March 14, 2021
Sunday AM
Mark 12:28-34 Then one of the scribes came, and having heard them reasoning together, perceiving that He had answered them well, asked Him, “Which is the first commandment of all?”
29 Jesus answered him, “The first of all the commandments is: ‘Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. 30 And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ This is the first commandment.31 And the second, like it, is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.”
32 So the scribe said to Him, “Well said, Teacher. You have spoken the truth, for there is one God, and there is no other but He. 33 And to love Him with all the heart, with all the understanding, with all the soul, and with all the strength, and to love one’s neighbor as oneself, is more than all the whole burnt offerings and sacrifices.”
34 Now when Jesus saw that he answered wisely, He said to him, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.”
But after that no one dared question Him.
Its narrowed down to two commandments. Love God, and love others as yourself. That’s pretty simple! Sometimes we think we have a whole list to do, but Jesus has narrowed it down to two. People don’t pursue love because they don’t understand what it will do for them and what it will do in their lives. God has to do things in you before He can do things through you. We often wait on good things to happen to us before we are joyful or peaceful. But the world cannot give us lasting joy nor peace.
Natural love
· Phileo
· Storge
· Eros
Divine love
· Agape
Phileo – friendly love
Storge – parental love
Eros – marital love
All three of these types of love originate on earth. They can be very strong but, they are selfish, they have limits, and they will let you down. Agape does not originate in man. It comes from God only. You must go to Him to get it and it must be developed. You cannot find this love on earth unless you find a born-again believer who has developed it. Agape is selfless. It denies itself on behalf of others. Its sole focus is the well-being of the other person. When you got born again, the seed of agape was born in your heart. You can learn about love and be taught about love. You can read about it in a book, but until you intentionally develop it, you won’t experience it. It won’t work by just confessing it a few times. Confession is not trying to get God to do something, or convince Him, it is beneficial for you. It talks YOU into believing it.
Luke 7:11-14 Now it happened, the day after, that He went into a city called Nain; and many of His disciples went with Him, and a large crowd. 12 And when He came near the gate of the city, behold, a dead man was being carried out, the only son of his mother; and she was a widow. And a large crowd from the city was with her. 13 When the Lord saw her, He had compassion on her and said to her, “Do not weep.”14 Then He came and touched the open coffin, and those who carried him stood still. And He said, “Young man, I say to you, arise.” 15 So he who was dead sat up and began to speak. And He presented him to his mother.
This is the story of Jesus at the city of Nain when He raises the widow’s son from the dead. This is not the kind of compassion that you can work up. This kind of compassion is not pity nor is it natural. Compassion is a fruit of agape. To operate in that kind of compassion, the love has to be developed.
This is a picture of what can happen when God gets to have His way. Love compelled Him to raise that boy. He had something working in His life that the others didn’t. Love raised that boy from the dead. Divine compassion never takes no for an answer. This is the potential for the love of God working through a human being. The love of God that’s in you is limitless. With love all things are possible. This is what happens when God has a vessel His compassion can flow through. He did it all to stop that widow’s pain. This is what love looks like.
Psalm 145:8-9 The Lord is gracious and full of compassion, slow to anger and great in mercy. The Lord is good to ALL, His tender mercies are over all His works.
Gracious means disposed to show favors. He would rather you doubt His ability than His willingness.
1 John 4:7 Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God.