Jesus Loves His Church NOTES

Introduction

Do you have someone that you KNOW really loves you? Isn’t that great? Who is it?
Now, can you imagine if that person had 1) perfect wisdom? 2) never-ending resources? 3) ultimate stamina? 4) infinitely pure motives (they weren’t loving you merely to get you to love them back and thus make them happy- can imagine if they loved you with a One-Way Love? 5) Can you imagine if that person would stop at absolutely nothing, no matter how much it hurt or cost’ them, to help you?

It’s hard to imagine; but it is reality for those who are true Christians. This, Ekklesia, is the love of Jesus For His Church. The Apostle Paul, who used to be a Christian-killer, was saved by Jesus from his sin and death to freedom and life; Paul was keenly aware of Jesus’ love for Him and the Church. Romans 8: “Nothing in all creation will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus.” Today we’re going to swim deep in the reality that is this: JESUS LOVES HIS CHURCH.

Turn to 1 JOHN 3:14-18
Information about the author, John

  • Used to be a fisherman with his father Zebedee and his brother James ‘till Jesus said “Follow me, and I will make you a Fisher of men!”
  • The youngest of all the Apostles
  • A Pastor and Church-Planter and planted numerous churches by God’s grace
  • At one time thrown into a cauldron of boiling hot oil, but, by God’s grace, he didn’t die (Jesus still had work for him to do on this earth, so he supernaturally preserved him from death)
  • Witnessed Jesus’ crucifixion on the cross for his sin
  • Witness to Jesus’ resurrection for his salvation
  • Wrote Scripture. An eyewitness account of Jesus’ life: GOSPEL OF JOHN. 3 letters to Churches: “1,2,3 JOHN” and a book of Prophecy: “REVELATION”.
  • One of Jesus’ best friends- Peter, James, and John were closer to Jesus than the other 9 Apostles and they ended up leading out more than the others
  • Called himself “The beloved Disciple” because he was so aware of how much Jesus loved him
  • John loved Jesus, and loved Jesus’ Church because Jesus first loved him

1. JESUS’ LOVE LIVES IN HIS CHURCH (1 JOHN 3:14-15)

  • LOVE = Agapeo = Verb/Action – Seeking the good of something else, no matter the cost.
  • LOVE AFFECTION THAT LEADS TO  ACTION.
  • BROTHERS = Adelphoi = The Church; those whom Jesus has saved- men & women
  • HATE = Miseo = Ill Will or Cold Indifference.
  • ACTIVE HATE *Mean, Divisive, Self-righteous, Don’t want what’s best for other Christians, Coveting,
  • PASSIVE HATE *not Active & Participating with Jesus’ Church (Heb 10:25), not Bearing Burdens (Gal 6:2), not Helping People Grow in Christ through the Bible (Col 3:16), not Speaking the Truth in Love (Eph 4:15), not rejoicing with those who rejoice or mourning with those who mourn (Rom 12:15), not Giving of Finances Regularly, Sacrificially, and Joyfully to fuel the mission and love all in the church (2 Cor 8-9).
  • LIFE & DEATH = Alive in Christ / Dead in Sin
  • Love for Jesus’ Church reveals that we truly have the Holy Spirit! Hate reveals we’re still dead.
  • John 13:35 “By this all men will know…” Galatians 5: “The fruit of the Spirit is love…”
  • Q. Do you Love Jesus’ Church? Rejoice! His love lives in you!
  • Do you Actively Hate Jesus’ Church? Repent! Q. Do you Passively Hate Jesus’ Church? Repent!
  • JESUS LOVES HIS CHURCH! LET’S LOVE WHAT JESUS LOVES!

2. JESUS LOVES HIS CHURCH (1 JOHN 3:16a)

  • God is love, ever heard that? Its true! **God is love; love is not God**
  • God is love, and God defines love. He defines love like this: JESUS WORK FOR SINNERS!
  • 1. JESUS WAS LOVING US ON THE CROSS. 1 JOHN 3:16 “By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us.” 
ROMANS 5:5 “God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”
  • 2. JESUS WAS LOVING US BEFORE THE FOUNDATION OF THE WORLD. EPHESIANS 1 “He chose us in him before the foundation of the world… In love he predestined us for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ.” *There was nothing good in us!
  • 3. JESUS IS LOVING US RIGHT NOW. ROMANS 8 “Christ Jesus is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us. No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.”
  • 4. JESUS WILL LOVE US TO THE END. PAUL ALSO TELLS US IN PHILIPPIANS “I am sure that He who began a good work in you, will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.”
  • JESUS LOVES HIS CHURCH. Question: Why? Answer: because it pleases Him! **Psalm 115:3. This is hard for us Post-Modern, Enlightened, self-centered people to understand: IT’S ALL GRACE! In his book titled, “Knowing God,” J.I. Packer puts it like this:
  • “Love among men is awakened by something in the beloved, but the love of God is free, spontaneous, unevoked, Charles Wesley puts it “He hath loved us, He hath loved us, because He would love”- and no reason for His love can be given save His own sovereign good pleasure. The Greek and Roman world of New Testament times had never dreamed of such love; it’s gods were often credited with lusting after women, but never with loving sinners; and the New Testament writers had to introduce what was virtually a new word agape to express the love of God as they knew it.”
  • If you don’t know Jesus, you don’t really know love at all. If you know Jesus, you know love; and you’re empowered to love.

3. LOVE IS SELFLESS & PRACTICAL (1 JOHN 3:16b-18)

  • Love is about keeping your eyes open and your hands outstretched. We do that by focussing on Jesus’ love for us. The more you’re focussed on Jesus Love for you through Church activity, Bible reading, prayer, meditating on and preaching the gospel to yourself… the more generous and loving you will become.
  • JESUS’ LOVE LIVES IN HIS CHURCH
  • JESUS LOVES HIS CHURCH, &
  • LOVE IS SELFLESS AND PRACTICAL