do not 45:09 put it into practice, 45:12 if we love with just theory, with just words, 45:16 if we're not putting it into self-giving, 45:20 self-sacrificing, unconditional love, 45:24 if we're not releasing that to others, 45:27 what happens in our hearts? 45:30 His nature dies. 45:34 You cannot hold that to yourself any more than God can. 45:40 And then we have to know that love can only be known 45:44 from the actions that it prompts. 45:46 The primary object of God's love on earth is mankind. 45:51 And to rightly understand His actions we've got to 45:56 understand His love. 46:01 As a Christian, our primary object of love 46:04 should be whom? God. 46:07 Our response to His love should be one... 46:11 it's a reverential love. 46:13 It's a love that is expressed in obedience to His commandments. 46:18 Love will motivate us to pray. 46:21 Love will motivate us to listen and hear. 46:24 Love will motivate us to surrender to God's will 46:28 and obey. And I tell you something: 46:30 God... Jesus would have never said "you must love one another 46:35 as I have loved you" 46:37 unless He would empower us to do it. 46:40 Did you know? Oh, it was a breakthrough for me 46:45 when I came to understand that any of God's commandments 46:51 are His promises of what He will enable us to do. 46:56 Even the Ten Commandments. 46:59 How do the Ten Commandments begin? 47:03 "I am the Lord your God who has brought you out 47:08 of Egypt. " "I am your Deliverer. " 47:10 "I am your Father. Israel, my son, I have come to get you. " 47:16 And then He goes on to give them ten promises 47:22 of what He will do. Did you know that the Ten Commandments 47:25 are written in the future tense? 47:28 In a double negative so that we know they are promises. 47:31 They're intense promises. 47:33 What God is saying to us 47:36 is that "I am your Deliverer. " 47:39 "I am the lover of your soul. " 47:41 "I am love and if you are Mine - 47:45 if you let Me deliver you - 47:47 I promise you, you will have no other gods before Me. 47:52 You will not take My name in vain. 47:54 You will not bow down to idols. 47:56 You will be so excited 47:59 to spend that Sabbath Day with Me. 48:02 That special day that I have set aside 48:06 for you and for Me to have this unbroken communion... 48:10 untarnished, uninterrupted communion. 48:16 You will obey and honor your parents. 48:21 You'll not murder; you'll not commit adultery. 48:23 You'll not steal; you'll not bear false testimony. 48:28 You will not covet. " Why? 48:31 "Because that is what living in a love relationship with Me 48:37 is all about. 48:38 I am going to enable you to do this. " 48:41 Isn't that good news to you? 48:43 You know, if we would quit... Oh, bless our children's hearts. 48:47 Bless our hearts. 48:49 We've been so... It's not just romance movies that have 48:53 tainted us. How many of you have seen 48:55 The Ten Commandments with Charlton Heston? 48:58 And our view of God is "THOU SHALT NOT" 49:06 Where God is saying: "I promise you 49:11 you shall not do these things. 49:13 You won't want to do these things 49:16 because I am going to enable you. 49:21 I promise you I'm going to love you 49:24 and I'm going to pour My love into you 49:26 and I'm going to love through you 49:29 so you will express your love to Me, 49:32 you will express your love to mankind. " 49:34 The power of love... hmmm. 49:38 I see that my time is being eaten away so rapidly. 49:42 I want to... I just want to go through something here. 49:48 When I sat down I asked the Lord 49:52 "What do You mean the power of love? " 49:55 If God's essential nature is love, that means His power 50:02 comes from that. 50:04 But what does the power of love do in us? 50:07 Here's a quick list, not by any means a comprehensive list. 50:12 But here's a quick list of what the Lord gave me. 50:14 The power of love brings forgiveness. 50:18 The power of love breaks the dominion of sin 50:21 and brings change. 50:24 The power of love is redemptive. 50:26 The power of love liberates. It uplifts. 50:30 It has borne every sufferer's burden. 50:34 The power of love urges us to obey 50:37 and to spontaneously follow the Spirit. 50:40 The power of love corrects. Genuine love is not indulging. 50:46 The power of love has a relentless intensity 50:51 for restoration. 50:53 The power of love removes all prejudice. 50:57 It does good to all men. 50:59 It brings unity. 51:01 The power of love fosters humility. 51:07 It fosters self-sacrifice. 51:10 The power of love motivates service. 51:14 The power of love casts out fear. 51:18 The power of love is unconquerable; it has no equal. 51:25 It will never fail; it will triumph over everything. 51:30 And even - eventually - it will triumph over death. 51:35 The power of love will establish us blameless 51:39 in holiness, and the power of love will bring us up 51:43 out of the grave. 51:45 It will save us eternally. 51:49 "God is love. " 51:54 We can possess the correct Bible doctrine. 51:58 We can witness to our neighbors and friends. 52:01 We can hold evangelistic meetings till the cows come in. 52:07 If we do not do so 52:11 in the spirit and power of God's essential nature, 52:15 in love, we are going to produce very little fruit 52:19 for the kingdom and no reward for us. 52:25 How loving are we? 52:28 Love is the source of power for life and ministry 52:34 because love is God's essential nature. 52:38 You know, I don't know if this is true or not. 52:41 This is a heavily-quoted text. 52:46 I just... I cannot properly source it. 52:50 I've looked to see if it's true. 52:52 But it's still a good quote. It is attributed to 52:56 Mahatma Gandhi. 52:58 I don't know if it's true but it's still good. 53:01 According to the quote Mahatma Gandhi said: 53:05 "I like your Christ; I do not like your Christians 53:10 because they are so unlike your Christ. " 53:15 How many people have been turned away from the cross? 53:23 How many people have we 53:29 caused to reject the God of love 53:35 because we did not reflect His love? 53:39 Please turn to I Thessalonians chapter 3. 53:44 I Thessalonians chapter 3. 53:48 I know that I have shared this with you before. 53:51 I want to share it with you again. 53:54 I would like to share this every day on television 53:59 till it sinks in. 54:03 I Thessalonians chapter 3. 54:08 If the very essence of God's being 54:13 is love, that means even holiness - 54:19 the attribute of holiness - is rooted in His love. 54:23 Amen? All of His attributes are. 54:26 So God is love; God is holy. 54:29 He pours out His Spirit into our hearts. 54:33 What will we get... what will we achieve 54:38 when we are filled with this God of love? 54:42 We'll become holy. Look at this: 54:44 I Thessalonians chapter 3. 54:46 He says: "May the Lord make you increase and abound 54:51 to one another and to all 54:53 just as we do to you 54:56 so that... " Again in the Greek it's emphatic. 55:00 In order that, he's saying. 55:03 "Let God make you increase and abound in love. " 55:08 How do we do that? We open our hearts. 55:10 God pours out His love 55:12 into our hearts by the Holy Spirit indwelling us 55:17 and he says: "In order that... " For this purpose. 55:21 "that He may establish your hearts blameless 55:26 in holiness before our God and Father 55:30 at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ 55:33 with all of His saints. " 55:35 Do you get that? 55:36 Ya'll ought to be getting excited. 55:38 How many of you want to be blameless in holiness 55:41 when Christ returns? 55:44 Oh, and we think that: "What if we? Oh, do I need to 55:48 pull my hair back real tight? 55:49 Do I need to dress a certain way? 55:51 Do I need to do this? Do I need to do that? " 55:53 What David has been talking about. We need to clear the 55:56 table of all these ideas 55:58 and put this central truth in the middle of the table: 56:02 God is love. God is holy because of His love. 56:06 And what this verse says is that as God causes us 56:10 to increase and abound in love 56:12 He will establish our hearts blameless in holiness. 56:17 The more loving we become the more holy we become. 56:23 Sin is the opposite of love. 56:26 Do you hear me? 56:30 There is nothing loving about sin. 56:32 It doesn't matter if it's the sin of pride. 56:34 It doesn't matter what it is. 56:36 So if we are filled with the essential nature... 56:43 the self-sacrificing, self-giving, 56:47 unconditional love of the Holy Spirit... 56:51 if we allow God to cause us to increase 56:56 and abound in love, we will be established 57:01 in holiness. And then guess what? 57:05 In the twinkling of an eye 57:08 we will hear Him 57:11 and He will bring us up to live forever 57:15 in this endless eternal condition of love. |
Revised 2014-12-17