Jesus Said He is... Series, Part 10: Love (He Is our Friend)

Jesus Said He is... Series, Part 10: Love (He Is our Friend)

This will be the last part of the series.  As I said, not all Jesus said He is will be included in this series, but I thought I would end with what we need to really to understand.  Yes, there are rules in life we need to follow, but what everything, and I mean everything, boils down to is this, God the Father, Jesus the Son, and the Holy Spirit are all about love! 

Yes, this is another writing where Jesus did not specifically say he was love, but he often stated He loved people as well as His actions showing it.  He also tells us that He is our friend.

Jesus' sermons were all about loving each other through actions such as turning the other cheek rather than seeking revenge (Matthew 5:38-39 - "Ye have heard that it hath been said, 'An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth,' But I say unto you, That ye resist not evil: but whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also.),  praying for others that are cruel (Matthew 5:43-44 - "Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy. But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you." ) helping others in need (Matthew 5:42 "Give to him that asketh thee, and from him that would borrow of thee turn not thou away.") unlimited forgiveness (Matthew 18:21-22- Then came Peter to him, and said, "Lord, how oft shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? till seven times?" Jesus saith unto him, "I say not unto thee, Until seven times: but, Until seventy times seven."), and the list goes on.

(John 15:9-15) [Jesus said,] "As the Father hath loved me, so have I loved you: continue ye in my love. If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father's commandments, and abide in His love. These things have I spoken unto you, that my joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be full. This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you. Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.  Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you. Henceforth I call you not servants; for the servant knoweth not what his lord doeth: but I have called you friends; for all things that I have heard of my Father I have made known unto you."

The ultimate act of love was God giving us His son and that Jesus was willing to die for the sins of those who would reject Him repeatedly from thew beginning to the end of time.  

(John 3:16) For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

There is never any way we could repay such an act of love, and we are not expected to earn His free gift of salvation.  However, we are expected to obey His commands if we truly want to be the friend of Jesus.  Let me repeat two sentences from John 15 above, verse 10," IF ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love" and verse 14, "Ye are my friends, IF ye do whatsoever I command you." Yes, Jesus says, "if," just as in 1 John 1:9 that also uses the word if: IF we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

So what does Jesus command? Let's start with: 

(Matthew 19:16-21) And, behold, one came and said unto [Jesus], "Good Master, what good thing shall I do, that I may have eternal life?:

And He said unto him, "Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God: but if thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments."

He saith unto Him, "Which?"

Jesus said, "Thou shalt do no murder, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, Honour thy father and thy mother: and, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself... If thou wilt be perfect, go and sell that thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come and follow me."

Notice that Jesus does not list the more than 600 rules of the Old Covenant, but only from the 10 commandments written God's own hand (Exodus 31:18 - And He gave unto Moses, when He had made an end of communing with him upon mount Sinai, two tables of testimony, tables of stone, written with the finger of God.)

We keep His commandments not to be stifled, but because there is True freedom in obeying Jesus Christ (John 8:36 - "If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed."), not freedom to sin.  And as 1 John 4:19, says, "We love Him, because He first loved us." 

1 John makes it very clear that if we claim to be a follower of Jesus, and yet refuse to obey what the Bible says, we are lying about our love of the Lord, and we are not really Christians. But when we choose to walk down paths of righteousness, the love of God is perfected in us.

(1 John 2:3-6) And hereby we do know that we know him, if we keep his commandments. He that saith, "I know Him," and keepeth not His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But whoso keepeth his word, in him verily is the love of God perfected: hereby know we that we are in him. He that saith he abideth in him ought himself also so to walk, even as he walked.

John goes on to say that we should only love the Lord and not the world, or God's love is not in us.  For the sins of this world have nothing to do with the matchless love of God.

(1 John 2:15-17) Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever.

Message today is so very simple.  God so loved the world He gave His only Son, and that Son was willing tortured and murdered so you and I could have eternal life with Him and not suffer in Hell.  Yet, if we want to hold onto these beautiful free gifts and not toss them in the garbage, we need to show Jesus that we love Him too and want to be His friend and not his enemy (James 4:4 -Know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? Whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God.) The Holy Trinity is pure love and yearns to be the best friend we will ever have.

I will leave you with the same set of verses from yesterday so that we can all truly understand how to honor so great a love so we may spend eternity in His eternal Light of Love. (There are a lot of beautiful songs about the love of God, but I chose just one.  At the end of the verses is a song that I hope will minister to you as it does to me.)

(2 Corinthians 5:10-11 & 15-17) For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad. Knowing therefore the terror of the Lord, we persuade men; but we are made manifest unto God; and I trust also are made manifest in your consciences. And that he died for all, that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto him which died for them, and rose again. Wherefore henceforth know we no man after the flesh: yea, though we have known Christ after the flesh, yet now henceforth know we him no more. Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new. 

(Revelation 20:11-12 & 21:7-8) And I saw a great white throne, and Him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them. And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works. He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son.  But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.

(Galatians 5:16-26) This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh. For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would. But if ye be led of the Spirit, ye are not under the law. Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts. If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit. Let us not be desirous of vain glory, provoking one another, envying one another. 

(Revelation 20:12-15) And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works. And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works. And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.

(Revelation 21:1-27) And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea. And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, "Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God. And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away."

And He that sat upon the throne said, "Behold, I make all things new... It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely. He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son."

"But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death."

And there came unto me one of the seven angels... And he carried me away in the spirit to a great and high mountain, and shewed me that great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God, Having the glory of God: and her light was like unto a stone most precious, even like a jasper stone, clear as crystal...And the building of the wall of it was of jasper: and the city was pure gold, like unto clear glass. And the foundations of the wall of the city were garnished with all manner of precious stones. The first foundation was jasper; the second, sapphire; the third, a chalcedony; the fourth, an emerald; The fifth, sardonyx; the sixth, sardius; the seventh, chrysolyte; the eighth, beryl; the ninth, a topaz; the tenth, a chrysoprasus; the eleventh, a jacinth; the twelfth, an amethyst. And the twelve gates were twelve pearls: every several gate was of one pearl: and the street of the city was pure gold, as it were transparent glass.

And I saw no temple therein: for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it. And the city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it: for the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof. And the nations of them which are saved shall walk in the light of it: and the kings of the earth do bring their glory and honour into it. And the gates of it shall not be shut at all by day: for there shall be no night there. And they shall bring the glory and honour of the nations into it.

And there shall in no wise enter into it any thing that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh abomination, or maketh a lie: but they which are written in the Lamb's book of life.