Carter Conlon from the historic Times Square Church in New York City. You've got to win the battle for love now. This is the ultimate battle in the last days. You see, there's a line that we can't pass because human love has its limitations. The only way.
That this can be done as God has to love people through us. Thank you for joining us for A Call to the Nation with Carter Conlon. In the last days, Carter believes that many will grow cold to be easily offended. and they'll learn to betray one another. there will be no civility or cooperation or any desire to seek truth.
Because of this, hatred will become the accepted order of the day, and the love of many will draw cold. Only the love of God can take believers through this period of time. Let's join Carter now as he begins this week's message titled, The Last Day's Battle for Love. from 1 Corinthians chapter 12. I want to speak to you today about the last day's battle for love.
I was going to build up the title, but they put it up on the screen before I had a chance to speak, so. I'll go right into it. The last day's battle. You know, if I was to talk about last day's battles, There'd be a lot of opinions in this room about what that could be. Faith to stand, faith to move mountains, gifts of the Holy Spirit abounding.
in the church one more time. But realistically, I think this is going to be the battle that will win the day. For the kingdom of God. When you and I allow the love of God That is supernatural to flow through us because our natural love has limitations. I don't know about you, but mine does.
And there's a point where we just can't love anymore. There's a point where we would turn ourselves. Our backs. and will turn our backs On that which is naturally unlovable. It's only those who possess within their heart.
This love of God. that will be able to win the battle and to continue to love in these last days. 1 Corinthians chapter 12. Beginning at verse 31. Paul says, earnestly desire.
The best gifts. And yet I show you a more excellent way. In other words, Paul was saying, there are supernatural abilities that we need in the body of Jesus Christ. We need words of wisdom, we need words of knowledge, the gifts of healing. And we should pray and will pray that God restore these gifts to your church.
But Paul said there's a more excellent way. These things are necessary. He's not downplaying it, but I'm going to show you a more excellent way. Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, But have not love, I have become sounding brass or a clanging cymbal. Though I have the gift of prophecy and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and though I have all faith so that I could remove mountains but have not love, I am God.
Nothing. And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, but have not love, it profits me. Nothing. Love suffers long in its kind. Love does not envy.
Love does not parade itself. is not puffed up. does not behave rudely, does not seek its own. is not provoked. thinks no evil.
does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth. Bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things. endures all things. Love never fails. But whether there are prophecies, they will fail.
You see, there's a day coming when we're going to be in the presence of God and there'll be no need for prophesying anymore. We will actually know as we are known. All these things are going to pass away. Whether there are tongues, they will cease. Whether there is knowledge, it will vanish.
Away. For we know in part and we prophesy in part. But when that which is perfect is come, then that which is in part will be done away. When I was a child, I spoke as a child. I understood as a child.
I thought as a child. But when I became a man, I put away childish things. For now we see in a mirror dimly. But then Face to face.
Now I know in part but then I shall know just as I also am known. And now abide faith, hope, Love these three, but the greatest. Of these is love. You see, Paul the Apostle is saying under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit that all these spiritual giftings that we aspire to will one day come to an end. Even knowledge, as we know it, will come to an end.
For we will know, the scripture says, even as We are known. Nothing, in a sense, of these giftings will follow us into eternity except for love. which is eternal. It will not pass away. Why is it going to be the battle that we fight in the last days?
Matthew chapter 24. Verses 10 and 12, tell us why. In the last days, in the last of the last days, which I am personally convinced we are coming very, very, very close to. And then many will be offended and betray one another and will hate one another. Doesn't that describe our society today?
Everybody is offended at something. People are betraying one another. There's no desire anymore for civility or cooperation or to find common ground or even to seek the truth. All of that is gone, and hatred is now becoming the accepted order of the day. And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold.
Society will devolve into such a perilous condition. Nobody will want truth, everybody will want to be in authority, nobody will want to be under authority. They will want their truth to be the only truth, and it doesn't matter what anybody else thinks, it doesn't matter what truth really is. This is a lawlessness against the ways of God, against the word of God, against the will of God, against the order of God. Against what God defines as civility and what will bring or sustain a nation.
And because of it, the love of many will grow cold. The love. It's easy to hate. It's hard to love. And our love, our natural love, does have limitations.
It's sad to say our hate doesn't. But our love does. And there's a point. Where only the love of God in us will take us through into the future.
Now Paul The one whom God used to write these words had experienced most things that many today would define as incredible spiritual. Victory. But Satan threw everything he had in his arsenal at this man to make him a bitter and unloving man.
Some people here today know exactly. what I'm speaking about. 2 Corinthians chapter 11. Verse 23, listen to the words of Paul. Are they ministers of Christ?
I speak as a fool. I am more, in labors more abundant. In stripes above measure, in prisons more frequently, in deaths often. From the Jews, five times I received 40 stripes minus one. In other words, five times, in other words, I was almost beaten to death.
Think of the temptation in this man to become bitter. Satan threw everything he could at this man to break him down, to destroy the power of love that was in his life, because Satan himself, I think, had an inkling that this man was going to be used for a purpose greater than he could understand. He was going to write down the text of much of our New Testament scripture and be a guide, in a sense, to the body of Christ. He was going to write 1 Corinthians chapter 13 about what is a more excellent way. And may I say it this way: the devil tried to beat it out of him.
Change his mind. I think of the numbers of people here today that as Paul, Paul is simply trying to help people find an eternal relationship with God. He's trying to lead his own countrymen out of the bondage. of sin and out of the peril of Heading towards a Christless eternity, and for his efforts for his own people, he's getting beaten almost to death five times. I think of the numbers of people here today that in your workplace or in your neighborhood or even in your own family.
All you want to do is to help people find a relationship with God only to find yourself verbally beaten upon. Or even worse. You see, the devil will do everything in his power as he did with Paul. Three times, he says, I was beaten with rods. Bad enough, five times.
With whips in the sense, three times with rods, once I was stoned, three times I was shipwrecked. A night and a day, I've been in the deep in journeys. Often, in perils of waters, in perils of robbers, in perils of my own countrymen, in perils of the Gentiles, in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils among false brethren. I don't know about you, Pastor Tim, but there's a point in my life where I'd say, enough already, okay? Can we kind of share this with some other people?
But you see, the devil himself knew that Paul Was a formidable force in the hand of God, as you are. Those of us who choose to say, God, I trust you. that there is a purpose for my life beyond what I can understand. I trust you, God, that all things do work together for good because I love you and I am one of the called according to your purpose. I trust you, God, that you're going to take me from image to image and glory to glory, and that the latter part of my days will be greater than the former.
God, I trust you. I trust you through flood. I trust you through fire. I trust you through trial. I trust you through things that I understand and things that I don't understand, things that I like and things that I don't like.
It's not about any of that. I trust you, God. I trust you with all of my heart. And I know That there'd be a temptation, as there is for many today, even to be bitter against God Himself. Because many people have come to Christ and they form their own theology, or they're listening to brother or sister so-and-so online who's telling you that now that you've come to Christ and you're part of the family of God, everything is just going to be wonderful from here on in.
No more trials, no more tribulation, no more troubles. You're going to be the head and not the tail. You've heard all that stuff.
Well, I hope you haven't, but if you have. You know by now, or you will know shortly, that none of it is true. you're going to find That life is difficult. There are moments that you're going to have to go through. We all have to go through.
There are people that you're going to have to learn to love. And you're going to have to learn that to love them, God has to love them through you. You and I can't do it on our own. There's just no way. There's just no way.
Now, Paul had also experienced incredible victories. Not just the the struggles that he had gone through. but in incredible, incredible victories. In 2 Corinthians chapter 1. Verses 8 to 10, he says, We don't want you to be ignorant, brethren, of our trouble which came to us in Asia.
We were burdened beyond measure. above strength, so that we despaired even of life. Yes, we had the sentence of death in ourselves that we should not trust in ourselves, but in God who raises the dead. who delivered us from so great a death And does deliver us in whom we trust that he will still deliver us.
So Paul had this faith that could move mountains. There was a moment in his life where he declares that we lost hope of even living. Our only trust was in God.
So they had to kind of move this mountain of despair. out of their lives and In that sense, he had the faith to move mountains. In 2 Corinthians chapter 12. Paul was a man who understood mysteries. He says in verse 2, I know a man in Christ, that's himself, who 14 years ago, whether in the body I do not know, or whether out of the body, I do not know, God knows.
Such a one was caught up to the third heaven. Anybody else ever been there? Please don't raise your hand if you think you have, because I'm telling you you haven't been there. He says, I know such a man, whether in the body or out of the body, I do not know, God knows. He was caught up into paradise and heard inexpressible words, which is not lawful for a man to say.
To utter, he understood, he had faith to move mountains, he understood mysteries. And Paul could honestly say, as he exhorted us to do in Romans chapter 12 and verse 1, I have yielded my body to God as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable unto God, which is my reasonable service. You see, Paul had done all of the things that he lists. In 1 Corinthians chapter 13. But in all these things, without the love of God moving in him and through him, he declares himself to be just a noise, to be worth absolutely nothing, and gaining nothing on his forward journey.
That's how important love is. 1 John chapter 4 verses 7 and 8. says it this way. Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God, and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. He who does not love does not know God.
You can know about God, I guess. But doesn't know God, for God is love. In this, the love of God was manifested towards us that God has sent His only begotten Son. into the world so that we might live through him. And this is love.
Not that we love God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation. For our sins. Not that we loved God. But God loved us. We don't fully understand.
God so loved the world, do we? We don't fully understand the depth of God's love. It's like looking at the surface of an ocean. Wanting to know the depths of it, but we can't fully grasp nor understand this incredible love of God. 1 John 4, verse 17 says, Love has been perfected among us in this, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment, because as he is, so are we in this world.
How important is it to know the love of God? How important is it to let the love of God not only fashion us, but flow through us? The scripture says it will give us boldness and confidence in the day of judgment, because we can honestly say, God, I have had your heart. I have possessed your heart. I have allowed you to love the unlovable through me.
And even though they spit on me, even though they rejected me, even though they beat on me verbally or whatever the case was, I didn't draw back. That was the testimony of the Apostle Paul. And in 1 John chapter 4 and verse 18, the scripture says there is no fear in love because perfect love casts out fear because fear involves torment. But he who fears has not been made perfect in love. Perfect love casts out fear.
Here it is. Here's your take home today. God so loved you that he gave his only begotten son. That whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. God so loved you.
Let God Love you today. Let God love you.
Now, there's a golf clap if I've ever heard one in the house of God. Let God love you.
Let him embrace you as he once did the prodigal son. Jesus Christ was talking about the heart of God. when he shared this particular story about a boy who had gone far away from his father, was living in a place he shouldn't be living, doing things he shouldn't be doing. And it left him feeling full of shame. It left him feeling unworthy.
It left him feeling like his father could never use him for anything worthwhile again. And this boy got up and started to walk down the road, just as some of you are going to get out of your seat and walk down these aisles today. He started to walk home. He didn't even fully understand what he's coming home to. But how surprised he must have been when he felt like he should be judged, when he felt like there was no future for him, when he felt like he had nothing left to give to his father's house, to see his father running towards him and embracing him.
And covering his shame and taking the weight of all he had done upon himself. That's what the cross is all about. That's what Jesus Christ did. He took your failure. He took your struggles.
He took your trials. He took your shame. He took it all upon himself and just says, Come to me, ye who labor and are heavy laden. Come and learn of me. I'm meek and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.
He cried out through the prophet Isaiah, Ho, everyone who thirsts, everyone who labors, come and buy wine and milk and honey without money and without price. Why do you labor for that which doesn't satisfy? Come to me. That's always been the cry of God. Let me love you.
Let me embrace you. Let me cleanse you. And how much more? For the household of faith. You see, that's what the devil does.
beats on us and says you're not worthy. God doesn't want you. Oh, He might let you go to heaven, but you're useless on the earth. Oh no, oh no. Once you know the love of God.
Once you know the love of God. Once God's love, once you've experienced His embrace. Once you've let Him hug you. and take the stain of your failure upon himself. You say, well, how do I do it?
Don't resist. Don't put out your arm. Don't keep them at a distance. Don't say, I'm not worthy. You never were worthy.
You weren't worthy when you were having your best day. You weren't worthy when you were praying six hours a day and reading your Bible for the other 18. You understand? You never have been worthy. of his love.
This is love, not that we love God, but God loved us and sent His Son to be the sacrifice, the atoning sacrifice for our sins. This is what love looks like. And when you and I finally understand the depth of God's love for us, it becomes easy now to embrace those. who also don't deserve his love. Because we understand we didn't deserve it either.
We can't earn it. It's not given to us by favor. It's not given because we've done everything right. It's given because God so loved the world, He gave His only begotten Son. I have a new heart.
I thank God for the physical heart. The doctors tell me I have about 14 more years to go before, you know, goodbye. That's all right. I'm going to use that. To love as many people, to let God love as many people as he can.
through my life in the days ahead. You see, You've got to win the battle for love now. This is the ultimate battle in the last days. You see, there's a line that we can't pass because human love has its limitations. The only way.
That this can be done is God has to love people through us. It has to be the Holy Spirit that opens our arms and opens our heart. And we start talking to people and then the next thing you know, the tears come. You know, and it's amazing. I saw tears in the hospital from people that were quite hard in the beginning of the conversations, but they suddenly realized they felt something they couldn't explain.
I could explain it because I felt it in my heart. The love of God is the most powerful thing. It's not all theology. My chest had been opened, my heart had been started and stopped and shocked and everything else, and I had bells and wires and tubes. stuck all through my body, into my lungs, every other place.
I didn't need a sermon. I needed somebody to love me. And you see there's a lot of people out there. And spiritually speaking, they're almost paralyzed. The only way they'll ever know the love of God.
Now, God obviously can sovereignly reveal Himself, and He may choose to do that. That the only way he'll ever know the love of God is through you. And through me. This is our opportunity. This is the finest hour, in my opinion, for the Church of Jesus Christ.
But we've got to get back to being the church of Jesus Christ. in the simplicity of what that really means. God so loved the world. God so love the world, God so love the world. For those We just feel unlovely.
You need to know the love of God. I can make you a promise today. I'm not trying to fill an altar. You will feel the embrace of God You'll feel what the prodigal son felt. You'll feel God's arms around you.
you'll suddenly feel That God loves you not because you have performed for him. He just loves you because he loves you. And that perfect love will cast out the fear of rejection by God. It will cast out the fear of letting God change your life. It will cast out the fear and the lies that you will never, you'll always be this way and you'll never change.
That will be thrown to the wind too as well. You'll understand something about the love of God, and it will give you the power, as Paul said, to bear and believe and hope and endure all things. for the sake of others. It will give you the power to be beaten five times. Yeah.
Stripes and three times with rods, and shipwrecked, and in perils among false brethren, and not draw back and not quit. Paul found this incredible power of love. And you and I can know it too as well. I have found it. Thank God.
It shouldn't be a revelation, but I guess it is. Thank God, thank God, thank God, thank God for the love of God. I talk to people. that we're in sin. And just in speaking with them, the tears start to come.
Instead of pointing Their face and their failure. I would say to them, we can get past that, can't we? And they'd start to cry. Yeah, I guess we can. One lady under conviction told me I'm I'm living with my boyfriend.
I said, yeah, bring him to church too. You can bring him too. God will get through to him. Instead of just quoting a scripture about you shouldn't be doing this or you shouldn't be doing that. I kind of understand now why sinners were comfortable with Jesus and the religious weren't.
He never condoned their lifestyle, but they somehow knew they were loved. What caused Zacchaeus to jump up and say, I'm going to give all my goods to the poor and I'm going to restore if I've taken anything by fraud and all this other stuff? What was it? He knew he was loved by God. Oh, that you could know his love.
Oh, that you could understand. the depth of his compassion. Oh, that you could be released to let him embrace you. in all of your struggles, your trials, your failures. It's not about performance, it's about God.
You see, this is the message that will touch this generation. You got to know the God that I know. The message today has been brought to you by Carter Conlon from Times Square Church. For more information, log on to tsc.nyc. That's tsc.nyc.
Plan to be with us next week for A Call to the Nation with Carter Conlon.
