Why Should I Love You?

One Another   •  Sermon  •  Submitted
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The Why of Love

I am certain that we know the definition of real love. I believe we understand what love is. What I believe is the struggle with unconditional love is the why behind the love itself. Why should I love you? You might know the obvious answer, “Because Jesus loves us”. While that is true, Jesus never hurt us, Jesus never lied to us, Jesus never betrayed us. Nonetheless the people that Jesus wants us to love aren’t perfect, we make mistakes, we harbor ill feelings. So I ask again why should I love you? Why should you love me?
In John chapter 15, Jesus teaches on what our relationship should look like with fellow believers and what our relationship should look like with the unchurched. The foundation of love is built on the fact that we did not choose Jesus, he chose us first. Our relationship with him is fastened on the stage of grace and sustained by the power of mercy. He loves us not because we are worthy, equipped, gifted, talented, skilled or experienced. He loves us because God loves us, and God is love. We are His father’s creation. Jesus died to make the world a better place, there are great people on earth but imagine if real, loving, serving, and compassionate Christians did not exist? What would this world look like? I’m not talking about people who use Jesus to push an agenda of xenophobia, racism, white supremacy and extremism. I’m talking about people who are motivated by the teaching of Jesus to feed the poor, heal the sick, build homes for the homeless and love those who have been abused and mistreated.

The Simple Answer

Every why has a simple answer. It’s the process of reaching the why is the difficult part. People know why we should eat healthy, read consistently, be organized but the process of maintaining these whys can be quite challenging.
Love, the simple answer, is because He loved us first. Even in the text “This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. Nonetheless even Jesus gives you a why.
Similar to the family construct, husbands love your wives as Christ loved the church. Simply put love your wife, but the why, not only because I made this covenant but she’s been there for you, she ate Ramen noodles and drank grape kool-aid with you when you did not have the success and money you have today.
Jesus refers to this as “My Commandment”.
Jesus requiring love is a King authorizing a specific action, a mandate or ordinance. In order to be a part of the kingdom of God, love is a requirement.
The love has a standard. So Jesus is requesting that we love each other as he has loved us. He did not ask us to do something that He not done for us in that moment or a part of what He knew he was going to do for us.
The simple answer is love your neighbor, love your spouse, love your children. The simple answer is tough to exemplify when the folks you are supposed to love betray you or do not treat you the way you treat them.

Jesus Is The Standard

The definition of love changed because of Christ, this is why he could say greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends.
Greater - exceeding a standard involving related objects. This is warranted coming from Jesus. He is a King of Greater. A greater promise, a greater blessing, a greater truth is in Jesus.
“Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us”
Understand Jesus is great all by himself, love is amazing all by itself it’s when we allow the love of Jesus, when we allow Jesus’ power to work in us we become a part of that greater.
Love is difficult sometimes, it’s beyond the scope of reality it seems like sometimes, but Jesus dying for people he knew, did not know and would never meet physically seems beyond my scope of understanding as well.
“Than to lay down one’s life for his friends”
Understand that love is the completed action of what it means to be a disciple of Christ. Understand we should love like the cross is in perfect view our respective relationships. We know that many Christians ended up and still end up today to be martyrs for their beliefs.
We have saw and witnessed people die for a number of causes because their belief is so strong. Love will prompt you to put your life on the line.

Calls Us Friends But Loves Like Family

The love of Jesus, we would never be worth of. Thank God for grace and mercy, understand that our relationship with Jesus changed through the vein of obedience because it shows trust.
Here are my mother and My brothers! For whoever does the will of My Father in heaven is My brother and sister and mother.
Calls us friends but he loves us like family.
The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs-heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified together.
Understand this idea of co-glorification, that sometimes in the frame of love and glorification is pain and co-suffering.
But be mindful that our friendship with Jesus is based on obedience, and who does not want to be a friend of the King. We are known by our ability to keep His commandments
Credentials, you need credentials for everything else. Just because you want a job doesn’t mean you qualify for it. Jesus set some boundaries, if you want to rock with me, obedience has to be a part of your job description.
Obedience is the least he could ask considering he sacrificed his life to change the world that we still live in, the least we can do is love each other.
Our relationship with Jesus is different than our relationship with the world, Jesus is sustaining us so we can show salvation to the un-churched.
His grace, mercy, patience and kindness toward us allows us to show sacrificial love with each other and even the world.

A Different Type of King

I imagine some of us are sitting in our seats, like duh, I know He loves me it’s Jesus. Understand He is a King and most Kings historically rule from a place of power and dictatorship, Jesus was ruling from a place of compassion and service.
If a King can rule from a place of service and compassion we can love our brother and sister from a place of service and compassion.
“By this we know love, because He laid down His life for us. And we also ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.
His life was about service to mankind, His death was a service to mankind. All that he has done! We can at least love each other in spite of.
Before Abraham was, I AM. The issue is society has conditioned us to think its about acquisition and possessions when Jesus came to show us that true riches is the ability to help those in need. True riches is having a family that loves you. True riches is being able to love friends like family.
Unlike other dignitaries in some instances that are chosen by people, Jesus chose us. Understand the idea here that he appoints us to bear fruit, but fruit that shall remain.
Our love should prompt service which should bear fruit that up builds the people of God. Whatever we ask in His name he provides, nonetheless he requires us to love one another.
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