Dear Christian friends:

What's wrong with the world? What's wrong with the church? What's wrong with America? What's wrong with marriage? Family? Our church? We have given up on love. We depend too much on law, force, science (knowledge), "Try love!" We will be surprised to see how everything improves when we love on another. That is Jesus' way. He says,


I. God first loved us. (verses 9,12,13-16a)

We can love one another because we have God's love in our hearts. God loved His Son Jesus and Jesus loved us. (verse 9)

A. Redeemed us

God show His great and wonderful love by sending His only Son to die for our sins. (Abraham and Isaac)

Jesus, the Son, showed His great love for us by obeying His Father and accepting death on the cross to save us. (verses 10,12,13)

1. Christ died for His enemies, "ungodly", Romans 5:8-18

2. We were enemies of God. Ephesians 2:1-3

B. Elected us, verse 16.

1. When He chose the twelve disciples they were not better than the other Jews, sinners the same! When He chose the Jewish nation to be His people they were not better than other nations. "Stubborn." His decision not others.

2. So us, also. God chose us before He made the world, Romans 8:28-30 and Ephesians 1:3-6. We are not better than others, ourselves. But His grace.

C. Made us new persons, new life. (verse 15)

1. The Holy Spirit leads us to believe through the Word. (Romans 10:17)

2. He gives us joy in Christ, (verse 11, Luke 2:10)

3. We can talk to our heavenly Father in prayer with confidence. (Verse 16b)

Because God has loved us and given His love and Spirit to us we can love one another. (Read 1 John 4:7-11)

Dear friends, since God loved us as much as that, we surely ought to love each other.

II. So, love others! (verse 9b)

"Live within My love" (verse 9b)

"I demand that you love each other as I love you." (verse 12)

"I demand that you love each other" (verse 17)

Still we have our old sinful nature and often hate others and do not love them. That's the World and Satan's way. So Jesus commands and reminds us to love one another.

A. Various relationships.

1. Family, Ephesians 5:25 - 6:4, Husband and wife, parents and children.

2. Congregation and all Christians Ephesians 4:3.

3. Employers and fellow employees, Ephesians 6:5-9.

4. All men, even enemies, Matthew 5:44.

B. Our love should be like our heavenly Father's and like Christ's. Shown by obeying Him and by submitting ourselves to those in authority. "Love one another!" That's the big challenge!" Keep trying! The only way to true happiness.

Amen.

Additional notes:

Romans 5:6-8 "When we were utterly helpless with no way of escape, Christ came at just the right time and died for us sinners, who hated Him. Even if we were good we really wouldn't expect anyone to die for us, though of course, that might be barely possible. But God showed His great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners."

Ephesians 2:1-3 "Once you were under God's curse, doomed forever for your sins. You went along with the crowd and were just like all the others, full of sin, obeying Satan, who is working right now in the hearts of those who are against the Lord. All of us used to be just as they are, our lives expressing the evil within us, doing every wicked thing that our passions or our evil thoughts might lead us into. We started out bad, being born with evil natures and were under God's anger just like everyone else."

Romans 8:29-30 "From the very beginning God ---. having choose us, He called us to come to him; and when we came, He declared us "not guilty," filled us with Christ's goodness, gave us right standing with Himself, and promised us His glory."