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Love Like Jesus- Forgiving Love

Love Like Jesus
Love Forgives
Palm Sunday

John 13:34 “A new command I give you: Love one another. AS I HAVE LOVED YOU, so you must love one another. 35 By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”

Luke 23:34 “Father Forgive Them”

Matthew 6:15 “But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.”

Hebrews 12:15 NLT “Look after each other so that none of you fails to receive the grace of God. Watch out that no poisonous root of bitterness grows up to trouble you, corrupting many…

How unforgiveness contaminates us…

a. It seeps into our prayer life

Matthew 5:23-24 "So if you are presenting a sacrifice at the altar in the Temple and suddenly you remember that someone has something against you, leave your sacrifice there at the altar. Go and be reconciled to that person. Then come and offer your sacrifice to God."

b. It seeps into our relationships

Hebrews 12:15
“Watch out that no poisonous root of bitterness grows up to trouble you, corrupting many.”

c. It seeps into our vision

I John 2:10-11
“Anyone who loves a fellow believer is living in the light and does not cause others to stumble. 11 But anyone who hates a fellow believer is still living and walking in darkness. Such a person does not know the way to go, having been blinded by the darkness.”

d. It seeps into our peace

Psalm 55:12-14 “If an enemy were insulting me, I could endure it; if a foe were rising against me, I could hide. 13 But it is you, a man like myself, my companion, my close friend, 14  with whom I once enjoyed sweet fellowship at the house of God,
as we walked about among the worshipers.”

How do we learn to forgive like Jesus?
1. Remember

Ephesians 4:32 “Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.”

Colossians 3:13 “Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.”

2. Forget

Micah 7:19 “Once again you will have compassion on us. You will trample our sins under your feet and throw them into the depths of the ocean!”

Hebrews 8:12 “For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more."

3. Repeat

Matthew 18:21-22 “ Then Peter came to him and asked, “Lord, how often should I forgive someone who sins against me? Seven times?” 22 “No, not seven times,” Jesus replied, “but seventy times seven!

Love Like Jesus Serving Love

Love Like Jesus
Serving Love

John 13:34 “A new command I give you: Love one another. AS I HAVE LOVED YOU, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”

Jesus love is a Serving love.

John 13:1-6 MSG
“Just before the Passover Feast, Jesus knew that the time had come to leave this world to go to the Father. Having loved his dear companions, he continued to love them right to the end. It was suppertime. The Devil by now had Judas, son of Simon the Iscariot, firmly in his grip, all set for the betrayal. 3-6 Jesus knew that the Father had put him in complete charge of everything, that he came from God and was on his way back to God. So he got up from the supper table, set aside his robe, and put on an apron. Then he poured water into a basin and began to wash the feet of the disciples, drying them with his apron.”

3 hindrances to service?

  1. More stuff

I Timothy 6:17-19 “Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. 18 Command them to do good, to be rich in GOOD DEEDS, and to be generous and willing to share…”

2. Less time

The greatest hindrance to servanthood is busyness.

3. Greater emphasis on self promotion

How can I use service to show love? 3 things…

1. Get up

verse 4 “So He got up from the Supper table…”

2. Set aside

verse 4b “set aside his robe, and put on an apron…”

Philippians 2:4 MSG
“Put yourself aside, and help others get ahead. Don’t be obsessed with getting your own advantage. Forget yourselves long enough to lend a helping hand.”

3. Pour out

verse 5
“Then he poured water into a basin and began to wash the feet of the disciples…”

verse 3 “Jesus knew that the Father had put all things under his power, and that he had come from God and was returning to God…”

We serve, not just with our hands but with our hearts.

verse 14-15 “And since I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you ought to wash each other’s feet. 15 I have given you an example to follow. Do as I have done to you.

Love Like Jesus Spoken Love

Love Like Jesus
Spoken Love

John 13:34-35 “A new command I give you: Love one another. AS I HAVE LOVED YOU, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”

Last week: His love was a patient love
Next week: His love was a serving love
Final week: His love was a forgiving love

THIS WEEK: His love was a spoken love

Proverbs 19:21 "Life and death are in the power of the tongue."

3 ways that words can create life or death...

1. Spiritual:

Matthew 12:37 “For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned”

2. Physical:

3. Emotional:

3 loving words Jesus spoke…

1. Words of encouragement.

Proverbs 12:25 “Worry weighs a person down; an encouraging word cheers a person up.”

Matthew 16:17-19 “Jesus replied, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by my Father in heaven. 18 And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it. 19 I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.”

2. Words of wisdom.

John 7:46 NCV “The words he says are greater than the words of any other person who has ever spoken!”

a. Wisdom about priorities:

Matthew 6:33
“But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.

b. Wisdom for our relationships:

Matthew 6:31 “Do to others as you would have them do to you.”

Mark 12:31 “‘Love your neighbor as yourself.

c. Wisdom about prayer:

Matthew 7:7 “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. 8 For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.

d. Wisdom about life

Matthew 6:27 “Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?
28 “And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin… 30 So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them.”


3. Words of correction.

John 1 “Jesus came with grace and truth.”

Luke 10:38 “Martha, Martha,” the Lord answered, “you are worried and upset about many things, 42 but few things are needed—or indeed only one.[a] Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.”

Mark 10:21 “Jesus looked at him and LOVED him. "One thing you lack," he said. "Go, sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me."

How do we love like Jesus with our words?

1. Listen up

James 1:19 “be quick to listen and slow to speak…”

2. Speak up:

Proverbs 16:24 “Gracious words are like honey— sweet to the soul and healthy for the body.”

3. Shut up:
John 16:12 “I have many more things to say to you, but they are too much for you now.”

4. Lift up:

Love Like Jesus Patient Love

Love Like Jesus
Patient Love

IN fact that leads me to our key verse for this entire series.

John 13:34 “
A new command I give you: Love one another. AS I HAVE LOVED YOU, so you must love one another. 35 By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”

4 ways that Jesus loved us.

His love was a patient love
His love was a spoken love
His love was a serving love
His love was a forgiving love


But how did Jesus love Peter? 3 things…

1. Jesus was patient with Peter’s FAITH.

2. Jesus is patient with Peter’s FEARS.

3. Jesus is patient with Peter’s FAILURES.
2 Peter 3:9 “The Lord is not slow in doing what he promised—the way some people understand slowness. But God is being PATIENT with you. He does not want anyone to be lost, but he wants all people to change their hearts and lives.”

If this is how Jesus loves us then isn’t it how we should love others?

John 13:34 “as I have loved you love one another”

I Corinthians 13 “love is patient and kind…”

3 things we are going to have to do if we want to love with Patience!

1. See potential.

2. Show mercy.

James 2:12-13 “Speak and act as those who are going to be judged by the law that gives freedom, 13 because judgment without mercy will be shown to anyone who has not been merciful. Mercy triumphs over judgment.”

Let mercy be your default.

The key to mercy is to remember the mercy you have been shown.

Ephesians 4:32 “Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.
Colossians 3:13 “Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.”

3. Seek God’s help.

Galatians 5:19-22 “The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; 20 idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions 21 and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.
22 
But the fruit of the Spirit is LOVE, joy, peace, PATIENCE, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control.”