Pray with me, please. Gracious and merciful Father, Lord, we praise you and thank
you for your marvelous love to us, that love which we see in
Christ by the teaching of your Holy Spirit, that love that we
remember that Christ died to save us from our sin. Teach us,
teach us, Lord, more of Christ. Teach us more of that love that
we might rejoice in it, that in your love we might love our
brothers and sisters in Christ. Gracious Lord, I pray that you
would enable me to bring your word clearly to your people today,
that your word might draw them, might comfort them in Christ.
Could it be, dear Father, that you might let us see the salvation
of your people? Make them willing, Lord, to come
to Christ. Cause them to see Your marvelous
love that they see in Christ as they see Him dying for them
on that cross. Thank You, Lord, for this picture
of Your love that You have given us. In Jesus' name I pray, Amen. Our text this morning is Colossians
3.14. But if you will, please turn
to 1 Corinthians 13 again. Verses 1 and 2 will be the first
that I will look at as we prepare to come to this Lord's Supper
table today. I'd like for each of us to look
at the love of Christ. The love of Christ that I pray
that you can see pictured on this table. But as we do that,
I hope and pray I don't confuse you, because I plan to use the
word charity interchangeably with the word love. Charity is
the old-fashioned, the old English word for love. But most of us,
unless you have somebody named charity living in your house,
you don't use that word very often. But I pray that God will teach
us about love. Because all that I've ever read,
all that I've ever heard about this mysterious thing called
love, particularly the love of God, either in books or sermons
or from God's people, has never really shown me what love is.
I didn't learn about love from people or even much about love
from God's Word. When we talk about love, you
and I are usually talking about the world's ideas about love. Like you, I suspect, I've been
in what I've called love many times. First time, I have some
pictures. I've been going through some
old pictures that my mother has saved a long time. I remember
this girl very Vividly, I was about three, and I think she
was four. I've always liked older women,
until I married Carol, and she's younger. I must say that. My first love was this four-year-old
girl, but that's not love, not the kind I want to talk about
today. It's that love of God that I want to talk about today.
People often call 1 Corinthians 13 the love chapter. But reading
this chapter of God's Word, as I have done many times, and I'm
sure you have as well, and we've already read it once in our Call
to Worship, that didn't teach me very much about love. Not
until I saw the love of Christ did these verses begin to make
any sense to me. In fact, what Paul says about
love here in 1 Corinthians 13 may prove to be a stumbling block.
It's a stumbling block to many people. They read it. They read about charity. They
read about God's love. But it proves to be a stumbling
block to many people because Paul puts charity or he puts
love on a very high level. Probably the highest level that
I can imagine. Paul seems to put love above
all of the other miraculous gifts and operations of God. Look at
it, please. In 1 Corinthians 13, verses 1
and 2, Paul says that, though I speak with the tongues of men
and of angels and have not charity, I don't have love, I have become
a sounding brass or a tinkling cymbal. 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'm 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 profits me nothing. Profits me nothing. I don't have
love. Turn please to James 1 verse
17. You see, most of my life, people
of divine have defined Christian love for me as charity, as Paul
seems to be doing here. If giving all of my goods to
feed the poor isn't Christian charity or Christian love, then
what is it? Well, let me begin to answer
that by saying that charity or love is a gift from God. It's not something that comes
from us. It comes from God. In that sense, love is like faith. It's a gift of God, lest any
man should boast. In James 1, verse 17, we're told
by the Holy Spirit Every good gift and every perfect gift is
from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom
is no variable, lest neither shadow of turning." Now turn
please to 1 Corinthians 12, verse 31. Charity, or love, is one
of God's good and perfect gifts. As it appears from Paul's advice
and counsel, a marvelous, a very high and important gift. 1 Corinthians
12, verse 31, where Paul says, But covet earnestly the best
gifts, and yet shall I unto you a more excellent way. Follow
after charity. You see how important charity
is? Love is very important. If you don't have it, you're
nothing. The best gift that there has ever been, I think, or that
will ever be given to men, is Jesus Christ. The next best gift
to ever come from God is the most holy and the ever-blessed
Spirit of God. And after that comes the gift
of eternal life, which is God's gift to us in Christ, and which
comes to us by the Holy Spirit of God. The gift of an everlasting
righteousness is the most valuable and wonderful gift, but so is
charity. Surely these are the best gifts
that Paul is talking about, but then Paul says, yet shall I unto
you a more excellent way, follow after charity. Turn please to
1 John chapter 4 and verse 8. The fountain of charity is God. And God is love. God is the fountain
of living waters, and charity is the river of pleasures which
flows from that fountain of God. And love is no less than the
self-moving, free, sovereign, discriminating, and everlasting
love of God to the sons of men, which is given to us in Christ
by the Holy Spirit. In 1 John 4, verse 8, the apostle
says, He that loveth not knoweth not God, for God is love. Then skipping down to verse 16,
1 John 4, verse 16, he says, And we have known and believed
the love that God has to us. God is love, and he that dwelleth
in love dwelleth in God, and God in him. Oh, that we all might
know this wonderful love of God. This was the love that the Son
of God saw in eternity when He looked at God. This love is what
the Son of God highly approved of, and it was with all of the
love of His deity that Christ Jesus undertook for us that which
secured His love for us in Him forevermore. God is the fountain
of charity, and love began with Him, and it flows to us in Christ. God the Father's love and the
love of the Son met together, as mercy and truth have done
ever since. And the love of both the Father and the Son was displayed
in the gift of God, which is Jesus Christ. And believers see
this love of God most clearly. They learn about the love of
God best when they look with spiritually given eyes at Jesus
Christ dying on the cross. Jesus Christ dying for them.
As John 3.16 says, so truly, God so loved the world that he
gave his only begotten Son that whosoever believeth in him should
not perish but have everlasting life. This is God's Word, John
3.16, and we believe it. This verse tells us about God's
love being revealed in Christ. But it's a verse that has misled
so many people of the world that I believe our Redeemer's love
is seen much more clearly when the Holy Spirit enables you to
see that Christ died for you. As John 15, verse 13 says, greater
love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his
friends. And Jesus is talking about His
own love there. His own love being revealed in
His own death for His people. I pray that you can see it, particularly
as we come to this Lord's Supper table today, that you can see
God's love in this picture as you see Jesus Christ dying for
your sin, dying for you. Jesus Christ, who is the Son
of God, is the real fountain of God's charity. The mediator
in His mediation is the only channel through which charity
flows to men. And the Holy Spirit, by God's
grace, is the river of life in which God's charity flows to
his people. This river of life is one of the streams of the
river of pleasure which makes glad the city of God. As Romans
5, verse 5 says, hope maketh not ashamed because the love
of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which
is given unto us. There is nothing more important
to God's people than the love of God that they see in Jesus
Christ. But have you ever wondered about
these two words, love and charity, which seem to mean the same thing?
If charity is the love of God flowing to us through Christ
by the power of the Holy Spirit, and so then charity is the love
of God in us, why does it have two names? First, charity. and then love. That thought has
puzzled a lot of people. I've asked several of you this
morning if you knew the answer. And I'm not sure that I can answer
it for you now. But let's look at it and pray
that the Holy Spirit will show us the difference. Did you notice
that charity is a word which is never used in the Old Testament?
I looked it up and confirmed it with Mark. If you did notice that, you might
ask, wasn't the charity of God flowing out to the church in
the Old Testament times too? Because in the Old Testament
we read about God showing mercy to thousands of them that love
Him, even in the law itself. We love Him. Well, there is much
said about the love of God in the Old Testament. And there
were many in the Old Testament church who did know God's love.
They enjoyed it. They exercised it. They confessed
it. But God's love always was and
it always will be a gift, a grace, and a blessing of the new and
better covenant. All of the ancient saints who
did enjoy it, enjoyed it by being in a covenant relationship with
God by virtue of their union with the covenant head. God's
love never came to them from the law. God's love never came
to them by the law, because the law works wrath, not love. Love comes to God's people from
God, through Christ. by the Holy Spirit, and so does
charity. But charity in the fullest sense
was never clearly revealed until God's love was seen in the Son
of God as he appeared in human nature and when Christ died on
the cross. In the fullness of time and at
the manifestation of Christ in the flesh, God's love appeared
in all of its glory, and believers saw in Christ that God so loved
the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever
believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life. This
love was promised long before, but the fullest revelation of
God's love was made at the appearing of Christ. As 1 John 4.9 says,
And this was manifest the love of God towards us, because that
God sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might
live through Him. Nor was the charity of Christ
fully revealed until His death took place. As 1 John 3.16 says,
Hereby perceive we the love of God, because He laid down His
life for us. It's in the death of Christ that
the charity of the Father and the Son is made manifest in the
fullest. We get this idea, this love of
God, when we see Jesus Christ. dying on the cross for our sins. Charity is not a word that is
ever used in the Old Testament, but love is used throughout the
Bible from Genesis to Revelation. Charity may be even a stronger
word, though, more important than the word love. I'm not sure. But God saves it for the New
Testament to talk about the death of His Son, revealing charity. Think about this too. The promised
Messiah was to be a king mediator, but the Messiah was to obtain
his kingdom by conquest. He was to vanquish and spoil
principalities and powers and to lead captivity captive before
he was to ascend to his mediatorial throne. So it was that Christ's
resurrection from the dead that all power in heaven and earth
was given to him and his power works by love. It was after his
death, which revealed God's love, when Christ ascended to heaven
and he was crowned with glory and honor. This is what Christ
called going into a far country to receive for himself the kingdom
in Luke 19 verse 12. He said, therefore, a certain
nobleman, which of course is Christ, A certain nobleman went
into a far country to receive for himself a kingdom and to
return. Turn please to Isaiah 51 and
verse 4. It was this exaltation of our
King Messiah, the resurrection of Jesus Christ, that new laws
were given and great changes were made as is generally the
case when new sovereigns invade and take a kingdom by conquest.
In Isaiah 51 verse 4, the prophet of God tells us that on the ascension
of Christ to the throne, a law was to proceed from Christ. God
says through Isaiah his prophet, hearken unto me, my people, and
give ear unto me, O my nation, for a law shall proceed for me
and I will make my judgment to rest for a light of the people."
Charity or love is a branch of that law. That law which was
to be given forth by the Son of God when he was exalted and
glorified in his human nature. This law which came forth from
Christ has two branches. The first branch is faith. Jesus
Christ is the author and finisher of our faith, as it says in Hebrews
12.2. Faith is one branch of this law
which came forth from Christ, and the other branch of the law
is charity or love. Jesus said in John 13, verse
34, a new commandment I give unto you, that you love one another
as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this
shall all men know that you are my disciples if you love one
another." I emphasize that Jesus repeated three times, love one
another. Turn please to Leviticus 19 verse
18. This love one another is a new
law. In Leviticus 19 verse 18, I want to look at the Old Testament
law. This law of love is called the New Commandment because it
makes the law of the former covenant old. The Old Commandment respects
the neighbor. In Leviticus 19, verse 18, it
says, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. But this new law
respects the children of God. It's the children of God who
are to love one another. Do you see the difference? Turn
again to 1 John 3.16 and let me show that to you. The old
commandment is, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. But
this new commandment goes farther. It says, Thou shalt love one
another as I have loved you. What John then explains in 1
John 3.16 when he says, Hereby perceive we the love of God,
Because He laid down His life for us and we ought to lay down
our lives for the brethren. Christ displayed His greatest
love in dying for His people. And He said, greater love hath
no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.
And greater charity hath no saint than this, to lay down his life
for the brethren. That's what Paul did. Paul said,
yea, and if I be offered upon the sacrifice and service of
your faith, I joy and rejoice with you all. Paul was willing
to die. Paul was willing to be sacrificed.
That's love. I said before that the law of
Christ has two branches. The first branch is faith, and
the second is love, and the apostle agrees with this. In 1 John 3,
verses 23 and 24, the Apostle said, and this is his commandment,
that we should believe on the name of the Son, Jesus Christ,
and love one another, as he gave his commandment. And he that
keepeth his commandments, to love one another, that commandment,
he that keepeth his commandments dwelleth in him, and he in him. And in Galatians 5, verse 6,
Paul says exactly the same thing that John said. Paul says, for
in Jesus Christ neither circumcision availeth anything, nor uncircumcision,
but faith which worketh by love. There are those two branches
of the new law again. Faith and love. Faith worketh by love. And this
is the law of love that came by Christ. And it's the Holy
Spirit which writes this new law in the hearts of every believer. And it's the same new law that
Paul means when he says in Romans 8-2, For the law of the Spirit
of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of
sin and death. When Christ Jesus gave the commandment
to his church that his gospel should be preached to all nations
for the obedience of faith, The end result, which the Son of
God intended in that command, was accomplished in every soul,
and to which this law of faith, which works by love, would be
written. Paul said in 1 Timothy 1, verse
5, Now the end of the commandment is charity, and out of a pure
heart, and of a good conscience, and of faith unfeigned. So I
pray that the Holy Spirit has shown you This fountain of love,
which is of God, the river of charity in which God's love flows,
is Jesus Christ, the King Mediator, and that God's love is the new
law of the Messiah, which is written in the hearts of all
of God's saints, when they have been given a pure heart, a good
conscience, and faith by the Holy Ghost. That's God's love,
or that's God's charity to his undeserving people. And so I
ask you, what is the object of God's love? Or maybe a better
way to ask the question would be to ask, who are the objects
of this charity? As this law of love is exercised
either by God the Father, by Christ the Son, or by the saints
of God in the power of the Holy Spirit. But be careful how you
answer this question. Because the answer is a gospel
truth which offends those who don't trust Christ or who don't
know the love of Christ. And the answer is not what the
world would give you. So please listen to me carefully
as I say this. Not every individual of mankind
is the object of God's love, nor is every man our neighbor. Well, I pray you can hear this.
When Christ gave us this new commandment, this law of love,
He didn't mention those who were outside of Christ. If He had,
then this new commandment wouldn't have been a new commandment.
It would have been the same old commandment. But this law of
love is a new commandment. Christ gave it to His church
and said that they should love one another, which means that
they would love the brethren in the Spirit's enabling power.
Go back to John 13 and verses 33 and 34 again, please. And
notice when it was that Jesus Christ gave this new commandment
to his church. It was that night in the upper
room when the apostles were all sitting together around the table.
It was a Passover meal that became the Lord's Supper. Judas had
already gone out after Christ had identified him as his betrayer. And in John 13, verses 33 and
34, Jesus is speaking to his apostles. He's speaking to his
church. He's speaking to his apostles whose job it would be
to give this new commandment to the church, which would then
rule over the lives of God's people. And Jesus very tenderly,
Jesus very lovingly says, little children, Yet a little while
I am with you, ye shall seek me. And as I said unto the Jews,
where I go you can't come. So now I say to you, a new commandment
I give unto you. Not give to the world, but give
to you, give to the church. A new commandment I give unto
you, that you love one another as I have loved you. that you
also love one another. Be charitable to one another
is what he's saying. Now turn to 1 Corinthians 11,
verses 26 to 29, please. Isn't it clear? I pray that it's
clear to you what Jesus is saying to his church. We should love
one another like Christ loved. We should be charitable to one
another, forgiving each other's sins. I know that the world says that
God loves everybody, but the elected or the chosen
children of God, according to Scripture, are the only objects
of this new commandment to love. Whether we consider it as being
exercised by God the Father, by Christ, or the Son of God,
by the Holy Spirit of God, or by the saints of God, this is
the commandment that God has given to His church. We who love
Christ are to love one another. Let me ask you, what is required
of those who come to this Lord's Supper table? I'd like for you
to think about that for a minute. What is required of you in order
to come to this Lord's Supper table? In 1 Corinthians 11 verses
26 to 29, God says this, For as often as you eat this bread
and drink this cup, you do show the Lord's death till he come. You do. You show the Lord's death
till he come. Wherefore, whosoever shall eat
this bread and drink this cup of the Lord unworthily shall
be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord. But let a man examine
himself, and so let him eat of that bread and drink of that
cup. For he that eateth and drinketh unworthily eateth and drinketh
damnation to himself, not discerning the Lord's body.
What is it that is shown forth only to the church, only to God's
church, in Christ's death. What do we see when we see Christ's
death for our sin? Clearly we see the love of God,
and so when we eat this bread and we drink this cup, what do
we show forth in the Lord's death? We show that we love God. We're
showing the Lord's love, not to the world,
but to those that Christ died for. No one else is able to see
the love of God. And what do we remember when
we come to this table? We remember Christ's death for
our sin, which is to say that we remember Christ's love for
us, which we see in His death for our sin. Turn, please, to
2 Chronicles 1, verses 1 to 3, please. When we come to the Lord's
Supper table, We're asked to examine ourselves not to see
if we have kept the law of the Old Covenant. Nobody has ever
been able to keep the law of the Old Covenant because we're
all sinners. If we were to examine ourselves
to see if we had any sin, no one would ever be able to come
to this table. But we are to examine ourselves
and we do it to see if we're in Christ. We ask ourselves,
do I believe that Jesus Christ died for me? And that in Christ's
death, my sin has been completely and totally forgiven? And so
then, if you find that you do believe these things, it can
only be because you are in Christ that you believe that Christ
died for you. So then, by the grace of God, you'll love God. You'll not only love Christ,
but you'll love his people too. Listen to this carefully. The
basis of a life in Christ is love. Christ's love for you and
your love for Christ. How can you love Christ and not
also love your brothers in Christ? I don't think it can be done.
This idea that is so often taught by the world that God loves everybody
was rebuked by God himself even under the Old Testament law.
In 2 Chronicles 1 verses 1 to 3, God's word says, And Jehoshaphat
the king of Judah returned to his house in peace to Jerusalem. And Jehu the son of Hanani the
seer, seer remember is a preacher, a prophet of God, the seer, went
out to meet him. And he said to King Hasaphat,
should you help the ungodly and love them that hate God? Therefore
is wrath upon thee, Jehoshaphat, from the Lord. Nevertheless,
there are good things found in thee, in that thou hast taken
away the groves out of the land and hast prepared thine heart
to seek God. Turn please to Deuteronomy 10
and verse 18. And let's think a little bit about the objects
of our love under this new law. Is it the world? Is that the
object of our love? Is it the church? Is it Christ? When you help people, when you
do good as you're able to people, surely that's a good thing. But
if you're a believer, I doubt that your real motivation in
doing these things is love. If those you are helping aren't
your brothers in Christ, I suggest that maybe your actions are not
done out of love, as I used to think that I did. It might be
pity, but I pray that your motivations would be that you want to bring
them to Christ. But if you excuse me, your motivation
may only be selfish. Don't we all like to be appreciated?
Don't we like to be recognized for the good things that we think
we do? And yet when you help others, you're providing for
them. And I suggest to you that very
well might be God's will for you to provide for others. But when we do for others, we
have to know that they all are not going to come to Christ.
We may pray that they would come to Christ, but our experience
is that they all won't come to Christ. They're sinners. And they need Christ. But you
can't love them like brothers if they don't know Christ. and
they won't come to Christ. So since you can't save the whole
world as you help others, and you're only providing for them,
you have to choose who it is that you're going to help. Your
love is both sovereign and discriminating as you give it out to those that
you choose to give it to, even it is with God Himself. But God
loves His own elect children He loves them with an everlasting
love. And all others only receive God's providence, not His love. I'm not saying at all that it's
wrong to help people. I would encourage you to help
people. But I can't love them when they're outside of Christ.
But as Deuteronomy 10, verse 18 clearly says about God, He
does execute the judgment of the fatherless and the widow
and loveth the stranger in giving him food and clothing. But God doesn't give Him His
Son. He doesn't give His Son to everyone. Christ only died
for those who were chosen in love by God. And so it seems
that God's elect are the objects of His eternal love in Christ.
All others are the creatures of His care, and they are only
supplied by God's providence not his love. God's love is discriminating
just as yours is because everyone doesn't share in it. God says
in Malachi 1, verses 2-4, I have loved you, saith the Lord, yet
ye say, wherein hast thou loved us? Was not Esau Jacob's brother,
said the Lord? Yet I loved Jacob, and I hated
Esau. and laid his mountains and his
heritage waste by the dragons of the wilderness. Whereas Edom
says, we are impoverished, but we will return and build the
desolate places. And thus saith the Lord of hosts,
they shall build, but I'll throw down and they shall call them
the border of wickedness and the people against whom the Lord
hath indignation forever. Turn please now to Matthew 10
and verses 24 and 25. There are some people that God
Himself says that He hates, and against whom the Lord has indignation
forever. Now I know that God in His nature
is love, and yet God has indignation against some. He hates some. And I know by much sad experience
that the carnal mind of every man is enmity, and the evil spirit
that reigns in him in his natural state lusts with envy. Yet still the commandments of
men tell us that we must live in charity with all men. We must
love everybody. That's what the world says. And
so the world is telling us that we must extend our love beyond
what God loves Himself. Because God doesn't extend His
external charity to all mankind. Yet the world says that we should
love everybody. And so the world calls us hypocrites
when we don't love everybody. But it's the world that gives
us the commandment to love everybody, not God. And what I know is that
God doesn't love everybody. But I'm fully persuaded that
God won't ever damn me because I can't exceed Him in His love. I know that first because I have
a Savior. I know Jesus Christ. But I also
believe that Jesus said in Matthew 10, verses 24 and 25, when He
said, the disciple is not above his
master. nor the servant above his Lord. It is enough for the
disciple that he be as his master and the servant as his Lord.
If they have called," or I'm going to translate that, maligned,
if they have maligned the master, maligned him saying that he was
of the house of Beelzebub, How much more shall they call, and
again that word is maligned, how much more shall they malign
them of his household? So I conclude that to live in
charity with all men is one of the doctrines, one of the commandments
of the world. It's not a commandment of God.
It's not a commandment of Christ. We should live at peace with
all men insofar as we're able. But that's a far different thing
than trying to love all men. We should be helpful to all of
those that we're able to help. If God gives us the skill to
help them, we should help them. It's God's will that we would
help them. I don't doubt that there are some who love the world
more than I do. Because although I confess I
can't love those that hate God, yet I am just as sure that those
who love the world hate all of those who love God. All love,
or all charity, is sovereign and discriminating, even in those
who say that they love everybody. And so it is in God himself who
is the fountain of charity. Love is sovereign and discriminating
in Christ Jesus, who, as our mediator, is the channel through
which this charity flows from God. All men don't share in Christ's
dying love. He said, I lay down my life for
the sheep, not for the goats, but for the sheep. But we also
read about those that Christ called herd of goats, foxes,
wolves, bears, swine, dogs, serpents, and a generation of vipers, he
called some, none of which were included in the dying charity
of the Son of God. Christ didn't die for them. And
just as they aren't all included in Christ's dying love, they
aren't all included in Christ's prophetic office of Savior either,
because Christ came for judgment into the world so that they that
see not might see, and so that they that see might be made blind. And our Savior thanks His Father
for hiding these things from the wise and the prudent, and
for revealing them unto babes. And then He says, even so, Father,
for so it seemed good in thy sight." So it appears very clear
to me that not all mankind, not even those who are called neighbors
by the world, are all the objects of God's charity. The elect of
God among men are the only objects of that divine charity which
comes from God, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Turn
please to Ephesians 1 verse 24. Charity, as I said before, is
a fruit of the Holy Ghost. Love is a gift of God. In the
newborn man of grace, among the members of God's body, love is
called true holiness. In Ephesians 4, verse 24, Paul
said, Put on the new man which after God is created in righteousness
and true holiness. Then turn to Ephesians 1, verse
4. Now turn to Ephesians 1, verse
4. And this true holiness is love.
Because in Ephesians 1, verse 4, Paul said, according as He
hath chosen us in Him before the foundation of the world,
that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love. Now I know that there are some
of you, as you hear me preaching, you may say to yourself, Well,
what if God hasn't chosen me? No matter what I do, if God hasn't
chosen me, I'm doomed because God doesn't love me. And so I
say to you that as long as you have no need for a Savior, you
may be right. I'm sorry about that, but God
may not love you. But I suggest that you do not
know that Because God has always provided for you. But hear this
carefully. It's very important. It isn't
God who rejects you. You're rejecting God. You're
rejecting His love if you will not come to Christ. Turn please
to Job 34 and verses 25 to 28. Only a fool who knows that he's a sinner
and that he can't save himself, will turn his back on God, refusing
to come to Christ. But like a hungry and a thirsty
man, a sinner who knows his need, who will seek after God when
you're affectionately called by God, God caused Christ to
be preached to you. God draws you by His Word. And
I pray that you might be drawn in your need to Christ But if
you turn your back on Christ, you're not one of His. God has
provided for you everything that you need. But if you turn your
back on Christ, that simply proves you're not one of His. You don't
need a Savior. You're never going to seek after
Christ. But like all of the others in the world who continue to
turn their back on God without a Savior, you'll be destroyed. As it says in Job 34, verses
25-28, it says, Therefore He knoweth, God knows, He knoweth
their works. He knows their sin, in other
words. And He overturneth them in the night, so that they're
destroyed. He strikes them as wicked men
in the open sight of others. Because why? Well, they turn
their back on Him. and would not consider any of
his ways, so that they caused the cry of the poor, the poor
and needy sinner, they caused the cry of the poor to come unto
him. And he heareth the cry of the afflicted. Those blessed
people who are the children of God because he loves them, he
will make them willing to come to him, and God will draw them
by his word, causing them to come to Christ in love. that
if you aren't willing, you won't come. But to those who do come
to Christ, God will say to them that they all have one Father,
even God. They all have one Father, and
He tells them that they are all brothers in Christ. And He commands
them that they love one another as I have loved you. And they
will love Him, and they're brothers. But God doesn't extend his love
or ask you to love any farther than to love one another. All
else is just providing for the world. The subjects of God's
grace, therefore, are the only objects of his charity. As 1
John 5 says, whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ is born
of God. And everyone that loveth him that begat loveth him also
that is begotten of him. Turn, please, to 1 Peter 4, verses
6 to 8. John is saying that God will
be the object of a believer's love. It's something that comes
with a believer's new nature. You don't have to work at it.
You love God. Peter isn't denying that all
of those who are born of God will love God, but Peter adds
our brothers to the objects of our love. And so together in
love, we are all in Christ as one family of God. In 1 Peter
4, verses 6 to 8, he says, For this cause was the gospel preached
also to them that are dead, that they might be judged according
to men in the flesh, but live according to God in the Spirit.
But the end of all things is at hand. Be ye therefore sober,
and watch unto prayer, And above all things, have fervent charity
among yourselves, for charity shall cover the multitude of
sins. And then, skipping to verse 10, it says, As every man hath
received the gift, that's the gift of love, even so minister
the same one to another as God's stewards of the many-fold grace
of God. Peter is telling God's people to have perfect charity
among themselves. And in 2 Thessalonians 1.3, Paul
says, We are bound to thank God always for you, brethren, as
it is meet, because that your faith groweth exceedingly, and
the charity of every one of you all toward each other aboundeth. John, Peter, and Paul are each
saying exactly the same thing. Those who are born again in Christ
Those who are filled with the Spirit of Christ will love God. They will also love His Son,
Jesus Christ, and they will love their brothers in Christ. They love willingly, but they
also love with an abundant love. It's part of a believer's nature
to love God and their brothers. But nothing is said about love
going beyond God and the Church of God. That's a guilt trip that
the world tries to lay on us, and by which they find fault
with us, we don't do that with our family. Turn please to 1 John 15 and
verse 5. This abounding charity was toward
each other. And so it appears that charity
is sovereign and discriminating even in God the Father, Son,
and Holy Spirit. And it will be hard to work It
will be hard work to prove from God's Word that all mankind are
the objects of a saint's love according to this new commandment.
That's especially true because God says to us in 1 John 15 verse
5, Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world.
If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in
him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the
lust of the eyes and the pride of life is not of the Father,
it's of the world. Gospel charity will always embrace
a child of God. When a sinner, as a sinner, he
first sees that Christ died for him, taking away all of his sin.
But as Jesus said in John 6, verse 45, it is written in the
prophets, and they shall be all taught of God. Every man, therefore,
that hath heard, hath learned of the Father, cometh unto me.
And as Paul said in 1 Thessalonians 4, 9, but as touching brotherly
love, you need not that I write unto you. For ye yourselves are
taught of God to love one another. God's people love God and they
love their brothers. We are all one family in Christ's
love. And this is a family supper that
we're about to come and eat this morning. And so I ask you again
to search your hearts. examine yourselves, asking this
question of yourself. Do you love God? I know that
you do if by God's grace He has taught you that Christ died for
you, saving you from your sin. And I'm also asking you, do you
love your brothers? Again, I know that you do because
if you're a child of God, you have been taught by God to love
one another. And so this morning, if you have
learned to love from Christ, Then I invite you to come to
this Lord's Supper table, come in loving worship, remembering
that Christ died to save you from your sin, and because of
that, you know and you see God's marvelous love for you. But He
also died for the others that are here too. These are your brothers, and
love them. We all come together in love
to our Lord's Supper table. And for those of you who do not
yet know this love of Christ, it is my prayer that you might
look to Christ. Look to Christ, whose body was
broken and His blood was shed, that sinners might have life
in Him. If you know that you are a poor and needy sinner without
a Savior, then I pray that you would right now bow your rebellious
heart to Christ. Come to Christ in prayer. Pray
that God might give you that wonderful gift of love for Christ
and His brothers. Gracious Father, we would love
You more. Oh, I pray that we could love
You more. We would ask to love one another more too, Lord. We
pray that as we look at this picture of the broken body of
Christ Your Son, as we look at this picture of His shed blood,
that we all might see this marvelous love that sent Him to save us
and that caused Him to die in our place. And, O dear Father,
may the result of that be that we would all love You and our
brothers as You have commanded us to do. In Christ's name, Lord,
we have come to You. In Christ's name, we come to
this table. It is only in Christ that we are able to love. And
so I pray that You might increase our love as You increase our
faith, our faith of Christ, in whose name we pray. Amen. Craig
and Cass, would you come please and serve the Lord's Supper table
to those who are washed in Christ's blood and who therefore will
come to this table by the faith of Christ and union with Christ,
confessing Christ as their Savior and of their love for Him and
for their brothers. Oh, gracious Father, as we come to this table, we
do come confessing that we're only sinners. But we praise you,
Lord, because we're saved by your grace. We're saved by your
love. You have washed us with Christ's
blood. We come to you in love. We come remembering together
as your people. that it was Jesus Christ who
died for our sin and that it is His blood that washes away
our sin. What love that is. Father, may
we feed on that love for all eternity as You enable us to
feed spiritually on His body and His blood here today. That
body and blood which was shed that we might have life in Him. Amen. so so That last Passover night as Jesus
was with his church, with the apostles, as they read Jesus
took the bread, and he blessed it, and he broke it. And then
he told them about this marvelous picture. He said, take, eat. This is my body, as he gave it
to the disciples. Dear Lord, we praise You for sending us
a Savior. We know that it is only in Christ, only by the washing
of His blood that we're justified, that we're sanctified, that we're
saved, that we be made righteous in Him. And so, Lord, we have
come as sinners to Your table. saved only by Your love, by Your
grace, and by Your mercy, which we see in Christ's death as He
died in our place. In Your power, dear Father, may
we live as one in Christ. May we live for Your glory, serving
You as Your loving servants. In the name of Christ we come
to You, and in His name we pray. Amen.