QUESTION: “CAN
YOU SHOW THE LOVE
OF CHRIST TO OTHERS?”
ANSWER:
“NO”
Everyone has heard about the love of Christ. It seems
that it is one of
those intuitive things that everybody seems to know what it is… but
the
opposite is true.
According to popular belief, it is something that
shouldn’t have to be
explained.
It seems obvious to anybody, unsaved or saved whether
someone has it or
not.
“Oh! He’s showing the love of Christ.”
or
“I didn’t like him at all, he was too cold or harsh. He
didn’t show me
the love of Christ!”
DO PEOPLE WANT THE LOVE CHRIST OR DO THEY
JUST WANT TO BE LOVED?
The unsaved just want to be loved on a human level. They
want to be
shown kindness, respect, tenderness, care. Generally speaking, this is
the love
of Christ to them.
WHAT IS THE LOVE OF CHRIST?
When the love of Christ is mentioned in scripture it is associated with
his
death on the cross.
“Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ
that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the
right hand
of God, who also maketh intercession for us. Who shall separate us from
the
love of Christ?” (Romans 8:34-35)
“For the love of Christ constraineth
us; because we thus judge, that if one died for all, then were
all dead:”
(2 Corinthians 5:14 )
Furthermore, Christ so loved us that he died for all
men.
“For when we were yet without strength, in due time
Christ died
for the ungodly.” (Romans
5:6)
WHAT IS THE LOVE OF GOD?
The love of God is found in Christ Jesus our
Lord.
The love of God is that he spared not his own son (Romans
8:32) in that while we were sinners Christ died for us.
“But God commendeth his love toward
us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” (Romans
5:8)
IS THE LOVE OF GOD THE SAME AS THE LOVE OF
CHRIST?
In a way – yes as Christ is God in the flesh, so when God
gave us his
Son, God gave us himself. God so loved us that he gave Jesus Christ.
The Bible
says
“For God so loved the world, that he
gave his only begotten Son…” (John
3:16)
and further
“Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall
be able to
separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
(Romans
8:39)
“But God commendeth his
love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died
for
us.” (Romans
5:8)
CAN WE DEMONSTRATE THE LOVE OF CHRIST?
No, but we can explain what it is to people and how they
can get it. God
the Father himself doesn’t demonstrate the love of Christ in that he commendeth
his love toward us in the form of his Son Jesus Christ.
IS LOVING MY NEIGHBOUR THE SAME AS SHOWING
SOMEONE THE LOVE OF CHRIST?
No.
CAN WE SHOW PEOPLE THE LOVE OF CHRIST WITH
OUR GOOD WORKS?
No, but we show the effect of the love of Christ
in our lives by
our good works.
“The love of Christ constraineth us” (2 Corinthians 5:14).
Because of the love of God found in Jesus Christ our
Lord, we are
constrained and compelled that we should not henceforth live to
ourselves. (2Co
5:15) and exhibit the works of the flesh, such as
“Now the works of the flesh are manifest,
which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness,
Idolatry,
witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions,
heresies,
Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like:” Gal
5:19
IS THE LOVE OF CHRIST THE SAME AS THE FRUIT
OF THE SPIRIT?
No. Christ on the cross is not the same as a Christian’s
behaviour.
For the fruit of the Spirit is in all
goodness and righteousness and truth;(Ephesians
5:9)
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy,
peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance:
against such there is no law. And they that are Christ's have crucified
the
flesh with the affections and lusts. (Galatians 5:22-24)
IS CHARITY (love between Christians) THE LOVE
OF CHRIST?
No charitable works are the results and outworkings of
having the love
the Christ and believing on him.
Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not;
charity
vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up, Doth not behave itself unseemly,
seeketh
not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil; Rejoiceth not in
iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth;1Co
13:4
WHAT IS THE LOVE OF CHRIST? IT IS …
1. A past historical event … it happened 2,000 years ago.
2. An external event … it happened out side of us.
3. A legal event … a written promise from God.
4. A non-experiential event … we were not involved when Christ went to
the
cross.
It
is something to believe and can’t be experienced …
5. A non-repeatable event … Christ died only once
THE LOVE
OF
CHRIST IS NOT
1.
A
present event as it happened 2,000 years ago
2. An internal event in the believer
3. An experiential event … we don’t experience the cross, only Christ
did.
4. A repeatable event as Christ will die no more.
SO WHAT
POINTS SHOULD WE EMPHASIZE TO PEOPLE WHEN TELING THEM ABOUT THE LOVE OF
CHRIST?
1. God is
pure and holy and
without sin, and will not let sin or sinners into heaven.
2. Show that
when Adam sinned we
had his sin put into our accounts.
3. We sin
because we are born as
sinners. Our parent was Adam.
4. God’s Ten
Commandments clearly
show that no-one can keep his commands.
5. Use the
Ten Commandments, to
produce conviction of sin.
6. Not
living up to one’s own
standards is a sin, as the scriptures say
Therefore
to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin. James
4:17
7. If you
have broken one part of
God’s law, you are as guilty as breaking them all.
For
whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is
guilty
of all. James
2:10
8. Clear
preaching on the doctrine
of sin is needed leading to the conviction of the curse of the law and
the
wrath of God.
9. No future
good behaviour can
atone (pay) for past sins.
10. Nothing
people can do, have
done, or will do can rescue them from an eternity in hell.
11. All and
any self-righteousness
must be recognized … beaten down and defeated and seen as a false hope.
12. To break
God’s laws is to
immediately fall under the curse of it … separation from God &
punishment
in the flames of hell.
13. Hell is a
real place.
14. There is no
purgatory,
reincarnation or ‘six-foot under’ – only heaven and hell.
15. God’s
love in the Old Testament
let the Jew sacrifice animal blood for their sins.
For the
life of the flesh is in the blood: and I have given it to you upon the
altar to
make an atonement for your souls: for it is the blood that maketh an
atonement for the soul. Lev
17:11 .
Today,
it’s
the blood of Christ that washes away our sin (Rev
1:5).
16. Show that
when Jesus died/rose
again we can have his righteousness put into our accounts … if
we believe.
17. Rev
21:8 outline
the destiny for
sinners.
But the
fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and
whoremongers,
and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in
the lake
which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death. Revelation
21:8
****
****
Harley
Hitchcock
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