WEBVTT

00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:05.120
 We hope that you enjoy this teaching from Christ Church.

00:00:05.560 --> 00:00:09.540
 This material is copyrighted and no unauthorized duplication,

00:00:09.919 --> 00:00:15.439
 redistribution, or any other use of any part is permitted without prior consent from Christ Church.

00:00:15.439 --> 00:00:22.660
 Please consider donating to this work in the San Francisco Bay Area online at ChristChurchEastBay.org.

00:00:30.000 --> 00:00:36.259
 Good morning, I'm Denise Yon. I'm part of the San Francisco Community Group and the Women Reading Women Group.

00:00:37.079 --> 00:00:45.039
 Today's scripture reading is from John's first epistle, chapter 4, verses 7 to 21, as printed in the liturgy.

00:00:45.519 --> 00:00:54.079
 Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God.

00:00:54.840 --> 00:00:59.480
 Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love.

00:01:00.560 --> 00:01:08.060
 In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him.

00:01:08.780 --> 00:01:16.980
 In this is love, not that we have loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.

00:01:18.159 --> 00:01:22.760
 Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.

00:01:23.519 --> 00:01:25.280
 No one has ever seen God.

00:01:25.280 --> 00:01:30.780
 If we love one another, God abides in us, and his love is perfected in us.

00:01:31.739 --> 00:01:37.200
 By this we know that we abide in him and he in us, because he has given us of his Spirit.

00:01:37.200 --> 00:01:43.079
 And we have seen and testified that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world.

00:01:44.040 --> 00:01:49.840
 Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God.

00:01:49.840 --> 00:01:54.880
 So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us.

00:01:55.680 --> 00:02:01.300
 God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him.

00:02:02.300 --> 00:02:06.980
 By this is love perfected with us, so that we may have confidence for the day of judgment.

00:02:07.620 --> 00:02:11.000
 Because as he is, so also are we in this world.

00:02:11.000 --> 00:02:15.919
 There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear.

00:02:16.759 --> 00:02:21.479
 For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love.

00:02:22.360 --> 00:02:24.759
 We love because he first loved us.

00:02:25.580 --> 00:02:28.939
 If anyone says, I love God and hates his brother, he is a liar.

00:02:29.599 --> 00:02:34.939
 For he who does not love his brother whom he has seen, cannot love God whom he has not seen.

00:02:34.939 --> 00:02:41.759
 And this commandment we have from him, whoever loves God must also love his brother.

00:02:42.719 --> 00:02:43.960
 This is the word of the Lord.

00:02:46.479 --> 00:02:48.180
 Thank you for that scripture reading, Denise.

00:02:48.259 --> 00:02:48.939
 Good morning, everyone.

00:02:49.159 --> 00:02:49.840
 My name is Andrew.

00:02:50.259 --> 00:02:51.180
 I'm one of the pastors here.

00:02:51.259 --> 00:02:53.139
 If this is your first time at Christ Church, we welcome you.

00:02:53.199 --> 00:02:54.039
 We're so glad you're here.

00:02:54.400 --> 00:02:56.800
 We'd love to get to know you in our coffee hour afterwards.

00:02:57.620 --> 00:03:00.520
 Please stick around and learn more about our church.

00:03:00.620 --> 00:03:03.659
 We're a church that exists to lead people into deeper relationships with Christ

00:03:03.659 --> 00:03:05.979
 and his church through community and for the city.

00:03:06.060 --> 00:03:08.699
 And we'd love for you to know more about that, maybe even be a part of that.

00:03:09.319 --> 00:03:12.900
 This morning we are continuing our series in the letter of 1 John,

00:03:13.039 --> 00:03:15.840
 but will you join me in prayer before we get started?

00:03:20.340 --> 00:03:28.280
 Lord God, we come before you wanting to hear your voice in a very particular, specific way

00:03:28.280 --> 00:03:31.300
 relevant to each of our individual lives

00:03:31.300 --> 00:03:34.700
 and in a way that makes a difference in this world.

00:03:36.300 --> 00:03:38.460
 God, we know that we're supposed to love.

00:03:39.900 --> 00:03:43.580
 But it's one thing to be familiar with what you say about love,

00:03:43.620 --> 00:03:46.700
 and it's another thing to be formed by what you say about love.

00:03:46.760 --> 00:03:50.560
 It's one thing to be saturated with what you've said about love,

00:03:50.600 --> 00:03:53.700
 and it's another thing to be stirred by what you've said about love.

00:03:53.720 --> 00:03:54.680
 And we pray for the latter.

00:03:54.780 --> 00:03:55.620
 We want to be formed.

00:03:55.620 --> 00:04:01.740
 Lord, we want to be stirred, and we know that apart from the Holy Spirit working here in this moment,

00:04:02.420 --> 00:04:03.300
 that cannot happen.

00:04:03.420 --> 00:04:05.159
 So we ask for that, Lord.

00:04:05.879 --> 00:04:09.240
 Would you grace us with your presence?

00:04:10.219 --> 00:04:12.780
 Make us the people of love you've called us to be.

00:04:13.980 --> 00:04:19.819
 Make us the people of love who know how much we are loved by you in Christ.

00:04:19.939 --> 00:04:22.860
 Convince us of that truth and make a difference, Lord.

00:04:22.860 --> 00:04:24.040
 We pray in the name of Jesus.

00:04:24.759 --> 00:04:25.020
 Amen.

00:04:26.540 --> 00:04:28.639
 So as I just prayed, you know, coming in today's sermon,

00:04:29.259 --> 00:04:35.080
 I was beginning to wonder if you'd all be tired of me preaching the same thing again and again and again

00:04:35.080 --> 00:04:36.600
 throughout this letter, 1 John.

00:04:37.400 --> 00:04:39.800
 Love, love, love, love, love one another.

00:04:40.060 --> 00:04:40.220
 Right?

00:04:40.319 --> 00:04:43.699
 I have no doubt in my mind that all of you know this.

00:04:43.699 --> 00:04:46.080
 Even those of you who are not Christians,

00:04:46.300 --> 00:04:49.660
 even those of you who might not be familiar with the Scriptures,

00:04:49.660 --> 00:04:53.720
 we at least know the teaching of Jesus that we are to love one another.

00:04:54.520 --> 00:04:57.340
 And not only do I know that you all know about this,

00:04:57.480 --> 00:05:01.300
 but I know that for the most part, you all agree with this teaching of Jesus.

00:05:01.380 --> 00:05:04.560
 Even if you don't necessarily agree with us about who Jesus is,

00:05:04.620 --> 00:05:07.780
 you pretty much agree, right, that we're all supposed to love.

00:05:07.900 --> 00:05:10.620
 Deep down, we all recognize that there's something ultimate about love.

00:05:10.680 --> 00:05:15.640
 There's something right and good, even sublime and divine, about love.

00:05:15.639 --> 00:05:21.000
 And this is why so many people, right, so many people gathered around and believed in Dr. King's dream.

00:05:21.139 --> 00:05:27.860
 So many people rallied around his message and his method, his commitment to radical love, right,

00:05:27.939 --> 00:05:33.339
 unwavering love, his deep faith in love and the power of love to repair what is broken in this world,

00:05:33.419 --> 00:05:38.279
 whether war or economic displacement or racial injustice.

00:05:38.279 --> 00:05:42.259
 According to King, you name it, and love could fix it.

00:05:42.259 --> 00:05:49.120
 But my question for us today is if it's so simple, if it's so commonsensical,

00:05:49.199 --> 00:05:54.779
 if we all know we're supposed to love, and if we all believe with Dr. King that love will change the world,

00:05:54.899 --> 00:05:58.659
 why is there still such a shortage of love in this world?

00:05:59.240 --> 00:06:01.319
 Why is this world left still so unchanged?

00:06:02.360 --> 00:06:06.219
 If we really believe in love, if we really believe in Dr. King's dream,

00:06:06.220 --> 00:06:12.380
 if 60 years ago, in the 60s, when the Western world, you know, swung back and forth

00:06:12.380 --> 00:06:16.120
 and nodded their heads in approval and their hearts were inspired by the song,

00:06:16.420 --> 00:06:19.860
 what the world needs now is love, sweet love.

00:06:20.660 --> 00:06:23.380
 Why did 20 years ago the Black Eyed Peas sing,

00:06:24.080 --> 00:06:27.780
 people killing, people dying, children hurt, you hear them crying,

00:06:28.020 --> 00:06:29.380
 where is the love?

00:06:30.260 --> 00:06:31.100
 Where is the love?

00:06:31.980 --> 00:06:34.580
 And I was reading Dr. King this week in preparation for this sermon.

00:06:34.579 --> 00:06:37.639
 He has a collection of sermons called Strength to Love,

00:06:37.740 --> 00:06:41.060
 and one of those sermons is titled The Antidote to Fear.

00:06:41.180 --> 00:06:45.620
 And he was saying, you know, he was talking about how back in the 60s,

00:06:45.659 --> 00:06:48.659
 he was saying Russia fears America, America fears Russia.

00:06:48.719 --> 00:06:50.439
 He was talking about the Israelis and the Arabs,

00:06:50.519 --> 00:06:54.819
 and he was really trying to say that the antidote to all of this is love.

00:06:55.699 --> 00:06:59.039
 But now 60 years later, what has really changed?

00:06:59.040 --> 00:07:01.960
 Like what happened?

00:07:02.520 --> 00:07:03.720
 Or what didn't happen?

00:07:05.000 --> 00:07:08.800
 Now some of us might say that we've just believed in love in vain.

00:07:08.980 --> 00:07:12.640
 Some would argue that Dr. King's dream was nothing but a dream.

00:07:13.320 --> 00:07:15.900
 That to love is to be vulnerable, and to be vulnerable is to be weak,

00:07:15.980 --> 00:07:20.740
 and that the weak will always be swallowed up by the strong every single time in this world.

00:07:21.540 --> 00:07:23.660
 Some would say that it's survival of the fittest,

00:07:23.660 --> 00:07:28.380
 and while being social and communal may have its temporary advantages,

00:07:28.860 --> 00:07:31.800
 ultimately it's about looking out for number one.

00:07:32.480 --> 00:07:36.080
 And so these folks would argue against Dr. King that love isn't the antidote,

00:07:36.120 --> 00:07:38.420
 and they'd point to the record of history, because who are we kidding?

00:07:39.060 --> 00:07:39.540
 Love?

00:07:40.160 --> 00:07:41.020
 Ending all war?

00:07:41.580 --> 00:07:43.400
 Ending all economic insecurity?

00:07:43.640 --> 00:07:45.780
 Ending all racial injustice?

00:07:45.779 --> 00:07:46.019
 Ending all justice?

00:07:47.039 --> 00:07:48.879
 Maybe this describes you this morning.

00:07:48.979 --> 00:07:52.039
 You've tried the way of love only to get burned, right?

00:07:52.439 --> 00:07:56.919
 Only to get taken advantage of, and nothing to show for it, right?

00:07:57.659 --> 00:07:59.919
 And now you're like, no, nuh-uh, no more of that.

00:08:00.399 --> 00:08:01.299
 I'm just going to do me.

00:08:01.399 --> 00:08:02.719
 I'm just going to get mine.

00:08:03.739 --> 00:08:05.579
 But still there are others of you who are holding on,

00:08:05.639 --> 00:08:08.779
 and you would insist that the problem is not that we've loved in vain,

00:08:08.899 --> 00:08:11.539
 but that we haven't loved enough collectively.

00:08:11.779 --> 00:08:12.559
 Love is the antidote.

00:08:12.560 --> 00:08:14.800
 It's just that we need a larger dose.

00:08:15.240 --> 00:08:17.660
 Not enough people have believed in the dream.

00:08:17.819 --> 00:08:19.660
 Not enough people have caught the vision.

00:08:20.620 --> 00:08:24.300
 Not enough people have taken and spread this medicine of love throughout the world,

00:08:24.339 --> 00:08:27.180
 and what goes around has just not come around yet.

00:08:27.959 --> 00:08:30.000
 For these dreamers, it's just a matter of time, right?

00:08:30.579 --> 00:08:34.179
 But meanwhile, we must stay the course, continue loving to the end.

00:08:34.240 --> 00:08:35.799
 Maybe this describes you this morning.

00:08:35.860 --> 00:08:36.360
 You're trying.

00:08:36.559 --> 00:08:42.279
 You're trying so hard to live a life of love and service and care for this world,

00:08:42.279 --> 00:08:45.480
 but you're tired, and you wonder when.

00:08:46.220 --> 00:08:50.240
 Maybe you wonder if love really is the antidote.

00:08:51.159 --> 00:08:53.879
 And perhaps many of you expect me, a Christian minister,

00:08:54.319 --> 00:08:56.240
 to side with the latter group this morning, right?

00:08:56.600 --> 00:08:58.939
 The dreamers, the hopeful lovers.

00:08:59.100 --> 00:09:03.679
 But what the Scriptures teach about who is actually right between the love cynics

00:09:03.679 --> 00:09:09.500
 and the love optimists is that it really depends on what kind of love we're talking about.

00:09:10.319 --> 00:09:11.459
 What kind of love are we talking about?

00:09:11.479 --> 00:09:15.159
 See, I think a lot of us take the meaning and purpose of love for granted.

00:09:15.279 --> 00:09:19.919
 We just assume we all know what love is, and we're all on the same page about love, right?

00:09:19.919 --> 00:09:23.240
 We see those lawn signs in our neighborhoods.

00:09:23.879 --> 00:09:25.439
 Love is just love, right?

00:09:26.360 --> 00:09:29.079
 And I'm not saying that love is easy to define because it isn't.

00:09:29.679 --> 00:09:35.500
 But if our conception of love is just this vague notion of sentimental feelings,

00:09:35.959 --> 00:09:39.799
 warm affections, warm desires and delights and positive vibes,

00:09:39.799 --> 00:09:43.699
 that's not the kind of love that's going to take us very far.

00:09:44.759 --> 00:09:49.199
 Ultimately, to simply believe in a vague, generic, sentimentalist,

00:09:49.279 --> 00:09:51.959
 feelings-first kind of love is to believe in vain

00:09:51.959 --> 00:09:57.819
 because the problems of the world are too big to be solved by ambiguous, positive vibes.

00:09:58.639 --> 00:10:03.039
 That may work for a season in places of privilege and plenty,

00:10:04.179 --> 00:10:09.019
 but such general, generic human warmth has yet to prove itself self-sustaining

00:10:09.019 --> 00:10:12.819
 and enough to alter the chilling cold of this cold, cold world.

00:10:13.840 --> 00:10:20.159
 I mean, tell me, how many acts of kindness can raise all those unjustly murdered from the dead

00:10:20.159 --> 00:10:21.939
 from Nazi concentration camps?

00:10:22.799 --> 00:10:29.199
 How many reparations could ever make up for the disenfranchisement of the transatlantic slave trade

00:10:29.199 --> 00:10:33.360
 and the collective trauma caused by white and Western supremacy?

00:10:33.579 --> 00:10:37.240
 How many positive vibes will it take, in the words of Samwise Kamji,

00:10:37.240 --> 00:10:39.399
 to make everything sad untrue?

00:10:40.220 --> 00:10:45.460
 How many positive vibes will it take to bend every historical injustice back to justice

00:10:45.460 --> 00:10:47.299
 and even bring it into shalom?

00:10:48.740 --> 00:10:54.159
 Now, I'm not saying that acts of kindness and reparations and positive vibes are pointless.

00:10:54.560 --> 00:10:58.980
 And I won't deny that the world has had many moments inspiring hope and celebration,

00:10:58.980 --> 00:11:04.039
 but I will say that we cannot put all our hope in such positive vibes,

00:11:04.159 --> 00:11:06.779
 such limited acts of love and justice.

00:11:07.440 --> 00:11:14.300
 Because apart from a supernatural power that can forever break the curse of sin and death upon nature as we know it,

00:11:14.360 --> 00:11:17.379
 apart from a divine and transcendent intervention,

00:11:18.379 --> 00:11:22.460
 the record of world history does not indicate, beyond a shadow of a doubt,

00:11:22.460 --> 00:11:27.500
 that the universe is moving toward it, is moving toward justice as opposed to injustice.

00:11:28.620 --> 00:11:33.960
 You know, the only reason why Dr. King could make such a claim that though the moral arc of the universe is long,

00:11:34.019 --> 00:11:35.040
 it bends toward justice,

00:11:35.540 --> 00:11:37.780
 is because he believed in the God of the Scriptures.

00:11:38.639 --> 00:11:41.200
 He believed in the God revealed to us in Jesus Christ.

00:11:41.280 --> 00:11:43.560
 There's a reason why the Black Eyed Peas,

00:11:43.559 --> 00:11:45.239
 the Black Eyed Peas, they sang what?

00:11:45.759 --> 00:11:48.079
 Father, Father, Father, help us.

00:11:48.679 --> 00:11:50.359
 Send some guidance from above.

00:11:51.339 --> 00:11:52.479
 So we can't do it on our own.

00:11:52.959 --> 00:11:56.699
 As much as we secular, Western, modern people want to believe we can fix it,

00:11:56.699 --> 00:11:58.399
 we can solve our own problems,

00:11:59.059 --> 00:11:59.959
 we can't.

00:12:00.379 --> 00:12:01.000
 We can't.

00:12:01.539 --> 00:12:06.459
 It's because when so much of the secular West renegotiated its largely Christian roots

00:12:06.459 --> 00:12:08.019
 and decided to retain,

00:12:08.359 --> 00:12:09.699
 love your neighbor but discard,

00:12:10.099 --> 00:12:10.919
 thus saith the Lord.

00:12:10.919 --> 00:12:15.479
 When we elevated the second commandment of Jesus to love our neighbors

00:12:15.479 --> 00:12:17.939
 but made his first great commandment negotiable

00:12:17.939 --> 00:12:21.179
 to love the Lord our God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength,

00:12:21.259 --> 00:12:26.279
 we unwittingly unmoored ourselves from the very source and origin of love.

00:12:27.139 --> 00:12:29.559
 And I know I haven't even gotten into the text yet this morning,

00:12:29.639 --> 00:12:31.139
 but see, this is why this text is so important.

00:12:32.219 --> 00:12:35.919
 It isn't just another religious rule telling people to love,

00:12:35.980 --> 00:12:36.759
 which they already know.

00:12:37.559 --> 00:12:39.299
 It is giving us the very basis,

00:12:39.299 --> 00:12:41.439
 the very definition of love,

00:12:41.519 --> 00:12:43.899
 without which we will never love as we ought.

00:12:44.519 --> 00:12:47.479
 And without which the world will continue to be starved,

00:12:47.879 --> 00:12:48.959
 starved for love,

00:12:49.359 --> 00:12:49.819
 unchanged,

00:12:50.359 --> 00:12:53.959
 and without hope for the abundant life that we all long for.

00:12:54.699 --> 00:12:57.339
 See, we must not settle for love is love.

00:12:58.079 --> 00:13:01.219
 What the world needs now is God's sweet love.

00:13:02.240 --> 00:13:03.019
 Look at verse 7.

00:13:03.019 --> 00:13:06.000
 Beloved, let us love one another.

00:13:06.240 --> 00:13:08.100
 For love is from God,

00:13:08.199 --> 00:13:11.179
 and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God.

00:13:11.840 --> 00:13:14.340
 Anyone who does not love does not know God,

00:13:14.419 --> 00:13:16.319
 because God is love.

00:13:16.360 --> 00:13:20.139
 And what this is saying is that the grounds of our love for one another,

00:13:20.340 --> 00:13:21.899
 the very source of our love,

00:13:22.299 --> 00:13:26.079
 is and it has to be the God who is love himself.

00:13:26.080 --> 00:13:31.259
 Love is not this, you know, ambiguous, ultimate, impersonal substance, energy, force,

00:13:31.379 --> 00:13:35.460
 or vibe that God, like, taps into and conforms himself unto.

00:13:36.500 --> 00:13:37.500
 No, no, God.

00:13:37.900 --> 00:13:38.759
 God is love.

00:13:39.259 --> 00:13:40.800
 He, the Father, loving the Son,

00:13:41.020 --> 00:13:43.740
 and the Son, loving the Father from all eternity,

00:13:43.740 --> 00:13:47.820
 with a passionate, committed, self-giving, mutual affection,

00:13:48.000 --> 00:13:49.080
 the triune God,

00:13:49.660 --> 00:13:50.400
 is love.

00:13:51.000 --> 00:13:53.060
 And not just one part of him is love,

00:13:53.059 --> 00:13:54.539
 but all that he is is love.

00:13:54.599 --> 00:13:56.599
 Like, all that he does is loving.

00:13:56.679 --> 00:13:58.979
 Even those things that don't seem loving,

00:13:59.479 --> 00:14:01.119
 like his judgment and his wrath,

00:14:01.219 --> 00:14:02.819
 they are not the opposite of love.

00:14:02.899 --> 00:14:05.059
 They are in alignment with who he is,

00:14:05.239 --> 00:14:07.019
 and they come out of his love.

00:14:07.919 --> 00:14:10.719
 Do you remember Jesus' anger in the temple?

00:14:11.259 --> 00:14:11.379
 Right?

00:14:11.399 --> 00:14:14.339
 His anger in the temple when they made his Father's house of prayer

00:14:14.339 --> 00:14:15.659
 a commercialized thief,

00:14:16.199 --> 00:14:17.339
 a den of thieves.

00:14:18.039 --> 00:14:19.359
 He fumed, right?

00:14:19.859 --> 00:14:21.019
 He fumed with wrath.

00:14:21.539 --> 00:14:21.759
 Why?

00:14:22.439 --> 00:14:23.559
 Because he loved his Father.

00:14:24.120 --> 00:14:25.539
 Because he loved his Father's glory.

00:14:25.659 --> 00:14:29.340
 And because he loved those who are being taken advantage of in the temple.

00:14:30.139 --> 00:14:33.299
 See, God is love means that all God's ways are love

00:14:33.299 --> 00:14:35.220
 and that he is the very standard of love.

00:14:35.279 --> 00:14:37.679
 He defines love more than love defines him.

00:14:38.259 --> 00:14:40.500
 He's not trying to measure up to our varied

00:14:40.500 --> 00:14:42.740
 and often convenient understandings of love.

00:14:43.519 --> 00:14:45.759
 No, any vague sense of love that we have

00:14:46.279 --> 00:14:48.500
 is because we were made in the image of God,

00:14:48.879 --> 00:14:49.559
 who is love.

00:14:49.559 --> 00:14:53.139
 So you see, love isn't just what we make of it.

00:14:53.199 --> 00:14:55.359
 It isn't just any expression we choose.

00:14:55.459 --> 00:14:58.139
 It's so much more than the free expression of ourselves

00:14:58.139 --> 00:14:59.359
 and our desires

00:14:59.359 --> 00:15:02.500
 and the consenting reception of those expressions.

00:15:03.299 --> 00:15:05.059
 It isn't just wide tolerance

00:15:05.059 --> 00:15:08.919
 or a relativistic acceptance and affirmation of all things,

00:15:09.019 --> 00:15:11.079
 just so long as it doesn't harm anyone.

00:15:11.080 --> 00:15:16.500
 No, love is a specific act of self-giving and concern for others.

00:15:16.600 --> 00:15:18.200
 That is, get this, modeled.

00:15:18.980 --> 00:15:21.940
 Modeled after the God who is love himself

00:15:21.940 --> 00:15:26.120
 and the God who has shown love to us in Christ.

00:15:27.000 --> 00:15:27.460
 Verse 9.

00:15:27.460 --> 00:15:40.139
 See, love is the giving of real life.

00:15:40.980 --> 00:15:43.820
 It's what God showed people who chose death.

00:15:44.680 --> 00:15:46.280
 It's what he showed us by sending his son,

00:15:46.500 --> 00:15:48.800
 the light of the world, into our darkness.

00:15:49.680 --> 00:15:50.280
 Verse 10 says,

00:15:50.279 --> 00:16:00.480
 And see, love is not primarily about what we owe to God.

00:16:00.579 --> 00:16:04.659
 Love is primarily defined by what God has shown voluntarily,

00:16:05.419 --> 00:16:07.379
 even surprisingly, toward us.

00:16:07.919 --> 00:16:10.379
 When we brought sin and therefore the wages of sin,

00:16:10.659 --> 00:16:11.439
 death into this world,

00:16:11.539 --> 00:16:15.079
 he loved us and sent his son to be the propitiation.

00:16:15.199 --> 00:16:15.939
 I know that's a big word.

00:16:16.000 --> 00:16:17.259
 We talked about it earlier in the series,

00:16:17.339 --> 00:16:18.139
 but let me go over it again.

00:16:18.139 --> 00:16:22.840
 And propitiation is this satisfying atonement for our sins.

00:16:23.759 --> 00:16:25.679
 He sent his righteous, innocent son

00:16:25.679 --> 00:16:29.240
 to pay the wages of our sin with his own death.

00:16:29.519 --> 00:16:30.840
 Not our death, his own death.

00:16:31.299 --> 00:16:33.419
 To satisfy the demands of justice

00:16:33.419 --> 00:16:35.899
 against all wickedness and unrighteousness.

00:16:36.699 --> 00:16:39.960
 And see this, this is the gospel, real, real love.

00:16:40.340 --> 00:16:42.939
 The measure of all that we would call love.

00:16:43.000 --> 00:16:45.840
 It's the sacrificial, self-giving activity of God

00:16:45.840 --> 00:16:49.879
 to bring us life by the atoning death of his son, Jesus Christ.

00:16:50.820 --> 00:16:51.780
 So can you see?

00:16:52.460 --> 00:16:53.500
 Can you see how much better,

00:16:54.120 --> 00:16:56.100
 how much purer, how much stronger,

00:16:56.220 --> 00:16:58.540
 how much more inspiring and powerful,

00:16:58.680 --> 00:17:00.060
 how much more transformative

00:17:00.060 --> 00:17:02.820
 the love of God in Christ is toward his people?

00:17:02.940 --> 00:17:06.440
 Love isn't some fluffy, permissive openness

00:17:06.440 --> 00:17:07.720
 to anything and everything.

00:17:08.460 --> 00:17:09.840
 Love is actually the upholding

00:17:09.839 --> 00:17:12.740
 upholding of the highest standards of God

00:17:12.740 --> 00:17:16.419
 and yet at God's own expense rather than ours.

00:17:17.279 --> 00:17:18.459
 And this is the gospel, right?

00:17:18.740 --> 00:17:19.839
 This is the hope of the world,

00:17:19.899 --> 00:17:22.480
 the only true love that can really transform the world,

00:17:22.539 --> 00:17:24.740
 the only true love really worth believing in.

00:17:25.699 --> 00:17:27.500
 Listen, the world will not be transformed

00:17:27.500 --> 00:17:30.019
 one act of kindness at a time

00:17:30.019 --> 00:17:31.679
 by people like you and me.

00:17:32.480 --> 00:17:34.559
 Is anyone here willing to bet their life

00:17:34.559 --> 00:17:36.720
 and the well-being of the whole world

00:17:36.720 --> 00:17:40.319
 on our positive vibes outweighing our negative ones?

00:17:41.200 --> 00:17:41.839
 No way.

00:17:42.599 --> 00:17:43.419
 No way, right?

00:17:44.259 --> 00:17:45.879
 The transformation of the world

00:17:45.879 --> 00:17:47.019
 demands a greater kindness,

00:17:47.720 --> 00:17:50.319
 a greater, purer, stronger love,

00:17:50.359 --> 00:17:52.019
 a love that can deal with the root problem,

00:17:52.659 --> 00:17:53.279
 which is sin.

00:17:54.039 --> 00:17:55.299
 The sin that runs through each

00:17:55.299 --> 00:17:56.279
 and every one of our hearts.

00:17:56.379 --> 00:17:57.899
 The transformation of the world

00:17:57.899 --> 00:18:00.359
 demands nothing less than God's love

00:18:00.359 --> 00:18:03.399
 made manifest amongst us in Jesus Christ,

00:18:03.400 --> 00:18:05.800
 who put sin to death on a cross

00:18:05.800 --> 00:18:07.740
 and rose again in glorious life.

00:18:08.600 --> 00:18:09.800
 And see, thank God for that.

00:18:10.300 --> 00:18:11.180
 Thank God because that means

00:18:11.180 --> 00:18:12.620
 if we are followers of Jesus,

00:18:12.840 --> 00:18:15.019
 our job is not to save the world

00:18:15.019 --> 00:18:16.759
 by our limited acts

00:18:16.759 --> 00:18:18.540
 and often flawed acts of love,

00:18:18.600 --> 00:18:21.019
 but it's to bear witness to God's love,

00:18:21.340 --> 00:18:23.480
 which can and truly will save the world.

00:18:23.580 --> 00:18:25.360
 Our job as children of God

00:18:25.360 --> 00:18:26.680
 is to image and reflect

00:18:26.680 --> 00:18:28.080
 the Father's love to the world,

00:18:28.200 --> 00:18:30.980
 to love out of the deep, deep reservoir of love

00:18:30.980 --> 00:18:32.160
 that the Father has deposited

00:18:32.160 --> 00:18:33.480
 into each of our lives.

00:18:34.460 --> 00:18:35.120
 Look at verse 11.

00:18:35.220 --> 00:18:37.840
 Beloved, if God so loved us,

00:18:38.380 --> 00:18:40.259
 we also ought to love one another.

00:18:41.820 --> 00:18:43.860
 See, those who've been loved by God,

00:18:44.420 --> 00:18:46.480
 we have no reason, no excuse,

00:18:46.680 --> 00:18:48.320
 no rational explanation

00:18:48.320 --> 00:18:49.980
 for why we should not love others.

00:18:50.060 --> 00:18:51.320
 But it's not just an obligation.

00:18:52.100 --> 00:18:54.140
 It's not just an obligation to love others.

00:18:54.320 --> 00:18:55.440
 It's an amazing privilege.

00:18:56.060 --> 00:18:57.480
 And it's an amazing invitation.

00:18:58.620 --> 00:18:59.560
 Verse 12 here, it says,

00:18:59.559 --> 00:19:01.179
 no one has ever seen God.

00:19:02.019 --> 00:19:03.220
 And that reminded me of my daughter.

00:19:03.299 --> 00:19:04.539
 You know, my daughter, Cammie,

00:19:04.639 --> 00:19:06.099
 she's three, she's my older one,

00:19:06.279 --> 00:19:08.139
 and she's in this phase right now

00:19:08.139 --> 00:19:10.099
 where we'll be talking about God,

00:19:10.139 --> 00:19:10.700
 and she says,

00:19:11.259 --> 00:19:12.519
 but I can't see God.

00:19:13.059 --> 00:19:14.960
 How come I don't see him, Dad?

00:19:16.200 --> 00:19:16.960
 And you know,

00:19:17.039 --> 00:19:18.720
 I love how the children's catechism

00:19:18.720 --> 00:19:19.639
 tries to answer that question.

00:19:19.720 --> 00:19:21.000
 It says, can you see God?

00:19:21.259 --> 00:19:22.759
 No, but he always sees me.

00:19:23.579 --> 00:19:25.279
 And I always try to instill that in her,

00:19:25.359 --> 00:19:26.960
 that God is still present,

00:19:26.960 --> 00:19:28.100
 even when we can't see him.

00:19:28.140 --> 00:19:28.840
 And I remind her,

00:19:29.079 --> 00:19:30.180
 I remind my daughters that,

00:19:30.380 --> 00:19:31.900
 you know, we can hear God in his word,

00:19:31.980 --> 00:19:32.360
 the Bible,

00:19:32.480 --> 00:19:33.440
 even if we can't see him.

00:19:33.500 --> 00:19:34.299
 But if I'm honest,

00:19:34.920 --> 00:19:36.299
 I still get nervous and anxious

00:19:36.299 --> 00:19:38.980
 every time my daughter asks this question.

00:19:38.980 --> 00:19:40.039
 Because my worst nightmare

00:19:40.039 --> 00:19:41.600
 is for my daughters

00:19:41.600 --> 00:19:43.240
 not to have a real

00:19:43.240 --> 00:19:44.360
 and abiding relationship

00:19:44.360 --> 00:19:45.480
 with God in Christ.

00:19:46.180 --> 00:19:47.500
 And so I'm always wondering

00:19:47.500 --> 00:19:48.400
 as a parent,

00:19:48.500 --> 00:19:49.460
 and as a preacher here,

00:19:49.860 --> 00:19:51.620
 what can I say to convince her?

00:19:51.740 --> 00:19:53.180
 What can I say to convince all of you

00:19:53.180 --> 00:19:54.900
 of the reality of God

00:19:54.900 --> 00:19:56.540
 and his love for us in Christ?

00:19:57.019 --> 00:19:58.820
 What words do I need to say?

00:19:58.880 --> 00:20:01.060
 What conversations do I need to have?

00:20:01.960 --> 00:20:03.300
 But you know, here in this text,

00:20:03.759 --> 00:20:04.600
 in this verse right here,

00:20:04.640 --> 00:20:05.940
 God reminded me

00:20:05.940 --> 00:20:08.500
 that maybe it's not just about

00:20:08.500 --> 00:20:10.280
 what I say to convince her.

00:20:10.400 --> 00:20:11.340
 Maybe it's not just about

00:20:11.340 --> 00:20:13.300
 what I say to convince any of you.

00:20:14.120 --> 00:20:15.220
 But what if it's also a matter

00:20:15.220 --> 00:20:16.560
 of how I love?

00:20:17.560 --> 00:20:18.300
 How I love?

00:20:19.380 --> 00:20:19.780
 Verse 12,

00:20:19.779 --> 00:20:30.579
 See, love one another

00:20:30.579 --> 00:20:33.079
 isn't just some predictable command

00:20:33.079 --> 00:20:33.660
 in the Bible.

00:20:33.799 --> 00:20:35.859
 It's an invitation to enjoy

00:20:35.859 --> 00:20:37.819
 and to expose the presence

00:20:37.819 --> 00:20:39.799
 of the invisible God.

00:20:41.039 --> 00:20:42.539
 Like, let that sink in for a second.

00:20:42.700 --> 00:20:44.240
 When we love one another,

00:20:45.259 --> 00:20:46.119
 God is there.

00:20:46.960 --> 00:20:48.200
 When we love one another,

00:20:48.200 --> 00:20:49.580
 there is God.

00:20:50.519 --> 00:20:51.299
 And not only that,

00:20:51.380 --> 00:20:53.240
 but his love is perfected in us.

00:20:53.279 --> 00:20:53.920
 What does that mean?

00:20:54.000 --> 00:20:55.000
 I like to think of it this way.

00:20:55.059 --> 00:20:57.319
 It's like God, who is love,

00:20:57.400 --> 00:20:59.319
 writing the greatest story ever told, right?

00:20:59.319 --> 00:21:00.480
 The greatest love story ever told.

00:21:00.580 --> 00:21:01.900
 And not only did he write himself

00:21:01.900 --> 00:21:02.920
 into the story

00:21:02.920 --> 00:21:04.539
 as the heroic lover

00:21:04.539 --> 00:21:06.140
 who would transform the world

00:21:06.140 --> 00:21:06.980
 and turn the tragedy

00:21:06.980 --> 00:21:08.180
 into something more beautiful

00:21:08.180 --> 00:21:09.779
 than we could ever have imagined,

00:21:09.880 --> 00:21:11.059
 but he also wrote sequels

00:21:11.059 --> 00:21:12.120
 to the story.

00:21:12.259 --> 00:21:13.580
 Chapter after chapter

00:21:13.580 --> 00:21:15.200
 of his love continuing

00:21:15.200 --> 00:21:16.740
 to be expressed

00:21:16.740 --> 00:21:17.779
 through his people

00:21:17.779 --> 00:21:19.380
 like waves upon waves

00:21:19.380 --> 00:21:20.720
 emanating from his ultimate

00:21:20.720 --> 00:21:22.080
 one act of love

00:21:22.080 --> 00:21:24.019
 in the crucified and risen Christ.

00:21:25.160 --> 00:21:25.819
 So my question is,

00:21:25.880 --> 00:21:26.880
 is that not a story

00:21:26.880 --> 00:21:28.299
 that we want to be a part of?

00:21:28.779 --> 00:21:30.319
 Like, don't you want a chapter

00:21:30.319 --> 00:21:31.660
 in this story

00:21:31.660 --> 00:21:33.799
 of this ever-perfecting love?

00:21:33.860 --> 00:21:34.640
 Don't you want to make

00:21:34.640 --> 00:21:36.980
 the invisible God visible,

00:21:37.140 --> 00:21:38.240
 more perceptible,

00:21:38.319 --> 00:21:40.279
 his presence more closely felt?

00:21:41.140 --> 00:21:42.340
 Because that's what happens

00:21:42.339 --> 00:21:43.279
 when we love one another.

00:21:43.939 --> 00:21:45.099
 The unseen God

00:21:45.099 --> 00:21:47.099
 is somehow made perceptible.

00:21:47.839 --> 00:21:49.919
 Ask Maria Francis about this.

00:21:50.019 --> 00:21:50.959
 She has seen it.

00:21:51.559 --> 00:21:52.240
 For those of you

00:21:52.240 --> 00:21:53.559
 who don't know Maria,

00:21:53.759 --> 00:21:55.119
 she's our assistant director

00:21:55.119 --> 00:21:55.959
 of ministry,

00:21:56.059 --> 00:21:56.639
 and I've had the pleasure

00:21:56.639 --> 00:21:57.699
 of working with her

00:21:57.699 --> 00:21:59.259
 for the last two years.

00:21:59.740 --> 00:22:00.319
 And if you don't know

00:22:00.319 --> 00:22:01.379
 anything about Maria,

00:22:01.459 --> 00:22:02.319
 you really need to know,

00:22:02.759 --> 00:22:03.699
 and she's given me permission

00:22:03.699 --> 00:22:04.519
 to share the story

00:22:04.519 --> 00:22:05.419
 of her and her husband,

00:22:06.000 --> 00:22:06.579
 Pastor Mike.

00:22:06.720 --> 00:22:07.579
 He sits back there.

00:22:07.659 --> 00:22:08.279
 Hey, Pastor Mike.

00:22:08.399 --> 00:22:09.539
 He lifts up his hands.

00:22:09.619 --> 00:22:10.679
 He gives us amens,

00:22:10.680 --> 00:22:12.380
 and we love him for that

00:22:12.380 --> 00:22:13.460
 here at Christ Church.

00:22:14.380 --> 00:22:15.180
 So as a staff,

00:22:15.240 --> 00:22:16.380
 we got to hear more snippets

00:22:16.380 --> 00:22:18.279
 of the story not too long ago,

00:22:18.600 --> 00:22:19.940
 the story of Pastor Mike's,

00:22:20.279 --> 00:22:21.000
 his heart attack,

00:22:21.480 --> 00:22:22.380
 his bike accident,

00:22:22.640 --> 00:22:25.400
 and his severe brain damage

00:22:25.400 --> 00:22:26.259
 that resulted.

00:22:26.519 --> 00:22:26.759
 And man,

00:22:26.840 --> 00:22:27.720
 I just got to say

00:22:27.720 --> 00:22:29.759
 that that he is back there

00:22:29.759 --> 00:22:30.440
 raising his hands,

00:22:30.560 --> 00:22:31.360
 worshiping with us,

00:22:31.480 --> 00:22:32.680
 walking, talking,

00:22:32.680 --> 00:22:34.400
 and just here encouraging us

00:22:34.400 --> 00:22:36.580
 is nothing short of a miracle.

00:22:37.680 --> 00:22:38.600
 So just two months ago,

00:22:38.720 --> 00:22:39.799
 it was around Memorial Day,

00:22:39.799 --> 00:22:40.700
 which is the anniversary

00:22:40.700 --> 00:22:42.480
 of Pastor Mike's accident.

00:22:42.639 --> 00:22:43.839
 We were sitting around our table

00:22:43.839 --> 00:22:45.159
 on a staff day.

00:22:45.460 --> 00:22:46.359
 We were eating our lunches

00:22:46.359 --> 00:22:47.859
 as we do on a Tuesday,

00:22:48.079 --> 00:22:49.779
 and we were listening to Maria

00:22:49.779 --> 00:22:51.119
 just share as she was reflecting.

00:22:51.220 --> 00:22:51.779
 It's Memorial Day,

00:22:51.839 --> 00:22:53.579
 remembering the nightmare

00:22:53.579 --> 00:22:55.839
 that came upon their family,

00:22:56.399 --> 00:22:57.779
 Memorial Day 2015.

00:22:58.940 --> 00:23:01.039
 And all the days and weeks

00:23:01.039 --> 00:23:02.019
 and the months that followed,

00:23:02.119 --> 00:23:03.019
 she just shared with us

00:23:03.019 --> 00:23:04.839
 what she just went through.

00:23:04.940 --> 00:23:06.220
 And with teary eyes,

00:23:06.220 --> 00:23:08.140
 she recalled the helicopter,

00:23:08.440 --> 00:23:08.640
 right,

00:23:08.720 --> 00:23:10.059
 airlifting Pastor Mike

00:23:10.059 --> 00:23:10.720
 to the hospital.

00:23:11.500 --> 00:23:13.120
 She recalled the long days

00:23:13.120 --> 00:23:14.079
 of sitting with her

00:23:14.079 --> 00:23:15.420
 unconscious husband,

00:23:15.559 --> 00:23:16.360
 not knowing when

00:23:16.360 --> 00:23:18.259
 or if he'd regain consciousness

00:23:18.259 --> 00:23:20.299
 and with little to no expectation

00:23:20.299 --> 00:23:21.779
 from their medical providers

00:23:21.779 --> 00:23:23.200
 that he would even walk

00:23:23.200 --> 00:23:23.960
 or talk again.

00:23:24.920 --> 00:23:26.039
 She also recalled

00:23:26.039 --> 00:23:27.860
 the jarringly altered husband

00:23:27.860 --> 00:23:29.220
 who eventually woke up

00:23:29.220 --> 00:23:30.299
 right next to her,

00:23:30.519 --> 00:23:31.000
 agitated,

00:23:31.839 --> 00:23:32.339
 uncomfortable,

00:23:33.200 --> 00:23:34.900
 unable to form words

00:23:34.900 --> 00:23:36.019
 or complete sentences.

00:23:37.120 --> 00:23:38.420
 But then she said something to me

00:23:38.420 --> 00:23:39.519
 that I will never forget.

00:23:40.640 --> 00:23:42.160
 After recalling awful detail

00:23:42.160 --> 00:23:43.840
 after awful detail,

00:23:45.140 --> 00:23:46.720
 Maria said with full conviction

00:23:46.720 --> 00:23:48.540
 and true gratitude,

00:23:49.740 --> 00:23:51.420
 but God is so good.

00:23:52.540 --> 00:23:54.380
 But God is so good.

00:23:55.440 --> 00:23:56.620
 And she recounted to us

00:23:56.620 --> 00:23:57.940
 the goodness of God,

00:23:58.040 --> 00:23:59.019
 the love of God,

00:23:59.080 --> 00:23:59.980
 the presence of God

00:23:59.980 --> 00:24:00.860
 that she experienced,

00:24:01.040 --> 00:24:01.259
 how?

00:24:01.500 --> 00:24:02.720
 Through the people of God

00:24:02.720 --> 00:24:03.960
 from day one

00:24:03.960 --> 00:24:05.059
 of her nightmare.

00:24:05.720 --> 00:24:07.440
 All the restaurant gift cards,

00:24:08.100 --> 00:24:09.519
 all the rental property

00:24:09.519 --> 00:24:10.500
 that was found for her

00:24:10.500 --> 00:24:11.400
 next to the hospital,

00:24:12.220 --> 00:24:13.059
 meals for months

00:24:13.059 --> 00:24:14.100
 when they returned home,

00:24:14.200 --> 00:24:14.880
 the way her church,

00:24:14.960 --> 00:24:15.259
 it was called

00:24:15.259 --> 00:24:16.660
 Emmanuel Presbyterian Church,

00:24:16.759 --> 00:24:18.660
 which means God with us, right?

00:24:19.200 --> 00:24:20.220
 The way their church

00:24:20.220 --> 00:24:21.279
 just held them.

00:24:21.860 --> 00:24:23.200
 They literally went into

00:24:23.200 --> 00:24:24.200
 the Francis home

00:24:24.200 --> 00:24:25.700
 and they took out a wall

00:24:25.700 --> 00:24:27.279
 and used some space

00:24:27.279 --> 00:24:27.920
 from the garage

00:24:27.920 --> 00:24:28.980
 and used the powder room

00:24:28.980 --> 00:24:29.740
 and they created

00:24:29.740 --> 00:24:31.779
 a handicap accessible shower

00:24:31.779 --> 00:24:32.539
 for this family,

00:24:32.720 --> 00:24:34.420
 a handicap accessible house

00:24:34.420 --> 00:24:35.940
 for this family.

00:24:37.000 --> 00:24:38.000
 And because of this,

00:24:38.579 --> 00:24:39.160
 though the sting

00:24:39.160 --> 00:24:40.619
 is surely still there

00:24:40.619 --> 00:24:41.740
 and it won't finally

00:24:41.740 --> 00:24:42.299
 be removed

00:24:42.299 --> 00:24:43.359
 until Jesus returns

00:24:43.359 --> 00:24:44.740
 to make all things new,

00:24:44.819 --> 00:24:46.119
 because of the love

00:24:46.119 --> 00:24:47.099
 of the people of God,

00:24:47.700 --> 00:24:48.440
 Maria Francis,

00:24:49.240 --> 00:24:49.859
 she will tell you

00:24:49.859 --> 00:24:50.879
 that she experienced

00:24:50.879 --> 00:24:52.920
 the very presence of God.

00:24:53.519 --> 00:24:54.480
 God with her.

00:24:55.019 --> 00:24:56.240
 God loving her.

00:24:56.980 --> 00:24:57.440
 And for that,

00:24:57.500 --> 00:24:58.660
 she can say with confidence

00:24:58.660 --> 00:25:00.079
 that God is good

00:25:00.079 --> 00:25:02.099
 and that all his ways

00:25:02.099 --> 00:25:03.179
 are love.

00:25:04.039 --> 00:25:04.619
 And this is just

00:25:04.619 --> 00:25:06.119
 one of the many chapters,

00:25:06.519 --> 00:25:08.019
 many untold chapters, right,

00:25:08.259 --> 00:25:09.139
 of the love of God

00:25:09.139 --> 00:25:10.799
 perfected amongst his people.

00:25:12.000 --> 00:25:12.359
 So again,

00:25:12.419 --> 00:25:13.099
 don't you want

00:25:13.099 --> 00:25:14.859
 a chapter like that

00:25:14.859 --> 00:25:16.279
 in the story

00:25:16.279 --> 00:25:17.079
 that God is writing?

00:25:18.539 --> 00:25:19.179
 Verse 13,

00:25:19.259 --> 00:25:20.079
 by this we know

00:25:20.079 --> 00:25:21.619
 that we abide in him

00:25:21.619 --> 00:25:22.240
 and he in us

00:25:22.240 --> 00:25:23.439
 because he has given us

00:25:23.439 --> 00:25:24.779
 of his spirit.

00:25:24.879 --> 00:25:25.879
 The spirit works

00:25:25.879 --> 00:25:27.240
 this kind of love in us

00:25:27.240 --> 00:25:27.880
 and we have seen

00:25:27.880 --> 00:25:28.380
 and testified

00:25:28.380 --> 00:25:28.940
 that the Father

00:25:28.940 --> 00:25:29.740
 has sent his Son

00:25:29.740 --> 00:25:30.660
 to be the Savior

00:25:30.660 --> 00:25:31.359
 of the world.

00:25:32.059 --> 00:25:32.799
 Whoever confesses

00:25:32.799 --> 00:25:34.079
 that Jesus is the Son of God,

00:25:34.240 --> 00:25:35.599
 God abides in him

00:25:35.599 --> 00:25:36.940
 and he in God.

00:25:37.599 --> 00:25:38.259
 So we have come

00:25:38.259 --> 00:25:39.240
 to know and to believe

00:25:39.240 --> 00:25:40.140
 the love that God

00:25:40.140 --> 00:25:41.079
 has for us.

00:25:41.740 --> 00:25:42.319
 God is love

00:25:42.319 --> 00:25:43.180
 and whoever abides

00:25:43.180 --> 00:25:44.720
 in love abides in God

00:25:44.720 --> 00:25:46.339
 and God abides in him.

00:25:46.400 --> 00:25:47.559
 By this is love

00:25:47.559 --> 00:25:48.700
 perfected with us

00:25:48.700 --> 00:25:50.220
 so that we may have confidence

00:25:50.220 --> 00:25:51.160
 for the day of judgment

00:25:51.160 --> 00:25:52.160
 because as he is,

00:25:52.519 --> 00:25:54.019
 so also are we

00:25:54.019 --> 00:25:55.240
 in this world.

00:25:55.240 --> 00:25:56.579
 As the God

00:25:56.579 --> 00:25:57.259
 who is love

00:25:57.259 --> 00:25:57.779
 is,

00:25:58.059 --> 00:25:59.339
 so also are his children.

00:25:59.480 --> 00:26:00.059
 And that's what I love

00:26:00.059 --> 00:26:01.339
 about Maria's testimony

00:26:01.339 --> 00:26:02.440
 of God's presence

00:26:02.440 --> 00:26:04.120
 and love toward her

00:26:04.120 --> 00:26:05.240
 in and through his people.

00:26:05.839 --> 00:26:07.140
 It's not like these people

00:26:07.140 --> 00:26:08.640
 from Emmanuel Presbyterian Church

00:26:08.640 --> 00:26:09.660
 were just trying hard

00:26:09.660 --> 00:26:11.200
 to meticulously adhere

00:26:11.200 --> 00:26:12.160
 to religious rules

00:26:12.160 --> 00:26:13.079
 from Jesus

00:26:13.079 --> 00:26:15.099
 or else punishment, right?

00:26:15.880 --> 00:26:16.559
 No, they were just

00:26:16.559 --> 00:26:17.839
 being who they were.

00:26:18.759 --> 00:26:20.920
 Beloved children of God.

00:26:21.720 --> 00:26:22.599
 Beloved children of God.

00:26:23.220 --> 00:26:23.720
 And this is where

00:26:23.720 --> 00:26:24.279
 I'll wrap up.

00:26:24.279 --> 00:26:25.000
 Verse 18 says,

00:26:25.000 --> 00:26:26.359
 there is no fear in love

00:26:26.359 --> 00:26:27.799
 but perfect love

00:26:27.799 --> 00:26:28.720
 casts out fear.

00:26:29.720 --> 00:26:30.420
 For fear has to do

00:26:30.420 --> 00:26:30.980
 with punishment

00:26:30.980 --> 00:26:32.140
 and whoever fears

00:26:32.140 --> 00:26:33.619
 has not been perfected

00:26:33.619 --> 00:26:34.119
 in love.

00:26:35.160 --> 00:26:35.980
 See, it is only

00:26:35.980 --> 00:26:36.980
 the love of God.

00:26:37.420 --> 00:26:38.720
 It is only the love of God

00:26:38.720 --> 00:26:39.640
 that can inspire

00:26:39.640 --> 00:26:40.759
 and motivate

00:26:40.759 --> 00:26:41.779
 and sustain

00:26:41.779 --> 00:26:42.920
 the love

00:26:42.920 --> 00:26:44.299
 that the world needs.

00:26:44.720 --> 00:26:46.119
 A perfect kind of love

00:26:46.119 --> 00:26:47.059
 that casts out

00:26:47.059 --> 00:26:48.319
 all fear.

00:26:48.720 --> 00:26:49.740
 It is only the love

00:26:49.740 --> 00:26:50.359
 of God,

00:26:50.440 --> 00:26:51.160
 the Father Almighty

00:26:51.160 --> 00:26:52.019
 that can do that.

00:26:52.099 --> 00:26:53.660
 A love that looks upon us

00:26:53.660 --> 00:26:55.080
 with His fatherly approval

00:26:55.080 --> 00:26:55.700
 and calls us

00:26:55.700 --> 00:26:56.800
 His beloved children.

00:26:56.960 --> 00:26:57.779
 It is only the love

00:26:57.779 --> 00:26:58.560
 of God, the Son,

00:26:58.640 --> 00:26:59.740
 who is the propitiation

00:26:59.740 --> 00:27:00.519
 for our sins,

00:27:00.620 --> 00:27:01.240
 our confidence

00:27:01.240 --> 00:27:02.019
 before God

00:27:02.019 --> 00:27:02.740
 that we have nothing

00:27:02.740 --> 00:27:03.080
 to fear

00:27:03.080 --> 00:27:03.800
 because God

00:27:03.800 --> 00:27:04.900
 has already satisfied

00:27:04.900 --> 00:27:05.540
 the demands

00:27:05.540 --> 00:27:06.500
 of His justice

00:27:06.500 --> 00:27:07.840
 through Jesus Christ

00:27:07.840 --> 00:27:08.820
 hanging on a cross

00:27:08.820 --> 00:27:09.880
 in our place.

00:27:10.380 --> 00:27:11.300
 It is only the love

00:27:11.300 --> 00:27:11.980
 of God,

00:27:12.060 --> 00:27:12.460
 the Spirit,

00:27:12.560 --> 00:27:13.259
 the very presence

00:27:13.259 --> 00:27:13.880
 of God willing

00:27:13.880 --> 00:27:14.519
 to abide

00:27:14.519 --> 00:27:15.820
 and reside within us,

00:27:16.240 --> 00:27:16.900
 reminding us

00:27:16.900 --> 00:27:17.940
 that God is greater

00:27:17.940 --> 00:27:18.680
 than our hearts

00:27:18.680 --> 00:27:19.779
 whispering into our ears

00:27:19.779 --> 00:27:20.660
 that we have

00:27:20.660 --> 00:27:21.420
 an Abba Father

00:27:21.420 --> 00:27:22.019
 in heaven

00:27:22.019 --> 00:27:23.779
 and thus empowering us

00:27:23.779 --> 00:27:25.460
 to love fearlessly

00:27:25.460 --> 00:27:27.000
 like He loves.

00:27:28.099 --> 00:27:29.019
 So if your takeaway

00:27:29.019 --> 00:27:29.619
 from my sermon

00:27:29.619 --> 00:27:30.460
 this morning is

00:27:30.460 --> 00:27:31.200
 love more,

00:27:31.740 --> 00:27:32.599
 love harder,

00:27:33.500 --> 00:27:34.259
 either I have failed

00:27:34.259 --> 00:27:34.799
 at preaching

00:27:34.799 --> 00:27:35.720
 or you have failed

00:27:35.720 --> 00:27:36.420
 at listening

00:27:36.420 --> 00:27:38.920
 because again,

00:27:39.019 --> 00:27:40.139
 the point is not primarily

00:27:40.139 --> 00:27:41.139
 that we love

00:27:41.139 --> 00:27:43.440
 but that God loves us.

00:27:44.319 --> 00:27:45.039
 That's the point.

00:27:45.599 --> 00:27:46.480
 He is the source.

00:27:47.160 --> 00:27:48.019
 He is the beginning.

00:27:48.019 --> 00:27:49.559
 And as it says here

00:27:49.559 --> 00:27:50.240
 in verse 19,

00:27:50.559 --> 00:27:51.359
 we only love

00:27:51.359 --> 00:27:53.420
 because He first loved us.

00:27:54.059 --> 00:27:54.980
 We only love

00:27:54.980 --> 00:27:56.639
 because He first loved us.

00:27:57.299 --> 00:27:58.359
 I love how this whole verse,

00:27:58.720 --> 00:27:59.259
 this whole passage

00:27:59.259 --> 00:28:00.220
 begins in verse 7.

00:28:00.400 --> 00:28:01.319
 In the Greek it says,

00:28:02.440 --> 00:28:03.160
 agape toi,

00:28:03.920 --> 00:28:04.639
 agapomen,

00:28:05.720 --> 00:28:07.200
 beloved love,

00:28:08.180 --> 00:28:09.019
 beloved love.

00:28:10.680 --> 00:28:10.980
 Christchurch,

00:28:11.059 --> 00:28:12.279
 do we believe

00:28:12.279 --> 00:28:13.019
 in our belovedness?

00:28:14.460 --> 00:28:15.619
 Do we believe

00:28:15.619 --> 00:28:17.299
 God's love for us?

00:28:18.019 --> 00:28:19.519
 It has to start there.

00:28:20.279 --> 00:28:21.639
 It has to start there

00:28:21.639 --> 00:28:23.019
 in our belovedness.

00:28:24.139 --> 00:28:24.379
 You know,

00:28:24.420 --> 00:28:25.119
 in seminary,

00:28:25.400 --> 00:28:27.019
 I was this cocky kid

00:28:27.019 --> 00:28:28.299
 like many of my classmates.

00:28:28.559 --> 00:28:29.779
 I wanted to be noticed

00:28:29.779 --> 00:28:30.559
 and recognized

00:28:30.559 --> 00:28:31.139
 and known

00:28:31.139 --> 00:28:33.359
 for my superior moral character

00:28:33.359 --> 00:28:35.039
 and my amazing Christian,

00:28:35.139 --> 00:28:35.660
 why are you laughing?

00:28:35.660 --> 00:28:36.160
 laughing.

00:28:36.160 --> 00:28:40.640
 And my amazing Christian piety

00:28:40.640 --> 00:28:42.300
 and my incredible gifts

00:28:42.300 --> 00:28:43.279
 as a preacher

00:28:43.279 --> 00:28:43.940
 and a leader

00:28:43.940 --> 00:28:45.060
 and a theologian,

00:28:45.600 --> 00:28:45.800
 right?

00:28:46.920 --> 00:28:48.360
 But a close friend of mine

00:28:48.360 --> 00:28:49.340
 told me that the thing

00:28:49.340 --> 00:28:50.140
 that most stuck out

00:28:50.140 --> 00:28:50.920
 to her about

00:28:50.920 --> 00:28:52.120
 who I was

00:28:52.120 --> 00:28:54.460
 was none of these things.

00:28:55.860 --> 00:28:57.160
 She told me that

00:28:57.160 --> 00:28:58.620
 what really stuck out

00:28:58.620 --> 00:29:00.140
 to her about me

00:29:00.140 --> 00:29:01.140
 was that she could tell

00:29:01.140 --> 00:29:03.080
 that I was really loved,

00:29:03.079 --> 00:29:05.980
 that I came from a place,

00:29:06.679 --> 00:29:07.819
 a community of faith,

00:29:08.559 --> 00:29:09.839
 a family and friends,

00:29:10.639 --> 00:29:12.179
 a group of people

00:29:12.179 --> 00:29:13.259
 who deeply,

00:29:13.759 --> 00:29:15.119
 deeply loved me.

00:29:16.079 --> 00:29:16.939
 And this left

00:29:16.939 --> 00:29:18.480
 a profound impression

00:29:18.480 --> 00:29:19.460
 upon me.

00:29:19.539 --> 00:29:19.699
 Like,

00:29:19.759 --> 00:29:20.699
 what if we were known

00:29:20.699 --> 00:29:22.279
 not by our gifts,

00:29:22.939 --> 00:29:24.299
 not by all the positive vibes

00:29:24.299 --> 00:29:25.159
 we put out into the world,

00:29:25.240 --> 00:29:26.439
 not even by how much

00:29:26.439 --> 00:29:27.439
 we obeyed Jesus

00:29:27.439 --> 00:29:28.079
 and loved others,

00:29:28.079 --> 00:29:28.799
 others?

00:29:29.679 --> 00:29:30.359
 But what if

00:29:30.359 --> 00:29:31.259
 we were known

00:29:31.259 --> 00:29:32.319
 as people deeply

00:29:32.319 --> 00:29:34.799
 and lavishly loved

00:29:34.799 --> 00:29:37.079
 into the sturdiest

00:29:37.079 --> 00:29:37.879
 kind of security

00:29:37.879 --> 00:29:38.559
 and peace

00:29:38.559 --> 00:29:39.439
 and calm

00:29:39.439 --> 00:29:40.419
 without a trace

00:29:40.419 --> 00:29:41.259
 of fear?

00:29:42.500 --> 00:29:42.720
 Like,

00:29:42.759 --> 00:29:43.879
 what if that was how

00:29:43.879 --> 00:29:44.779
 we were distinguished

00:29:44.779 --> 00:29:46.000
 from the world?

00:29:47.079 --> 00:29:47.779
 Oh my gosh,

00:29:47.839 --> 00:29:49.059
 those people are so loved.

00:29:50.220 --> 00:29:51.279
 Those people must be

00:29:51.279 --> 00:29:52.460
 so loved

00:29:52.460 --> 00:29:53.899
 to live like that.

00:29:54.779 --> 00:29:55.000
 I mean,

00:29:55.039 --> 00:29:55.720
 imagine a world

00:29:55.720 --> 00:29:56.359
 filled with people

00:29:56.359 --> 00:29:57.379
 so secure

00:29:57.379 --> 00:29:58.099
 in the love

00:29:58.099 --> 00:29:59.479
 of their Heavenly Father.

00:30:00.459 --> 00:30:01.639
 Imagine a world

00:30:01.639 --> 00:30:02.219
 where people

00:30:02.219 --> 00:30:03.459
 weren't toiling to love

00:30:03.459 --> 00:30:04.539
 but simply living out

00:30:04.539 --> 00:30:05.799
 of the abundant love

00:30:05.799 --> 00:30:06.619
 that God

00:30:06.619 --> 00:30:07.379
 had poured out

00:30:07.379 --> 00:30:08.839
 upon them.

00:30:10.579 --> 00:30:11.259
 Isn't that

00:30:11.259 --> 00:30:12.459
 a great kind of world?

00:30:14.179 --> 00:30:14.559
 Christ Church,

00:30:14.719 --> 00:30:15.699
 behold the love of God,

00:30:16.379 --> 00:30:17.539
 the only love

00:30:17.539 --> 00:30:18.479
 that can save the world,

00:30:19.059 --> 00:30:19.779
 shown to us

00:30:19.779 --> 00:30:20.639
 in Christ

00:30:20.639 --> 00:30:22.079
 and inviting us

00:30:22.079 --> 00:30:23.299
 to perfect it

00:30:23.299 --> 00:30:24.059
 in chapter

00:30:24.059 --> 00:30:25.079
 after chapter

00:30:25.079 --> 00:30:26.519
 until he comes again.

00:30:27.519 --> 00:30:28.240
 Let us therefore

00:30:28.240 --> 00:30:29.220
 as loved

00:30:29.220 --> 00:30:30.179
 and loving children

00:30:30.179 --> 00:30:30.519
 of God

00:30:30.519 --> 00:30:31.579
 go in the name

00:30:31.579 --> 00:30:32.019
 of Jesus

00:30:32.019 --> 00:30:33.379
 to love

00:30:33.379 --> 00:30:34.220
 and serve this world.

00:30:35.359 --> 00:30:36.039
 Thanks be to God,

00:30:36.119 --> 00:30:36.779
 we say, right?

00:30:37.059 --> 00:30:37.899
 Thanks be to God.

00:30:38.359 --> 00:30:38.980
 Will you pray with me?

00:30:38.980 --> 00:30:40.779
 Amen.

00:30:41.140 --> 00:30:41.700
 Wine together.

00:30:41.700 --> 00:30:43.299
 Money

00:30:43.299 --> 00:30:43.360
 to love

00:30:43.360 --> 00:30:43.900
 and Mohen

00:30:43.900 --> 00:30:58.019
해ust

00:30:58.019 --> 00:30:59.259
 and WARSH

00:30:59.259 --> 00:31:00.539
 to love

00:31:00.539 --> 00:31:00.839
 God

00:31:01.319 --> 00:31:02.079
 to watch

00:31:02.079 --> 00:31:03.779
 and relevance

00:31:03.779 --> 00:31:06.339
 as loved