SERMON: PURSUING HOLINESS -- LOVE

PURSUING HOLINESS: LOVE
7 June 2009

I. Introduction
-- turn in Bibles to Galatians 5

22. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,
23. gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.

-- I once heard a story about a guy who was far away from home in a very small town -- the only thing he had with him was a $1,000 bill -- he had nothing else -- no small change -- no identification -- nothing
-- he was very hungry, but was unable to buy any food because no one in that town would take his $1,000 bill -- they just couldn't provide change for it -- it was not until he found a way to break that large bill down into smaller bills that he could spend any of it
-- that is very much like the concept of holiness -- of being holy in all that we are and all that we do -- over the last couple of weeks we have established that God is calling us to be holy -- that He expects us to be holy
-- the holiness that God seeks for us is more than just a list of do's and don'ts in how to act -- that would be easy to do -- easy to gage -- easy to understand
-- but, that's not what God is expecting from us -- He expects us to be holy not only in our behavior -- but also in our thoughts and in our attitudes -- we see that in passages such as this and in Jesus' words from the Sermon on the Mount, which we're going to look at in just a moment
-- righteous outward behavior -- conformance to a written list of standards is not the goal -- the Pharisees did that -- they perfected following lists to be holy in their own eyes, but they were far from holy in their hearts and in God's eyes -- God wants us to do more than just to be holy on the outside -- He wants us to be holy and righteous inside and out -- to be holy in all that we do
-- this concept of complete holiness that God calls us to is just too large for us to wrap our minds around -- it's too daunting -- it's like that $1,000 bill in story -- we need to break it up into smaller, more manageable parts so that we can understand it and apply it in our lives

-- fortunately, God does just that for us -- here in this passage in Galatians, Paul introduces us to the fruit of the Spirit -- parts of God's holy character and nature that are transmitted to us and through us by the Holy Spirit -- what this means is that instead of worrying about the big picture of "becoming holy," we can instead focus on different parts of God's character and nature
-- it's kind of like a jig-saw puzzle -- when you start on a jig-saw puzzle, you don't expect to be able to just pour out all the pieces on the table and have them look just like the picture on the box immediately -- you have to start work on the individual pieces -- maybe you start with the edges -- then you work on another part that you can recognize easily -- until, over time, the puzzle is complete and you see a finished product that looks just like the picture on the box
-- it's the same way with pursuing holiness -- in this case, the nine attributes of God listed here -- love, joy, peace, patience, goodness, kindness, gentleness, and self-control -- are the individual parts that we are going to work on and put together in our lives -- and, at the end, it will all come together to make us holy as God is holy -- to make our lives look like the picture of Jesus that we see in the Bible
-- so, our pursuit of holiness begins here -- over the next several weeks, we're going to go over each of the fruit of the Holy Spirit in greater details as we seek to acquire these attributes of God in our own lives
-- let's start this morning by looking at the first of these mentioned here -- love

II. Love
-- if you would, go ahead and turn over to Matthew Chapter 5
-- over this past year, God has led us to focus on the concept of love through the Fireproof Sermon Series and other messages -- in those messages, we focused on the concept of love as defined in 1 Corinthians 13, "The Love Chapter," and mostly concerned ourselves with improving our relationships with our family and our friends and our God -- this gave us a very firm foundation on the concept of God's love in our lives
-- but, as we move into the realm of sanctification and progressive holiness, we have to build on this foundation -- this means that we move past just focusing on our relationships with family and friends and God -- we have to do more
-- here in Matthew 5 we find a section of Scripture that we call, Jesus' Sermon on the Mount -- in this section of Scripture, Jesus builds on the foundation of the law that was given to the Israelites and carries it to a whole 'nother level
-- for instance, the law tells us that it is a sin to have sex with a person outside of marriage -- but here in verses 27-28, Jesus carries this to a whole 'nother level by saying that if you even look at another person with lust, you have sinned because you have committed adultery in your heart
-- so, what is going on in this passage of Scripture is that Jesus is building on the foundation of the law -- the law was concerned with external obedience -- with how you act -- in this sermon, Jesus is trying to get the Israelites to see that holiness involves more than just what you do -- it involves your thoughts and your attitudes, as well
-- down in verses 43 through 48, Jesus builds on the foundation of love -- He carries the concept of love to a whole 'nother level of holiness -- this is what I want us to look at this morning as we seek to pursue holiness in the area of love in our lives

-- first, though, let's start with a definition of love in regards to holiness -- as you know, in the Greek -- the original language that the New Testament was written in -- there are several words that we translate as "love"
-- there is the love of a person for their spouse -- passionate love -- erotic love -- the Greek word for this is "eros"
-- there is the love of a person as a brother -- the love that you feel for your friends -- brotherly love -- the Greek word for this is "phileo"
-- there is the love among families -- the love that binds you together as a family unit with your parents and your siblings and your children -- the Greek word for this is "storgia"
-- and finally, there is the love of God -- the unconditional, sacrificial love that God has for us -- the love that knows no boundary but that loves in spite of what the other person is or does -- the Greek word for this is "agape"

-- so, when you read the word "love" in the Bible, it's important to know what type of love the passage is referring to -- whether it's romantic love or brotherly love or family love or unconditional love -- if your Bible doesn't tell you, then I want to suggest that you get a Strong's dictionary or a commentary or some other resource that will let you know what type of love is being referred to -- it's important to know that
-- for instance, in the list of the fruit of the Spirit, Paul tells us that one of the fruits is "love" -- is that romantic love? -- is that brotherly love? -- what type of love is it we need to be trying to obtain if we want to become holy?
-- as you probably guessed, the Greek word that Paul uses in Galatians 5 is "agape" -- the unconditional, sacrificial love of God for us -- the type of love that allowed Jesus to sacrifice Himself on the cross in our place, even though we had sinned against Him and rejected Him and cursed Him with our lives -- in spite of what we did, Jesus showed us His agape love by dying in our place
-- this is the type of love that we are seeking to show to others in our pursuit of holiness

-- let me give you an illustration that shows you what this looks like in practice -- Dr. Elizabeth Kubler-Ross is a psychiatrist in San Francisco -- and over the last couple of decades, she has tried to help comfort homosexual men who were dying of AIDS -- as you can imagine, most of these men had been rejected by society and by their families -- they were angry at people -- angry at life -- angry at God for what they were going through -- so Dr. Kubler-Ross tried to work with them to help them through these emotions as they went through the dying process
-- she writes that one time she went to see a new patient, and instead of finding him angry and bitter as all the others, she said he was radiant -- he was in very good spirits and was not angry or bitter at all -- so, she asked him why he was different from the rest
-- he told her that he had grown up in a small, conservative mid-western town -- and when he decided that he was a homosexual, he broke all relations with his family and friends in that place and left home -- he expected that they would reject him and hate him for who he was, so he just left without saying a word to anyone -- he told Dr. Kubler-Ross that after he got sick and found out he was dying, he felt like he needed to see his family, but he didn't know how they would react -- so the week before, he called home and told his mother, "I'm a sick man -- I would like to come home" -- she told him, "We'd love to see you" -- and he went home
-- he said when he came up to the door and his mother opened it, she must have been shocked at the condition of his body because of the AIDS -- but she didn't show it -- she just threw her arms around him and told him how much she loved him -- the man told Dr. Kubler-Ross, "You know, everyone should have a moment of unconditional love -- I had that moment [last week at home], and now I'm ready to die. That's why I'm radiant."

-- it is exactly this type of unconditional, sacrificial agape love that God expects us to show to others in our lives -- our God -- our family -- our friends -- our neighbors -- even our enemies
-- look down at verse 43 here in Matthew Chapter 5

43. "You have heard that it was said, `Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.'
44. But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,
45. that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.

-- here we see Jesus taking love to a whole 'nother level -- you know, for most of us, this concept of agape love is something that we strive for in our relationships with our family and our friends -- we don't always succeed, but we try
-- even in our relationships with our spouses and our children -- with our parents and our siblings -- we don't always find ourselves loving them unconditionally -- loving them in spite of what they have done
-- a lot of times, our love for others is based on how they are treating us -- on how they are loving us or obeying us -- and we find it hard to love them with that agape love like Jesus had -- and that's with our families

-- here in this passage, Jesus shocked the Israelites by telling them that, not only were they to love their family and friends at a whole 'nother level -- at the agape standard all the time -- they were to love their enemies in the same way
-- they were to look at people who hated them -- people who had wronged them -- people whose sole desire was to hurt them -- and love them
-- let me put it a different way -- on September 11, 2001, Osama bin Laden orchestrated an unprovoked terrorist attack on our country -- he convinced other men to hijack airplanes and fly them into the World Trade Center and the Pentagon -- eventually killing over 3,000 American civilians -- men, women, and children just like you -- men, women, and children who had done nothing wrong -- who died simply because they were in the wrong place at the wrong time and who died because an evil man did an evil act
-- as far as I know, no one in here lost a family member in the attacks of 9-11, but still, we recognize that Osama bin Laden was and is our enemy -- and that right now -- today -- he is plotting how he might continue to attack and kill Americans where ever he can find them
-- and what does Jesus tell us to do about Osama bin Laden? -- Jesus tells us to love him -- and not only to love him like a brother or like a neighbor or like an acquaintance -- but to agape him -- to love him with the greatest love there is -- and to pray for him and his well-being
-- Jesus wants us to love Osama bin Laden and all our enemies just as much as we love God and we love our families
-- we're definitely talking about loving at a whole 'nother level -- we're talking about living at a whole 'nother level -- we're talking about being holy as God is holy

-- verse 46

46. If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that?
47. And if you greet only your brothers, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that?
48. Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.

-- here Jesus gives us the two choices in our lives -- we can go on like before -- loving only those who love us -- greeting only our brothers -- greeting only those who love us
-- or, we can go to a whole 'nother level -- we can love like God in all our relationships and with all the people we meet -- our family and friends -- our neighbors -- our acquaintances -- even our enemies
-- Jesus never said it would be easy -- He said the path to follow Him was narrow -- that the way was difficult and fraught with peril -- He told us that to follow Him we had to die to self and pick up our cross and follow Him
-- if you want to follow Jesus -- if you want to be His disciple -- if you want to be holy as He is holy -- then you have to learn to love on a whole 'nother level -- as Henry Blackaby said, "You can't stay where you are and go with Jesus" -- if you want to go with Jesus, you're going to have to change what you think and say and do in the area of loving others
-- Jesus is calling us to perfection -- the Greek word that He uses here in verse 48 is "telios" -- it means complete -- it means mature -- it means whole
-- what He's telling us is that if you want to be complete -- if you want to be mature -- if you want to be whole and holy -- if you want to follow God, you have to love your enemies as well as your neighbors -- even if that means loving Osama bin Laden -- even if that means loving that person at work or school or in your club that you call your enemy

-- so, how is possible? -- how can we even hope to do this on our own? -- the truth is, we can't -- we do not have the capacity within us to even love our family and friends with agape love -- we certainly can't love our enemies or even strangers with agape love -- it's impossible
-- but, as Jesus said, "with God, nothing is impossible" -- remember what Paul told us in Galatians 5:22-23 -- this type of agape love that we are being called to is an attribute of God -- Paul tells us that in our lives, this agape love comes forth as a fruit of the Spirit
-- in other words, we can't do it on our own -- we have to open ourselves up to the Holy Spirit who lives within us and let Him love through us -- and let Him help us learn to love through His power and presence
-- we have to draw the agape love from God through the Holy Spirit, like drawing water from a well, in order to have it available to love others, especially to love our enemies
-- what this means is that we start relying on God to help us love others -- when we find ourselves in a situation where love is required, we need to get into the practice of praying for help -- "God, I don't like this person -- I certainly don't love them -- please give me your love for them -- help me to see them with Your eyes -- help me to hear them with Your ears -- help me to love them with Your heart"
-- it will be hard at first -- heck, it will be hard at second and third and fourth -- but, over time, as you seek God's will -- as you seek His presence and His power in your life, you will start to feel His love flowing through you to others -- and, eventually, His love will so permeate your life that you will begin to look like Him and you will find yourself loving like Him more and more and more

-- let me give you some advice -- don't start with trying to love Osama bin Laden -- don't start with trying to love that enemy of yours -- start with your family -- start with your spouse -- start with your parents and your brothers and sisters and your children
-- you'll find it is easier to learn to love them with agape love because you already are in a love relationship with them
-- start with them and then, as you learn to draw on the Holy Spirit's power and presence, start to love others

-- and keep in mind two things:
-- first, keep in mind that we are talking about progressive holiness -- this is a process -- not an instantaneous event -- it is going to take time to become holy as God is holy
-- we need to start off with baby steps as we start on this journey of love and holiness -- knowing that we might take two steps forward and then one back -- but our goal should be progress -- it should be moving forward -- it may take you years and year and years before you reach the place that Jesus is talking about here -- but as long as you are moving forward, then you are doing what God has called you to do
-- secondly, keep in mind that the word "love" is a verb -- not a noun -- love as described in the Bible is not static and it's not a feeling or an emotion -- it's an action -- it's a choice on our part -- it's a way that we choose to relate to someone else -- it's a way that we show God to another person
-- you may not "feel" love for another person in an emotional sense, but you show love through your actions to them -- just as Jesus showed His love for us by dying on the cross in our place

III. Closing
-- in the Jewish temple, there was a lamp -- a light of sacrifice that was always kept lit -- it never went out -- day and night -- summer and winter -- the priests kept it filled with oil so that this light would fill the holy place
-- we see that light burning in the life of Jesus -- nothing could put it out -- no scorn or hostility or hatred -- no betrayal or cursing or persecution -- it was the light of His love and it shined brightly where ever Jesus went, even the cross of Calvary as He loved even those who nailed Him to that tree
-- in the same way, we have a lamp in our lives and in our churches that is fueled by the agape love of God -- as Christians, we are called to keep our lamp lit -- to keep it burning bright -- so that all around us will see the light of Christ and be drawn to His presence
-- this lamp is filled with the love that comes from the Holy Spirit -- and we must learn how to draw on His power and His presence so that our lamp will always stay full and will always burn brightly

-- as Christians, we are called to be more than we could possibly be on our own -- to do more than we could possibly do on our own -- to love more than we could possibly do on our own
-- we should not live as the world lives -- we should not love as the world loves -- we should not just love our family and friends -- instead, we should love everyone with the agape love of Christ -- our family -- our friends -- our neighbors -- our acquaintances -- our enemies
-- this is our calling -- this is our goal -- this is our first step on the path to pursuing the holiness of God in our lives

-- as I close in prayer, I want to invite you to pray with me for God's power and presence in your life -- we can't love like this on our own -- we need His help -- we need His strength -- we need His love -- in order to love like Him -- in order to be holy as He is holy
-- let's pray for that power now -- let's pray for His presence now -- and let's leave here loving as never before
-- as always, as the last hymn is played, the altar is open for any who wish to physically come before God -- to kneel before His presence -- for whatever reason -- maybe just because you need a moment with Him today
-- I'd be happy to pray with you if you want -- I'll ask you when you come forward, and if you just want to pray alone with God, just let me know
-- let us pray