The Arrival of Love | The Arrival
Intro
The First Arrival of Jesus (1 John 4:7-11)
Main Point #1: The first arrival of Jesus revealed the true nature of love.
The source of love (vv. 7-8)
i. God is the source of love.
ii. There’s no such thing as love in its truest sense that’s not connected to God.
The picture of love (vv. 9-10)
i. God’s love pursues us
ii. God’s love sacrifices for us
iii. God’s love draws us to himself
The response to love (v. 11)
i. When we experience God’s love, it will naturally flow through us to others
ii. Example of Dr. Burge (Fall Camp speaker from a few years ago)
iii. The priority of sharing the gospel with those who don’t know Jesus
We can’t really say we love people in the true sense of love if we’re not willing to share the gospel with them
2. The Second Arrival of Jesus (1 Thessalonians 3:12-13)
1. Main Point #2: We prepare for the second arrival of Jesus by loving others with his love.
2. The Bible’s teaching on the process of sanctification
3. When we love, it’s actually changing our hearts and making us more like Jesus
i. Some encouragements from this truth:
ii. We can have endurance in our relationships with those who are hardest to love
iii. It reminds us that love is central to the purpose of love; it’s not something we just do on the side along the way
3. Conclusion
1. Two Main Points
i. The first arrival of Jesus revealed the true nature of love.
ii. We prepare for the second arrival of Jesus by loving others with his love.
2. A question to reflect on: when we arrive somewhere, do we bring the love of Jesus?
i. Do we love with God’s love – a love that pursues, sacrifices, and points people to the Lord?