On love
The sermon today really edified me. The title of Pr Chin AQ's sermon was "A New Commandment (2)". I am kind of disappointed I missed the first one. Did he give that sermon on a Tuesday night service? Anyway, today, he touched on two main points. Firstly, why did Jesus give this new commandment? Secondly, how do we love one another?
I dun think I will go into much details. I will basically highlight the main points and the points which brought new perspectives and understanding to me.
Love is the new commandment that God gave men. Love God, love men.
I used to separate love and the law (commandments). Or rather, perhaps I didnt know how to reconcile them. But today, I could finally see the link. In romans 13:9-10, it clearly says that keeping God's commandments equates to love. When we do not murder, do not covet, do not lie,.... these are actually acts of love we have on our neighbours. "Therefore, love is the fulfillment of the law."
Next, in John 14:15, Jesus himself said, "If you love me, you will obey what I command." Many in the world today claim that they love God. But on what basis do we make that claim? Love have to be expressed through action, not just mere words. And God already made it very clear to us - "If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching."
Therefore, do you also see that, by keeping God's commandments, we are actually loving men (and God). And if we love God, we will keep His commandments. Love and the law go hand-in-hand and cannot be separated!
Then how do we love one another?
Not by the love we have for God. But by the love God has for us. John 13:34, Jesus said, "As I have loved you, so you must love one another." because our love for God is everchanging. Sometimes, we sing praises of thanksgiving to God. Other days, we murmur against Him. But God's love never change. He loves us as much as he did since the beginning. He never fails to forgive us if we are truly repentant.
But can we just love God, and forget about men?
We cant either.. because "Whoever loves God must also love his brother." 1 John 4:20-21
But why did Jesus give this commandment? Shouldn't love come from a willing heart? If we do it simply because it was commanded, wouldn't that be a little fake?
Other than the reason being that love is the fulfillment of the law, Christ gave this commandment precisely because He knew that man is weak. Often, we only love those who love us. How many of us can truly love our enemies? But God wants us to "love your enemies, do good to them..."
Finally, what really touches me is this last point. That Jesus had the authority to command us not because He is king and has the power or anything like that. But because He has first set the example for us to follow, because He has first loved us. He came down in the flesh in humility, loved us unconditionally by suffering for us and forgave those who were against him.
I dun think I will go into much details. I will basically highlight the main points and the points which brought new perspectives and understanding to me.
Love is the new commandment that God gave men. Love God, love men.
I used to separate love and the law (commandments). Or rather, perhaps I didnt know how to reconcile them. But today, I could finally see the link. In romans 13:9-10, it clearly says that keeping God's commandments equates to love. When we do not murder, do not covet, do not lie,.... these are actually acts of love we have on our neighbours. "Therefore, love is the fulfillment of the law."
Next, in John 14:15, Jesus himself said, "If you love me, you will obey what I command." Many in the world today claim that they love God. But on what basis do we make that claim? Love have to be expressed through action, not just mere words. And God already made it very clear to us - "If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching."
Therefore, do you also see that, by keeping God's commandments, we are actually loving men (and God). And if we love God, we will keep His commandments. Love and the law go hand-in-hand and cannot be separated!
Then how do we love one another?
Not by the love we have for God. But by the love God has for us. John 13:34, Jesus said, "As I have loved you, so you must love one another." because our love for God is everchanging. Sometimes, we sing praises of thanksgiving to God. Other days, we murmur against Him. But God's love never change. He loves us as much as he did since the beginning. He never fails to forgive us if we are truly repentant.
But can we just love God, and forget about men?
We cant either.. because "Whoever loves God must also love his brother." 1 John 4:20-21
But why did Jesus give this commandment? Shouldn't love come from a willing heart? If we do it simply because it was commanded, wouldn't that be a little fake?
Other than the reason being that love is the fulfillment of the law, Christ gave this commandment precisely because He knew that man is weak. Often, we only love those who love us. How many of us can truly love our enemies? But God wants us to "love your enemies, do good to them..."
Finally, what really touches me is this last point. That Jesus had the authority to command us not because He is king and has the power or anything like that. But because He has first set the example for us to follow, because He has first loved us. He came down in the flesh in humility, loved us unconditionally by suffering for us and forgave those who were against him.
