Love Problem (1 John 3:16-18 & Luke 14:1-6)
Use this guide to help your group discussion as you meet this week.
Transcript
Well, good morning. My name's Chet. I'm one of the pastors here. If you'll grab a Bible, go to 1 John. We've been zooming in on this same passage we've been looking at for the past couple weeks. We've been working through 1 John, and then in our gift series, we usually do something a little different, but we hit a passage in 1 John where he really kind of zooms in on the same idea.
So we've just tried to dig into this same passage we're going to look at again today. But before we start in the text, I want to talk about something very important to me. Sugar cookie eggnog. My brother one time, it's amazing. Sugar cookie eggnog is delicious, and it used to every year at Christmas would get to get sugar cookie eggnog. And I tasted it, and I was like, oh my goodness, I've wasted my whole life eating sugar cookies when I could have been drinking them.
And it is wonderful, and it meant a lot to me. It was very, I had a very special, wonderful bond with sugar cookie eggnog. It was delicious. I actually took a picture at one point. This is me sitting in front of my white Christmas tree with sugar cookie eggnog. And you're thinking, did you go get the thing out of the refrigerator just to pose it in front of the Christmas tree?
There are some drinks. You just bring the whole bottle with you because you know you're going to refill. And so sugar cookie eggnog is like that. It's amazing. My whole family loved it. And then it started being harder to find.
But you could get online. You could figure out what stores it was in. And we started figuring out, okay, I've got to go to this store to get sugar cookie eggnog. Then it got to where there weren't any stores around us that had it. And I received a phone call from my brother one time, and he was in Maryland. And he said, I just found a store that has sugar cookie eggnog in Pennsylvania.
It's only like an hour and a half from here. I've called them. They have it. I'm buying a case. He gets off the phone with them. They get in the vehicle.
They go get a case of sugar cookie eggnog. He brings it back to South Carolina. My family hoists him on our shoulders. He's doing this thing. It was wonderful. It was the last time I ever had sugar cookie eggnog.
They've stopped making it. I have contacted the company about this, but there was nothing I could do to change it. They stuck with their decision. Now, if you were to think that sounds crazy to ride an hour and a half one way to get sugar cookie eggnog, if you were to say that to me, you would sound an awful lot like a person who's never had sugar cookie eggnog. Because if you had it, I think you would change your mind on that. But there's a reality to there are certain things that are worth it to us.
It's worth it. It's valuable that we go. This this is absolutely worth it. And then there are other things that you go. No, that's that's not worth it. That's crazy.
You do what you wake up at five a.m. to run. What is someone chasing you? Stop it. Like like for me, expensive sunglasses. It's not worth it. Every time someone's like, look at this, they're super expensive.
I'm like, they're going to fall off your head in the water like I don't that you're going to lose. You're going to sit on. Why do you have these? But I might get caught spending some money on a watch or a pair of boots because that seems worth it to me. At any given time, you might see me and all of my clothes came from Walmart except for my watch and my boots, because that's worth it to me. That's worth the exchange.
We're doing this all the time. And I don't know what it is for you. I don't know if it's vehicles or vacations or video games. I don't know what you pick to say. This is worth. This has value.
This is something I'll give up time for. This is something I'll give energy to. But we're doing that all the time. And that's something that first John's pressing on here is he's helping us see our value system. And he's kind of poking at it. He's saying, I want to point something out to you.
I want to help you see something because there may be an issue here. There may be some breakdown here on how we're valuing things. There might be something wrong with our math when it comes to deciding what's worth it and what isn't. So let's pray and then we'll read this text together. God, I ask for your help this morning. In order for us to do what John's going to call us to, we need you at work inside of us.
That we cannot generate what we need, but we need you to help open our eyes to it and to fill us. And so, Lord, we ask for your help. We pray that you'd help us to see it. But then we pray that ultimately through your spirit you'd help us to respond. In Jesus' name. Amen.
So 1 John 3, verses 16 and 17. He says, By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers. Okay, so he says this is the Christian picture of love, is what Christ did for us on the cross. That's how we define love. That's how we understand love. That's how we've come to know love, is this self-sacrificing love.
It's love that lays down its life. And he says, Therefore, that's the type of people that we are, and so we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers. Now, in the Bible, it tells us to love our enemies. It tells us to love our neighbors. But John here specifically has in mind this distinct love that is to happen inside the household of the church.
Inside the household, the family of those who belong to Jesus. And so he says, This is how we ought to love our brothers and sisters, our siblings in Christ. That is supposed to be this type of love, this sacrifice and lay down your life kind of love for our church family. This is one of the reasons why Charles Spurgeon says that the church is the dearest place on earth. That it's meant to be this type of love, where there's grace and joy and service. He keeps going.
He says, But if anyone has the world's goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God's love abide in him? So he says that negatively. But the positive picture of that is that as God's love abides in us as Christians, we're just open-handed with each other. That we're just generous with each other. That if we see Christian brothers and sisters who have need, stuff just flows through our hand to them. That's what he's saying.
And he says, If that doesn't happen, If you see a brother or sister in Christ in need and you have the stuff but you don't help, He says there's something wrong with your math. You're doing the value wrong. You're not looking at this correctly. That's what he's getting at. And I want us, we're going to jump to Luke chapter 14. And then we'll come back to 1 John.
But I want us to move to Luke chapter 14. Where Jesus is interacting with the Pharisees. And we see this same kind of thing. That he presses on this same idea. So it's Luke chapter 14 verses 1 through 6 is what we're going to look at.
But it's the same idea. And he's going to interact with the Pharisees on this same idea. And then we'll come back to 1 John. Because 1 John, they're both kind of pointing out the same thing. So I want us to spend a little time in this story this morning.
So it says this. One Sabbath, when he, that's Jesus, Went to dine at the house of a ruler of the Pharisees. They were watching him carefully. Okay. If you've been following along in Luke. If you know what's happening at this point in Luke.
You understand that we've just set this story up to be some conflict. Because we have Jesus. We have rulers of the Pharisees. And it's on a Sabbath. Every time you're reading in the Gospels. And it says on the Sabbath.
There's a good chance there's about to be some tension. Because Jesus, when he interacts with the Pharisees. The Pharisees were the religious leaders of the day. And he's actually at the house of a ruler of the Pharisees. He's been invited to his house. So the Pharisees didn't quite know what to do with Jesus.
He obviously had some spiritual authority. He was a teacher. He was performing miracles. So all that was good. He was proclaiming some good news. But he wasn't acting the way they wanted him to act.
And so there was part of them that was drawn to him. And wanted to kind of incorporate him. But they wanted to kind of get him to fall in line with them. And so when he didn't or when he wouldn't. It was a problem. So they're still kind of keeping an eye on him.
And testing is he really from God. And is he doing things right. And one of the primary markers for the Pharisees at this time. Because they were aggressively going to keep the rules. Was the Sabbath. It was one of the only things that marked them as distinct.
Or one of the main things. Not one of the only. One of the main things that marked them as distinct. From the rest of culture. That they took Saturday as a Sabbath. It was a holy day.
They didn't work. They didn't sell. They didn't buy. They didn't even cook. They cooked the day before. And then they would have the Sabbath.
Where they would go to the synagogue. And they marked them as distinct from the Roman Empire. And so when Jesus showed up. And started breaking some of their Sabbath regulations. Not sinning. But breaking some of the Sabbath regulations.
The Pharisees did not like that at all. So they invite him to their house to eat. He's at the house of a ruler. But they're watching him closely. Not. Not.
This isn't a nice watching. They're not adoring him. They're trying to catch him. And so here's what it says. And behold. There was a man before him.
Who had dropsy. Now. It was common. For them to eat. On like a porch. Quite possible.
That they're eating kind of outside. And that people. Would be able to kind of view. What was going on. It doesn't seem likely. That this guy is a guest.
Of the meal. But he could be. But it doesn't seem likely. But he's there in front of Jesus. And seems. To want to be healed.
He has dropsy. Which. The common word. We would call this. Edema. Which is.
Certain parts of his body. Would fill up with fluid. And so that his whole arm. Might swell up. Or his legs. Might swell up.
Or both. And it can get very. Big. And very painful. And it can. Go to a lot of your limbs.
Or it can go to just one. But. It would have been a big. Noticable. Painful. Encumbrance.
And so he's there. In front of Jesus. And he's. It just says. He's in front of him. He's before him.
And it says. Jesus responded. To the lawyers and Pharisees. Them staring him down. I guess. He says.
Is it lawful. To heal. On the Sabbath. Or not. That's why they're watching. Let me see if he's going to break the Sabbath.
So he says. Let me ask you a question. Is it lawful. To heal. On the Sabbath. Or not.
But they remained. Silent. Which usually. When they remain silent. Is that they have an answer. They just don't like their answer.
They don't have to go on record. Saying it out loud. They hadn't learned. What our politicians. Have learned. Which is just answer.
A different question. That you want to talk about. But. They didn't do that. So they just stare at him.
Then he took him. And healed him. And sent him away. That sending him away part. Is one of the reasons. Why I think he probably.
Wasn't invited to the meal. I think he was hanging out. Jesus heals him. Sends him home. Because if it was part of the meal. He would just heal him.
And then be like. Pass the potatoes. Jesus. So he heals him. And sends him home. Then he turns back to them.
And he says to them. Which of you. Having a son. Or an ox. That has fallen into a well. On the Sabbath day.
Will not immediately pull him out. And they could not reply. To these things. Okay. They didn't like that he healed him. They caught him.
He's a Sabbath breaker. Gotcha. But he looks at him. And he says. Which of you. Who has a son.
Or an ox. That falls in a well. On the Sabbath. Will not immediately get him out. Now. It's a good question.
If your son falls in a well. That's terrifying. I recently went. I like roller coasters and stuff. I recently went. On the scariest.
One of those kind of like. Amusement park rides. I've ever been on. In my entire life. Absolutely. Thrill ride of doom.
Terrifying. You know the fair. The one that's right over here. I pointed. Hold on. This is going to mess me up.
I get turned around in this building all the time. I'm not going to point. Take me a second. I really want to point. The fair. The fair.
All right. You know the fair. Fair. That has a little like chair lift thing. That's like a ski lift thing. But it just takes you from one side of the fair to the other.
I rode that. But with a little twist. I took a three-year-old. Yeah. So. I saw other people doing this.
And I was like. It'll be fun. They got little kids dangling up in the sky. I can do that. I was terrified. I get up there.
All there's this one little bar. And I don't know if you've ever like sat with a kid at a picnic table. But they're going to find a way to fall out. And smack their head on something. So this is just awful.
And I'm holding a three-year-old. So I put him in my lap. And I like. Kung fu monkey death gripped him. He's not going anywhere. And the whole ride.
I'm just like. This was a mistake. We should not be on this. Because there's a couple things that are just extremely terrifying with children. Heights is one of them. Water is another one.
It takes an inch of water and 30 seconds for a child to drown. Water is terrifying. And so I just held on to this kid. So if you ever want to have like a really, really scary ride. Take a small child on one of those things. It was terrifying.
I was like. Afterwards. Like I was about to get in a fist fight or something. Had adrenaline pumping. So he says if your son falls in a well.
Let me tell you what happens if your son falls in a well. You do immediately exactly what you need to do to get your son out of the well. No hesitation. I don't care what that is. You jump in the well. If your son's down in a well.
And you can't see him. And he's not responding. And he's not old enough to swim. You're in that well. Very, very quickly. Holding the kid above your head.
If my son's going to drown in a well. If that's what's going to happen. I'm going to have to drown with him. That's what happens when your son falls in a well. And he says. How many of you.
If your son falls in a well. Go. Hold on. Ah. It's the Sabbath. None of them.
He says the same for your ox. Your ox falls in a well. You're not. You're just. You're going to save it. No questions.
No considerations. But what's the response. When he says. How many of you. If your son or your ox falls in a well. What's.
But it's my son. It's my son. And if you follow that up. What's the response. I love my son. Jesus says.
Exactly. That's what he's pointing out to them. The problem. Isn't that this is the Sabbath. The problem is. You don't love this man.
That's what he's getting at. We haven't run into a Sabbath issue. We've run into a heart level love. Issue. Y'all don't care about this guy. You care about your ox.
But you don't care about him. And I want us to see something. Jesus. Sees this man. And loves this man. Because that's who Jesus is.
And he heals this man. Because that's what Jesus came to do. When Jesus is healing people. In the gospels. It's a foretaste. Of ultimately.
What he's going to accomplish. On the cross. It's a foretaste. Of what his kingdom. Is going to be like. If you were hiring.
A chef. You might would talk about. Where they'd studied. You might would talk about. Other jobs they had. But eventually.
They'd cook you some food. Not all the food. That they know how to cook. But some of it. To give you a taste. Of the way that they can cook.
And when Jesus comes. What he's doing. When he heals somebody. When he. When he offers salvation to somebody. In a certain way.
When he casts out the enemy. Or when he brings somebody back to health. What he's doing. Is giving us a foretaste. Of what he's ultimately come to accomplish. And he's ultimately.
Going to pay with his life. For this. Type of healing. But not just for this man. But for all of us.
That all of us. Are in need. Of Jesus's redemption. He sees this man. He loves this man. And he.
Heals this man. Because ultimately. What he came to do. Is to see you. And to love you. And to heal you.
But the Pharisees. Don't see it. Y'all. They miss the miracle. They see somebody. Healed from dropsy.
Goes from being swollen. And in pain. To just fine. Jesus turns. Jesus turns. While he's at lunch.
And heals somebody. If you were. Eating with somebody. And they just had to perform. Like. I don't know.
A tracheotomy. On somebody. Or they did some quick heart surgery. And then they just came right back. To eating. And they.
They don't even acknowledge this. They don't see. How wonderful. And glorious. And beautiful this is. They don't see the power.
That Jesus has. All they can see. Is that he broke the Sabbath. They miss the miracle completely. Because they don't care about this guy. They don't celebrate.
He does. His family does. I'm sure. But they don't. Because they don't care. How often.
Do we do that? We're in the presence. Of some miraculous work of the Lord. And we just can't see it. You ever hanging out. With your community group.
Somebody brings up. The same sin struggle. They've been bringing up. And you think. Oh here we go again. Here's your same old mess.
Do what? Here's a person. Who Jesus is bringing along. Who is actively fighting sin. Which I don't know. If you've ever tried to do.
Is difficult. Actively fighting sin. Walking in community. Saying it out loud. In front of a group of people. And I'm sitting over here.
Saying here we go again. Or worse. They show up. And they're finally. Getting out of some of this. They're finally changing some of this.
And my thought is about time. Really? Jesus is actively working. Redemption in someone's life. Helping them break free from sin. Helping them change who they are.
Which I don't know. If you've ever tried to change. Something about yourself. But it's difficult. And Jesus has to miraculously work in us. To make us different.
And instead of celebrating joyously. For the work of Christ. In the life of somebody. We just sit around and go. Yeah okay. About time.
Thanks. Maybe you'll be less annoying. We're with someone. And they give generously to someone else. Someone asks of them around the street. And they give to them.
And what do we think? They're just going to waste it. You're really helping that person? There's a reason why they're in this position. And we miss the grace. And the generosity.
Of Jesus at work in somebody. To hand some stuff away. We miss it. You see. The answer that they have. They don't answer him.
But the answer that they have. Is well I care about my son. I care about my ox. And that's the exact problem. Is they don't care about this man. And John's pressing on the same idea.
He's not looking at the Sabbath. He's looking at our stuff. The problem wasn't that Jesus broke the Sabbath. The problem was that their hearts were off. And John in 1 John. If we go back to 1 John.
Chapter 3. He's got in mind. He's holding up for us. Worldly goods. The things that you own. And brothers and sisters in Christ indeed.
And he says if the things that we own. Won't just be handed over. The problem. Is a love problem. The problem is that we. Care about our stuff.
Don't care that much about them. He says this. How. How. How. Does God's love.
Abide. In him. Says if he closes his heart against him. How does God's love. Abide in him. See the.
The response to this. Is not for you. To muster up more love. Because it's not your love. It's God's love. It's not for you to go.
Okay. I gotta be more loving. I gotta just figure out. How to make myself love this person. Let me just stare at him. And see if I can fall in love.
And then maybe I'll give him my iPod. Or whatever the heck. I'm supposed to do here. It's not. It's not your love. That animates this.
It's God's love. In us. That animates this. It's his love. Abiding in us. That overflows.
Out of us. And that's the type of love. We have to have. Because the reality is. That loving sinners. Is extremely difficult.
But Jesus does it excellently. And so those of us. Who are overwhelmed. And filled by the love. Of Christ. Get to do that.
Get to participate. In this type of love. So I want to take just a second. And not try to tell you. That you need to be more loving. I want to take just a second.
And tell you the type of love. That our God has. For you. This is written to Christians. If you are a Christian. God's disposition.
Towards you. Is. Love. He's not frustrated with you. He's not upset with you. He's not looking at you.
And saying about time. Get it together. You are not. Welcomed into the family of God. On some sort of technicality. It's not like everybody else.
Was welcomed in. And you get to sneak in. At the back of the pack. He. Loves. That if you belong to Christ.
You're the son. Or the daughter. That fell in the well. And he didn't think twice. About diving in. To rescue.
And to redeem. Because of his great love. For us. That he paid for your sins. Because of his great. Love.
For you. Paul. Writing in Ephesians. Says. Here's my prayer for y'all. I pray that y'all.
Would just begin to. Have be filled. With the power of the spirit. To wrap your head around. The length. And breadth.
And height. And depth. And to know the love of Christ. That surpasses knowledge. He says. This is.
His love. Is unfathomable. And I hope you can just start. Getting your head around it. You ever stood. On the edge.
Of the coast. And just stared at the ocean. And saw how big it was. Paul says. I wish you'd get in a boat. And go out there.
And be in a place. Where all you can see is ocean. I wish that you would start. To dive to the depths. And go until it crushes you. And you realize.
That there's no way. You could have gotten to the bottom. I wish that his. Power of his spirit. Began to fill you. To understand.
How wide. And how deep. And how miraculous. And how unending. His love is towards you. Because that's the kind of love.
We have in Christ. God's love poured out for us. In Christ. That he would redeem sinners. That he would purchase sinners. And you say.
Well I'm not that lovable. He probably doesn't love me. Do not belittle the love of Christ. Do you see a child. Protecting a cricket. It's not that the cricket is glorious.
It's that the child is kind. And Jesus Christ is glorious. And he redeems. And he saves. Because he's good. And because he loves.
And that love is for you. It is a wildfire of love. For you. A love that does not destroy. But protects.
A love that keeps. A love that claims. A love that holds. A love that brings you on. Unendingly into glory with him. Jesus says.
Not only that he came and died. To redeem us from our sins. But he says. I go to prepare a place for you. He says. You're moving into my house.
I love you so much. You're going to stay forever with me. That he prefers us. I don't know if you have someone in your life like this. But if you pick up the phone.
And you call them. They want to talk to you. And they just want to keep talking to you. You have people in your life. That they're hard to get off the phone with. God's love for us.
Is a preferential love. That he pours out on his children. That he wants. Us. That's what he says in 1 John 3. He says.
See what great love the father has lavished on us. That we should be called children of God. And that is what we are. This love for us in Christ. That redeems us. And that makes us part of the family.
Is the animating love. That is at work in our hearts. And so we are first loved. And then we get to respond in love. That's what he says in verse 18. He says.
Little children. Let us not love in word or talk. But in deed. And in truth. That verse gives me a lot of courage. A lot of comfort.
You ever feel like. I must be the only Christian. Who is getting this wrong. I must be the only Christian. Who when someone asks for something. It just catches in my soul.
And I really don't want to give up the thing. Like maybe everybody else here. Really loves their brothers and sisters in Christ. And they are super generous. And I have a hard time with this. You ever feel like that?
Just me? So I really am the only one. Alright. It's cool. I love that these verses are in the scriptures. Where he corrects a thing that's wrong in me.
Because it means it was also wrong in them. And that God and his grace is at work in them. And he's also at work in me. That if there was no sin. If there was no trouble. If there would be no need to write it.
There would be no need for him to pen this letter. And say. Y'all need to grow a little bit. You need to change a little bit. If it was always just perfectly worked out by the spirit. And Christians never had a problem.
He'd never have to pen this letter. But he writes and says. Y'all need to grow a little bit. You need to soak in this love a little bit. You need the love of God to abide in you. We need to respond this way.
This is what we ought to look like. And this is what makes the church beautiful. That we love each other. Because we're animated by this unending. Deep. Forgiving.
Gracious. Forever. Ferocious. Love. Of Christ. For us.
And so we just get to swim in it. So someone in your church family needs something. We ought not to hesitate. We ought to just say. Yeah what do you need? How do I get it to you?
I've got one of those. I've got two of those. Come on. I can handle that. I can help pay that. Someone in our church family is sick.
So we just go spend time with them. We take some food to them. Or we go sit with them in the hospital. There's part of us that thinks. I've got better things to do. Than to sit in the hospital.
And the reality is. Inside the love of Christ. No you really don't. This is a glorious thing to do. Somebody in your church family needs some help. So you give up.
A very very precious Saturday. You answer the phone in the evening. And you go to someone's house. Or you have them over to your house. Somebody in your group is down or sad. And you know it.
So you go get around them on purpose. We're taught by culture to avoid sad people. But Christians don't. And you know what happens. If you're happy. And you go hang around a sad person.
You trade some of your happiness. For some of their sadness. You leave a little more sad. It's just how it works. But when you leave there a little more happy.
That's the type of substitutionary love. That we see in Christ. That he trades out his righteousness for our sin. And we leave righteous. And he leaves in sin. To be crushed on a cross.
And to rise victorious. We are animated by this wonderful love of God on our behalf. The band is going to come back up. The response to this is to not try to muscle up love. The response to this is to try to sit in. And wrap your mind around.
And be filled with the power of the love of Christ for you. If you are in Christ. You are dearly loved. And you are empowered by his love to love. This is how we get to respond. This is how we get to live.
If you are not a Christian. This love is offered to you. This welcome is offered to you. This invitation to be a part of this family is offered to you. This redemption is offered to you. It will not forever be offered.
But it can be forever yours if you will accept the offer. The king has come. He has been born among men. To redeem men. He has come to earth to redeem humanity. He has paid the price of our sin.
And he has offered amnesty. And salvation and forgiveness to all who will come to him. Come. Ask him to forgive you. Ask him to redeem you. And feel the overwhelming love of Christ for you.
And be brought into this glorious home. And Christians. May we celebrate. That our king has come. And that he has worked his love for us. And that his love fills us.
And then may we respond. As those who are overflowing. With the love of Christ. In generosity. And graciousness. And kindness.
And service. To one another. In the church family. The dearest place on earth. Let's pray.
God. God. God. We thank you for your grace. We thank you for this love. That lays down your life for us.
This love that redeems us from our sin. This love. That invites us. To be your children. And calls us into your home. And may we live.
As if our sins are forgiven. Our eternity. Is set. Our home. Is secure. Our hope.
Is held forever. In the resurrected Christ. So that worldly things. Possessions. Our stuff. Our money.
Does not matter. But your people do. And may we be able to respond. In love. As you fill us. And lead us.
In Jesus name. Amen.