Love One Another And Prepare To Be Hated

Q: What does the Bible say about loving one another?

The Bible commands us to love one another as Christ loved us (John 15:12). In John 15:12, Jesus specifically commands His disciples to love one another as He has loved them. This commandment underscores the importance of love within the Christian community and serves as a defining characteristic of true discipleship. The love He describes is sacrificial and unconditional, mirroring His own love demonstrated on the cross. This concept of love is not merely a suggestion but an imperative for believers to follow, illustrating the relational nature of God and His desire for His followers to reflect His love to the world.

Q: How do we know that we are chosen by God?

Jesus confirms our election by stating, 'You have not chosen me, but I have chosen you' (John 15:16). In John 15:16, Jesus reinforces the doctrine of election by asserting that it is He who chooses us, not the other way around. This election is rooted in God's sovereign grace and emphasizes that our faith and relationship with Him stem from His choice rather than our own merit. This truth is a source of comfort and assurance for believers, affirming that our salvation is not based on our works but on God's unmerited favor. Furthermore, understanding our election fosters humility and gratitude, driving us to live in accordance with His will and to bear fruit in our lives.

Q: Why is it important for Christians to endure persecution?

Enduring persecution is essential for Christians as it aligns us with Christ, who also faced hatred and persecution (John 15:18-20). In John 15:18-20, Jesus explicitly warns His disciples that they will face hatred and persecution because they are His followers. Understanding this inevitability is crucial for Christians, as it prepares them to stand firm in their faith despite opposition. Endurance during persecution serves multiple purposes: it identifies believers with Christ, strengthens their character, and provides opportunities to witness to the truth of the Gospel. Moreover, enduring suffering for Christ's sake not only glorifies Him but also encourages fellow believers to remain steadfast in their faith. This perspective helps Christians see persecution not as a hindrance, but as a part of their calling in following Jesus.

Q: What does it mean to bear fruit as a Christian?

Bearing fruit means producing works and characteristics that reflect Christ's love and glory (John 15:16). In John 15:16, Jesus states that He has ordained His followers to go and bear fruit, specifically fruit that remains. This fruit encompasses the manifestation of Christian character and conduct, which includes the love for God and fellow believers, as well as good works that honor God. Bearing fruit is a natural outcome of a close relationship with Christ, as He is the vine and we are the branches (John 15:5). It emphasizes that true faith is evidenced by actions that mirror Christ's love and teachings. Additionally, the fruit produced in a believer's life should result in the glorification of God, demonstrating the transformative power of the Gospel.

Q: Why do Christians face hatred from the world?

Christians face hatred because they are not of the world, and the world hated Christ before them (John 15:19). As outlined in John 15:19, Jesus explains that His followers will experience hatred from the world because they do not belong to it. This enmity stems from the stark contrast between the values of the world and the teachings of Christ. The world tends to embrace self-centeredness, pleasure, and autonomy, while true discipleship calls believers to self-denial, sacrifice, and devotion to Christ. Therefore, when Christians uphold the truth of the Gospel, they often provoke a negative reaction from those who are aligned with worldly principles. This hostility serves as a reminder of the spiritual battle and the necessity for believers to remain steadfast in faith, grounded in the victory Christ has already secured.

That a man lay down his life
for his friends. And you are my friends if you
do whatsoever I command you. Henceforth I call you not servants,
for the servant knoweth not what his Lord doeth. But I have called
you friends. For all things that I have heard
of my Father I have made known unto you. You have not chosen
me, but I have chosen you and ordained you. That you should
go and bring forth fruit. And that your fruit should remain.
That whatsoever you shall ask of the Father in my name, he
may give it to you. These things I command you, that
you love one another. If the world hate you, you know
it hated me before it hated you. If you are of the world, the
world would love his own, but because you're not of the world,
but I've chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth
you. Remember the word that I said unto you, the servant is not
greater than his Lord. If they have persecuted me, they
will also persecute you. They kept my say, and they will
keep yours also. But all these things will they
do unto you for my name's sake, because they know not him that
sent me. If I had not come and spoken
unto them, they had not had sin, but now they have no cloak or
excuse for their sin. He that hateth me hateth my Father
also. If I had not done among them
the works which none other man did, they had not had sin, but
now have they both seen and hated both me and my Father. But this
cometh to pass, that the word might be fulfilled that is written
in their law even. They hated me without a cause. Psalm 35. When the Comforter
is come, though, whom I will send unto you from the Father,
even the Spirit of truth which proceedeth from the Father, he
shall testify of me, and you also shall bear witness, because
you have been with me from the beginning. And I don't believe we'll take
up an offering this evening. I believe everyone was here this
morning. Let's bow for a prayer. Let's turn back to John 15 that
we read. John 15, the theme of this passage
of Scripture, I believe, is, well, I entitled it this,
Love one another, but prepare to be hated. Love one another,
but prepare to be hated. And the theme of this passage
of Scripture, I believe, is It deals mainly with the enmity
and the persecution that will arise against true disciples
of Jesus Christ. Persecution. And our Lord is
warning his disciples of the inevitable consequences of taking
up his cross and following him, of boldly proclaiming the gospel,
of seeking Christ's glory. alone at the expense of the glory
of man, of seeking his glory alone, and that will bring about
inevitable persecution or consequences. If you dare to preach or to speak
the truth, you will suffer persecution, because it's the sad fact that
people are still saying today. As they did when Jeremiah spoke
this, they're still saying today to the seers, and that's what
I am. That's what you are. If you see
the truth of God's gospel, you're a seer. You see things clearly. A seer. If they're saying still
today to the seers, don't see. See not. We don't want to. We
don't want to. What you don't know won't hurt
you. They're still saying today to the prophets, and there are
still a few men, I believe, that could possibly be spoken of as
prophets, not in a prophetical sense as foretelling future things,
as Isaiah and some of them, but men who preach in that sense
of the word, who prophesy the truth. They're saying to these
prophets, prophesy smooth things. Don't prophesy hard things. Don't
tell us the truth. Brag on us. Don't make us feel
bad. Don't make us feel so sinful. Make us feel good. Or in the
words of the leading professor of theology at Liberty Baptist
Theological Seminary, this man said, you give people what they
want. And they'll give you what you
want. And that's what they're in for. What they can get out
of people. And that's what people have their
little preacher's for. So they can get out of them what
they want. They can hear the things they
want to hear. Not God's preacher though. And the true disciple.
You people. The true disciple, the true preacher
is interested in and wants. Now that man said you give people
what they want. They'll give you what you want. The true disciple,
the true preacher wants one thing, Christ to be glorified, Christ
to be honored, to be told the truth about their soul, their
condition before this God, to be told the truth of how we may
know God. Tell us the truth about God.
Don't tell us what you think. Tell us what God says, right?
To glorify God is the true desire of a real disciple and a real
preacher. So the Lord is warning. He's
warning the disciples here, and he's warning us of what is ahead,
what's ahead of us if we dare to merely speak the truth, just
to preach the truth, the naked Word of God in all its truth
and authenticity. You dare to do that, you'll have
a fight on your hands. It's amazing. It's absolutely
amazing, but this is the way it is. Now, it's remarkable. was the song she requested, and
the songs we sung, even that last verse of that song requested. Oh, the love. It's remarkable
how that we get right back into this thing that we've studied
so often, this thing that seems to summarize discipleship. It seems to characterize true
membership in Christ's church. And I'm speaking of love, love. It's amazing how we get right
back into this. I didn't plan it this way. I
really did not plan it this way. Time would not allow us to go
on to verse 12 the last time we met together. Here we are. We dealt with that love anyway
the last time. Look at verse 12 with me. Now,
Christ had been talking to his disciples about keeping his commandments,
or that is, taking to heart his word, believing, receiving, acting
upon, remembering the things that he spoke unto us by his
word. And he says this in verse twelve,
Now this is my commandment. This is my commandment. I'd like to have heard him say
this, the voice that he said it in, the look in his eye. This is my commandment, that
you love one another as I have loved you. This is my commandment,
as if to say that this is of utmost importance. Wasn't it said in one place,
all the law is fulfilled in this one word? Love thy neighbor as
thyself. Didn't it say that? Didn't he
say himself, by this shall all men know you are my disciple? He's about to leave his disciples,
he's about to go to the cross, he's about to leave them for
an indefinite period of time, and the last thing he says to
them, the last instructions he gives to them, with the exception
of when he said, go ye into all the world and preach the gospel,
but one of the last things he said to them, commandment, he
said, now you love one another as I've loved you. Talking to
the disciples, talking to them personally. You love one another. Not a request. But a command. As we said this morning, as we
saw this morning, kings don't make requests. No, they don't. They give commands. They give
commands. And he commands us to love one
another. Well, he said, you can't force love. That's right. We can't. He can't. With the
commandment, he gives the ear to hear it, the heart to receive
it, and the power to do it. He can, he can force this love
in us. He must, mustn't he stand? He
must put it there or it won't be there. He must. And this is
the reason, let me get off on this a little bit, this thing
of an invitation as opposed, or a command as opposed to an
invitation. This is the reason the gospel is not an invitation,
because of our inability. He can't invite us to do what
we cannot do, can he? Believe on Jesus. You can't.
No man can come unto the Father, come unto me and accept the Father
which is sent me to draw him. Right? You cannot believe unless
God gives you the gift. It's the reason it's a command.
It must be a command. And he must give the power with
the command. It's a command because of who proclaims it. Like I said,
I say this emphatically, God never makes requests. God That's
a misnomer for God to ask anything, for God to invite to do anything. No, He commands. God speaks and
it's done. Have I not spoken and shall it
not come to pass, He said? I mean, God speaks and things
happen that moment. He said, Love on earth. And if
He tells you that, if the Holy Spirit applies to your heart,
you will. You will, and only then. And
this is, in the same sense, Whatever God says, he said, this is my
son. Would you please hear him? No. This is my son. Now hear it. Now hear it. And this is, we go into all the
world and preach the gospel. And we, it's a proclamation rather
than an invitation. Proclamation. This is wherein
we differ so much with primetime preachers, primetime prophets,
P-R-O-F-I-T. That's where we differ. We go
out proclaiming the Lordship of Christ and the duty of all
men everywhere to believe Him and bow down before Him and worship
Him. Not an invitation. And Christ says here, love one
another. And with the command, I said,
comes the strength to carry it out. How else can we explain? How else can we explain the love
that this little scraggly group has
to one another, this group of misfits. My pastor preached a
message one time called, entitled, The King and His Motley Crew.
That's what those disciples were, a rag-tag bunch of chosen people,
vessel. But you take different people
from different walks of life, some educated, some uneducated,
most uneducated, and from different places here and there, different
personalities, different likes and dislikes, and all of a sudden,
they love one another. All of a sudden, perfect strangers
at one time, and then it seems like overnight, bosom buddies,
lovers, friends, close friends and confidants. How do you explain
that except by the power of God? The command, the strength that
comes from with this command. You love one another. You love
one another. And I want you to note the extent
that we're to love one another. Verse 12. He says that we love
one another as I've loved you. Do you remember our study on
a true Christian marriage? What did he say to the men? Husbands,
love your wives. Well, how? As Christ loved the
church and gave himself for it. And the same thing applies to
God's church, to God's membership, his body. He gave himself for
it, and in one place he said, I approve the sincerity of your
love. You see these preachers, and you hear people all the time
say, I love you. But that's just, you take that with a grain of
salt unless a man proves it, unless a man shows it. If your
husband, if that's the only way that he displayed his love to
you, by saying it, and he did things, that did not show it,
or did not do things that would show it. You'd take it with a
grain of salt, wouldn't you? But if he does things to prove
that love, and Christ tells us to present our bodies a living
sacrifice to Him, to God, and to one another. A living sacrifice. That's what we're for. That's
exactly what we're for. This is not just so much religious
rhetoric. I'm saying this because things
say, and it sounds real good. and ideology, this is true. This is God's Word. This is our
purpose for existence. This is the reason he placed
us in the body, not for ourselves. The Church doesn't exist for
us. We exist for the Church. It's true. It's true. And we're
to lay down our lives, we'll present our bodies, we're to
lay down our lives for the brethren, and sisters, and sisters. 4, look at verse 13. He says,
hath no man than this, no greater show of love. There's no greater
show or manifestation of one's love to somebody else than this,
that a man lay down his life for his friends. Did you notice that there? I
noticed this the other day for the first time. Greater love
hath no man than this, and he lay down his life for his friends. You see particular redemption
there? God has some enemies, but he makes us. He's broken
down that enmity in us, and he calls us friends. You'll see
that in a minute here, where he calls us friends. I see particular
redemption right there, that Christ laid down his life for
his friends. We say everybody hates him by
nature. Yeah, but he makes us friendly. He's reconciled us
to himself. Friendly. But oh, what love! This speaks primarily of the
Lord Jesus Christ himself. What love He displayed for us
in laying down His life on Calvary's tree and taking in His body upon
that tree, all the guilt and the shame and the sin of us,
the punishment that was due us for our wickedness. There is
no greater show of love than for a man to become somebody
else's substitute, to take what somebody else had coming. illustration
of the big fella that took the young little fella's whipping
for stealing his mosh. I know you've heard that many
times. No greater show of love than to actually take the blame
for somebody else. You do it for your children,
you do it for your spouse, maybe your parents, you do it. He did
it for us. No greater show of love anywhere
than him taking this wrath and this punishment of God that was
due unto us. Why did he do this? Why? Because
He loved us. Because He loved us. He loved the unlovely. The altogether
lovely one loved the altogether unlovely one. I mean, there's
nothing lovely about it, says the Bible. Nothing. You're a
worm. We're worms. I'm a worm, too.
We're altogether unlovely. There's nothing really when you
feel. If you know yourself, if you know just a speck about yourself,
you know that's true, don't you? That there's nothing lovely about
us. And how could the altogether lovely one love the unlovely
such as he did? He just up and did it. Unconditional
love. Not based upon anything. On the
contrary. On the contrary. Not based upon
anything we do to earn it. But on the contrary, just freely
loved. And no greater show of love ever.
no greater show of love ever than what Christ did upon Calvary's
tree. Now, if he did this for such
maggots, if the King of glory left that throne, the altogether
lovely one, he who was without spot or blemish and altogether
loved the rose of Sharon, the lily of the valley, that beautiful
spotless Son of God came down here and and because he loved
us and laid down his life for us and put up with all that spitting
and shame and all that for us. Should it be too hard a thing
for us to love our equal or somebody better? We're supposed to esteem
others better than ourselves. Should it be too hard for us
to love somebody who is at least our equal? Probably better. Should it be too hard for For
Stan to love Henry is a much better man. In your eyes, that's
what you should just think about him, right? And we're both equal
in God's sight. But you should esteem him better
than you, and you ought to love him with every fiber of your
being. Christ did. He loved people so far beneath
him. Well, look at verse 14. He says,
Now you're my friends, and I've given you a commandment. Now,
you're my friends if you do whatever I command of you. Right? You're my friend." We saw how
that he's a friend that's thicker, closer than a brother. And you
know, Abraham was called the friend of God. What about Christ?
That applies more to Christ than even Abraham. Christ, God's friend. Can I use that illustration? Why? You're my friend if you
do what I command you. Christ, he said, that's what
Christ said, the Father loves me because I do his will. Because
I do whatsoever things he commands me to do. And he loves me for
it. He loves me. He loves me. A true
test of real devoted friendship is to call upon somebody to do
something for you and they're willing to do it at any time,
any place, cost what it may. A true friend now. The old saying
is, a friend in need is a friend indeed. Right? And so many of
you have proved that friendship to me here lately. But suppose
I called up one of you in a time of need. Suppose I called you
up and it was 2, 3 a.m. You had to go to work the next
morning, 5, 6 a.m. or whatever. I called somebody. I'll take
Henry. I've got a problem here. I'm
out here and down the street from me here. I'm broken down.
My car is broken down. Care to come help me? 2, 3 a.m.
Henry said, why don't you call somebody else? You know what
time it is? Goodness gracious. Call Stan.
He ain't got anything to do. I got to sleep. Would he be my
friend? Really now. Now he might, a true
friend now, do it. He'll do it. That's the reason
I don't hesitate to call upon people, obviously. I don't hesitate
to call upon people to do things for me. Because I like for people
to do the same to me. I truly enjoy people asking me
to do things for them. The opportunity. You don't get
very many opportunities to really help out somebody that needs
you. And they appreciate it so much,
and really, it's more blessed to give than to receive. It really
is. If you've experienced it all, you know what I'm talking
about. It's a blessing. It's a blessing to be able to feel
like you've actually helped somebody. And they thank you. Don't thank
me. At least I wanted to do it. That's what you say. That's a
friend. That's a friend. A friend indeed. A real friend
will do anything for you, anytime, because he loves you. And that's
what Christ did for us, didn't he? That's what he did for us,
and he commands the same thing of us toward him and toward one
another. Same thing. Same thing. This
thing of friendship deals especially with God's people who love Christ
and have the love of God shed abroad in their hearts. You are
my friends. You are Christ's friends and
his disciples, truly. The world will know you're his
disciples if you drop everything and go help a brother at your
own expense. That's how the world will know
to some degree, to some degree. Verse 15. I call you not servants. From
now on, I'm not going to call you servants. You remember where
we studied there in Galatians how he said you're not the servant.
The child differs nothing from a servant for a while because
he's under tutors and governors and so forth and under the law. You're no longer under the law.
You're no longer a servant here. And Christ's saying this very
thing here. You're not a servant. I don't call you a servant anymore.
I call you a friend. Abraham. I don't know if God
ever said this to him personally, they called him his friend. I
don't see that the scriptures testify of the fact that that
Abraham was God's friend. But God did speak to him face
to face as a friend with friend. And he's calling us. You think
about that, Harry, so you're God's friend. Well, you see,
you feel so Friendly, most of the time, don't you? Unworthy.
Oh, you see, how can you esteem me a friend? In Christ, that's
how, because Christ was a true friend of God. But he says here,
I'm calling you friends. My, my. It's a blessing to have
friends, but above all, to have Him. Have Him as our friend,
and be esteemed by Him as His friend. You think about that.
You think about that. Call us friends. Why? Because he said, I'm calling
you free because I'm letting you in on everything. I'm letting
you in on things. I'm telling you secrets. I'm
confiding in you. I'm giving you confidence. All
things that I've heard of my father, I'm making known to you.
I came to you personally, and I'm telling you. And this is
what the blessed privilege of hearing the gospel is. Everybody
had heard of John. Everybody didn't know it. Everybody
doesn't know, everybody hasn't received the gospel that we're
hearing here. God's letting you in on it. What a privilege. It's
the reason we don't thank people. Oh, we're so glad to see so-and-so
here today, and why don't you give him a big hand for being
here. That's almost what preachers would have us do. Let's all go
greet Brother Bill. He's here. No, Brother Bill,
you come and thank us for the privilege of you being here. Brother Bill has something to
say. Oh, I'm so glad to be here. Thank God for the privilege of
being here. What a privilege it is to be
a member of God's church and to hear this gospel. But for
him to esteem us as his friends, and in the same way, too, that
David was called a man after God's own heart. You're his people. If you're
his children, you're just like David. You're a man or a woman
after God's own heart. That's the way he esteems you.
That's too big for me. Too much for me. What is God's
heart? What is the apple of God's eye?
What is foremost on God's heart and mind? His Son. This is the
reason he said this is the work of God. This is what God requires
of you. This is what God delights in
you. More than anything, this is the reason God loves you.
If you love the Son, God will honor those that honor the Son.
Right? So you're a man after God's own, a woman after God's
own heart. If you love the Son of His heart
and esteem Him more than anything else and worship Him and exalt
Him, you're a man or a woman after His own heart. But God
has spoken unto us by His Son. He's let us in on the mysteries
of the universe, this mystery that's been kept hid from the
ages, this mystery of the gospel. We thank you, Lord, for the rain. All things, he said, I've heard
of my father, I've made known unto you. All things. What things? Everything we need to know. That's
what you said back there in your study. Everything we need to
know. The woman at the well went back and told her husband, or
told Christ, when Christ comes, he'll tell us all we need to
know. And what did Christ say in that very next verse? He said,
I am he. That's all she needed to know.
Him. And He revealed Himself to her.
That's all you need to know because He's made unto us wisdom, righteousness,
sanctification, redemption, all those things. We know. We know. Because all the fullness dwells
in Him. All the treasures of wisdom and
knowledge dwell in Him. And He led us in on the mysteries
of the universe by revealing Himself to us. I'm telling you. I'm telling you. Verse 16. And
let me say this, too, though. Flesh and blood didn't reveal
it to us. We didn't figure this thing out, did we? He revealed
it. The gospel's a revelation. It's another reason we don't
ask men. Don't invite people and request and so forth. It's
a revelation. What we do, who we ask. We ask
God to accept men. We ask God to reveal himself
to men. We don't ask men to accept God. I got this thing all backwards.
Now, we're calling on God, not calling on men. They've got this
thing all backwards, cart before the horse, you know. They've
got men asking, or they've got God asking men to let him save
them. No, we ask God to save people. God, won't you please save so-and-so.
God, won't you please speak. Reveal yourself to us. That's
the way it is. It's a revelation. Verse 16,
now he says this, he says, all things I've heard of my father
I've made known unto you. Now you remember this, he said,
you haven't chosen me. You have not chosen me, but I
have chosen you. Don't you ever forget that. It's
called election. Don't you forget it. Oh boy,
I bless God. I bless God for election. How
I bless His holy name for it's more than a doctrine. It's my
salvation. It's election unto salvation.
I bless Him for it. Oh, how I bless Him for election.
Blessed be the Father, blessed be the Son, and blessed be the
Holy Spirit who elected us unto salvation. We're bound. Paul
said to the Thessalonians, we're bound to give thanks, aren't
we, beloved of the Lord? Because God has from the beginning
chosen you. Because you didn't choose him.
Oh, tis not that I have chosen thee. Lord, that could not be.
If thou hast not chosen me, I would never have chosen thee. Right? You know what I chose? You know
what you chose, don't you? Sin. That's what Adam chose. He's a whole lot better man than
any, or he was a whole lot better woman than anybody in here. What
did they choose? Evil, sin, rebellion. And that's
what we chose, didn't we? Until he chose us. He chose our
choosings for us. It's God that worketh in us both
to will, to choose, to choose. There is a choosing in us, but
he does it. He causes us to approach unto
him, bound to give thanks, bound to. As long as we have breath
in our body, we're bound to give thanks to God for our election. I love that word, aren't you
sure? Love it! More than just a word, more than
just a doctrine. It blesses my heart to think that this God
would choose me to think about. Look at this, too. See, he has
the audacity to say this. You didn't choose me. I've chosen
you and ordained you. Predestination? I don't have
anything but that. Oh, no, I love it. I love it. Why? It's God's word. It tells
me what He did for me. And I say, what's wrong with
everybody? What is wrong with this generation? What is wrong? These are glorious truths from
God's Word. God would up and choose them
and predetermine for the foundation of the world that they wouldn't
go to hell. And predetermine that they're
going to be like Christ and set out to do it. And do it and make
it sure. Become their surety. It says,
Rejoice the hearts of God's people from the beginning. What's wrong
with people? I don't understand it. This was our topic last Sunday
morning. Why? Why do the heathen rage
upon this? Why? Somebody just growls when
you talk about Romans 9. Why? I don't understand. I don't understand. Therefore, where the elect don't
growl at it, they praise him for it. They shout about it.
The elect, the ordained, as many as were ordained in turn, I believe.
I believe. That means I was ordained. Hallelujah. Somebody shout hallelujah. I
love it. I love it. As many as were ordained
unto eternal life, believe. Now they don't, they're not ordained
because they believe. They believe because they were
ordained. Right? Right. Believe what? Whatever he says. The election,
predestination, Christ. Believe him. Whatever the Lord
says, they believe it and love it. Love to have it so. Verse
16. I've ordained you. I've ordained you that you should
go and bring forth fruit. Fruit. Now, what is the fruit
of the Spirit? We just looked at it this morning. What's that first fruit? Love. There he goes. Love. And he said back in verse 9 of
this same chapter, he says, does the Father have to love me? So
have I loved you, and continue ye in my love." Continuing. Abiding love. Abiding love. He said, I've ordained
you that you should bring forth this fruit of love. This fruit
of love. Love to God. Thanks be unto God
He ordained us to love Him, because we would never have loved Him.
Love to Christ. We would never have loved Christ.
We would have hated Him. Spit it out. Spit this. We did.
We did. And one another, we'd hate, we'd
be a sovereign grace hatin' Armenian right out there right now, spewin'
out our blasphemies, hatin' this little band of people, and there's
a church down there, actually, believe, predestination. You
know what God's Word says? They hate you. They hate you.
And we'd be the same if God had not shed this love abroad in
our heart, love for His Word, love for one another, love for
Christ, love for everything about God and Christ. love of God shed
abroad. He ordained Judas, you'd bring
forth this fruit primarily, and that that fruit should remain.
Preservation. Perseverance. He who ordained that we would
have it, ordained us to keep it. He said, my sheep will never
perish. Love never fails. If God wants,
God plants his true love for Christ for himself. In us, love
for it will never fail. Now, they went out from us because
they were not of us. If they were of us, they no doubt
would have remained with us, right? Because love never fails.
You say you're my disciple, well, you love him and he loves you
and you ain't going nowhere, right? You're not going to fall
out with him, are you? No, you love him. Love never
fails. Love never, that your fruit should remain. Because
we're kept by the power of God. He says this for further comfort,
verse 16. He says this for further encouragement. Whatever you ask the Father in
my name, he'll give it to you. Why? Because the Father sent
Christ because of his love for us. And the scriptures say, how
shall he not with him also freely give us all things? He sent Christ,
the Son of His love, because He loved us. Now, how shall He
not, with Christ, with Him, also freely give us all things? He'll
keep us, and He'll grant our request. Verse 17. Now, these
things I command you, He's reiterating, He's repeating Himself here,
because of the seriousness of it, the importance of it. These
things I command you, that you love one another, love one another,
It's a shame he has to tell us this, isn't it? Such a shame. It's to our shame and our guilt
that he has to tell us this. Now, Roberta, you love Sherry,
and you love her. You say, well, I do. Well, there
come a time when you, you know, you love her. You love her. Terry, you love Stan. Stan, you
love Rick. Rick, you love Charles. Charles,
you better be loving Barbara. and so forth. You love one another. That's what he's saying here.
Thomas, now you love old Peter. Peter, you love John. John, Andrew,
you love one another. That's my commandment now. It's
almost like a parent telling two children, you know, that
they're prone to getting scrappy. Stephen, now you love Catherine,
right? That's what he's saying to us.
You love him now. Oh, you know what he did to me?
You love him. You are lovely. You love him. That's what he's saying. Love
one another. Because, listen to this, in the context right
here of what he's about to say. Because now more than ever we
need it. We need one another. I told this to one of our ladies
the other day. I said, y'all are not going to
You know, I want you right here for the next 40 years. I need
you. I mean that. And I hope you feel that way
about everybody here. I need you. I need you. I don't want you going anywhere.
I need you. And we need each other. Yeah, we do. Yeah, we
feel like nobody needs us. That's the way we ought to feel.
But we ought to feel like we need one another. Because Christ
said this, we need each other more than ever. Because he said
this in verse 18, because the world's going to hate you. If the world hate you, you know
it hated me before it hated you. He promised it would happen.
He's promising us, Terry, it's going to happen. They're going
to hate you. For my name's sake, they're going to hate you. But
you know if they hate you, they hated me before they hate you.
And it's not me, it's not you that they hate, it's me. I forget
where it says that, but it's not you that they hate. It's
the God that you love. The God that you love. But if
you were of the world, verse 19, the world would love you.
They would love you. If you were of the world, the
world would love you. Turn over to 1 John chapter 4 with me.
If you were of the world, if you spoke like the world, acted
like the world, walked like the world, I'm talking, too, about
the religious world. Maybe even more so. If you spoke
like and looked and acted like and preached like and testified
like this modern religious world. They love you, brother, and we
could all just get together and have a big old time, you know.
But he said he promised that the world would hate us. Why?
Look at 1 John 4, verse 5. They're of the world because
they're speaking of the world. A social gospel. It's all social
issues, political issues, civil issues, works religion. things that have to do with our
testimony, our conversations in heaven, where Christ sits
at the right hand of God. We've got no other message. What
would it have been to me if I preached not the gospel? We preach Christ and Him crucified
at every opportunity. And the world don't want to hear
that. Tell us something like that professor of theology. And
you know what he was talking about? That quote I gave you
a while ago? He said, you give them what they want to hear,
or they'll give you what you want. You know what he's talking
about? He's talking to preachers. He said, now, you answer the
questions people are asking, and they'll give you what you
want. What do you want? This is verbatim. He said, what do
you want? Preachers, teachers, bigger Sunday school, greater
attendance, more success. You answer the questions people
are asking. And these were the questions. I don't get nothing
to answer. But these are the questions that they were asking
him. He said, people ask me these questions. When I get to heaven, what will I be eating? What will
I wear? Will I know people in heaven?
He said, and the question I'm really interested in is, will
I have to cut the grass in heaven? Professor of theology. That's
what he's interested in. Now, when I'm in heaven, will
I drive a car? Will I go to work? Will I earn
money? He was saying this verbatim. I thought to myself, is there
anybody in there asking, will I be in heaven? Won't somebody
ask that question? He said, now if you answer people,
if you meet people about their needs, it's what people want
and need. They need to know these things.
When I cut the grass in heaven, I need to know that bad. It's
profitable. If you answer people, you give
them what they want to hear. Answer their needs. Meet them
where they are, he said. They'll give you what you want.
Big church, big funds. Yeah, it's true. If you loved the world and spoke
the word, they'd hear you, and they'd give you a hearing, and
they'd give you a full pocket billfold, too. You could drive
a big old car. Yeah, if you loved the world,
the world would hear you, because the world loves its own. But
he says, we're of God. We're of God. He that knoweth
God heareth us, but he's not of God, heareth not us. Why?
Well, we speak of that which God writes us of Christ. That's not good enough for the
world. To the Greek, it's foolishness. To the Jew, it's a stumbling
block. I'd rather hear something else,
things we need, you know. Or if we want to eat peanut butter
and jelly in heaven. We need to know these things.
Gracious. That's exactly it. I'm making
fun of this, but this is exactly how ridiculous our generation
is. You don't realize it unless you
listen to it. I don't realize it. I forget just how far out
this thing is. But Christ said, you dare to
just preach the gospel? You dare to just want to talk
about Christ? You dare to just be interested
in what God's word has to say and not interested in what we
think and so forth? They'll hate you. They'll hate
you. If you were of the world, they
would love you. And he said this, in another place, woe is unto
you if the world speak well of you. Now that means, boy, this
is such a a conviction should be. Woe is unto you if men speak
well of you. It means you're just like they
are, and you're not taking a stand for Christ and his true gospel,
because he promised it. He promised it would come, didn't
he? They're going to hate you. So he promised it. So something's
wrong if everybody thinks you're a good old boy. Look over at John chapter 6.
Terry alludes to this briefly. If you just simply say the things
that Christ said, and this is my counsel to us in witnessing
to people and all, just try to say something from the scriptures.
Don't lead them on their grounds. Don't argue and debate. Just the word. If you can only
recall one verse of scripture, that's good enough, really. That's good enough. What they
need to hear is God's Word and not what we think. But if you
just dare to repeat what Christ said, such
as what he said here in John 6. Look here at John 6, verse
29. He said, Now, this is the work
of God, that you believe on him whom he has sent. What he's saying
there is faith is a gift of God. God must give you faith. It's
not up to you to decide. God has to give it. This is God's
work. If any man believes God gave
him nothing, you just dare to say that. Dare to say that. Look at verse 39. He said, This
is the Father's will which is sent me, that of all which he
hath given me I should lose nothing. That's perseverance. That's preservation. You dare to just say that. Look
at verse 44. No man can come to me except
the Father which has sent me draw him. That's man's total
inability and depravity and the sovereignty of God. You just
dare to say that. And they'll hate you for it.
Look at verses 47 and 48. "'Verily, verily, I say unto
you, he that believeth on me hath everlasting life.' I am."
He's saying he's God there. You dare to proclaim, just say
that. I am. I am. That he's God. They'll hate you for it. Look
at verse 63. Christ said, "'It is the Spirit
that quickeneth, the flesh profiteth nothing. The words that I speak
unto you, their spirit and their life, he's talking about the
necessity of a new birth and regeneration and revelation.
You dare to just repeat what he said and he'll hate you for
it. And he will. Verse 64. There
are some of you that don't believe. Jesus knew from the beginning
who they were that would believe not and who should betray. That's
reprobation. You just dare to say the things
that Christ said and you'll have a fight on your hands. But look
over at Matthew chapter 10 with me. Now, he said, well, back
in the text there, he said, now remember, remember what I said
unto you. In the text he said, remember
the word that I said unto you, and look back at Matthew 10.
Matthew chapter 10, verse 22. Matthew 10, 22. He said, now
you shall be hated of all men for my name's sake. Yes, you
shall. It's given unto you not only
to believe, but to suffer, the Christian scripture says. But
he that endureth to the end shall be saved. Look down at verse
34. Don't think I've come to send peace on the earth. I came
not to send peace, but a sword. I've come to set a man at variance
against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law
against her mother-in-law. You think it a strange thing
when people hate you? Not to, he promised it. A man's
foe, we're not looking for it, but it'll happen if you dare
to take a stand. A man's foes shall be those of
his own household, but he that loveth father or mother more
than me is not worthy of me. Not a disciple. He that loveth
son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. And he that
taketh not his cross and followeth after me is not worthy of me,
because he that findeth his life and makes a name for himself Becomes a good old boy who everybody
loves, he'll lose it. That's what he'll do. But he
that loses his life for my sake will find it. Whoever becomes
a nobody, whoever becomes a fool for Christ's sake. That's sure
is. She's a fool. You know what she believes? She's
a fool for Christ's sake. You lose your life, you'll find
it. You'll find life and life more abundant. Now, he said,
you remember that back at the text. You remember the word I
said unto you, and that's the word he said. They'll hate you. The servant's not greater than
his Lord, back to the text, verse 20. If they persecuted me, they'll
also persecute you. Yeah, they will. They kept my
saying. If they heard what he said, they'll
hear what you say, because the only thing you want to say is
what he said anyway. Right? They kept my saying, they'll
keep yours. Did they keep his saying or hated it? I mean, nobody
inspired the wrath and the indignation such as Christ. Everywhere he
went, he incited a riot. Everywhere, everybody he came
across wanted to kill him, didn't they? Yeah, they did, on every
hangar, except sinners that really saw their need to down and out
the lowliness scum. Those are the only ones. I mean,
the Jews, everybody, turn comes down on him. Everywhere he went,
whatever he said, whenever he opened his mouth, oh, they were
going to gnash their teeth on him. And he said, the same thing will
happen to you if you dare to take a stand, if you dare to
claim the truth, if you dare to stand up for my name sake. If they keep my sake, they'll
keep yours. It's the reason, you know, Henry said it to me
this morning, that a lady got one of our tapes, and she said,
that's the same thing we're preaching. That troubles me. That really
troubles me. That makes me think, what am
I preaching? They are saying it strong enough. Let's go back
and erase these tapes and start over again, you know, because
they're not hearing us. I want them to hear what I'm
saying. make people mad at me. That's not the point here. The
point is to glorify God in such a way, to reveal his glory in
such a way as to expose all his heresy and his hypocrisy and
his self-righteous religion and men's sins. And so that's what
he said down here. If I had not done these things,
they had not had sin. But now they've seen, they hear,
they hear what I'm saying and they hate me. They hate me. He said, they'll do this to you,
too. Verse 21. All these things that they do
unto you for my name's sake, for my glory, they'll do all
this and hate you and persecute you because of the gospel of
God's sovereign grace, the gospel of God's love, and Christ wants
to do something for you. And if you're a laddie, nobody
loves a preacher like this, does he? Everybody loves him. Robert Schur is his name. You
know? He's lovely. He's sweet. I despise
the man himself. But most people, they're like,
oh, he's so sweet. And they'll love you if you act
like this, you know. But I tell you what, you just
stand up. Take a stand for God and expose
heresy. They'll hate you. They'll gnash
your teeth at you. Yeah, they will. They do all
this for His name's sake. That's what we're in this thing
for, His namesake. Preachers ought not to make fun
of people. Oh, I wish I could. I feel I ought to make more fun
of it. It's just despicable. I mean, it's just getting so
far out of that field, it's not even funny. It's despicable. It's nauseating. Nauseating. this religion of this day so
far, they seem to draw nearer to him with their lips, got the
name of Christ and God and all this on their lips, but their
hearts are so far, hearts full of covetousness that the prophets
say it very clearly, that from the preacher on down, they're
all full of covetousness, adultery and this and that and the other. Ah, boy, he said, all these things
I'll do unto you for my name's sake. This is pretty plain language. He said it though, I didn't say
it. He said, because they don't know God. And we said, Rick,
these things they'll do unto you from their namesake because
they don't know God. Oh, they profess to know Him.
They claim to know Him with their lips, but their works, their
means, their methods, their means and their methods deny that God
is sovereign. They say God is sovereign, don't
they? But we must do something. That denies His sovereignty.
They say with their lips, but in their words, they deny His
power. They deny it because they don't
know Him. That's the bottom line. They
don't know this God who reigns and rules. The fundamental faith
of the faith that God is God. If I had not come, Christ said,
and spoken unto them, if Christ had not come and said and did
what he did, he says there they had not had sin. Everything would
be all right. He wouldn't disturb their little
nests of religion. And everything in our community
would just be all right if there wasn't that thorn in the flesh
down here on the hill, preaching this, writing those articles
in the paper. Everything will be all right. You know, you read
one article after another by different preachers. They're
saying the same thing, aren't they? Ain't nobody getting mad,
is there? But you let that dude... All he wants to talk about is
God's sovereignty in our sinfulness, our inability. Doesn't he have
anything better to say? Now, I ought to write the same
things to you. Paul said, it's not grievous, but it's safe for
you. It's the gospel. It's the only
thing that will save a man's soul when he realizes who he
is and who God really is. The only thing that will save
his soul, else he's religiously on his road to hell, right? But
you disturbed their little mess. And Christ said to come, and
everything will be all right, rosy. And they thought it got
him out of the picture, too, by killing him, didn't it? And a conspiracy put a conspiracy
out. But now, he says, they've seen.
They saw. They saw what he did. Broke the
sabbath. Cut his cross on Sunday. Went through the field of corn
and ape. This and that and the other.
They saw what he did. They both seen and hated. Hated. I know it says that in
God's Word, but it doesn't say that in our church covenant.
They've seen, they've heard, and they hate the Christ who
is successful and the God who is sovereign. Yes, it is. It's sad, but it's true. But,
he said, this cometh to pass, that the Word might be fulfilled.
Why? Why does all this take place like this? God said it would. unto his people, to show us more
clearly than ever, wow, he is God, isn't he? That's just exactly
what he said would happen. They're saying the same thing,
doing the same thing. Everything is being fulfilled
just like he said it. Jeremiah 23 could have been written
on August the 10th, 1990, about false prophets. Wow. And God's
people see that and are amazed and say, the scriptures are fulfilled,
aren't they? even into your ears. Didn't Christ
say that? This day is this scripture fulfilled
in your ears. This day is all the scripture
being fulfilled in your ears and in her lies. Isn't it? That
the scripture might be fulfilled which is written in their law.
They got a book. John, they got a copy of this.
They don't read it. No. They don't read it. They
hated me without a cause. Everybody loves God. No, the
Scripture doesn't say that. It doesn't say that. Carnal mind,
natural man's enmity. It hates God. That's what the
Scripture says. And the Scripture says God hates some people. That's
what it says. Open your eyes, man. They hated
me without a call. It said it would happen, and
it did. It does. When the Comforter is come, though,
whom I will send unto you from the Father, even that Holy Spirit
of truth, which shall proceed from the Father, he'll testify
of me." He'll testify of me. And that's just how you gauge
a man's ministry, by his message, by just what he preaches but
who he preaches. He'll testify of me." That's
the spirit-filled, spirit-led church and preacher that testifies
of him at every opportunity. Verse 27, "...and you also shall
bear witness." You're his witnesses. He said, I'll send you forth
as sheep among wolves. You're my witnesses because you've
been with me from the beginning. That's chiefly written to the
disciples there. But it's to us also, because
I've chosen you, I've ordained you, because I separated you
and called you from your mother's womb, I called you and set my
love and affection on you. And I'm sending you out, man.
You're my witnesses. Now, speak up. I need this, don't
you? God forbid that I should be ashamed. He said he'd be ashamed of me,
be ashamed of us and of them. He that denies me before men,
I'll deny before the angels. Isn't it? They did. I need this so bad. He said,
Fear not them that can kill the body, and after that can do nothing
else. Fear him who, after he's killed the body, can send both
body and soul into hell. He said over in Isaiah chapter
50, I believe it is, Who art thou that thou shouldest be afraid
of a worm? They shall die. Father, what
are we afraid of these worms for? when he said, I am your
Maker, I am your Father, I am your Lord and Master, and I sent
you out here. What are you afraid of? Are you
out for my glory and my honor or not? Are you my disciple or
are you not? What is that song? What is that
song? Ashamed of Jesus, yes I may,
when I have no sins, no guilt to wash away. What is that song,
Jeanette, do you know? Ashamed of Jesus, Uh, somebody
can recall it. Well, hmm. Is it just as I am? I'm not sure. Sure, do you know? Well, let's sing that. That's
a good song, anyway. Let's just sing that. 249. 249. ashamed of him whom angels praise? Anybody think of it? You know
the song I'm talking about. You know the verse, don't you?
God forbid that we should be ashamed of him and what we need
to be. Who are we? Number what? I don't know. Yeah, that's it. Number 400,
Jesus and shall it ever be. Let's sing that. Can we sing
that to the tune of Just As I Am? Is that where I'm getting at?
Play that through a minute. Number 400. I think it's the same tune, isn't it? Yeah, we can sing that to Just
As I Am. Let's sing that to Just As I
Am. I think you can, can't you? I
believe you can. Jesus, and shall it ever be. Let's sing it like that, okay?
You sing, or you play the tune, just as I do. Sing it with me,
just sing it like that. Jesus, and shall it ever be. a mortal man, ashamed of thee,
ashamed of thee, whom angels' praises glow, we shine to his
blessed name. Look at verse 4, Rick. Ashamed of Jesus, yes I may,
then I have no guilt to wash away. No tear to wipe, no good
to crave, no fear to quell the soul. Till then, Loris, I boast in
vain Till then, I boast a Savior's slain O no, may this my glory
be that pride This is what I think of you.

Love One Another And Prepare To Be Hated

What does the Bible say about loving one another?

How do we know that we are chosen by God?

Why is it important for Christians to endure persecution?

What does it mean to bear fruit as a Christian?

Why do Christians face hatred from the world?

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Love One Another And Prepare To Be Hated

What does the Bible say about loving one another?

How do we know that we are chosen by God?

Why is it important for Christians to endure persecution?

What does it mean to bear fruit as a Christian?

Why do Christians face hatred from the world?

Sermon Transcript

About Paul Mahan

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