Love delights in the truth

name. Amen. Now, we're going to read in our Bibles together from 1 Samuel chapter 20.

1 Samuel 20 · chapter mention

This is a part and the story of the life of David when he has been anointed to be the next king.

King Saul has been rejected as God's choice of king, but Saul is not happy. Rather, he is angry

with David. He's wanting to kill David. David is on the run. But in chapter 20, we are reminded of this

wonderful friendship between David and Jonathan, who is the son of King Saul. And we see Jonathan

acting in an honorable and a wonderful way in this friendship. So, we're going to read 1 Samuel 20,

1 Samuel 20:1–8

verses 1 to 8, and then 24 to 34. So, let's hear God's word together.

Then David fled from Nioth at Ramah and went to Jonathan and asked, what have I done? What is my

crime? How have I wronged your father that he's trying to kill me? Never. Jonathan replied, you're

not going to die. Look, my father doesn't do anything great or small without letting me know.

Why should he hide this from me? It isn't so. But David took an oath and said, your father knows very

well that I have found favor in your eyes. And he has said to himself, Jonathan must not know this or

he will be grieved. Yet as surely as the Lord lives and as you live, there is only a step between me and

death. Jonathan said to David, whatever you want me to do, I will do for you. So, David said, look,

tomorrow is the new moon feast and I am supposed to dine with the king. But let me go and hide in the

field until the evening of the day after tomorrow. If your father misses me at all, tell him, David

earnestly asked my permission to hurry to Bethlehem, his hometown, because an annual sacrifice is being

made there for his whole clan. If he says very well, then your servant is safe. But if he loses his

temper, you can be sure that he is determined to harm me. As for you, show kindness to your servant,

for you have brought him into a covenant with you before the Lord. If I am guilty, then kill me

yourself. Why hand me over to your father? And then from verse number 24. So, David hid in the field

and when the new moon feast came, the king sat down to eat. He sat in his customary place by the wall

opposite Jonathan and Abner sat next to Saul, but David's place was empty. Saul said nothing that day,

for he thought something must have happened to David to make him ceremonially unclean. Surely he's

unclean. But the next day, the second day of the month, David's place was empty again. Then Saul

said to his son Jonathan, why hasn't the son of Jesse come to the meal either yesterday or today?

Jonathan answered, David earnestly asked me for permission to go to Bethlehem. He said,

let me go because our family is observing a sacrifice in the town and my brother has ordered me to be there.

Have I found favor in your eyes? Let me go to see my brothers. That is why he has not come to the

king's table. Saul's anger flared up at Jonathan and he said to him, you son of a perverse and

rebellious woman. Don't I know that you have sided with the son of Jesse to your own shame and to the

shame of the mother who bore you? As long as the son of Jesse lives on this earth, neither you nor

your kingdom will be established. Now send someone to bring him to me for he must die. Why should he be

put to death? What has he done? Jonathan asked his father. But Saul hurled his spear at him to kill him.

And Jonathan knew that his father intended to kill David. Jonathan got up from the table in fierce

anger. On that second day of the feast, he did not eat because he was grieved at his father's shameful

treatment of David. So we'll leave our reading there and we'll reflect on it as we think about 1 Corinthians

13. Now we're going to hear another psalm sung, which of course at home you can sing. We will reflect on

Psalm 119 and the section from 65 to 72.

Psalm 119 and the section from 66 to 73.

Psalm 119 and the section from 66 to 73.

Although the proud spear me with lies, I keep your decrees from the heart.

Their hearts are unfeeling and heart. I love what your precepts impart.

It was good that I suffered distress, so that I might learn your commands.

Your law is more precious to me than silver or gold in my hands.

Now, in just a moment, we're going to pray again.

Two things that we are going to focus on in particular.

Again, we're going to pray for the Reannos as we look forward to hearing from them on Wednesday.

We'll pray about their situation in Columbia.

But we've also been able to ask to pray for the Free Church Youth Camp Connect program this year.

They can't have physical camps, but they're doing stuff online.

So we'll pray about that.

So will you join me?

Stand and we can pray together.

Let's stand and call on God's name in prayer.

Lord, our God, we want to say thank you to you for your precious word.

Along with the psalmist, we pray that you would help us to live by your commands.

That we would regard your word as more precious than silver or gold.

That in your word we would discover that you are good and that you do what is good.

And that that would help us to know how we are to live for you.

Thank you that we see your goodness and your love in the sending of your son Jesus to be our savior.

We thank you for his perfect life of love and obedience.

We thank you that he has lived that life that we never could live.

And he's died in our place so that right at the center of the good news of the Bible stands your seeking and saving love.

Lord, may we never forget how precious that is.

May we recognize it as life-giving so that we would want others to know your word.

That you would give us a hunger and a thirst for your word.

Lord, may we recognize it as life-giving so that we don't live by bread alone,

but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.

And that what we would want for the people that we care about most would be that they too would come to know you in your word.

Lord, we recognize how much as a country and how much the nations of the world need to know our creator as our redeemer and savior.

To be able to call you our father in heaven.

To not have to live with a fear of death and judgment,

but to know assurance of your welcome and your forgiveness in and through the Lord Jesus.

And so we pray that you would be at work in this country and in the nations of the world.

That wherever today the good news of the Lord Jesus is read and proclaimed.

That it would strengthen the faith of your people.

That it would draw us to greater worship and love.

And that it would draw men and women and boys and girls to put their trust in Jesus as Lord and Savior today.

Lord, we think of the Free Church Youth Camps program.

We thank you for decades of teaching your word to children and young people.

Of lives that were changed through coming to faith in Jesus.

Through those camps of friendships that were established.

That continue of being strengthened in faith and understanding of your word.

And Lord, as we think about that rich legacy in the past,

we pray that this year, while it's so very different, would still serve a vital purpose.

And we do pray for wisdom and creativity for those who are developing the online program.

That you would, as they pray and as they think,

that you would give them wisdom to know how best to communicate truth.

How best to organize themselves to make sure people have a really great week.

Lord, we pray for folks who'll tune in to those different sessions for the different age groups.

That it would be a place where they might be able to meet new people.

To enjoy different fun activities.

But also a chance where they can hear your word being taught.

And where you might draw them to faith in the Lord Jesus.

Lord, we also pray for our friends Manuel and Patty in Colombia.

We think of the nation of Colombia struggling with the pandemic and struggling to cope.

We think of Manuel and Patty as they look to love and serve so many hurting and suffering people.

So many who have been bereaved.

We think of their counseling ministry to pastors and their wives.

As they look to care for churches that are straining with all the sadness and the pressures that they have faced.

Lord, as they bear the burdens of others.

May they know you coming alongside of them to bear them up.

May they hear that invitation from Jesus.

Come to me all you who are weary and burdened and I will give you rest.

Lord, may they come to know your grace that is sufficient for them.

Your strength being made perfect in their weakness.

Lord, we thank you that we can partner with them in their work.

Thank you that we can share that call on Wednesday night with them.

Lord, we pray that you would help us to persevere in our prayers.

Lord, we pray that we pray that as we want that for nations, that we would want that for our own lives.

Lord, as we shortly come to sit under your words, we pray that the spirit who inspired your word to be written would be at work in all of our hearts.

Helping us to hear from you.

Helping us to see more of Jesus.

So that our lives would be changed as we spend time together in your presence.

We ask in Jesus name.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Now, before we turn to 1 Corinthians 13, where we will be this morning, I want us to read together from another letter that Paul wrote, 2 Timothy chapter 3.

2 Timothy 3 · chapter mention

It's a letter written shortly before Paul would die for his faith in the Lord Jesus.

And he writes to Timothy, his friend, and he says this in chapter 3.

But mark this.

There will be terrible times in the last days.

People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents,

ungrateful, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal,

not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God,

having a form of godliness but denying its power, have nothing to do with such people.

Speaking there of false teachers within churches.

Verse 10.

You, however, know all about my teaching, my way of life, my purpose, faith, patience, love, endurance, persecutions, sufferings.

What kinds of things happened to me in Antioch, Iconium, and Lystra, the persecutions I endured, yet the Lord rescued me from all of them.

In fact, everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted,

while evildoers and imposters will go from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived.

But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have become convinced of, because you know those from whom you have learned it,

and how from infancy you have known the holy scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.

All scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting, and training in righteousness,

so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.

And so we'll reflect on those words as we come to 1 Corinthians chapter 13.

1 Corinthians 13 · chapter mention

We've been here for the last few weeks.

Today we are in verse 6, where we read,

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

So here we are again, thinking about the most excellent way of love that Paul is encouraging this church in Corinth to stick with and to return to.

And we've been really in the nitty-gritty, the specifics of what love looks like over the last few weeks.

And this time we're going to sort of, in a sense, pan back a little, and we're going to invite ourselves to reflect,

to ask the question, am I making progress in my love?

Are we making progress as a church in our love, particularly in view of Christian love, love for God, love for others?

It's important that we measure progress.

I imagine, like many families, we have a height chart in our house,

and the boys enjoy charting their height every so often to see if they are growing up.

And it's interesting that whenever they get one of those updates,

usually a couple of days later they'll go back to the chart to see if they have grown since the last time.

And we have to keep reminding them, often you don't see progress over days, sometimes not even over weeks.

You have to go back months or years to see growth and development.

But measures of growth and progress and success are important, aren't they?

They're important in our workplace and in our studies.

What does success look like?

Am I developing?

We think about it, too, in our skills and our hobbies.

Am I becoming more competent?

How am I doing better than this time last year?

There's value in reflecting on that so that we can, if necessary, make changes.

But what about the question, am I making progress in love?

In some ways, that's harder to assess, isn't it?

Love for God, love for others.

Paul, in 1 Corinthians, has been giving, as I was saying, a list of specific measures in verses 4 and 5.

Here are ways that we can see how we are doing in terms of love.

Love is patient.

Love is kind.

Love does not envy.

It does not boast.

It is not proud.

It does not dishonor others.

It's not self-seeking.

It's not easily angered.

It keeps no record of wrongs.

We can see how we are doing.

But here in verse 6, we're zooming out, in a sense, to look at the big picture.

What's the general pattern?

What's the general direction of your life and my life?

Are we making progress so that we're not delighting in evil but rejoicing with the truth?

Am I making progress in my love?

Am I more like Jesus in certain aspects of my character perhaps than I was five months ago, five years ago?

To help us to reflect, a couple of questions.

One about direction.

What direction does my love follow?

And a question about delight.

What is it that I delight in?

What do I rejoice in?

So let's begin with this question.

Which direction does my love typically follow?

Maybe you saw a story in the news this week coming out of an auction house in Glasgow.

There was a young couple from the north of England who wanted to start a new life in Scotland.

And so they decided what they would do is they'd come to an auction house in Glasgow to bid on a property.

They wanted a small flat in Glasgow.

But as the bidding began and the speed picked up and the tension picked up and the accent was not one they were familiar with.

They were looking for a flat in Glasgow, but they accidentally bid on a wrecked house in Danone.

And what they discovered is that a misdirected bid can not buy you a dream property, can buy you a wreck.

But far more important is the point that Paul is making.

Misdirected love can wreck a life and can wreck a church.

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

Do we see there there's a fork in the road?

There are two directions we can follow.

We can love the way of evil as defined by the Bible, or we can love the way of truth.

And bear in mind that the truth in the Bible isn't just what we know in our heads.

It also has an impact on how we live.

So truth and goodness go together.

Now, if you've been around in the last few weeks, you'll know that the church in Corinth,

they had problems in that their love was becoming misdirected.

They were loving to make much of themselves.

Their spiritual gifts.

They were wanting to take others to law courts to claim what they felt was theirs.

And so Paul wants to correct them to redirect their love, to focus their attention on God.

What about for us?

How do we stay on course?

If we want to follow the way of love and truth, how do we make progress?

Well, let's begin with some pointers.

The first one from this verse, Christian love delights in God's truth.

Or to put it another way, Christian love stands opposed to everything in life and practice,

which is evil.

And so we are delighting in what is good and true.

That's why we read from 2 Timothy 3.

Hopefully, as you read it, you would have seen Paul's concern.

He is concerned that Timothy, living in the culture that he lives in, would come under pressure

to misdirect his love.

So it talked about not being a lover of self or being a lover of money, choosing to love

what is not good, choosing to love pleasure rather than to love God.

And Paul's heart for Timothy, Paul who's about to die for the sake of Jesus, he wants Timothy

to stand out, to stand up for God's love and God's truth in a culture that was seen to be

self-centered.

And that love and that truth was found in God's Word.

That's why he directed him at the end of 2 Timothy 3, to remember God who breathed his

Word out.

So that was Paul's heart for Timothy, because Christian love delights in God's truth, God's

love.

A second pointer, and it's related, is that Christians love to walk in God's truth.

That's our general tendency, because when we turn to trust in Jesus, we're given a new

heart and we're given new desires.

There's a lovely little letter that the Apostle John writes, 3 John, and in verse 4 of 3 John,

he says,

I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth.

As he thinks of those who have come to faith in the Lord Jesus under his teaching and in

his churches, his love.

What gives him greatest happiness is to see them continue in the way of truth.

And do you know that's the joy of our Father in heaven too?

He has joy to see his children, his church, walking in the truth, the truth that is shown

in love.

Crucial to the gospel, one of the most beautiful images that we find in the Bible of our salvation

is that God in love adopts us into his family.

That God the Father in love sends his son Jesus into the world.

And Jesus the Son gladly dies to become the firstborn among many brothers to share the

joy of heaven with his brothers and sisters, those who put their faith in him as Savior,

who then call God our Father in heaven.

And God gives the spirit to come and live in our hearts, the spirit of adoption.

And all of that means that we now have a new desire as Christians to please our Father in

heaven.

That's not natural to ourselves.

That's a gift of God when we want to please our Father in heaven.

So Christians love to walk in God's truth.

And it's also important to recognize that God's truth shapes our head, our hearts, and our

hands.

When God's truth and God's love comes to us, it totally changes everything.

We know, don't we, that there's a world of difference between knowing about someone and

knowing someone personally.

We can go to the Wikipedia entry or pick up the biography of one of our heroes, and that

will give us much by way of information, but it will not give us access to their friendship.

And the wonderful thing about Jesus is Jesus is God revealing his truth to us.

Jesus is God revealing his love to us and inviting us to know him and his love and his truth personally.

So the starting point for our lives following the right direction is that we must know Jesus

personally as our Lord, as our Savior, as our friend.

To have him take our sin, to recognize that when he dies on the cross, he's dying for my sin.

To trust him as the Lord and Savior and King, and to enjoy his friendship.

We come to know Jesus in God's Word, and what we read and what we learn, that shapes our faith,

it shapes what we believe, but then by God's Spirit, we also know that our hearts change.

So our love changes.

So all of a sudden we have love towards God, and that then influences our love towards others.

We find ourselves worshipping the right things rather than living for ourselves or for idols.

And as we come to know Jesus, that also shapes and transforms our actions.

So that as we know more of his love and truth, it leads us towards serving others,

and loving others, and forgiving others, and honoring others in the nitty-gritty of life.

So let's apply those principles to our lives for just a moment.

Let's think about the big picture, the general direction that our life is taking.

Do we love to delight in evil, or do we love to rejoice in and with God's truth?

What is a Christian?

A Christian is someone who has received God's love expressed to us in the sending of Jesus Christ.

It's enjoying that gift of adoption, knowing the love of God as our Father in heaven.

And as we know that, we then love what God loves.

We love his truth and his goodness.

And if that describes you today, then you should praise God for the gift of adoption.

We should never grow tired or grow cold towards the reality

that in Jesus we are sons and daughters of the living God.

And if it doesn't describe you, then you should ask him for that gift,

that you would know God as your Father in heaven personally,

that you would trust in Jesus and have your sin forgiven to enjoy life with him.

But then let's move from the big picture.

Let's zoom in to think about the choices that we make in particular moments in our lives.

Let's move from Sunday morning to Monday morning.

Typical Monday morning, perhaps.

Perhaps we find, well, it's different, but there's still break rooms.

And in break rooms, we still find gossip, don't we?

We still find schools, universities, workplaces,

where people want to share the weekend scandal.

We move from Sunday, we move to Monday.

We're living among different people.

Perhaps we're speaking with non-Christian family with very different values to our own.

Perhaps we're, as parents, dealing with children who don't want to go to school.

There's all kinds of tensions there.

Perhaps we're engaging with someone in an issue over social media,

and it's precious to us, and it's important to them.

And how do we speak?

And that's crunch time as Christians,

to think about in that moment,

what direction is my life going to take?

Am I going to love what is evil,

what is false?

Or am I going to love what is true and what is good?

If we are to make progress in the right direction,

we need to remind ourselves daily of God's love to us.

We need to be humbled,

to have that sense of wonder

at the extent of God's love for us.

Because as soon as we forget that,

it's like we're closing off the power source

that then fuels our love towards others.

And we also need to remind ourselves regularly

of how God measures love.

That we need to be patient,

and we need to be kind,

and we need to be humble,

and we can't keep a record of wrongs

because that's not what love looks like.

Just like in Paul's day,

where he was very aware of the challenge facing Timothy,

our culture is following a different direction

to Jesus Christ.

Not always, but sometimes.

And so then there will be a necessity for us as Christians

to stand up for what is true.

We don't have to dig too deep, do we,

to see that as a society,

we are losing the virtue of forgiveness.

That in the realm of social media in particular,

but not exclusively,

there is that tendency to act as judge,

jury, and executioner of another.

Very quick to condemn,

very slow towards grace.

We live in a day when in so many areas of life,

right and wrong are being redefined,

and those voices and that pressure is real,

and it's easy for us to go with the flow

unless we remind ourselves regularly

of God's love and God's truth.

There is the very real danger

that our love might be misdirected

towards what is evil

as it becomes socially acceptable.

And we need to recognize

that what God says is evil

has the capacity to wreck a life,

to wreck a relationship,

to wreck a church.

And so we need to pay close attention,

choosing to love God,

choosing to love God's truth

as the general pattern of our life,

and in those moments

where we are tempted otherwise.

So that's the first question,

which direction does my love follow?

But the second reflective question

we could draw from our verse here

is what do I delight in?

We are nearing holiday time.

As many of us as families

looking forward to getting a break,

hopefully we'll all get to have

some kind of rest and refreshment.

But as we near holiday time,

sometimes we have those questions

and conversations.

What is it you're looking forward to

about the holidays?

And what becomes apparent

is that because we're all different

as people,

we're all looking for different things

because we enjoy different things.

So we'll choose different destinations.

We'll pursue different activities.

Our idea of what's a real treat

and a luxury on a holiday

might not match up to another.

But that will influence the decisions

that we take

for something like a holiday.

Because as people,

we are wired to pursue happiness.

And we are making decisions

based on what is it in this moment

do I think will give me

the most joy and happiness?

That will determine,

in large measure,

the direction our life takes.

Now that becomes very relevant

to this question,

am I making progress

in my love as a Christian?

Because we need to think about

what is it that I delight in?

What is it that I rejoice in

in the day-to-day of life?

So I want to think about

two very practical aspects of life.

I want to think about conversation,

the conversations that we engage in,

either face-to-face

or over the internet.

And I want to think about

character and conduct

by which we'll think about

how do I assess and consider

and speak of

the character of someone else,

particularly in our case,

another Christian.

So when it comes to conversation,

do I delight in the truth

or do I delight in evil?

I heard it said this week

that we are part of a suspicious society.

And that makes sense.

We see suspicion towards our politicians,

towards the police,

towards almost anybody

in a position of leadership

and authority,

and that makes its way

into a church as well.

And along with that,

suspicion can come a delight

in cynicism

and a delight in speaking badly

of dishonoring

those who are

in positions of authority.

Alongside that,

there is,

in the minds of some,

the idea that there are

conspiracies to be found,

that there are deeper

and darker truths

that are being hidden,

and that's all leading

to mistrust and bitterness,

and that often can come out

in conversation.

So there's suspicion

that we need to reckon with,

but there's also,

within the sinful human heart,

the enjoyment of scandal.

We think about what makes

the pages of our newspaper,

what draws the attention

in social media,

often in our friendship circles,

it can often revolve

around the darker side of life.

When leaders fail,

when celebrities are being exposed,

or simply what the person

down the street

has been engaged in

and found out.

And there's a poison in that.

And the Bible would say,

what's the antidote

to that poison?

It's to delight in Christ,

to delight in His love,

and to delight in God's truth.

To borrow from another

of Paul's letters,

Philippians chapter 4,

Philippians 4 · chapter mention

he calls the church

to think about,

to talk about,

what is true,

and what is noble,

and what is right,

and what is pure,

and what is lovely,

and what is admirable.

What does progress look like

when it comes to

our conversations,

so that we're delighting

in what is true?

Perhaps for some of us,

it will be determining

to stop gossip and lies

from spreading,

to be truth tellers.

Perhaps it will look like

being ready to walk away

from those negative,

harmful conversations,

or to call out those jokes

that are inappropriate,

offensive.

Maybe it's pursuing

conversations that encourage

thankfulness,

rather than grumbling.

They encourage the praise

of God among God's people,

rather than a spirit

of bitterness.

In general terms,

that it would be

speaking well of others.

As I read someone say

this week,

if Christians are to err,

let us err on the side

of love.

Let's be ready

to show grace

in our conversations.

What about character?

When we think about character,

especially looking

at someone else,

what do we delight in?

Do we delight in failures

that we see,

or do we delight

in the faith

that we see?

It's one of the things

I love about Jonathan's example

in the Old Testament.

The pressure he was under

from his father,

the king,

the lies he was being sold,

the pressure to establish

his own kingdom

at the expense

of his friend David.

But what Jonathan does

is he chooses relentlessly

to honor David,

to choose the way of truth,

to defend his friend's character.

And that was profoundly costly to him,

as we saw in our reading.

We think about Paul

and Paul's letter

to the Corinthians.

Now, we've already seen

in the letter,

and you read it,

and you see it,

Corinth is by no means

a perfect church.

Many, many problems.

Paul doesn't delight in that.

What Paul delights in

is the faith that he sees.

That's what he headlines

in chapter one.

He loves them,

and he's thankful

for the faith

that he sees in them,

for the gifts

that God has given to them,

for the grace,

the evidence of God's grace

in their lives.

Yes, he's going to correct them

and discipline them,

but he delights

in their faith.

And that's what he wants

to draw attention to.

That's delighting in the truth.

To see brothers and sisters

in Christ

as the image of God,

to see Christ

in our brothers and sisters.

Now, we know

there is a pressure

to think another way,

but we are called

to see Christ

in our brothers and sisters.

That when we are hurt

and when we are let down,

we are to use

our imagination

to look forward

to spending eternity

with that brother

and sister in Christ

in a world

of perfect love,

when there will be

no sin,

no misunderstanding

between us,

when we will be so glad

to love that person

perfectly,

to spend time with them,

with Jesus,

our Savior.

We are to bring,

in other words,

the culture of heaven

down to earth today

in our church,

in our conversation,

how we look at,

think about,

speak of one another.

So what does progress

look like?

Progress will look like

relentlessly thinking

the best of others,

our brothers and sisters

in Christ,

assuming Christians

will act like Christians.

It will look like us

learning to celebrate

when we see others

standing firm,

growing in truth,

giving evidence of grace,

not focusing on failures.

It will look like praying

for those who hurt us,

for those who offend us,

thanking God for the grace

that we see in their lives.

So the conversations

that we enjoy

and that the character

that we focus on,

they can prove

a really helpful measure

for us

of how our love is doing.

Where am I showing

a lack of love?

Where have I misdirected

my love so I actually

enjoy what's evil

rather than what's good

and true?

As we reflect,

I'm sure you,

like me,

will want to ask

God's forgiveness.

We'll want to ask

for help,

that we would be

the kind of people

and the kind of church

that would delight

in the way of God's love

and love God's truth.

We need to learn

to measure

what love looks like.

Both our boys

just now in their school,

they're learning

about measuring

volume and length

and such things.

It's really important

when we learn

how to measure

to think what's

the appropriate unit

to use

in this context.

and they're also

at the same time

learning to measure

by comparison,

which is bigger,

which is smaller.

We know with kids

that's always really

important to find out

who's biggest

and tallest in the class.

It was always a big deal.

But when it comes to love,

what unit do you

and I use

to measure love?

Could be a slippery word,

can't it?

Defined in lots

of different ways.

But Christian love

is defined by the Bible.

It's set by the God

who is love.

Love is defined

by what we see

in Jesus.

He shows us

what perfect love

looks like.

We know what love is

in the gift of Jesus.

Remember Jesus said,

I am the way,

the truth,

and the life.

No one comes to the Father

except through me.

Jesus has come

to bring that truth

that through him

we can be adopted

to enter into

this experience

of God's perfect love.

So again,

to help us

if we want to make

progress in our love,

in the first place

we must receive

God's love for us

in the Lord Jesus.

That love

that deals

with our sin,

that deals

with what separates,

that brings us

to him.

And we must delight

in that love.

And we must allow it

to set our direction.

Who is Jesus?

Jesus is the Son of God

who's come to reveal

the truth of God

and goodness

and love

to the world.

And what did Jesus

do?

He died on the cross.

Having lived

a life of perfect

obedience

and love

towards God

and towards others,

he then died

as our substitute,

died as that

sacrifice

that we need

for our misdirected love,

for our lack

of love

before rising again

in victory

on the third day.

And why did

Jesus die?

He died to show us

what perfect love

looks like,

love that is self-giving,

love that is sacrificial,

love that makes us

children of God.

Let me read for us

1 John 4,

1 John 4:9

verses 9 and 10.

This is how God

showed his love

among us.

He sent his one

and only Son

into the world

that we might live

through him.

This is love.

Not that we loved God,

but that he loved us

and sent his Son

as an atoning sacrifice

for our sins.

What do we receive

from Jesus,

the one who is love?

We receive everything.

We enjoy the love of God,

Father, Son, and Spirit.

We enjoy peace with God,

knowing our sins

are forgiven.

We enjoy the hope

of eternal life,

knowing God now

with the hope

of enjoying him forever.

Knowing the love

of Jesus

changes everything.

So the measure of love

truly is the Lord

Jesus himself.

And we are all invited

to receive that love

and to enjoy it

for ourselves

and to keep moving

towards him,

the one who is love,

the one who is truth.

I was conscious this week

that when you're in a section

like 1 Corinthians 13,

it's really easy to feel

bad about ourselves.

Because when we're honest,

we come to a section like this,

we know how far short

we often fall

when it comes to our love.

Even today,

we recognize,

probably as we begin

to reflect,

that there are times

where we choose

the wrong path.

We do delight in what's evil

rather than what's good and true.

That's what we need,

and this is how we're going

to close.

We need to remind ourselves

of the gospel,

to take our eyes off ourselves,

to fix our eyes on Jesus again.

Because the gospel,

it speaks of three things.

It speaks of grace.

You and I,

we're not children of God

because we are able

to love well

or love perfectly.

We are children of God

because of the perfect love

of God,

his grace in sending Jesus

to love us and save us

when we couldn't save ourselves

and we couldn't love God.

So we need to remember

God's grace.

The gospel also speaks

of growing in love.

One of the wonderful things

is that when we become a Christian,

we're not then left to ourselves

to kind of figure it out

and to make improvements.

No, the Spirit comes to live in us

and we get a new heart

and we get new desires.

And so we have this promise

that as the Spirit is working in us

and the Spirit wants

to make us more like Jesus

and show us more of his glory,

that we will make progress.

That as we're walking with the Spirit,

we will change,

that he is making us

more and more like Christ.

And sometimes we have to look back

over the years

and we have to learn to reflect

to see,

I can see.

I know I'm not perfect,

but I am making progress.

But we also need to remember

when it comes to the gospel,

we need to remember

the promise of glory.

That reality that while

as much as now we feel

our struggles and our failures,

there is a day coming

when we will measure up perfectly.

When Jesus returns in his glory

and we are with him,

we will see him

and we will be made like him

and then,

then we will love perfectly.

Then we will pursue his truth

perfectly in heaven,

a world of love.

And we need to remember

that the God who has begun

a good work in us

will certainly complete it

all the way until the day

of Christ Jesus.

Let's pray together.

Lord, our God,

we recognize so much

that is contrary

to what is good and true

in our lives,

in our conversation,

in how we think of others

or treat others.

Lord, we want to take a moment

to confess that.

Lord, at the same time,

we are so thankful

for the gospel,

for that reminder

of your perfect love,

of your transforming love.

may you cause us

to rejoice in that,

to find our hope in that,

to have our character,

our conversation,

our conduct be changed

as we are directed

by your truth

and your love,

as led by the Spirit,

and we day by day

delight in it.

Lord, please help us

in this coming week

to make progress

in our love,

to be thinking,

to be guarding our hearts,

to be dependent on you

so that we might live for you.

We pray in Jesus' name.

Amen.

Amen.

Now, you may have seen

through social media

that we're going to sing a hymn.

Well, we're not going to sing.

We're going to listen to a hymn.

A hymn being sung.

My hymn of praise,

Forever Jesus.

A wonderful song

written a couple of years ago

that hopefully,

before too much longer,

we will get to sing,

but for now,

we can reflect on

its wonderful truth.

Amen.

My hymn of praise

shall be forever,

Jesus,

my firm foundation

in shifting sands,

my strength and hope.

Through many fears and failures,

the disappointments of the past,

His constant love has held me fast.

forever,

forever,

Jesus.

So for all my days,

I will sing my praise

to the King,

forever,

Jesus.

Though the storms may rage,

He is strong to save.

He's the King,

forever,

forever,

Jesus.

My song of joy

shall be forever,

Jesus,

who bore the suffering,

who made a way.

His life a gift,

His death a precious ransom,

that wipes the sinner's guilt away,

and turns our night

to glorious day.

So for all my days,

I will sing my praise

to the King,

forever,

Jesus.

Though the storms may rage,

He is strong to save.

He's the King,

forever,

forever,

Jesus.

Jesus

My final breath

Shall be forever Jesus

When shadows lengthen

For my eyes

My Lord and friend

Companion through the valley

When dearest ones are left behind

His hand will lead me to blindness

So for all my days

I will sing my praise to the King

Forever Jesus

Though the storms may rage

He is strong to save

He's the King

Forever Jesus

When I meet His case

I will sing my praise

To the King

Forever Jesus

All my sorrows past

I am home at last

With my King

Forever Jesus

With my King

Forever Jesus

With my King

Forever Jesus

We stand together

to receive

Now may the grace

of the Lord Jesus Christ

and the love of God

and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit

be with you all

Amen

Amen

Amen

Amen

Amen

Amen

Amen

Amen