The Weapons of our Warfare

LOVE

I. A definition of love in the New Testament. John 21:15-11.

A. Agape love involves personal judgment and the deliberate asset of the will. It is love in the social or moral sense.

B. Phileo love denotes friendship, fondness and the involvement of the feelings. This love is not intimate.

II. There are some negative aspects to this agape love.

A. Sinners are capable of exercising this love. Luke 6:32, 33.

B. This love can be fixed on evil.

1. Men may love darkness rather than light. John 3:19.
2. Men can love the praise of men. John 12:43.

C. In the saint this love may deteriorate.

1. Agape love can wax cold. Matt. 24: 12.
2. It is possib1e to leave the first love. Rev. 2:4.

D. This love can be feigned. II Cor. 6:6.

III. We have obligations to love.

A. Our obligation is to love God.

1. We are to direct our love to the Lord our God. Mk. 12:30.

a. Heart
b. Mind
c. Soul
d. Strength

2. To understand this love is to be discreet and not far from the kingdom. Mk. 12:34.

3. Love for the Father produces love for Christ. John 8:42.

4. This love is for One Whom we have not seen. I Peter 1 :8.

5. Our love for His Person is reciprocal. I John 4: 19.

6. To love the Lord is something that must be done. Lk. 11 :42 Charles G. Finney made much of this.

7. Love for God brings with it reward.

a. A crown of righteousness is to be the reward for those that love His appearing. II Tim. 4:8.
b. There will be a crown of life for those that love Him. James 1: 12.
c. The kingdom has been promised to them that love Him. James 2:5.
d. All things work together for good for those that love God. Romans 8:28.
e. God has made unimaginable preparation for those that love Him. I Cor. 2:9.

B. Our obligation is to love one another.

1. To love one another is the new commandment. John 13:34
2. To love one another is proof of discipleship. John 13:35.
3. Lack of this love is evidence that a man is in darkness. I John 2:11.
4. Great emphasis is given to this commandment. (For example, it is repeated in John 13:34, 15:12 and 15:17. This three- fold ranking is equal to the emphasis Jesus placed on repentance, the new birth and discipleship. Additional references to this obligation make this the most urgent exhortation.) .

5. Love for one another is the basis for church discipline. II Cor. 2:4, 8.

6. Love for one another is asked on the basis of God's love for us. I John 4: 11.

7. Love for one another fulfills the law. Romans 13:8.

C. Our obligation is to love our neighbor.

1. We must love our neighbor as ourselves. Matt. 19: 19.
2. This love for the neighbor is the royal law. James 2:8.

D. Our obligation is to love our enemies. Matt. 5:44.

IV. God loves us.

A. The Father loves us. John 3: 16; Eph. 2:4.

B. The Son loves us. Mk. 10:21.

C. This love is of the Spirit. Romans 15:30.

D. This love is the product of sacrifice.

1. It is pictured in the marriage relationship. Eph. 5:25.
2. It was actual in Christ's offering of Himself. I John 3: 16.

E. This love from God is undeserved on our part. Romans 5:8.

F. God's love is always accompanied with chastening. Heb. 12:6.

G. No created (or satanic) thing can separate us from this love of God. Note the personal pronoun "who." Romans 8:38, 39.

V. Love always results in obedience. John 14:31.
This theme is given profound emphasis in the New Testament. In numerous passages the repetition given to this subject can mean nothing except that obedience is the true proof of love. See John 14:23, 14:31 and I John 5:2.

VI. Possessing this love is a possibility. John 5:42.

A. Those who are forgiven much will love much. Lk. 7:42, 43.

B. This love has been poured into our hearts. Romans 5:5.

C. Love is part of the fruit of the Spirit. Gal. 5:22.

D. This love comes from the Father and the Son. Eph. 6:23.

E. This love is by the Spirit. Romans 15:30.

F. We are to put on (fall into) charity. Col. 3: 14.

G. It is an act of will to remain in agape love. John 15:9.

VII. Love has multitudinous capacities.

A. Love has subjective capacities.

1. Love has the capacity to be known.

a. If a man loves God it is known. I Cor. 8:3.
b. Paul had heard of the love of the Ephesians. 1: 15.
c. A church reputation was measured in love in the Spirit. Col. 1 :8.

2. Love has the capacity to be shared. Phil. 2:2.
3. Love has the capacity to be learned. I Thess. 4:9.
4. Love has the capacity to be pursued. I Tim. 6: 11.
5. Love has the capacity to be stimulated. Heb. 10:24.
6. Love has the capacity to be multiplied. Jude 2.
7. Love has the capacity to be longsuffering. I Cor. 13:4.8. Love has the capacity to be received. I John 4: 16.
9. Love has the capacity to be kind. I Cor. 13:4.
10. Love has the capacity to be unpossessive. I Cor. 13:4.
11. Love has the capacity to be humble. I Cor. 13:4.
12. Love has the capacity to be not provoked. I Cor. 13:5.
13. Love has the capacity to bear all things. I Cor. 13:7.
14. Love has the capacity to believe all things. I Cor. 13:7.
15. Love has the capacity to hope. I Cor. 13:7.
16. Love has the capacity to stimulate becoming behaviour.
17. Love has the capacity of unfailing faithfulness. I Cor. 13:f
18. Love has the capacity to be perfect (mature). I Cor. 13:10, Eph. 4: 11.

B. Love has objective capacities.

1. Love has the capacity of forbearance. Eph.4:2.
2. Love has the capacity to abound. Phil. 1 :9.
3. Love has the capacity to contain. Phil. 1 :9.
4. Love has the capacity to comfort and console. Phil 2: 1.
5. Love has cohesive capacity. Col. 2:2.
6. Love has the capacity to stimulate work, action. I Thess. 1:3
7. Love has the capacity to protect. I Thess. 5:8.
8. Love has the capacity to fix itself to truth. II Thess. 2: 10.
9. Love has the capacity to receive. II Thess. 3:5.
10. Love has the capacity to temper the truth without diluting it. II Tim. 1:13.
11. Love has the capacity for compassion. I John 3: 17.
12. Love has the capacity to expel fear. I John 4: 18.
13. Love has the capacity to exceed tongues as a medium of expression. I Cor. 13:1.
14. Love has the capacity to excel supernatural gifts with super natural effect. I Cor. 13.2.
15. Love has the capacity of surpassing sacrifice. I Cor. 13:3.
16. Love has the capacity to stimulate becoming behaviour. I Cor. 13:6.
17. Love has the capacity to not reckon evil. I Cor. 13:5.
18. Love has the capacity to not rejoice in iniquity. I Cor. 13:6
19. Love has the capacity to excel faith and hope. I Cor. 13:13
20. Love has the capacity for universal application to life. I Cor. 16:14.
21. Love has the capacity to be emulated. I Tim. 4: 12.
22. Love has the capacity to cover sin. I Peter 4:8.
23. Love has the capacity to be expressed in acts.

a. The kiss of charity. I Peter 5: 14.
b. The love feast. Jude 12.

24. Love has the capacity of lubrication or facilitation. Gal. 5:6
25. Love has the capacity to root and ground as a fertile soil. Eph.3:17.

VIII. Love is supreme. I Peter 4:8.

IX. God is love. I John 4:8, 16.

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