Abundant Grace Fellowship
Labor of Love Part 1-4
The Labor of Love
By Pastor J.D. Link
agf-blanco.com
2Co 2:4 say, “For out of much affliction and anguish of heart I wrote unto you with many tears; not that ye should be grieved, but that ye might know the love which I have more abundantly unto you. 2Co 12:15 says, “And I will very gladly spend and be spent for you; though the more abundantly I love you, the less I be loved.” This week I would like to discuss the labor of love. As I was meditating on these verses, I had to stop and ask myself, “Is this my true heart attitude? Can I truly say, that I will gladly be spent for others, although the more I love others, the less I am loved?” This is a deep question, and I believe all disciples of Christ need to be able to answer it - and live out it’s truth. Let’s get into God’s Word.
Let me start by saying that love is indeed a labor. Not a grueling task that must be performed, but rather true love is an action. It is much like faith (Jam 2:18). Show me your love without corresponding actions, and I’ll show you my love by my actions. Love acts. Love does. Love is expressed in action. The cross of Calvary is the greatest example of this truth. Jesus deeply loved, therefore He went to the cross. Paul deeply loved, therefore he endured much affliction for the church.
Love is the greatest commandment (Mk 12:30-31, 1Cor 13:13). To love God with your whole being, and to love your neighbor is the whole sum of the law (Rom 13:8-10, Gal 5:14). There is absolutely nothing more important in the Christian life as far as Jesus is concerned. If you notice, the great commandment is proactive. It is not reactive. People often make the mistake of thinking that they will love those who love them. This is not Christian (Lk 6:32). If you are waiting to react with love, you are no different than an unbeliever. Christian love acts independent of others. It does not look for a reciprocation. If your love is reciprocated, then praise God; but if it isn’t, you love anyway.
To tithe and go to church are good and biblical; but the weightier matters are justice, mercy, faith, and love (Lk 11:42, Mt 23:23). If you don’t have love, you are nothing (1Cor 13:1-3). We are told to love one another as Christ loves us (Jn 13:34-35, 1Jn 4:11). How does Christ love us? Unconditionally. Proactively. We love Him because He first loved us (1Jn 4:19). While we were sinners, Christ died for us (Rom 5:8). He laid down His life for us (Jn 15:12-13, 1Jn 3:16). He put us first. How can we follow in His footsteps? How is this possible?
We must follow the great commandment in proper order. We first must love God with all of our heart, soul, mind, and strength. We must receive our fulfillment from Him. We must not look to others to fill what only God can. If we do, then we will always be disappointed. Why are so many Christians depressed, angry, bitter, unforgiving, etc.? Because they try to receive fulfillment and satisfaction from others, instead of from God. People will always let you down to some degree. If you look for people to make you happy, you will always be disappointed. However, is God is your total source of fulfillment and happiness, he never disappoints.
When you are full and satisfied with God’s Love, you can freely give that love to others - without receiving anything in return. As with the Apostle Paul, you can spend and be spent, although the more you love the less you are loved. You can freely love your neighbor, if you love God and know you are unconditionally loved by Him. It is truly freeing. Jesus asked Peter three times, “Do you love Me?”, then He said “Feed my sheep” (Jn 21:15-17). You see? Love acts. Love does. That was not conditional. Feed them as long as they treat you right. Love them as long as it pleases you. Love them as long as ….. , etc. No. Love them. Feed them.
In God’s kingdom, the way up is down. The last will be first. He that is least shall be greatest. The humble will be exalted. Those faithful with little will be given much. Love others, expecting nothing in return. Let your identity be in Christ, not in what others think of you. Love freely. If you are rejected, know that Jesus was also rejected. God’s love was rejected. Is a servant greater than his Master? Do you think you will not be rejected? Let that be their problem, not yours. Refuse resentment. Refuse to be bitter. Refuse to be unforgiving. Empty yourself of self. As Paul said, “I die daily”. Die to self. Die to your will, and surrender to God’s will. Don’t hold grudges. Love unconditionally. This is the great commandment.
The Labor of Love, Pt. 2
By Pastor J.D. Link
Agf-blanco.com
1Co 13:1-8 Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal. And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing. And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing. Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up, Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil; (6) Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth; Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things. Charity never faileth....
Last week we began to look at what true Christian love is. We saw that the Apostle Paul stated, “For you, I will gladly spend and be spent; though the more I love, the less I am loved”. We saw that true Christian love is an action. It is proactive, and not reactive. We also learned, that if we are being filled and satisfied with God’s love for us, we are then able to love others unconditionally. Today we will start examining what this Agape, or God’s kind of love, looks like by going through 1 Corinthians 13.
Sandwiched in between a chapter on the spiritual gifts and a chapter on the use of tongues in the church service, is this chapter on love. Why? Because the Corinthians were not using their gifts to edify and love others; they were using them for self promotion and self glorification. Paul wanted to encourage them to use the gifts properly, and he did it by teaching them that all the gifts in the world are worthless if you don’t use them motivated by God’s kind of love. In 1Cor. 13:1-3, he says that if a Christian speaks in the tongues of men or angels, knows all mysteries and has all faith, gives away all he has to feed the poor, and even gives his life for another - it means nothing if it is not motivated by God’s kind of love. This is an important lesson for us to learn.
Heart motivation means more than action. Yes, actions are important (faith without works is dead), but God looks on the heart. Why you do what you do is more important than just what you do. Obviously, by these verses, we can deduct that great actions can be done for wrong motives. This is why Paul goes on to describe what true love, God’s kind of love, is. What it really looks like.
The first characteristic of God’s kind of love is long suffering. To suffer long means to patiently endure. It means to refrain from hasty action. It means to bear long with. Paul begged the church at Ephesus to be long suffering and bear one another in love (Eph 4:1-2). He instructed the Colossians to live out mercy, humbleness of mind, meekness, and longsuffering (Col 3:12). He told Pastor Timothy to preach the Word and to reprove, rebuke, and exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine (2Tim 4:2).
Often, the world’s way is to give one chance. “If you ever do so and so, that’s it. I’ll write you off”. That is unchristian. God is a God of second chances. He patiently endures us - should we not patiently endure others? Do we write off our children when they blow it? No. We bear long. We patiently endure. We continue to love and hope they will choose the right way. If you are quick to give up or end relationships “just like that”, you are not walking in God’s kind of love. Jesus said to do unto others as you would have them do to you. Wouldn’t you like a second chance? Wouldn’t you like the opportunity to make things right when you’ve blown it? Then you should give the same courtesy to others.
Your long suffering may go unnoticed. It may be taken for granted or rejected. It may be unappreciated. So is God’s long suffering towards mankind on a daily basis. Yet He does not quit. He doesn’t give up. True, there will come a time on judgment day that all second chances will be over. Also true, is that in things pertaining to the law of the land or other subjects, you may not get a lot of chances. However, in our Christian walk as a disciple of Jesus Christ, we are to imitate our Lord. And our Lord is long suffering. Give people the opportunity to make things right and to change. Don’t hold grudges. Forgive. Patiently endure. Until next time, rejoice in The Lord! The Labor of Love, Part 3 By Pastor J.D. Link agf-blanco.com 1Co 13:1-8 Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal. And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing. And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing. Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up, Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil; (6) Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth; Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things. Charity never faileth.... This week we will continue our look into 1Cor 13 to get a Biblical idea of what true love is. Last week we focused on longsuffering, and we will continue in order as 1Cor 13 is written. The next characteristic of God’s kind of love is kindness. The definition of kindness is: showing oneself useful; acting benevolently. Having a disposition to do good; possessing love to mankind, and a desire to promote their prosperity and happiness. Often times happiness eludes the Christian, because he seeks to promote his own prosperity and happiness. The last way to be happy is to be self seeking. When one walks in Biblical kindness, they receive happiness by promoting the prosperity and happiness of another. In other words, focus on blessing others, and you will be blessed. We are to be kind to one another (Eph 4:32). Our kindness is a desirable trait (Prv 19:22). God is kind, and to be kind is to be godly. God’s love does not envy. It does not have feelings against because of covetousness or jealousy. We are not to walk in envy, strife, and vain glory (Gal 5:26, Rom 13:13). Envy is carnal, not spiritual (1Cor 3:3). Envy is a trait of the unregenerate man, not the born again man (Titus 3:3, Gal 5:21). Envy is earthly, sensual, and devilish. It causes confusion and every evil work (Jam 3:14-18). The worst thing about envy, jealousy, and covetousness; is that the underlying root is a dissatisfaction with Jesus Christ. In Heb. 13:5, it says to not be covetous, but rather be content; because Jesus will never leave us or forsake us. That means that when the Christian is discontent and envious, he is saying that Jesus is not enough. That Jesus hasn’t done enough for him. That he is not satisfied with Jesus. If we would focus on what Jesus has done in us, through us, and for us; we would be content - and envy would not be a part of our life. Be happy for other people. Rejoice with those that rejoice. If someone gets blessed, don’t envy them. Be thankful they are blessed. Don’t want what other people have. Be happy with what you have. “But they have a lot more than me.” Well, you have a lot more than a lot of other people. If you want or need something, pray to God cheerfully, and be willing to work for it. The “green eyed monster” or the “evil eye” have no place in the life of the Christian. God’s kind of love does not vaunteth itself (is not boastful or braggardly), and is not puffed up (proud or haughty). Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall. Our boast should be in God (Psa 34:2, 44:8). Living your life with no concern for God’s will is considered boastful in the Bible (Jam 4:16). It is also wrong to boast in knowing God’s Word, when there is little attempt at keeping it (Rom 2:17, 23). The unstable person who only hears and knows God’s Word, but does not do God’s Word, is headed for destruction (Mt 7:21-27, Jam 1:22-25). The person who practices God’s kind of love, while he will not be perfect, seeks to live out and demonstrate that love in his life. Our boast should always be in Jesus. We are the branches, and He is the Vine. We produce good fruit only when we are plugged into Him. Therefore, we rejoice in Him. We boast in Him. There is no room to be prideful or arrogant, for what do we have that we have not received? Our identity should be in Christ. This is not a “shoutin’ hallelujah!” topic, I know. But it is very practical and necessary. It is fundamental. It is basic. It is the Christian’s labor - or work- of love. If these things were purposefully put into practice in our lives - our homes, our churches, and our community would be radically affected. I pray you will take these things to heart, and look for opportunity to practice these things in your life. Until next time, rejoice in The Lord (Philp 4:4). By Pastor J.D. Link agf-blanco.com This week we will bring to a close our series on The Labor of Love. Keep in mind that labor means work. John said, “Let us love not in word, but in deed and in truth”. Love is not just words, but actions. True love is expressed in deeds, not just in talk. In 1Cor 13, Paul gives us many examples of what true love looks like in action. We will finish this series by looking at the remainder of these expressions of love. Let’s get into God’s Word. God’s kind of love does not behave itself unseemly (unbecoming, unsuitable, indecent, improper for the person of Christian character). Some Scriptures that refer to this are: Rom 1:18-32, 1Cor 6:9-10, Gal 5:19-21, Eph 4:25-5:5, Col 3:5-8, 2Tim 3:1-5. While Christians are not perfect, Godly changes will take place in the true believer’s life. Repentance is not perfection, but rather a change of direction. Christian character is to imitate Christ. Jesus doesn’t lie, cheat, or steal. Jesus doesn’t cuss, gossip, or slander. Jesus doesn’t sleep around, commit adultery, or practice homosexuality. Jesus doesn’t do drugs, get drunk, abuse other people, or act hatefully. We are to imitate Jesus. God’s kind of love does not seek her own (worship self). Whoever loses his life will find it (Mt 10:39). We are to be living sacrifices, honoring others before ourselves, and esteeming others more than ourselves (Rom 12:1-3, 10, Philp 2:3-4). Paul said, “I die daily”, and “It is no longer I who live, but Christ Who lives in me”. Self exultation and self worship are the worlds way of living. God’s way is to be humble, and He will exalt you. God’s kind of love is not easily provoked (easily exasperated, irritated, or stirred up to anger). Flying off the handle, fighting at the drop of a hat, blowing your top, and going off on someone are all worldly terms for being easily provoked. However, foolishness and transgression waits at the door of the easily angered (Eccl 7:9, Prv 14:17, 29, 15:18, 16:32, 29:22). God says to avoid an angry man, and make no friendship with him (Prv 22:24). We are to be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to anger (Jam 1:19) God’s kind of love thinks no evil (takes no inventory of wrongs). Do you keep a mental list of all who have wronged you and carry it around in your heart? You are only hurting yourself. We are to forgive and forget. That doesn’t mean be a door mat and foolishly continue to allow yourself to be abused; nor does it mean you blindly trust a wrongdoer again and again. It does mean, however, that you don’t carry around bitterness and unforgiveness in your heart. Refuse to hate and carry around animosity in your life. It is unchristian, and it hurts you more than them. In fact, they control you, and you don’t even know it. Let God be their judge. You be at peace and refuse to play that game. God’s kind of love does not rejoice in iniquity. The Psalmist said, “Rivers of waters run down my eyes, because they keep not Your law” (Ps 119:136). Our hearts should break for the gross iniquity that is literally paraded around in our culture. People rejoice in sin and call it freedom (Ps 10:3, Prv 14:9, 30:20, Jude 18). While this causes the unregenerate to rejoice, it should cause us to be broken hearted, and to stand against it. God’s kind of love rejoices in truth. Jesus is the Truth (Jn 1:17, 14:6). As believers, we should rejoice in Jesus Christ and His eternal Word. Spiritually ingesting God’s Word should cause us joy and gladness (Jer 15:16). Knowing others rejoice in truth should provoke us to rejoice, as well (3Jn 1:3). Truth sanctifies us! Truth makes us free! Truth is God’s Word! Truth endures! God’s kind of love bears all things (builds a roof over, covers). We are to bear one another’s burdens (1Pt 4:8, Rom 15:1, Gal 6:2). Love covers a multitude of sins. God’s kind of love believes all things and hopes all things. This doesn’t mean you believe everything you hear, but rather it means you want to believe the best. You want to think the best. Assume the best, unless proven otherwise; instead of believing the worst about everyone and everything. Hope is an expectation of something good. Hope the best. See the glass half full, instead of half empty. God is quite the optimist, and we should be, as well (Philp 4:8). God’s kind of love endures all things (Mt 10:22, 2Thess 1:4, 2Tim 4:5, Jam 1:12). Hang in there. Don’t quit Jesus. Endure. Persevere. Don’t give up. Keep walking with Christ no matter what. God’s love never fails. It never drops away. It is never driven out. Who can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus? (Rom 8:35-39) I pray you have been blessed and challenged by this series, and until next time, rejoice in The Lord!
The Labor of Love, Part 4