Tonight I'm going to be speaking from 2 Chronicles 18 upon this subject, nothing but the truth. John chapter 15, verse nine, as the father hath loved me. So have I loved you. The title of this message, So Have I Loved You.

I don't know how else to say this, but I don't have any problem We're thinking about how the father loves the son. He loves the son because his son is altogether lovely. And we see the father loving the son, but what I wouldn't dare believe if it was not here written that is just as the father loves the son, that's how the son loves me. Meditate on that for a moment. If you're a believer, the way the father loves the son, and who can describe all that that means, that's the way the son loves you.

As the father loveth me, so have I loved you. Now, this is not said to every son of Adam. The Lord's not saying this to all men without exception. When he says, as the father hath loved me, so have I loved you. There is a place called hell. It's a place where God in his justice punishes sin. and there will not be anybody in hell that he loved. You can write that down. This speaks of his love for the elect, his church, his bride.

If I believe, that Jesus is the Christ. Do you believe that? Whoso believeth that Jesus is the Christ is born of God. Are you one of those people who believe that Jesus is the Christ? Do you believe he's God's prophet? Do you believe he's God's priest? Do you believe he's God's king? You really believe. If I am relying on who he is and what he did to save me, are you looking to yourself or to him? Are you looking to your works or his works? Paul said, I know whom I have believed and I am persuaded that he is able. to keep that which I've committed to Him. Against that day, I've committed the entire salvation of my soul to Him. My hands are off. He did it all.

Now, if you're someone who believes, the Lord is saying this to you individually. Yes, he's saying this to his whole church, but he's saying this to every individual believer. As the father has loved me, so have I loved you. This is the love that Paul was speaking of when he said that you might be able to comprehend with all the saints. The breadth, the length, the depth, and the height to know the love of Christ, which passes knowledge. I could explain what all that meant. I'd be denying what the text says, wouldn't I? It passes knowledge. And he names four dimensions. The breadth, the wideness of God's love. There's room for the very chief of sinners. The depth, how far he went down, how far he reached down to save the objects of his love. The height, seated together in the heavenlies in Christ Jesus, that's how high I am. The length, the eternity, never had a beginning, will never have an ending. The love of Christ, which passes knowledge.

Verse nine, once again, John chapter 15, verse nine, as the father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now I want to attempt for a few moments to dwell on the father's love for the son. As the Father loved me. Don't you love the scripture? God is love. Not here's love and God fits that description. God is love. God is holy. God is spirit. He's not bound by space or time the way you and I are. We're stuck in the present. And we're stuck in the place we're at. Not God. He's not bound by space or time. God is spirit. God is light. In him is no darkness at all. God is love. The father loveth the son. Oh, how he loves his son. and hath given all things into his hand. He that hath the Son hath life. He that hath not the Son hath not life, but the wrath of God abides on him. The Father's love for the Son is eternal.

Now, how the father loves the sons, how he loves you, if you're one of his people, if you're somebody who believes. The father's love for the son is eternal. He never began to love his son. He's always loved his son. When did the father begin to love his son? He didn't. There was no beginning. This love is eternal as God is eternal. He has eternally loved his son.

I love Genesis 1.1, in the beginning, God. God, Elohim, is in the plural. Did you know the Trinity is taught in the very first verse of scripture. In the beginning, God in the plural, the one God in three persons, God, the father, God, the son, God, the Holy spirit created the heavens. the earth, the one God in three persons. Now, before creation, before time, all there was, was God. God, the Father, God, the Son, and God, the Holy Spirit. There was no space. There was no time. All there was, was God. And oh, how the father loved the son.

Turn with me to Proverbs chapter eight. Proverbs right after the book of Psalms. Proverbs chapter eight. The Lord is personified as wisdom in this verse of scripture, but let's begin reading verse 22. This is the Lord Jesus Christ speaking. The Lord possessed me in the beginning of his way before his works of old. I was set up from everlasting, from the beginning or ever the earth was, when there were no depths, I was brought forth. When there were no fountains abounding with water, before the mountains were settled, before the hills was I brought forth. While as yet He had not made the earth, nor the fields, nor the highest part of the dust of the world, when He prepared the heavens, I was there. When He set a compass upon the face of the depth, when he established the clouds above, when he strengthened the fountains of the deep, when he gave to the sea his decree that the water should not pass his commandment, when he appointed the foundations of the earth. Then I was by him, as one brought up with him, and I was daily his delight, rejoicing always before him, rejoicing in the habitable part of the earth. And my delights were with the sons of men,

The father loved the son eternally. There's a second thing I'd like to say about the father's love to the son. First, he loves him eternally. It's the love of union. He said, I and my father are one. That's when the Jews took up stones to stone him. He said, many works have I shown you of my father. For which of these do you stone me? For good work we stone thee not. You've made yourself equal with God. That's why we're stoning you. The love of union. I and my father are one.

Now, what does that mean? Well, John 1, 1 and 2 in the beginning was the word. In the beginning was the Word. And the Word was with God as a distinct person. And the Word was God. The same was eternally, immutably was in the beginning with God. And He who is God, one with the Father, so much so that he said to Philip, he that hath seen me hath seen the Father. He didn't say it's just as if you've seen the Father. All you'll ever see of the Father is the Son. He that hath seen me hath seen the Father. When the Father loved the Son, He loved himself. That's the love of union. When the father loved the son, he loved himself, the beauty of himself. How could God not love himself? The beauty of all of his attributes, his holiness, his otherness. He's not like anything in this world. His holy sovereignty, His holy justice, His holy omnipotence, His holy omnipresence, His holy omniscience, His holy independence, His holy immutability, His holy eternality, He couldn't help but love himself because he's one with himself.

I love that passage of scripture in Ephesians chapter five, where he tells the husbands to love the wives. He says, he that loveth his wife, loveth himself. And I realize, husbands, if you love your wives, you're the ones who'll benefit from it. It'll help you. I think you'll be loving yourself, but that's not what he's talking about.

When Christ loved his wife, he loved himself because of the union that exists between him and his people. Hebrews 2.11 says, both he that sanctifieth and they who are sanctified are all of one. For the which cause he's not ashamed to call them brethren.

The love of union, his holy love, his holy mercy, his holy grace. The son is the same substance, the same essence of the father. Now I have no idea what the substance or the essence of God is, but whatever it is, he's got the son. Colossians 2.9 says, in him dwelleth all the fullness of the Godhead bodily.

The father loves the son eternally and the father loves the son as united one with him.

Here's the third thing I'd like to say about the father's love to the son. The father's love for the son is conditional. I hate the term unconditional love. There is no such thing anywhere at any time. Well, I love my children unconditionally. No, you don't. You love them because they're your children. There is no such thing as unconditional love.

The father doesn't love his son unconditionally. He loves him because he's altogether lovely. Amen. Because he's altogether glorious. Because he's altogether beautiful. He loves the beauty of his character. It's the love of perfect satisfaction, perfect complacency. There's nothing about the son that the father would ever want to change because he's perfect. He's altogether lovely. He's altogether glorious.

Oh, the father loveth the son. He looks upon his beloved son and he says, how I love him. He's the express image of my person. He's the brightness of my glory. How can the father not love the son? Unconditional? Well, that's foolishness. Oh, the father loves the son because he's altogether lovely, because he's altogether worthy. It would be impossible for the father to not love the son. He loves him because he's altogether lovely.

It's not an unconditional love. The father loves the son because of his obedience. Turn with me to John chapter 14, just back a page. I'm sorry, John chapter 10, verse 14. John chapter 10, verse 14, the Lord says, I am the good shepherd. I have no doubt he is referring to himself as the one David wrote of in Psalm 23, when he said, the Lord is my shepherd. He's saying, that's me. I am the good shepherd and know my sheep and have known of mine. As the father knoweth me.

Oh, how does the father know the son? He knows him all together. Me and you, our knowledge is so limited. It's so small. Not his knowledge. I've often thought of my knowledge of him about like a dog's knowledge of its master. We know him, but if we're dog, the dog knows his master. We know our master. We don't know him too well, though. Not like the father knows the son.

As the Father knoweth me, even so know I the Father, and I lay down my life for the sheep. Christ didn't die for everybody. He died for the sheep. And that's so important that I understand that. You see, if he laid down his life for everybody and some of those people he laid down their life, he laid down his life for not saved. Guess what? I make salvation dependent upon works. It makes his love and his death meaningless. If he can love somebody and die for that person, they wind up in hell anyway. It makes everything he did meaningless.

He said, I laid down my life for the sheep. Look in verse 24 of this same chapter. Then came the Jews round about him and said unto him, How long dost thou make us to doubt? If thou be the Christ, tell us plainly. Jesus answered them, I told you, and you believe not. The works that I do in my Father's name, they bear witness of me. There's no question about who I am just by the miracles I perform. But you believe not. because you're not of my sheep. He didn't say, you're not my sheep because you don't believe. He said, you believe not because you're not of my sheep.

I lay down my life for the sheep. Verse 16, and other sheep have I, which are not of this folk, Them also I must bring. I love the way he uses the word must, don't you? It's absolutely necessary for me to bring these sheep. And they shall hear my voice and there shall be one fold and one shepherd. Therefore does my father love me because I lay down my life that I might take it again. No man taketh it from me. I'm not a victim, but I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down. I have power to take it again. This commandment have I received of my father.

My father loves me because I lay down my life for the sheep. He became obedient unto death. Even the death of the cross. My son, go be nailed to that cross. Yes, father. He became obedient unto death. Everything he did is in perfect obedience to his father. He said, for I do always those things that please the father. The father cannot cease to love the son. Nothing shall separate him from the love of the Father. The Father loves him because of his obedience. The Father loves him because he glorifies his Father.

Now understand this, the world was made for the glory of God. The glory of God is God's great end in everything. It's not your good. He'd make the world for you. He made the world for his own glory, to manifest his glorious person. And the son said to the father, father, the hour has now come. He's talking about his death. The purpose for the creation of the world, the purpose for all things. Why was there a fall? So Christ could die according to the Father's purpose. You see, he's the lamb slain from the foundation of the world.

Father, the hour has come. Glorify thy son that thy son also might glorify thee. I have glorified thee on the earth. I finished the work thou gavest me to do. The father loves the son because the son perfectly glorified the father. Now, as the fathers love me eternally in union. Because of my loveliness, unconditionally, I mean, conditionally, because of my altogether loveliness, because of my obedience, because of the fact that I completely glorified Him as the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. That is said to every believer. Get a hold of this by the grace of God. I wouldn't dare believe this or preach it, did not the Bible teach it.

As the father hath loved me, so have I loved you. All of his elect, every individual believer, individual believer. Are you somebody that believes that Jesus is the Christ? Do you believe he's the son of God? He says this to you individually. As the father had loved me, so have I loved you. If you can say with the Ethiopian eunuch, I believe that Jesus Christ is the son of God. Do you? And he says this to you as the father.

hath loved me, so have I loved you. Jesus Christ has loved you eternally. There was never a time when he began to love you. It had no starting point. He said, behold, I've loved you with an everlasting love. One that had no beginning, one that has no ending. Jesus Christ has loved you eternally.

Jesus Christ loves you as he loves himself. Think of that. This is the love of union. He loves you as he loves himself. He that loveth his wife loveth himself, being one with him. He loves me as he loves himself. I love to think of Christ's love for himself, don't you? You need to learn to love yourself. You don't need to learn that, you already do. No question about that. We're all so filled with self, but this is not his kind of love. He loves himself because He's altogether lovely to himself. And that's the way he loves every believer. The love of perfect union.

Jesus Christ loves me conditionally. Now, how can you say that? Well, turn with me to Ephesians chapter five, and I'll show you how to say that. Verse 25. Husbands, love your wives even as Christ also loved the church and gave himself for it that he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word that he might present it to himself a glorious church. not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that it should be holy and without blemish.

Now, Jesus Christ has made you holy and without blemish, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing. When he looks at you, He loves you as one who is as obedient as He is, as beautiful as He is. He says, thou art all fair, my love. There is no spot in thee. That's how Jesus Christ sees His bride. All fair, altogether lovely. No spot, no wrinkle, nothing but that which is pleasing to Him. That's not unconditional love, is it? He loves you because He's made you worthy of His love. He's made you lovely to Himself. That's no unconditional love. He loves you as you are in the Lord Jesus Christ.

Christ loves you as one who has obeyed Him perfectly. That's what justification is. If you're justified, that means you've never sinned and you've always obeyed perfectly. And when you're brought into heaven, He won't look at you and think, well, I forgive them, even though they've sinned. No, you're gonna be brought into heaven as one who's never sinned. One who is perfect in Christ Jesus. And when he obeyed the law, you did. Remember when he said to John the Baptist, thus it becometh us to fulfill all righteousness. That us is every one of his people. He says, as the Father hath loved me, Even so have I loved you.

He loves those who have obeyed him perfectly. Remember what the Lord said to the tax collector? I say to you, that man went down to his house. What? Forgiven? Pardoned? No. Justified. having never sinned. You see, if Christ's righteousness is my righteousness, I've got a righteousness that's never sinned. That's my righteousness. He loves his people as those who have never sinned. And he loves me because I glorify him. You see, I know this. Do you think that you've, when I'm saying I glorify him, I'm not saying I glorify him by my preaching or my praying. I'm saying this, my salvation, is His work only and He gets all the glory. I know that with regard to myself. When I stand in glory, I will be the biggest example of free grace there. And I hope every one of you feel the same way about yourself. We know He gets all the glory and we glorify in His saving us.

Now, turn back to our text, to John 15. As the Father hath loved me, so have I loved you. Continue ye in my love. The word is the same as verse four of John chapter 15, where he says, abide in me, it's continue in me. Abide in my love, remain in my love, dwell in my love, tarry in my love. You tarry where you enjoy being. Endure in my love, be present in this love I have for you.

Verse 10. If you keep my commandments, you shall abide in my love. Even as I have kept my father's commandments and abide in his love, if you keep my commandments. Now, is that talking about if we keep the 10 commandments, we abide in his love? Well, the fact of the matter is we have kept the 10 commandments and crossed. So I have kept the 10 commandments and abide in his love.

But turn with me to first John chapter three. This is what he's talking about. Verse 23. And this is his commandment. Notice he says one commandment, but he gives us two, which are really one. You can't separate the two. And this is his commandment, that we should believe on the name of his son, Jesus Christ. and love one another as he gave us commandment.

The name of Jesus Christ. Now the name is the person behind the name. That's so important for us to always remember when we talk about the name of the Lord, we're talking about the person behind the name, his attributes, his characteristics. Everybody here that I know, I know your name, I know a person behind the name. There's a person I think of. There's a personality I think of. There are traits and characteristics I think of.

The name of the Lord Jesus Christ. I love His name, Jesus. Thou shalt call His name Jesus, for He shall save His people from their sins. He's the Savior. Do you know that He was the Savior before the foundation of the world, before there was ever a sinner? There was a Savior, and that is Him. The Lamb, having been slain from the very foundation of the world. Jesus, the Savior. He shall save. Not He might save. He shall save His people from their sins.

The name of Jesus Christ. God's anointed. The Messiah. God's prophet. A prophet like no other prophet. Every other prophet said, thus saith the Lord. He never said that. I say unto you. Oh, what a prophet. What a priest. Every other priest brings the blood of an animal. He brings his own blood into the very presence of God. What a king. Every other king has borrowed power. He has inherent power. He says, power belongeth unto me. All power is given to me. What a King.

And we believe we rely on his name and we love one another as he gave his commandment. Now, somebody that Christ loves, do you love? Think about it. If Christ loves that person, do you love them? If that person loves Christ, do you love them? Yes, you do. Anybody that loves Christ, you love. We love all men in the sense that we want all men to hear the gospel and believe the gospel, and we love them to preach the gospel to them, want them to know the Lord. We love all men, but there's a special bond of love between believers. That's somebody that Christ loves. That's somebody that loves Christ. They are the excellence of the earth. They are the Lord's people. This is the love of the brethren. This is my commandment that you love one another as I have loved you and as I've kept my father's commandment.

Now, turn to John chapter 17 for a moment. Verse 23. Verse 23, I in them, thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one that the world may know that thou has sent me and has loved them as thou has loved me.

Now, would you dare believe that we're not in the Bible? Here's the promise. You've loved them in the same manner you've loved me. That's the love that passes knowledge, isn't it?

Now I wanna close going to 1 John 4. 1 John 4. Verse 16. And we have known and believed the love that God hath to us. We've known it because he said it, because it's revealed in his word. Everything I've said up to this point from the scriptures, we've known it. And we believed. What does that mean? We've relied on this being true. I'm relying on this, that he loves me like this. I won't be saved if he doesn't. I am relying on his love to me. I've known it from what God's word says. Right now, I'm relying on this being so.

God is love. And he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him. Herein is our love made perfect, complete, mature. Herein is our love made perfect that we may have, what's that say? Boldness on the day of judgment. Can you imagine standing before the God of glory and judgment with boldness? Hell! Because as He is, so are we in this world. Would Jesus Christ have boldness before His Father? Well, you know He would. Complete confidence, boldness, knowing he'd perfectly pleased him. That describes every believer as he is. So are we in this world right now.

Verse 18, there's no fear in love. This is talking about a slavish fear. There's always the fear of God. Heaven, we're going to have the fear of God, the reverence and respect of God. This is talking about a slavish fear. Because his perfect love does. That's what that's talking about. His perfect, complete love casts away fear. I'm accepted. I'm accepted in the beloved. God looks at me and says, I'm pleased with him. He's perfect. He's just like my son. Perfect love. Cast out fear. Fear hath torment. This slavish fear of thinking I haven't measured up. I haven't done enough. I'm not good enough. I haven't fill in the blank well enough. That just has torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love.

We love him. And we know why we love him. because He first loved us. As the Father has loved me, so have I loved. You, may the Lord give us the grace to bathe in that.

Oh, the deep, deep love of Jesus, vast, unmeasured, boundless, free, rolling as a mighty ocean in its fullness over me, underneath me, all around me is the current of his love leading onward leading homeward to His glorious throne above.

Let's pray. Lord, truly, we are utterly amazed and yet we believe the love that you have to all your people, everybody Christ died for, everybody that looks to him only. Lord, give us the grace to believe what you said in your word, that as the father has loved the son, so has he loved us, and that the father has the same love for us that he has for his son. Lord, we say that in reverence and all knowing that all of your love is in your son and our hope is being in him. Bless this word for his sake. In his name we pray. Amen.