SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 12/21/2016 10:39 AM
My Worship Time Focus:
The Friends of Jesus Love Each Other
Bible Reading &
Meditation Reference: John 15:12-13
Message of the verses: “12 “This is My commandment, that you love one another, just as I have loved you.
13 “Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his
friends.”
A couple of
verses before this Jesus told us how love is fulfilled: “"If you keep My commandments, you will
abide in My love; just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His
love (John 15:10).” Now we know that the
love that Jesus is speaking of here is the love where one does something for
someone expecting nothing in return.
“26 αγαπη agape ag-ah’-pay
1) {Singular } brotherly love, affection, good will, love,
benevolence {#Joh 15:13 Ro 13:10 1Jo 4:18 }
1a) Of the love of men to men; esp. Christians towards
Christians which is enjoined and prompted by their religion, whether the love
be viewed as in the soul or expressed {#Mt 14:12 1Co 13:1-4,8 14:1 2Co 2:4 Gal
5:6 Phm 5,7 1Ti 1:5 Heb 6:10 10:24 1Jo 4:7 Re 2:4,19 } &c
1b) Of the love of men towards God {#Lu 11:42 Joh 5:42 1Jo
2:15 3:17 4:12 5:3 }
1c) Of the love of God towards man {#Ro 5:8 8:39 2Co 13:14 }
1d) Of the love of God towards Christ {#Joh 15:10 17:26 }
1e) Of the love of Christ towards men {#Joh 15:8-13 2Co 5:14
Ro 8:35 Eph 3:19 }
2) {plural } love feasts expressing and fostering mutual
love which used to be held by Christians before the celebration of the Lord’s
supper, and at which the poorer Christians mingled with the wealthier and
partook in common with the rest of the food provided at the expense of the
wealthy. {#Jude 12 2Pe 2:13 Ac 2:42,46 1Co 11:17-34 }
Syn.: φιλια 5373 αγαπη, signifying properly (v. s. αγαραω
25) love which chooses its object, is taken from the LXX, where its connotation
is more general, into the NT, and there used exclusively to express that
spiritual bond of love between God and man and between man and man, in Christ
which is characteristic of Christianity. It is thus distinct from φιλια,
friendship (#Jas 4:4 only), στοργη, natural affection (in the NT only in its
compounds, v. s. αστοργος 794) and ερως sexual love, which is not used in the
NT, in its place being taken by επιηυμια 1939”
That rather
long quote is from “The Online Greek Lexicon” which I have on my Online Bible
program.
Paul writes
in Romans 13:8-10 about love “8 Owe nothing to anyone except to love one another; for he who
loves his neighbor has fulfilled the law. 9
For this, "YOU SHALL NOT COMMIT ADULTERY, YOU SHALL NOT MURDER, YOU
SHALL NOT STEAL, YOU SHALL NOT COVET," and if there is any other
commandment, it is summed up in this saying, "YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR
AS YOURSELF." 10 Love
does no wrong to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.”
We have
been talking about abiding in Christ and it is only those who abide in Him that
have the capacity to love in the way that Jesus loved. Romans 5:5 tell us “and hope does not
disappoint, because the
love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who
was given to us.” Galatians 5:22-23
“22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace,
patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control;
against such things there is no law.”
It has been
a while that we have studied the book of 1 Thessalonians, and we learned about
love in 1 Thessalonians 4:9 “Now as to the love of the brethren, you have no
need for anyone to write to you, for you yourselves are taught by God to love
one another.” This is true of all
believers as John MacArthur writes “Love for fellow believers characterizes
the redeemed, as John repeatedly
emphasized in his first epistle:
“9 The one
who says he is in the Light and yet hates his brother is in the darkness until
now. 10 The one who loves his brother abides in the Light and there is no cause
for stumbling in him. 11 But the one who hates his brother is in the darkness
and walks in the darkness, and does not know where he is going because the
darkness has blinded his eyes (1 John 2:9-11).
“10 By this
the children of God and the children of the devil are obvious: anyone who does
not practice righteousness is not of God, nor the one who does not love his
brother (1 John 3:10).
“14 We know
that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brethren. He
who does not love abides in death. 15 Everyone who hates his brother is a
murderer; and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him.
“7 Beloved,
let us love one another, for love is from God; and everyone who loves is born
of God and knows God. 8 The one who does not love does not know God, for God is
love (1 John 4:7-8).
“20 If someone says, "I love God," and
hates his brother, he is a liar; for the one who does not love his brother whom
he has seen, cannot love God whom he has not seen (1 John 4:20).”
“1 Whoever
believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and whoever loves the Father
loves the child born of Him (1 John 5:1).”
I have to say that when we read the gospels we saw John in a completely
different way as he and James his brother wanted to call down fire from heaven
to destroy a city because that city was not doing what they wanted them to do,
and now we see John talking a lot about love in his gospel along with his
letters.
Now Jesus
tells us in the last part of John 15:12 “you love one another, just as I have loved you.” This is the standard for believers on how we
are to love other believers. John MacArthur
writes “That does not mean, of course, that believers can love to the limitless
extent or in the perfect manner that He does.
But just as Jesus loved sacrificially, so also must they. ‘Walk in love,’ Paul wrote in Ephesians 5:2, ‘just
as Christ also loved you and gave Himself up for us, an offering and a
sacrifice to God as a fragrant aroma.’
The love believers have for each other is marked by a selfless devotion
to meeting one another’s needs; it is not mere sentiment, or superficial
attachment. In fact, Christians’ love
for each other is the church’s most powerful apologetic to the unbelieving
world (John 13:35).”
As I read
the things that Jesus was teaching His disciples in chapters 13-16 of John’s
gospel knowing that it would only be a few hours before He went to the cross
and this would show us the greatest love that has ever been shown as verse 13
tells us. Jesus did not die for Himself,
for Jesus was perfect and therefore did not have to die “For the wages of sin
is death,” and Jesus did not sin so His death was for those who would accept
Him as their Savior and Lord. Paul writes
“6 For while we were still helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. 7 For one will
hardly die for a righteous man; though perhaps for the good man someone would
dare even to die. 8 But
God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners,
Christ died for us (Romans 5:6-8).”
Paul also wrote the following in 2 Corinthians 5:21 “He made Him who
knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness
of God in Him.” This verse is sometimes
called “The Great Exchange.”
Spiritual meaning for my life today: I believe that the only way that I can
fulfill the kind of love that Christ has for me to others is to depend upon the
Holy Spirit to generate that love in me for others.
My Steps of Faith for
Today: To love others as Christ did.
Memory verse for the week:
(Romans 6:8-9) “8 Now if we have died with Christ, we believe that we
shall also live with Him, 9 knowing that Christ having been raised from the
dead, is never to die again; death no longer is master over Him.”
Answer to yesterday’s Bible question: “20” (Exodus 27:10).
Today’s Bible question:
“Following the Day of Pentecost, in what four things did the believers
continue steadfastly?”
Answer in our next SD.
12/21/2016 11:43 AM
No comments:
Post a Comment