18th February 2024 Infill Service

So it's okay, don't need my car, okay, okay. Thing is

love costs and it is also the title of this morning's message. So February

fourteenth was ash Wednesday this year as well, we know as Valentine's Day,

which is celebrated in a number of different countries around the world. But I

wonder how many of us know anything about its origins. There's a lot of

myth around it. But briefly, from what I found online, it's It

was originally Lupekalia, a pagan Roman festival which included a celebration of fertility and

the onset of spring. On February the fourteenth there was a tribute to Juno

Februarta. However, her name was max, the goddess of feverish love.

The names of young girls were drawn at randon by young men, and the

resultant couple would become partners at the feast and even for life. After the

Roman Emperor Constantine made Christianity the main religion, the church tried to clamp down

on pagan activities, and the fifth century pope decided to replace the focus of

the festival to a bishop who was martyred two hundred years previously Valentine. There

are different versions of the story of Valentine's imprisonment. Some say he was thrown

into prison in Rome for agreeing to marry soldiers to their loved ones, even

though it's for vision. At the time, the emperor believed that men who

had no romantic attachments or families made for better soldiers in his armed forces.

Prison the bishop and the Jala's daughter. The bishop were sequvot the following year.

On the endive of his death, the condemned matt sent a letter tis

a loved signed simply your vandalin so that idea of how Valentine's day came in

business. But if we look up, love is not according to it or

hype, but we can see why it costs. I may have our elements

of what Dave looked at last week, but we do need to hear it

more than once, don't we? And there's always more revelation to be gained

when it comes to the Word of God. So let's turn to our main

passage for today, One Corinthians thirteen verses four to eight. That's one Corinthians

thirteen versus four to eight. I'm I mean from the NMIV love is patient.

Love is kind. It does not envy, It does not boast.

It is not proud. It does not dishonor others. It is not self

seeking. It is not easily angered. It keeps no record of wrongs.

Love does not delight in evil, but rejoices with the truth. It always

protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.

This is about our treatment of others, both in terms of our outward expression

and our hearts, as well as obviously about how others treat us like anything

else in God, that we might know that in ours, we might know

it off by hearts, but it's a little use to us or others until

we learn to live it, until it really takes root in our hearts.

As it says in Luke six forty five in the CSB Luke six forty five,

a good person produces good and out of the good sword up in his

heart. Evil person produces evil out of the evil stored up in his heart.

For his mouth speaks from the overflowing of his heart, and obviously planting

God's word in our hearts, storing it up meditating on it is a process,

a journey that starts with us receiving God's love for ourselves, as well

as learning to say no to ourselves, to our human nature that is at

odds with any hope. Spirits put ourselves first, but thankfully the Lord helps

us. So let's look about One Corinthians thirteen. Versoseful, love is patient,

love is kind. Love is the fruit of the spirit, according tent

to two to twenty three. But we won't turn to it now. But

the definition of love here in One Corinthians is, broadly speaking, is all

fruit of the spirit, which is not surprising, seeing as the Holy Spirit

is God and the fruit of the Spirit is developed over time with his He

Well, love costs. Love is patient, and patience costs. At a

personal level. It costs in terms of time and attitude management, and of

course there may be other implications as well. When we experience other people being

patient towards us, it can help us to be patient towards others. There's

nothing like experience to fuel empathy. Love is kind and kindness costs. I

know I've shared this before, but I think it was worth repeating. When

I was in my early twenties, I spent time as a volunteer at Lee

Abbey, adititing to Community North Devon, which has run as a holiday and

conference center, and it's staffed primarily by volunteers but also more pastoral team.

And I remember hearing you two guests talking negatively about Germans, and it really

bothered me because I knew it was wrong. I realized they were older,

they might have been affected by the Second World War, but nonetheless it still

didn't make it right. I didn't really know what to do about it.

But then I bumped into a member of the pastoral team and told him about

it, and thankfully his words have saved with me. He said, sometimes

it's better to be kind than to be r right. So good, isn't

it. Sometimes it's better to be kind than to be right. Kindness in

this case was not expressed, but meant giving up my right to be right.

It was an attitude that heart. Love takes many forms, and it's

not always seen. The cost is not always visible One Corinthians thirteen, verse

four. Love does not envy, It does not boast, It is not

proud, It does not dishonor of That's all about comparison, isn't it.

Love does not say that you're better than I am? But is content with

its lot. It doesn't say that I'm better than you are either. Contentment

can come at a cost when we see other people with things, characteristics,

gifts that we would like to have and don't have. But it's a choice

that we can make about our perspective on a matter. Simon puts it this

way, grass is not always greener. On the other side, it's just

grass. The apostle Paul put it this way flipping spour Versus eleven to thirteen,

Flippings four eleven to thirteen. I have learned to be content whatever the

circumstances. I know what it is in need, and I know what it

is to have plenty. I've learned the secret of being content in any and

every situation, whether wellfared or hungry, whether living in plenty or want.

I can do all this through Him who gives me strength. Contentment is one

aspect of living a life of love that we don't necessarily think about much.

But it helps us to have a loving attitude towards others, to not be

envious or proud, etc. We probably turn more instinctively to God in trials.

We will naturally learn dependence on Him in those times, But we also

need to learn to handle life in a godly way and not lose sight of

our need for God when things are going well. To hence, to put

verse thirteen in my own words, I have strength for all things, handle

the good and the bad and the neutral in a godly way in Christ,

who empowers me. And that's the only way it's possible. One Printians thirteen,

verse five. Love is not self seeking. I think this point is

really wetted in the book Pilgrim's Progress. Whilst the original by John Bunyan is

aimed at adults, I'm actually reading Little Pilgrim's Progress by Helen L. Taylor,

which is actually aimed at children. The characters are animals, and the

main character, Little Christian, is a rabbit. The illustrations are beautiful,

and I find because the message has been simplified, it's more digestible, and

obviously as an adult we understand it differently, at a different level to a

child. And I'll share something of it here. Little Christian lived in a

great city called Destruction. Its streets were full of young animals who laughed and

played all day long. Now and then strangers would come to the city and

tell those who are willing to listen about a beautiful country far away, where

a good and wise king rules, who loves his little creatures. Dearly,

they would say, the prince whom your city belongs is wicked and cruel and

hates our good king. But one day an army will come from the king's

country to fight against your prince, and this city will be burned and the

townsfolk in it will be killed. Children wire advised to leave the city immediately

and travel to the king's country, the celestial City. But mostly after and

rewarded, a stranger and ow called the Fist visits the city and speaks to

Little Christian and says, the king loves little children. If you will obey

him and begin your journey, he will watch over you all the way,

and when you reach the celestial City, you will be happy forever. So

evangelist directs little Christian to the narrow gate and he starts his journey. It's

really good how it describes the challenges, the pitfalls, Those lovely parts are

refreshing places and various companions, both those who are a positive influence and those

who aren't. But the part I'm coming to is this little Christian is alone

on the path when a wild dog comes to meet him with an unpleasant face.

He recognized him because if he's seen him before, he's called self.

Self tells him, if you come back with me to the city of Destruction

and promise not to run away again, you shall live in my house and

be one of my own servants. I am one of the King's servants.

Said Christian. Self tries to dissuade him from going on, reminding him of

the trouble he's likely to meet on the way and how badly he's served the

King's the mistakes he's made, but little Christian knows he's forgiven. In Romans

seven, the apostle Paul talks about the battle which we all face within ourselves.

Our spirits have been born again, but our souls have not. And

I say our spirits have been born again. But that is if we've acknowledged

Jesus as God's own son, who came to earth and lived a sinless life

as a human being, to then die horrifically and painfully to pay the price

for our sins. Sin is the act of breaking the law of love.

Love God, love others, love ourselves. Thank God. Jesus rose again,

so that those who put their trust in Him and the price he paid,

and surrender their lives to him, shall live, really live in and

with Him for his purposes on earth. Then when we die, we go

and live with Him in heaven. If you've never asked Jesus to be lord

of your life and would like to do so, you can ask him now,

or you can speak to someone after the service or contact has online.

As I was saying, the Apostle Paul talks about the battle which we all

face within ourselves and Romans seven twenty two to twenty five. That's Romans seven

twenty two to twenty five. For in my inner being I delight in God's

law, but I see another law at work in me, waging war against

the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin

at work within me. What a wretched man I am? Who will rescue

me from this body that is subject to death? Thanks be to God who

delivers me through Jesus Christ, our Lord. So then I myself, in

my mind am as slaved God's law, but in my sinful nature a slave

to the law of sin. This is described in Little Pilgrim's Progress, where

little Christian has a fight with self. The little rabbit has been given armor

as in Ephesian six, and holds his shield firmly on his arm. The

shield we know to be fake, and this catches nearly all the fiery darts

that self throws at him. But the odd one gets past the shield and

wounds little Christian. But finally, when it all looks like it's going to

end badly for him, he manages to get his sword what we know to

be the word of God, and badly wounds self, so that self runs

away. Now, obviously we can't run away from ourselves. But little Christian

thinks to himself, it was the King who helped me, and his heart

was full of thankfulness for his deliverance. And that's the same for us too,

isn't it one Corinthians thirteen, verse five. Love is not self seeking.

In Philippians two, verse three, in the Christian Standard Bible, it

says it like this, do nothing out of selfish ambition or conceit, but

in humidity, consider others as more important than yourselves. This is not saying

I'm rubbish and others are better. In humility, consider others as more important

than yourselves. Is simply expounding on do nothing out of self ambition or conceit.

It's a way of reiteratreating it. It's really important that we understand that

in learning to do this, it's not about becoming a dormer. Love does

not dishonor others, As it's also said in verse five, it does not

dishonor ourselves either. When we're securing God's love and the value that he puts

on us, it really helps us to put others first because we understand that

it's about serving others, not because we're rubbish or second best. God paid

the same price for each one of us, but because it's a really clear

expression of God's love. It's a way of sharing his love. We can't

study and learn the whole Bible simultaneously. It takes the lifetime of learning to

even make it some other way. But it's important that we don't just pull

bits out without considering it in the light of other passages and verses on the

same subject. In my opinion, this verse do nothing out of selfish ambition,

but in humility, consider as more important in you than yourselves. This

needs to be considered in the light of our memory. Verse this week.

I'm helping you out here. This is Jesus resistance. When asked which is

the first or most important? Come on Mark twelve verses thirty to thirty one.

Twelve thirty to thirty one. And you shall love the Lord your God

with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind,

and with all your strength. And the second like it is this, you

shall love your neighbor as yourself. There is no other commandment greater than these.

Love is about how we treat God, our attitude towards him, how

we treat others, and also how we treat ourselves. All aspects of these

commandments are obviously important, because Jesus said so. However, as I know

I've done previously, I believe that the Lord wants me to focus a little

time and attention on the part about loving yourself, probably because in a world

where activity and productivity and achievement are often viewed as intertwined, loving yourself is

an area that's frequently overlooked, and so people have no clue how to do

it in a healthy way. This isn't about narcissism, but looking after yourself,

valuing yourself, valuing yourself appropriately as indeed God does. Jesus paid the

same price for you as he did for your neighbor. Sometimes we just get

tired, especially as taking a sabbath is quite a challenge for a lot of

people. But one day off a week is actually a command. This is

general condemnation. I'm speaking to my sitting We really need help with this,

a strong jest. If this is difficult for you, see our Lord,

what to do about it? And start where you are it meets an hour

off week, we do that. Just do something like I say. Sometimes

get tired. There's a love in little pilgrim folks. We're a little muffled

hopeful are walking along the west the King. They're doing what supposed to be

doing, but their their feet are and aim because the path is rough and

stony. I like that fast, wet, tied, patient severe. It's

not especially when it's it's comfortable and hopeful. Come to a style that leads

into a broad meadow that has a smooth, grassy path running close to the

the way of the King. It looks like a nice night place to walk.

Because they're tired, they don't think to look in Christians books that met

and belongs to all and puffle giant called despair. It doesn't take them long

to realize that they've made a decision and they turn back. However, because

of a bad storm and it's now done, they end up sheltering by the

fence, thinking they watch the first gleam of daylight and they get going,

but because they're worn out, they fall asleep. The giant call is spare

up and take to his castle out in castle despair and doubt. We run

when we get tired, especially to the Bible. The Lord said it to

meistically lack of not to rest when you know you need to, not prioritizing

looking after yourself appropriately. This is a key reason people often get distracted and

stray off the right path. They can end up not walking in love and

becoming irritable, trying to do things in their own strength, and not discerning

when something is not theirs to do. We've won it. Turning a corner

called trust helps you to rest by faith when he tells you to, instead

of pushing on regardless. The more we learn to obey his nudges, for

example, to rest, the more sensitive will become to them. This takes

us to one Corinthians thirteen seven, where it says life love always trusts.

This is one aspect of our expression towards God, our perfect heavenly father.

When we trust him, we express our love for him, but it costs

us our sense of control and independence. Going back to one Corinthians thirteen to

five, it says love is not illy angered. Love and self control are

like bookends that hold the fruit of the spirit together. Self control is such

an important aspect of love because it enables us to manage our emotions such as

anger, and choose our attitudes and actions to align with God's definition of love.

Self control fuels patience. It fuels all the ways in which we say

no to ourselves or choose to put others first. So how do we get

self control? It's a fruit of the spirit. It's developed over time with

practice. How many times a day do we get the opportunity to practice self

control. We're not expected to do it in our own strength or anything,

or do anything that the Lord asks or commands us to do in our own

strength. Philippians two thirteen in the Passion translation, says God will continually revitalize

you, implanting within you the passion to do what pleases him. Thank God,

God will continually revitalize you, implanting within you the passion to do what

pleases him. Love is a choice, and self control helps us to make

right choices, like not being easily angered. It's amazing how easy it is

to choose well when you're home alone, but when someone else turns up in

your space, it can take a little more effort. Caren't it finally?

One Corinthians thirteen, verses six to eight. Love does not delight in evil,

but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always

hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails. God never fails. Love costs.

It costs God his own son, Jesus. There was no higher price

that he could pay. It costs us everything too, But it's a price

so worth paying because in love, as we learn to love like God does,

there is true freedom as well as life. Let's pray, Father,

God, thank you so much that you are love, and we love because

you first loved us. And it's so grateful in you we are going.

Please continue to revitalize us, implanting within us the passion to do what pleases

you according to your work in Jesus' name, And we're so grateful because we

know that you've heard us and you will answer. Amen. Mm hmm.