The Road to Romans 2016!
The answer
is LOVE!
That’s what
should set us apart from the rest of the world!
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Story
The man brought the four
cards, the four boxes of candy, and the four sets of flowers up to the cashier
for checkout. The cashier rolled her eyes at him as she looked at his wedding
band and mumbled..."these players make me sick." This caused everyone
else to look at the man funny too. So the man responded..."one set is for
my mom because my dad passed away and he used to do this for my mom...and he
taught me how to give love. The next set is for my wife because I love her and
she teaches me how to receive and treasure love. And the third set is for my
daughter...because it's up to me to teach her how she should be treated and who
she should give her love to. And you can have my fourth set because I just
wanted you to know that a man can show you love and understanding and not want
anything from you. Have a blessed day." She melted and everyone else did
too. just goes to show you dont jugde someone you know nothing about
·
Romans
12:9–13 (NLT)
9Don’t just pretend to love others. Really love them.
Hate what is wrong. Hold tightly to what is good.
10Love each other with genuine affection, and take
delight in honoring each other.
11Never be lazy, but work hard and serve the Lord
enthusiastically.
12Rejoice in our confident hope. Be patient in
trouble, and keep on praying.
13When God’s people are in need, be ready to help
them. Always be eager to practice hospitality.
So last week we talked
about transforming our minds, body and souls to live a sacrificial life for God.
Not to simply conform to a bunch of rules, not simply to try and live out life
by commands, but truly giving our selves over to the control of the Holy Spirit
and allowing Jesus to changes us from the inside out! And now Paul starts off
with the foundation of living that transformed life in Christ! And the answer
is LOVE! Love was at the core of Jesus earthly ministry and that is how Paul starts
off his transformational teaching!
What does real love look like?
9Don’t just pretend to
love others. Really love them. Hate what is wrong. Hold tightly to what is
good.
Stop pretending and transform
your thinking!
·
Hypocrisy
originates in deceitful, dishonest thoughts and actions
·
whether we want
others to think of us more highly, whether we think too highly of ourselves …
the list is endless.
·
When we are
motivated by hypocrisy—falsehood and deception—thoughts, motives, behavior, and
priorities all get twisted backward.
·
And if we can’t
achieve our hypocritical objective, we just pretend to be a better
person, enact that perception, and live a lie.
·
We are all too
often motivated by our needs to love authentically
o We have hidden motives
o Needs
o Wants and desires
·
That is when
folks are either obstacles in our way
·
Or a vehicle to
get what we want
Really love them? What
does that look like??
love (Christian) n. — a strong, non-sexual affection and regard for a person and their
good as understood by God’s moral character; especially characterized by a willing
forfeiture of rights or privileges in another person’s behalf.
·
Real love takes
me out of the equation
·
Real love
thinks about the other person first
o Mothers you get this
o Dads you get this
·
Real love like
Jesus gives and never worries about taking
·
This is counter
cultural
·
This goes
against everything we are taught
Hate what is wrong! How
do we tell???
·
This is a hard
concept
·
Because sometimes
Mercy gets messy
·
Holding some
one accountable is love
·
Letting someone
hit bottom sometimes is love
·
Saying no,
sometimes is love
·
Knowing when to
give-in and when to hold your ground is hard
·
The best think
is understanding what the bible teaches
·
Bath it all in
prayer and seek wise counsel
Hold tight to what is
Good! What is good?
·
Just because it
feels good, does not make it good!
·
Good for you or
them?
·
Jesus held
tight to what was good and it cost him his life
·
This is why we
walk together, we live together, we learn together
Loving someone is hard, its
work, it takes hard choices, it takes prayer.
·
Love is a
choice we make
·
Not a feeling
we get
·
During the
course a relationship
o We feel a lot
o We get angry
o We get sad
o We get hurt
o We have loss
o We get happy
o We feel amazing
·
But at the end
of the day its work
·
Putting someone
first
·
Loving them when
they don’t love themselves
·
Loving them
when they have hurt us
·
It has to be a
choice, not a feeling!!
if we embrace honest love,
that which is given purely without expectation of something in return, we will discover
the life and blessing God has intended for us. Then the transformation of our
minds, renewed by the Holy Spirit, will empower us to embrace needed changes.
And now he gets to the hard part!
10Love each other with genuine affection, and take
delight in honoring each other.
·
Genuine
affection
o From the heart
o In the right place
o Not expecting anything in return
o I hear people say all the time “well if you knew
what I did for them”
o We don’t keep score
o We don’t think you owe me
o We do it out
of a genuine love for the other person
·
and we honor
each other!
o We don’t Gossip about others
o We don’t try and out do each other
o Showing honor is
§ Having respect for the other person’s situation
§ Not looking down your nose at them
§ Making them feel welcome even though you have more
·
last week we talked
about how we all play a part in the family
o no one is better than anyone else
o from me to the guy that just walked in
o God has placed us all here for a reason
o With unique gifts
o And abilities
Loving others means loving God first!
11Never be lazy, but work hard and serve the Lord
enthusiastically.
·
When we love
God, that love spills out on to others
·
That’s why he
says don’t be lazy!
·
Work hard for Jesus
o
When we work
Hard serving the lord it spills over in to others lives
·
And we do it cheerfully!
o
And we do it
looking for no return
·
We learn to
love others by loving God first
·
We learn to
serve others by serving God first
·
We don’t look
for returns
·
We learn to do
it to serve Him and glorify him
·
Make it not
about us
The even harder part!
12Rejoice in our confident hope. Be patient in
trouble, and keep on praying.
·
Rejoice in our
confident hope!
o
WOW, we rejoice
in our hope because
§
We have a God that’s
says have faith and believe
§
Believe in a
power that’s greater than our own
§
Believe in a eternity
that awaits us
o
We have hope in
things others don’t understand
o
We have
confidence because we believe
o
Its not
unfounded blind hope
o
Its truly
understanding all that God promises us
o
And understanding
what he doesn’t!
WE should always be ready to rise to the occasion!
13When God’s people are in need, be ready to help
them. Always be eager to practice hospitality.
·
When there is a
true need we rise to that need
·
We do what we
can
·
When we can
·
Without looking
for something in return
Acts 2:42–45
(NLT)
42All the believers devoted themselves to the
apostles’ teaching, and to fellowship, and to sharing in meals (including the
Lord’s Supper), and to prayer.
43A deep sense of awe came over them all, and the
apostles performed many miraculous signs and wonders.
44And all the believers met together in one place and
shared everything they had.
45They sold their property and possessions and shared
the money with those in need.
·
It goes back to
the basic of the church
·
We take care of
each other
·
We look out for
each other
·
And that
includes the church its self
·
We have needs
all over the place, and those needs are many
o
Both in the
church and out of the church
·
Are you ready
to help??
·
Are you eager
to help?
On Sunday do you have
your Hospitality on???
·
Are you talking
to new people?
·
Are you showing
them around?
·
Are you
practicing Sunday for the rest of the week?
·
We reach people
by opening our home!
o Showing hospitality to non-believers
o Going out for a meal and picking up the tab
o Tipping well when you do go out
o Being generous with what we have
How can we do this??
·
Get out of your
comfort zone
·
Bring a snack Sunday
morning
·
Invite someone
to lunch after church
·
Take a new
person at work to lunch
·
Use your
imagination!
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