"Growing in Love"[1]

Celebration Sunday

20 September 2009

Readings: Deuteronomy 6:4-9; Colossians 2:6-7; Hebrews 10:19-25 TNIV

 

Having come to this Celebration Sunday for 40 Days of Love, the question that is probably uppermost in your mind is, "Where to from here? How can we ensure that what we have been reading, and hearing and talking about over the past forty days becomes part and parcel of our church and daily life? If we are really serious about what we have been doing, and if we are to fulfill our church's core purpose: "To Make Jesus Christ Known Through Love in Action...," then each year in our life is to be "365 Days of Love." What we have experienced over these past forty days has been like putting fertilizer on the garden. We have made love our focus so that we can go on from this time much more motivated and better equipped to fulfill what God put us on earth for, to love him with all our being, and to love others as much as we love ourselves. This has been a fertiliser to boost our spiritual growth. How do we ensure this continues?

 

This verse in Colossians 2 holds the key: "Let your roots grow down into him and draw up nourishment from him so you will grow in faith, strong and vigorous in the truth that you were taught. Let your lives overflow with thanksgiving for all that he has done."[2] If we want to grow spiritually so that our lives demonstrate God's love, then we must let our roots grow deep into the one whose very essence is love.

 

Some people have a one-time experience of growth. Something happened a long time ago, maybe at a camp or in church, when you had a real experience of God in your life, and although it radically changed your life then, the experience has not led to on-going growth.

 

Many people have a time to time experience of growth. You have times in your life when you make a little progress but then it's followed by long periods in between where you're disconnected from God and other people. Maybe you take one step forward and then slip back a few. You are not growing consistently. A lot of us have experienced that.

 

Ideally, you want to get to the point in your life where we have a three steps forward, two steps back experience of growth. It's never going to be all plain sailing. Growth will not happen unchecked. You will make mistakes and fall sometimes, but overall you are making progress. You are not where you were a year ago. This is the kind of growth promised in this verse where you can enjoy a lifetime experience of growth. You consistently see God making a difference and bringing about change.

 

This is not the kind of growth that is like a rocket that takes off and it just goes straight up all the time. It's more like climbing a mountain where you go up a little and then you have to go down into a dip. But each time you climb out of a dip you are getting higher up the mountain, so that all the time you're making progress. That's how consistent growth works.

 

To have this lifetime experience of growth there are three essential ingredients.

 

1. COMMITMENT. There can be no growth without commitment. When you became a follower of Jesus, God gave you everything you need to grow spiritually. He put his Holy Spirit in you. He gave you his people, his word, all that we need to grow. Your part is to make a commitment to build on what God has put into your life.

 

In 2 Chronicles 16:9, the verse in your sermon outline, we read, "For the eyes of the Lord range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him."[3] This was spoken by one of God's prophets, Hanani, to Asa, king of Judah, who was putting his trust in a foreign power to get victory in battle, instead of depending on God. He wasn't relying on God. He was relying on somebody else.

 

The question is: what or who are you relying on? Are you, am I, fully committed to God? If you are concerned about how to keep that kind of commitment, remember that this is what God has done for you. "He [Jesus] gave his life to free us from every kind of sin, to cleanse us and to make us his very own people totally committed to doing what is right." This verse is saying that Jesus Christ gave his life to give you and I the power to live out this kind of commitment. You cannot do it on your own, but Jesus gave his life, not only to forgive you but also to grow you. You're never going to be fully committed to him without an investment of your life in him. That commitment is a choice, a decision you have to make.

 

Deuteronomy 30 talks about this. It says: "Choose to love the Lord your God and obey him and commit yourself to him, for he is your life."[4] Circle the first word - "choose." He calls you to make the choice day by day. Choosing to love and obey and commit to him is an expression of your relationship with him. So too is the commitment to love. It is a choice.

 

1 Corinthians 14 in the Message paraphrase has this to say about the commitment to love: "Go after a life of love as if your life depended on itbecause it does."[5] Why does my life depend on going after a life of love? Because it's what God made me to live for. God made me to live in relationship to him and in relationship to other people. If I miss that, I'm missing out on life with a capital L. I'm just existing and not living life to the full because God made me for relationships. When I make a commitment to live a life of love and let God begin to work, then things can happen. But I've got to choose to do it. I've got to choose to take the risk to love, because when I open my heart to love, I also open my heart to the possibility of being hurt.

 

C. S. Lewis talked about this a long time ago when he wrote about love. "To love at all is to be vulnerable. Love anything and your heart will certainly be wrung and possibly be broken. If you want to make sure of keeping it in tact you must give your heart to no one. Not even to an animal. Wrap it carefully around with hobbies and little luxuries. Avoid all entanglements. Lock it up, safe in the casket of your selfishness. But in that casket, safe, dark, motionless, airless, it will change. It will not be broken. It will become unbreakable, impenetrable, irredeemable."

 

It is scary to love. Some of you have been deeply hurt because you've made the choice to love. But there is an even greater hurt. That is to make the choice not to love. If you make that choice, not only does it bring bitterness in your life, it also holds at arm's length all the difference you can make in other people's lives. God made you to love.

 

I encourage you: take the risk to love. Without a shadow of doubt, it's the greatest risk you will ever take in life. There are people who are not afraid to sky dive off of the Sky tower, but they're scared to death to love. There are CEOs who wouldn't blink at a million-dollar deal, but they are scared to love. It is life's greatest risk.

 

But it also has life's greatest impact and benefit and joy. On the other side of this hurt of love there is also the joy of love. Yes, we are hurt sometimes. But there is also incredible joy in the difference you make in other people's lives, in the growth that comes into your life, in the impact that you're making on the world. That's the value of living this life of love.

 

Take Neal and Robin. They had been married only two years when Robin had a massive brain hemorrhage. In the hospital waiting room the doctor talked to Neal about high-risk surgery, low odds of success. Probably Robin would never talk, never walk again. She underwent the surgery. Then ... there is no other way to say it ... Neal loved her back to life as he sat and talked to her when she couldn't talk and he touched her hands when she couldn't touch back. And gradually she began to come out of it. She began to say a few halting words. Now if people talk to Robin, she can carry on a conversation. Robin often wonders what she can do for God in a wheelchair. Her life itself is a sermon as she continues to love God through tough times.

 

Those who care for this couple, talk about the miracle in their life. The greatest miracle to them is not the physical healing that's happened and probably shouldn't have. The greatest miracle to them is the love. A husband who decided to continue to love his wife even though nothing turned out like they thought it would in their marriage. And a wife who decided to continue to love and let her husband love her even though nothing turned out like she thought it would in her life.

 

That's real love. Love cannot promise you a perfect life. We don't get that in this world. But here's what love does. It takes whatever life you have, whatever circumstances you have, whatever realities you're facing in life and all of a sudden you have the strength to live that life, and you also have the ability to make a difference in other people's lives. That's what love does. That's what the commitment to love does in your life.

 

Love starts with a commitment, a decision. The second word is

 

II Balance. If I'm going to enjoy a lifetime of growth it takes balance. Just like you need a balanced diet in order to be healthy physically, there's balance you need when it comes to spiritual growth. Physical growth and spiritual growth both require balance.

 

What kind of balance is needed for spiritual growth? Two things.

 

Balance in learning God's truth. You cannot grow on a lie. Knowing that, God tells us the truth in his word about ourselves, about this world, about life, about the future. His word is truth, and that truth will help you grow. But in order for that to happen, it's got to get into your life.

 

Fertilizer left on the shelf will not make plants grow. You can make the same mistake spiritually by thinking that just because you have a Bible in your house, God is going to feel better about you and you are going to grow spiritually. You might even display the Bible in a prominent place. Wow! Look at that! This is going to really work great. No it doesn't. You have to get God's truth into your life.

 

There is a secret to getting God's truth into your life. It's based on how God's designed you and how you learn and how he's made you. This truth is indicated in the next verse in your outline in Deuteronomy 6:

"You must commit yourselves wholeheartedly to these commands that I'm giving you today. Repeat them again and again to your children. Talk about them when you're at home and when you're away on a journey, when you're lying down, when you're getting up again."

 

There are multiple ways to learn. You repeat them. You talk about them. You discuss them. You do it at different times of the day and in different ways. Here's the secret about learning God's truth. Because you are designed to learn in multiple ways, you have to get God's truth into your life in multiple ways. Sometimes you try just one way and get frustrated with yourself because it doesn't seem to be sticking. God made us for multiple input. That's how you learn and that's how you grow.

 

That's why a programme like 40 Days of Love is helpful. It is a spiritual growth emphasis that uses multiple ways of learning to get the truth into your life.

 

One way that you learn is through hearing. You take in things through your ears, like when you listen to a sermon as you are doing right now. That's one way of learning God's truth, and a way God blesses as you hear God speaking to you through something that is said. Many of you have experienced this. You have come to a service and you know God is speaking directly to you, and you realize you need to make a fresh commitment to growth in your life. But it all leaks out by the time you get to drive home. Sound familiar? And we cannot blame the people we spoke to after the service and say, "It's their fault!" Statistics tell us that we forget about ninety-five percent of what we hear after seventy-two hours. If all I do is hear, as important as that is, if that's all I do it's going to leak out. Hearing is important, but it is not the only way.

 

There's a second way... reading. You read the truth. Through 40 Days of Love you have been reading the book The Relationship Principles of Jesus. This book is about the way that Jesus relates to us, and what he said about relationships. You and I have learnt from that as we have read what Jesus said about loving, and how he demonstrated it in his life. Reading is a second way of learning.

 

A third way to learn is... Discussing, talking about it with other people. In your small group you have listened to the DVD with Rick teaching about 1 Corinthians 13, the love chapter in the Bible, and then you sat and talked about what Rick had just taught. What does it mean to be patient? What does it mean to be kind? How does that work in your life? Discussing things is an important way of learning. We remember about five percent of what we hear after seventy-two hours. We remember about ten percent of what we hear and read after seventy-two hours; so you've doubled your learning by hearing and reading. But we remember about fifty percent of what we hear, read and discuss after seventy-two hours. That's why all three are included in 40 Days of Love. It aims to get God's word into our life in ways that you can live out. That's the value of discussing it.

 

There's a fourth way of learning, and that is to ... Memorize. Over the past 40 days you have memorized a portion of 1 Corinthians 13. Some of you may have memorised the whole chapter. But hopefully you have memorized the verses set down for each week on the bookmark you received with your book.

The best way we learn is by doing. As you live out the truths you have been learning it becomes part of who you are. Each group has got involved in a project to make a difference in somebody else's life. By doing, you and I will learn more about love.

If I'm going to learn to love, I've got to make a commitment to balance in learning God's truth.

 

There's a second balance that you and I need, the...

 

Balance in living God's purposes. Paul talked about living a life of purpose in 1 Corinthians 9:26. "So I run straight to the goal with purpose in every step."[6] I've got to run with those purposes of God in my life in balance.

 

When your tyres get out of balance what happens? First, they wear out faster because they are not running evenly on the road. What else? You get vibrations through the steering wheel. Also your car is not as stable on the road, and you do not have the same traction.

 

The same thing happens to you when your life gets out of balance. You wear out more quickly. Your life is not as stable, not just for yourself, but also for those traveling with you in life. That's why God wants us to have balance.

 

In the study you did this week Rick Warren spoke about the different kinds of balance in life. You need physical balance. You need to balance work and rest. You also need spiritual balance. One of the ways that you and I can do this is to balance out God's five purposes that we looked at when we did 40 Days of Purpose - I worship God; I fellowship with the family of God; I grow in my knowledge of God and my love for God; I serve other people; and I share the good news with other people. When you balance out those five purposes you have healthy growth.

 

Jesus was our example in this as in everything. When Jesus was on this earth he only had three years of public ministry. During those three years the Bible says he "often withdrew to lonely places to pray." Although he had so much to accomplish, so many people coming to him with needs, and having the ultimate task of saving humankind, he also needed balance in his life. Jesus is God, but he was also man. He shows us the need for balance in our lives. If I just focus on one of life's purposes I'm going to get out of balance. People that get out of balance either burn out or they fall morally. It happens again and again and again. Having a great commitment is a start, but you also have to balance out your growth in life. It's commitment. It's balance. But there's a third thing. There are also...

 

III Relationships. If you are going to experience a lifetime of growth, you need relationships. You can't grow by yourself. It doesn't work that way. You were made for relationships. Many of you are task oriented. You get things done. However, spiritual growth happens through relationships. God does not demand that you accomplish great things, but he does require that you strive for excellence in your relationships.

 

This was the focus of all Jesus talked about. He said nothing is more important. When asked what was the greatest commandment, he said, "Love God with all your heart, mind, soul and strength and love your neighbor as yourself." Life has to do with your relationship with God and your relationships with others. Relationship with God and relationship with others keeps you healthy in doing whatever things God wants you to do. He wants you and I to strive for excellence in those relationships. This is how we grow, together.

 

The Bible says: "Under his direction, the whole body is fitted together perfectly. As each part does its own special work, it helps the other parts grow, so that the whole body is healthy and growing and full of love."[7] You cannot grow in isolation of others. God put his church together in such a way that you and I can only grow and be full of his love as we each do our "special work," what God uniquely equipped us to do.

 

Hebrews says, "Let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds..."[8] We "spur" each other on. You and I cannot grow just by ourselves. We need other people to spur us on towards the love and good deeds that God wants to happen in our lives.

 

There are growth steps in your life that you will never take, never accomplish on your own, because God designed you for relationships. He wants you to accomplish those growth steps in relationship to other people.

 

There are changes in your life that you'll never make on your own, because God made you for relationships. And he wants you to make those changes in relationship to other people.

 

There are sins in your life that you will never set aside on your own. God designed you for relationships. That's where the miracle of a changed life happens.

 

There is encouragement in your life that you're never going to get on your own because God made you for relationships.

 

There's truth from God in your life that you're never going to hear on your own because God made you for relationships and you're going to hear it in relationship to other people.

 

There are great things that God wants to do in your life and through your life that are never going to happen on their own because God made you for relationships.

 

What it all boils down to is this: You cannot love the way God means you to love, or do the things that God means for you to do on your own. You need relationships to spur you on. That is what 40 Days of Love is all about. You were made to grow in relationship to God and relationship to others.

 

In the New Testament there are about thirty "one another" statements where God says this is what you do for one another - things you cannot do by yourself that are necessary for you to grow. Here are two of them.

 

"Love one another." Obviously you need to be in relationship with other people to grow in love. Relationships can be messy, but you cannot grow in love if you never interact with people. The only way you and I can obey God's command to "love one another" is in relationship with one another.

 

Ephesians 4:2: "Put up with one another." That can be challenging. You often need to do that in your family. You need to do it in your small group. You need to do it in your place of work, or at school. You need to do it in church. It is part of real life because we live in an imperfect world full of imperfect people. Love means you have to put up with one another. In this way everyone grows.

A word of encouragement as we close: the night before Jesus died he was talking to his disciples and he knew they were going to be upset the next day and wonder what was happening. He would be put to death on a cross. He wasn't going to see them for a while, so Jesus gave them this assurance. "Don't let your hearts be troubled." Then he told them that in the end they will be where he is.

 

Those words are also for you. He wants you to be with him forever. He's looking forward to his relationship with you for all eternity. God loves you with an incredible kind of love.

 

People will let you down, and you will let them down, so you cannot build your relationships only on other people. However, Jesus will never let you down. He loves you more than you can ever know. He is praying for you even at this moment. He loves you so much he was willing to die for you. He wants you to be with him forever. Through building a relationship with him, you can build relationships with others. His love will never let you go. It will be always be with you. That's God's love for you.