Now, the message this morning
will be taken from 1 John chapter 3. I began this last week, but anytime
I do a series of messages, we're talking about the reality of
true Christian love. It's what we're talking about.
This is what John is writing of by inspiration of the Spirit.
And anytime I do a series like this, I try to make each message
stand on its own. but yet contribute to the main
theme of true Christian love and what it is. The Bible tells
us that God loves his children. We talk about, you know, many
people, they'll quote John 3, 16 readily, for God so loved
the world that he gave his only begotten son that whosoever believeth
in him should not perish but have everlasting life. Most people think that that's
talking about some kind of universal love that God has for everybody,
but it's not. The context tells us it's not. That's the natural inclination
and intrusion of man into the word of God. Well, we've got
to think that way, some say, because that sounds pleasant
and that, you know, you draw more flies with honey than you
do with vinegar and all of that, stuff like that. But what I want
to talk to you about is the reality of true Christian love. Now,
God does love his people. In fact, the Bible goes even
farther than that. It says not only does God love
his children, God is love. It's his essence. It's his nature
to love. John wrote about that in 1 John
chapter 4, when he talks about God is love. Verse 8, he that
loveth not knoweth not God, for God is love. Mark read about
that love. It's translated charity in 1
Corinthians 13. We were talking about why did
they translate it charity instead of love, and I don't really know
what was in their minds, but charity is a good word for it
because it has to do with the giving of self, the unconditional
giving and what that means. And of course, what John says
about God's love is that it is unconditionally given to his
people. that he chose before the foundation
of the world, gave us to Christ. It's not like men and women see
it today in false religion. It's not God looking down through
a telescope of time and foreseeing what you or I would do or choose
or believe or not believe and thereby responding to us. That's
not God's love. God's love is the first cause
of the salvation of his people. But now not only is God love,
God is also righteous. Not only is God merciful, God
is also just. Not only is God gracious, He
is also true to Himself. So whenever we speak of God's
love, we're not talking about a frustrated love, that is expressed
in a false gospel that says that God loves everybody, Christ died
for everybody, and he loves you so much, and he's just waiting
for you to make the right decision, and if you don't, his love is
frustrated. That's not the Bible. Now that
may be modern religion, but it's not the Bible. And so God is
love, but here's what the Bible teaches, and look there at 1
John 4, 10 that I read at the beginning. It says, herein is
love. Not that we love God. It's nothing
to do with anything we do to get God to love us, but that
He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation. Now,
what is a propitiation? Well, that's the satisfaction
of God's justice against the sins of those whom He loves.
through a substitute, a surety, who is none other than the Lord
Jesus Christ. The Bible, John said it back
in 1 John 2 that Jesus Christ is the propitiation for our sins. So God's wrath, now listen to
him, in the Bible now, God's wrath never abides upon anyone
he loves. Because There's a propitiation
that turns back His wrath based on not just a whim, or not even
based upon a decision, but based upon justice satisfied by a person
who is none other than God in human flesh, the Lord Jesus Christ. So we see God's attributes coming
together under the umbrella of His love and justice. And it's
His glory. So that's the love. So God is
love. And God's love to his people
is our salvation. Through Christ, who satisfied
justice. Now, none of us love God by nature. None of us by nature love God.
We love ourselves. We love gods of our imagination. But I'm talking about the true
and living God. I told a fellow one time, he was talking about
how he loved the Lord, but he didn't believe in election. I
said, well, what if the Bible would tell you that God is the
God of election? Would you love that God? And
he said, no. I said, okay, you don't love
the God of the Bible. And that's the proof of it. Now,
what God does according to his love, his love provides for his
people, his children, his church, everything that His justice requires
in the person and work of the Lord Jesus Christ. And that includes
even the new birth, even the giving of life that brings us
to believe in Christ, to repent of our dead works, and to love
God and love His people. And that's what this is saying.
Look at verse 14 of 1 John 3. We know that we have passed from
death unto life. That's the new birth. Now, if
you've passed from death unto life, what's that tell you? It
tells you that before you passed from death unto life, you were
what? You were dead. And what kind of death is he
talking about? Spiritual death. In spiritual death, that means
we didn't have spiritual eyes, spiritual ears, a spiritual heart
to hear and know and love and believe the things of God. But
when he gives spiritual life, Where does that bring? It brings
us to love Christ and to love his people. Now, we don't do
that perfectly. I used to not like to sing that
song that we sang, Oh, How I Love Jesus, because to me at one point
in time, I didn't see the whole picture, but I thought, well,
that's like bragging on my love for him. But that's not what
that song is. If we have passed from death
unto life, we can say in all honesty that we do love Christ. Now can I say I love Him perfectly
without any taint or contamination of sin and self-love? No, I can't
say that. Could I stand before God and
unequivocally plead my love for Him as the basis of my salvation? No. The basis of my salvation
is not my love for Him, it's His love for me founded upon
the righteousness of the Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ the
righteous. Do I have anything to brag about
in my love for him? No, I don't. But what does that
song say? Oh, how I love Jesus, because
he first loved me. An unloving person. Me. Now, when God brings us from
death unto life by the power of the Spirit, gives us that
life that comes from Christ, Through His righteousness imputed
alone, where righteousness is imputed, life is given, faith
is given, love is given. When God brings me from death
unto life, not only does He cause me by His Spirit to love Christ,
but He brings me by His Spirit to love the brethren. Now that's
what John's talking about here in 1 John chapter 3. He's talking
about godly love. that is founded upon and centered
around the truth of the gospel of God's grace in Christ. It's
a mutual love for Christ as He's revealed in the gospel. And a
love for His people in the gospel. Listen to what He says in verse
11 again, 1 John 3, For this is the message that you heard
from the beginning, that we should love one another. Love one another. Over in 1 John 2, look at verse
15. 1 John 2 and verse 15, 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.
So that when he, now you think about the context there. When
he says in 1 John 3.11, when he says love one another, Who's
he talking about? Is he talking about everybody?
Well, he can't be talking about everybody. Why do you say that? Well, he says over in 1 John
2.15, love not the world. And somebody told me one time,
said, well, that's just talking about the world in general, like
the trees and the rock. Well, okay, don't love the rocks
and the trees. Is that what that's saying? Listen
to it again. 1 John 2.15, love not the world,
neither what? the things that are in the world.
He makes a distinction there. Who is the world there? That's the world of unbelievers. That's what he's talking about.
Who is the one another in 1 John 3? That's the brethren in Christ.
This love here is not natural to man. This love here is the
gift of God that comes from Christ to those who have been born again.
It's that agape love that no unbeliever has. Now, there are
different kinds of love. I dealt with that last week.
So, here's what I want to do this morning. I want to show
you a few scriptures, and I want you to know something. In the
Bible, generally, you cannot talk about this love without
talking about hate. Did you know that? People say,
well, good night. We don't want to hear about hate,
especially in this season. Well, let me tell you something.
People talk about this is the season of peace and love and
joy. For a believer, every season is a season of peace, love and
joy. Peace with God through Christ, the Prince of Peace. Based upon
the blood of His cross, His righteousness is my peace with God. And if
that's the same with you, we have peace with one another.
Doesn't mean we're always gonna get along. But it means that
we're together in that area. And then that love, this is that
special divine love that God sheds abroad in the hearts of
his people that binds us together as brethren in the truth. Now
again, it doesn't mean we'll always get along, we should.
And if we don't get along, that's a shame. But we will be together forever
in this love that's founded upon the truth that no unbeliever
has. And that joy, that joy is the
joy that comes by the Holy Spirit by bringing us to Christ. To
show us that all of our salvation is safe and secure through Him
and what He accomplished. That's our joy. Even in our times
of sorrow, that's still our joy, isn't it? And so that's every
season and all of that. But the reason that you have
to see it in light of this is look at first John 3.12, he talks
about Cain. He said, we should love one another
not like Cain who was of that wicked one, that's the devil,
and slew his brother, murdered his brother Abel. Why did he
slay him? Because his own works were evil and his brother's righteous. Now how did Cain know or how
did Cain hear that his works were evil? God told him, I don't
accept your offering, Cain. What was Cain's works? That was
the works of his hands. Cain came to God expecting salvation,
expecting blessedness, expecting to experience the love of God
based on his works. God said, I reject you, Cain. Now, was that mean? No, it was
just. It was justice. God cannot save
us. God cannot accept us. God cannot receive us, bless
us, and God cannot love us outside of Christ. If God's going to
love a sinner like me, He must do it upon a proper ground that
honors Him. And there's only one ground,
and that's the righteousness of His Son. No other ground. I can say, God, I've done this
for you, and I tried to do that for you. I went through this
ritual. I went through that ceremony. None of that is a proper ground
for the love of God. You say, well, love should have
no proper ground. Oh, yes, it should. Yes, it should. You love your children based
upon a proper ground. What is it? They're your children.
You say, well, I love all God's children. No, you don't. That just sounds good on a Hallmark
card. I guarantee you, you don't love
my children the way you love your children. I don't love your
children the way I love mine. You see, it's a proper ground.
They're mine. They're yours. They're extensions
of self. That's what they are. Let's be honest in this thing.
Let's not go through life fooling ourselves. You say, well, there
have been people who have given their lives because they love
their country. Well, what did Mark read there
in 1 Corinthians 13? Though I give my body to be burned, but have
not love. There are people who've given
millions to charity. Well, okay, though I give everything
I own away and have not love. This love, this divine love, How did Cain hear that Abel's
works were righteous? God said it. What was Abel's
work? He brought the blood of the Lamb.
What does that mean, the blood of the Lamb? That's a type, a
picture, a foreshadowing, a symbol of the blood of Christ. What will those whom God loves
eventually do? They will eventually come to
God like Abel. But now look at verse 13. He says, marvel not my brethren
if the world hates you. Now the world somehow has in
mind that the world, and that's talking about unbelievers, that
the world somehow is going to recognize our love and enjoy
that love and engage in that love. But here's what he says,
basically. Look at verse 14. We know that we have passed from
death unto life because we love the brethren. He that loveth
not his brother abideth in death. This is the kind of love when
expressed to the world brings out their hatred. In other words, the world won't
recognize this as being love at all. The only way the world
is going to recognize it as love is if it's human love, selfish
love, self-righteous love, that tells them what they want to
hear, which is a lie. Now let me show you that. Turn
over to John chapter 15. Now, it's not that true believers
are to be hateful people at all. It's not that we're just trying
to be disagreeable or get a rise out of people or make them mad. If that's your goal in witnessing,
you've got a wrong view. But it's a love that considers
first and foremost the glory of God in the salvation of sinners. Why did Cain kill Abel? Abel would not speak peace to
Cain. Abel would not say, Cain, you're
all right, we're brothers in Christ. No. And it brought out
Cain's hatred. What is it talking about? Now
listen to me. This love of the brethren means that we accept
each other within the fellowship of faith. You're my brother,
you're my sister in Christ. That's what it's talking about.
Now, there are other things about this love that we can talk about,
and John talks about them later on. This hatred, this hatred
is not a sinful hatred that we have for the world. He says,
love not the world. This hatred that we have for the world is
not a sinful, selfish, self-righteous, evil hatred. It's a righteous
indignation that causes us to reject them as being in the family
of God. And that's the way God's love
and God's hate. God accepts those who come to him in Christ. He
rejects those who come any other way. But look here about the
world. Now, verse 18 of John 15. He says, if the world hates you,
rejects you, you know that it hated me before it hated you.
It rejected Christ. If you were of the world, the
world would love his own. You tell them what they want
to hear, they'll bring you right in. You'll be fine. They'll give
you the key to the city. But he said, but because you're
not of the world, but I've chosen you out of the world, therefore
the world hated you. Look at verse 20, he says, remember
the word that I said in you, the servant is not greater than
his Lord. If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute
you. If they've kept my saying, they will also keep, they will
keep yours also. Now kept his saying, what is
that? It's his word. What he's talking about is this
relationship that binds believers together in this special gift
of God's love through Christ. It's based upon His saying, His
Word. What did Christ say? Do you believe
in the Lord Jesus Christ? Do you rest in Him? All right,
this relationship we have with the world that causes us to reject
them and them to reject us, it's based upon what Christ said.
It's not based on personality. It's not based on denominations.
It's based upon what Christ said. It's his doctrine, it's his truth,
it's his gospel. Look at verse 21. But all these
things will they do unto you for my namesake, because they
know not him that sent me. Verse 22, if I had not come and
spoken to them, They had not had sin, but now they have no
cloak, no hiding place, no covering for their sin. What did Christ
do? He came into the world and He told them that that which
they applauded and thought recommended them unto God, that what they
thought made them righteous before God, He told them that it was
evil. That it was unrighteous. He told
them they were idolaters. He told the Jews, the unbelieving
Jews, that they were idolaters. He told his disciples, look over
in chapter 16 and verse 1, listen to this. He said, these things
have I spoken unto you that you should not be offended. They'll
put you out of the synagogue. The synagogue, what was that?
That was their religious gatherings. They'll throw you out. Yea, the
time cometh that whosoever killeth you will think that he doeth
God's service. Just like Cain killed Abel. Verse three, these
things will they do in you because they have not known the father
nor me. They're worshiping a false god.
You tell people today that they're worshiping a false god. That's
just not gonna be a chapter in Dale Carnegie's book, folks.
How to win friends and influence people. That's not gonna get
you the kudos of the world. But look on, this love is not
feeling, it's not personality, it's not mutual preferences or
prejudices, it's not social graces or socializing. It's not that
those things are necessarily bad, but that does not define
true Christian love. This love is not the love we
are to promote for all people. Turn over to Mark chapter 12.
Somebody said, well, aren't we supposed to love everybody? Okay,
let's look at that, Mark chapter 12. Look at verse 28. If I can find it here. Mark chapter
12. Here is the Lord being approached
by a man. And the man asked him a question. It says, one of the scribes,
Mark 12, 28. He came and having heard them reason together and
perceiving that he had answered them well, Ask Him, which is
the first commandment of all? In verse 29, And Jesus answered
him, said, The first of all the commandments is, Hear, O Israel,
the Lord our God is one Lord. In verse 30, And thou shalt love
the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul,
and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength. This is the
first commandment. And the second is namely this,
like mainly this, thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.
There is none other commandment greater than these. Aren't we
supposed to love everybody? Yes, but not in the same way
we love our brethren in Christ. What is love? Well, it's desiring
the best for people, isn't it? If I really love you, I desire
the best for you. The best of health, the best
of wealth, all of that. And I'll tell you something else
I desire for you. I desire your salvation. I desire
your salvation. Now, if I love you in that way
and desire your salvation, and let's say you're following the
way of Cain, what am I going to tell you? I'm going to tell
you something that to you sounds unloving to you. I'm going to tell you you're
lost in your sins and you need to stop and seek the Lord Jesus
Christ. That's what you need to do. And
you know why I'm telling you that? Because I do love you. I love you enough to tell you
the truth. That's what it is. So yes, we're to love everybody.
We're to want the best for everybody. If you had a little child who,
let's say five or six years old, who came through your door holding
a rattlesnake because he liked to play with it, what would you
do? Would you say, well, isn't that cute? No. You'd take that rattlesnake away
as fast as you can because you know it's going to kill him.
You know what that is? That's love. But this special
love that only exists between brethren. It tells us if you
truly love someone, the worst thing you can do is promote them
in a way of false religion. The worst thing that Abel could
have done for his brother Cain was tell him, you're okay, peace,
you're alright. When God said, you're not accepted. Love is acceptance as brethren
in the Lord. It's the fellowship of faith.
Look at Matthew chapter 12. Matthew chapter 12. Verse 46. Here's the Lord ministering
the gospel in a household here. Verse 46 of Matthew 12. Listen
to this. He said, while he yet talked
to the people, Behold, his mother and his brethren stood without,
outside the building, desiring to speak with him. And then one
said unto him, Behold, thy mother and thy brethren stand without,
desiring to speak with thee. Verse 48, he answered, Christ
answered and said unto him and told him, Who is my mother? Who
are my brethren? And he stretched forth his hand
toward his disciples and said, behold, my mother and my brethren,
this is my real family, he's saying, for whosoever shall do
the will of my father, which is in heaven, the same as my
brother and my sister and my mother. My real family, he's
saying, is those who do the will of my father. And what is the
will of his father? It's to believe on the son, to
believe on Christ and submit to him as the Lord, their righteousness.
Every one of us, we have earthly family members we love, don't
we? And should love. Should do the best we can for
them. Even sacrifice for them. Especially
our children, our grandchildren. Boy, don't we sacrifice for them.
We all have that. But here's the thing. Who is
our real, spiritual, eternal family? Well, Christ said it's
those who do the will of the Father. Brethren in the truth,
brethren in Christ. Now this hatred, it's a rejection. Look at Luke 14, let me show
you something here. Luke 14. Now this passage is treated with
different wording in Matthew and Mark. But look at the book
of Luke, chapter 14, I think it's around verse, No, wait a
minute. Luke 14. Yeah, Luke 14, verse 25. It's talking about our relationship
with our earthly family. It says here in verse 25, and
there went great multitudes, Luke 14, 25, with him, and he
turned and said unto them, if any man come to me and hate not
his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and
sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be my disciple. And whosoever doth not bear his
cross, and come after me, cannot be my disciple." Now that's a
real cross to bear, isn't it? And those are strong words, aren't
they? Hate? Doesn't the Bible say that we're
to love our fathers, honor our fathers and our mothers, and
love them? Yes. But he's talking about something
specific here that only a true child of God can understand.
No, we're not supposed to hate our fathers and our mothers with
a sinful, selfish hatred like we do, like we're capable of. But here's what he's saying.
That hatred is not a sinful hatred. It's a righteous rejection of
those who believe not. That's what he's saying. I love
my father. my earthly father. But if he
doesn't do the will of my heavenly father, if he doesn't believe
in the Lord Jesus Christ, I hate him in that sense. I reject him
in that sense of being in my spiritual family. I cannot speak
peace to him. I'm going to tell him the truth.
That's what he's talking about. Let me show you one other script.
Turn to Psalm 139. And that's why he says, marvel
not if the world hates you. It hated me before it hated you.
It rejected him. In verse 19 of Psalm 139, listen
to this. Surely thou wilt slay the wicked,
O God. Depart from me therefore, you
bloody men. where they speak against thee
wickedly, and thine enemies take thy name in vain. These are unbelievers. Verse 21, now listen to this.
Do not I hate them, Lord, that hate thee? And am I not agreed
with those that rise up against thee? I hate them with perfect
hatred. I count them mine enemies. Search
me, O God, and know my heart. Try me and know my thoughts.
and see if there be any wicked way in me and lead me in the
way everlasting." You see what he's saying there? It's not a sinful hatred that
desires harm, even upon our worst enemies. But it is a perfect
hatred. Now that doesn't mean there's
any perfection in us, but here's what he's simply saying. Go back
to 1 John 3 and I'll close with this. He says, Verse 14, we know
we have passed from death unto life because we love the brethren.
Those who have the same father as we have, the same savior,
the same elder brother. He that loveth not his brother
abideth in death. If we don't receive them, those
who believe now, receive them into our fellowship, that means
we don't believe. Verse 15, whosoever hateth his
brother is a murderer. He's talking about soul murder
there. He's not talking about the fact
that Cain rose up and hit Abel in the head and killed him, that
did happen. But he's talking about soul murder,
obviously. Because he says, whosoever hateth
his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer hath
eternal life abiding in him. These are the issues of godly
love, love of the brethren. And he says in verse 16, 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. That's
how far it goes. And we know that it takes the
grace of almighty God to make us spiritual brethren in the
Lord. and to love our neighbors, even
our worst enemies, to the point that we truly desire the best
for them, so much so that we will never love the world and
never speak peace to the world, because that's dishonoring to
God. That's an evidence of being dead.
That's what he's saying. You abide in death. Who are my
brother? Who's my mother, my father, my
sister, those who do the will of my father?