You've Been “FIRST-LOVED”…s24e17 1Jn4:19

You have been FIRST-LOVED by God. That is, God is love and has chosen to share his great love with you. We are over-shadowed by it.  We are humbled, awed, grateful and worshipful on the INSIDE.

Today's passage wants us to do something with our OUTSIDES too. Go love the brotherhood and so demonstrate the warm fuzzies that are on your INSIDE.  Because God FIRST-LOVED you, go and second-love the sisterhood in a similar way. Because of God's MEGA-love, we are to share it in our inadequate, MICRO-love way. We have been FIRST-LOVED, so go love the KNUCKLEHOOD.

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Transcript

Michael Smith: 0:00

Good morning, my brothers and sisters Welcome to Episode 17 In the book of First John in the podcast be with me I'm going to title today, you've been first loved. You've been first loved this is from First John chapter four, verse 19. We love because he first loved us. And in the passage, the point isn't proving you a liar and having a spirit of fear, and a dread of punishment. And these must do commandments, even though they're all in the passage. The point is that we have been first loved by God, and God's love has chosen to show itself over us knucklehead over us knuckleheads. And the love of God that is seen proves a love that is unseen. So we're going to talk eventually, today about a practical, maybe even inconvenient love, that gives credence to our confession. So it's proof that we get it that God loves us. And that has done something inside of us. And that something inside of busts outside of us. So listen here, this is from First John chapter four starting in verse 16. So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love. And Whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in Him by this is love perfected in us so that we may have competence for the day of judgment, because as he is, so also are we in this world, there is no fear in love. but perfect love casts out fear, for fear has to do with punishment, and we're fierce has not been perfected in love. We love this is verse 19. We love because he first loved us. If anyone says I love God and hates his brother, he's a liar. For He does not love his brother whom he has seen, cannot love God, whom he has not seen. And this commandment we have from you. Whoever loves God must also love his brother. Alright, so let me re emphasize the point isn't trying to prove you a liar. The point is getting our hearts around the big idea that God is love. And that the shadow of that love has extended to cover me. And we have been first love. God's love overshadows us, and it falls on us. And first of all, we should be wowed by this and we should fall on our knees and worship in or maybe put our hands over our mouth and get all weepy in the privacy of our prayer closet. But then, we are to bust out fervently and to love the knucklehead. Love the knuckleheads in the church. So again, the main point isn't proving us a liar and giving us a spirit of fear and dreading punishment. The main point is to understand that God has loved us first that we have been first loved. And we are overwhelmed and wowed by it by his capacity to love. Because God is love his attention that he had directed towards us. And then we get our heads around these 1 million units of God's love towards us that he has bestowed upon us. So we have been first loved in a big way, in a massive way, in an impossible way. I'm going to describe this as he's given us 1 million units of love and spiritual furniture has been moved on our hands on our behalf in the heavenly realm. stuff we don't even know about. Can't even appreciate yet. And in light of this over the top love of God for us, He is asking us and saying is let's demonstrate the love that I have for you knuckleheads, by going and finding another knucklehead in your world and demonstrating that love to them. So because of God's mega love, show me some of the micro love that you may have. So after I have been first loved, the point is to watch my second love that is watch my love for people in the church. Now that that love has to be a tolerant love, because the the people that are going to be the targets of my human earthly love, they are going to have imperfections. And because I am acutely aware that I too, am quite an imperfect target for God's love. I tolerate their imperfections. So I love it kind of in the way that God loves me, which is a tolerant patient love. So the point is, is that I am a sinful unworthy love Target that his aim first love target of imperfection. But that makes me grateful and glad and humble in worshipful on the inside. But it doesn't stop there. That's the point of this passage is this also makes me a lover, externally, a lover of the Brotherhood, a lover of the knuckle hood on the outside. So what's God's done for me on the inside, and the sentiment that I have on the inside bursts force forth to my outside? So the charge today is to find somebody who poops in their pants at your church. Maybe it's a believer that's unattached in fellowship. Maybe it's someone that wears a burqa. Maybe it's someone that could never pay you back. Maybe it's someone in the nursery, maybe it's a middle schooler. Maybe it's someone of a foreigner in some sort of a way. Maybe it's a family that needs help. Maybe it's a divorced group, or maybe it's a group, a grief group. Maybe it's somebody from a different culture, anybody of this category, somebody that you can demonstrate to them, maybe just one unit of love for them, in light of the 1 million units of love that God has given us. So the idea is for you had been first loved. The passage says, We love because he first loved us. So we have been first love. So let's go and love the knuckle hood. Thanks for listening.