Called to love God and to love people, GenConers were once again reminded of Love's essence in God's eyes. With hands lifted high, 145 youth gave thanksgiving through the songs Where the Spirit of The Lord, Your Love Never Fails, The Time Has Come, Jesus Lord of Heaven and All for Love.
Pastor Jordan, on the other hand, shared His testimony on how God's been working in His life as a faithful giver. Grace shared a song entitled You by Laura Story, afterwards.
GenConers were reminded of the approaching PGIL , the Love edition of PGIF Night, on Feb 22.
DaWord
Love’s Basics
1 John 4:19-21
Ptr. Samuel Tamayo
The Lord has called us to preach outside this building. In this world, everything is relative.
1. God's the source of love.
We have to pattern love according to what God says.
Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.
-1 John 4:7-8
If love comes from God, seek the source of it, God.
Human love is love inherent in our being. In this world, love has been distorted. We are capable of loving, yet it's distorted.
Human love is inclined to loving his/her own, people we share a lot in common with. It is to love our own kind, tribe, peers and race.
On the other hand, divine love is love proclaiming that God is love.
If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast,[a] but do not have love, I gain nothing. Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 5 It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.
-1 Corinthians 13:3-5
Perfect love is unconditional, selfless and self-empty. It is doing not only the best for someone, but also asking nothing in return.
1 John 4 defines the very essence of perfect love. We love because God first loved us. We can truly love because God's love is in us. When we abide in God (in His love), we become extension of His love.
2. Love and hate cannot co-exist.
V. 20: Whoever claims to love God yet hates a brother or sister is a liar. For whoever does not love their brother and sister, whom they have seen, cannot love God, whom they have not seen.
As light and darkness can't coexist so thus love and hate.
This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all. 6 If we claim to have fellowship with him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live out the truth.
-1 John 1:5-6
If we have hurt or have differences, we must forgive.
3. Love is an act of obedience to Christ
Seek for a Christ-standard love. Christ set an example so we would know what real and genuine love is.
Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no commandment greater than these.
Mark 12:30-31
A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.
-John 13:34
Meanwhile, holy love is described in Matthew 5:43-48. We are commanded to love our enemies. Be perfect as God is.
We must not make our own definition of love. Instead, the more we should look at its meaning in His Word. We can love perfectly only upon genuine encounter with the love of God.
