2014.6.29 礼拝

How many people have never been to church, ever? About 6 people.
The testimonies today by Grace and Rachael really fit today’s message about true love.
The love that we find in movies and songs are similar to the love of God, but that love is much less.
Love is not a philosophy.
The title of today’s message from 1 John 4:7-12 is “The healing of the DEFICIENCY of Love”.
Love is a huge topic of discussion, movies, and books. But the love of this world always falls short. It is always deficient, operating on a deficit.
Question: do you really care about yourself?
To understand Love you need to be ready to face yourself. You have to be open to understanding God. Here is what the Bible says about Love:
Mat 22:37-40 – And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.”
We are to love God with our whole being. There are lots of gods in Japan. They don’t ask you to love them with your whole being. The God of the Bible seeks a personal relationship. He wants to love us. He wants us to love Him.
Why do we love God? Because He loves us First.
1John 4:10 – In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.
An infant understands love not so much from words but from the entire being of the Mom and Dad.
In 1 John 4:9-10 we see the real evidence of God’s Love. For God, He gave the most precious possession for our salvation. He gave us His son, Jesus. That shows the extent of His Love.
Some times we decide to give up on Love. We decide to simply live for our own happiness and not even pursue real Iove. In order to achieve true happiness we need real love. It’s the same level as air, water, food. You can’t survive very long without it.
Please receive this love. Not just understand it but embrace it.
God is waiting on us with open arms. It is an unconditional LOVE.
Why do we need to receive God’s Love? Because God loves us First.