2 Peter: Remembering Your Awesome Grant - Brotherly Love

Welcome to Delight in Grace, the teaching ministry of Rich Powell, pastor of Grace Bible Church in Winston-Salem. Part of loving God is loving His people. We could have all the knowledge about Him, and all the faith, all the works, but 1 Corinthians 13 says that without love, these all fall short. Today, as part of our series titled, Live as People Who Remember, Pastor Rich takes a deep dive into 1 Peter 1-7, focusing on how our awareness of who God is and all He has done will produce love for our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ.

Let's listen in. This is part 3 of a message first preached on June 4, 2023 at Grace Bible Church in Winston-Salem. And so Paul uses this in 1 Corinthians 12, no division in the body, but that the members may have the same care for one another. If one member suffers, all suffer together. I remember roofing.

I am not a roofer, but I did some roofing. There's a difference. I hit the wrong nail. And when that nail suffered, the rest of the body felt it. And even the brain said, pain, insert, thumb, in mouth.

You see how the body works together? Okay. That's how the church works.

Where were we on this? Okay. If one member is honored, if one member suffers, all suffer together. If one member is honored, say it with me, all rejoice together. No comparisons, no jealousy, no indifference, all rejoice together.

Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it. You know what is the worst thing in family relationships? And the first thing that will destroy brotherly affection is comparisons. Do you want to know why 1 Corinthians was written?

That's why. They were comparing themselves with each other, and that's what caused division. So, brotherly affection. Are you a true friend? Are you a true friend? Remember, the friendly, the philos means friendly and kind, and the adelfos is a common bond with a tender attachment. Are you a true friend?

Two questions I have for you. When someone in the family shares a hardship, a struggle, a pain, are you willing to listen and engage? Or is your flesh telling you, ain't nobody got time for that? Are you willing to listen and engage? Remember, a professor I had in my first year of undergraduate studies, this eternal optimist.

It's how we can come into church, right? Hey, how are you? Fine, you, everything's rosy. It's a lie, but that's how we act, right? So, this eternal optimist, you know, he got busted and, you know, he was and he was visiting the jail and this guy on death row is coming down and, hey man, how you doing? Yeah, man, I'm headed to the electric chair. More power to you. That's what happens when we don't listen. When someone shares a hardship, a struggle, or a pain, are you willing to listen and engage?

Second question is this. When someone shares a blessing, a joy, or a victory, do you rejoice with them genuinely? This is brotherly affection in very practical terms. Let's move on from brotherly affection. Let's look at love now. Let's look at love like he says, verse 7, in godliness with brotherly affection and brotherly affection with love.

Which I thought that's what you're just talking about. Well, they're very closely related, aren't they? But love goes even deeper. Love goes even deeper.

Let me just make a disclaimer to begin with. When the Bible is talking about love in this sense, the word agape, it's not talking about warm and fuzzies. The Bible does not call us to be just warm and fuzzy with each other. Okay, there's an element of affection in there.

We've already covered that, all right. But when he says here, and add to brotherly affection, love, he's not talking about an emotion. Okay, he's not talking about an emotion.

He's talking about a willful commitment demonstrated in action. Here's how we define love. Love is the personal sacrifice, your personal sacrifice for the godward movement of another.

How do I know that? Jesus said, and you finish it with me, love one another as I have loved you. How has Jesus loved me? He died for me. He died for me. You can't sacrifice any more than that. That's love. Why did he die for me?

So that I can be reconciled to God and realize my purpose. That's love. Love is the strongest manifestation of the divine life within. This is what John says in 1 John 4 verses 7 and 8. Probably many of you have that memorized, put to a little ditty of music there. 1 John 4, 7, and 8, right?

No extra charge for that either. Love is the hallmark for the follower of Jesus. By this all will know you are my disciples because you know your theology, because you go to church every week, because you give to the church, because you give to missions.

No, none of it. By this all will know you are my disciples because you love one another. Christians let that sink in. These are the words of Jesus. These are the words of Jesus.

Love, and here I'm quoting Colossians 3 14 here, love is that which binds everything together in perfect harmony. We see grace playing the piano here this morning. All 10 fingers working.

It's amazing, isn't it? And all 10 of those fingers have to be playing notes that will harmonize. And if one finger gets misplaced, we hear it, don't we? Harmony. What is it that binds everything together in perfect harmony? It is love.

Remember, I'm not talking about an emotion. The Bible's not simply calling us to be warm and fuzzy with each other. The Bible is calling us to be willing to invest ourselves in each other for our Godward movement. That's love. Love is the greatest virtue. Love is the greatest virtue. Investing yourself in another for their Godward movement, that is the greatest virtue.

Why? Because it never ends. This is what 1 Corinthians 13 is about.

The end of 12, in chapter 13, all the way to the end. It never ends. Because God, who is God? He is an eternal loving community, an infinite loving community.

Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. It was his love that compelled him to create us, to draw us into that fellowship, so that we can enjoy it in its fullness. And of all the virtues, love is the one that goes on forever.

That's why it's the greatest. Let's look at some very practical images of love. And this is from 1 Corinthians 13.

It's a chapter you know very well. Very quickly through this, what love is and does. Love is patient and kind.

Love rejoices with the truth. Love is forbearing and trusting. Love is helpful and enduring.

And listen, endurance is a declining virtue in our culture today. Love is hopeful and enduring. Love is not or does not. Love does not envy or boast. Love is not arrogant or rude. Love does not insist on its own way.

This is a Selah moment. Whenever and to the degree that you insist on your own way, you are not practicing love. Love is not irritable or resentful. Love does not rejoice in wrongdoing. And right there is 1 Corinthians 13, at least the middle part of the chapter anyway.

The demonstration of love is encapsulated in John's pen, from John's pen. If God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. That's why we love. Why should I be loving? Because the Bible says so.

I don't think that's accurate. Why should I be loving? Because God is love. You've been listening to Rich Powell, the lead pastor at Grace Bible Church in Winston-Salem. The Delight in Grace mission is to help you know that God designed you to realize your highest good and your deepest satisfaction in Him, the One who is infinitely good. We hope you'll join us again on Weekdays at 10 a.m.