No Greater Love
Scripture Reading: (John 15:12-17)
12This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you. 13Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. 14Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you. 15Henceforth 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. 16Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain: that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you. 17These things I command you, that ye love one another.
Scripture Text: “Great love hath no man than this, that a may lay down his life for his friends.” (V. 13)
Jesus loved with a tender affection. He willingly endured all kinds of difficult trials. He continually denied Himself. In the end, He laid down His life for mankind.
Judas Iscariot, one of the original disciples used the kiss as a sign to help the angry mob identify Jesus from His disciples. Someone said, “The universal symbol of love was to be prostituted to its lowest use.” (William MacDonald)
Judas, who is known for his kiss and betrayal of Christ said “. . . Whomsoever I shall kiss, that same is he: hold him fast.” (Matthew 26:48b)
These were futile words; Jesus knew before He came into this world that He would live a life of rejection and sorrow—that He would ultimately be put to death. He did all of this voluntarily. He said, “No man taketh it (His life) from me, but I lay it down of myself.” (John 10:18)
All power in heaven and earth was at His disposal. After Peter cut off the ear of the servant of the high priest, Jesus said, “Thinkest thou that I cannot now pray to my Father, and he shall presently give me more than twelve legions of angels? But how then shall the scriptures be fulfilled, that thus it must be?” (Matthew 26:53-54)
Jesus was resigned to do the will of the Father. You and I should have the same resignation (the acceptance of something undesirable but inevitable). Doing the perfect will of God is not always easy! No matter how difficult it would be to fulfill the will of His Father, Jesus was resigned to do it. We must have that same determination!
Someone once said, “(Christ’s) love for a world under Satan’s yoke burned as a volcano in his breast.” (Mary Raab) No doubt the enemies of Christ would have had more trouble with Him if they had resisted His resolve to die on that cross!
Love is Why
1 He never said I'd have silver or gold, Yet He has promised me riches untold;
He never suffered a life without care, Yet He relieves every burden I bear.
2 I was astray full of sin with its shame; There was no peace within I was to blame.
Tho' undeserving my life so defiled, Now to my God I have been reconciled.
3Tho' I have none of this world's precious goods, Yet I'm an heir to all Heaven
affords;
Tho' I may never achieve earthly fame, Yet all of Heaven can call me by name.
Chorus
Sin stained the Cross with the blood of my Lord; Yet He permitted it
without a word,
Why, tell me why He redeemed you and me? Love is why you and I are free.
Take a quick look at the condition of the world: nations warring against nations, prisons filling up to capacity, tragedies of all kinds happening in cities all around us, divorce courts busy writing decrees that are breaking up marriages, and children suffering untold heartaches. Sin is to blame!
However, there is an answer; there is hope. Paul wrote, (Titus 2:11-12) 11For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, 12Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world;”
Through the expiatory (ek-spee-uh-tawr-ee) life and death of Christ, the unmerited favor of God is brought to every one of us. Jesus suffered and died for us.
Must Jesus Bear the Cross Alone?
Thomas Shepherd
1. Must Jesus bear the cross alone,
And all the world go free?
No, there’s a cross for everyone,
And there’s a cross for me.
2. How happy are the saints above,
Who once went sorr’wing here!
But now they taste unmingled love,
And joy without a tear.
3. The consecrated cross I’ll bear
Till death shall set me free;
And then go home my crown to wear,
For there’s a crown for me.
4. Upon the crystal pavement down
At Jesus’ pierced feet,
Joyful I’ll cast my golden crown
And His dear Name repeat.
5. O precious cross! O glorious crown!
O resurrection day!
When Christ the Lord from heav’n comes down
And bears my soul away.
Some of the most famous Scripture verses about love are found in I John. In this book, John tells Christians that the evidence of God’s presence in their lives is their love for each other.
(I John 3:16) “Hereby perceive we the love of God, because he laid down his life for us: and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.”
“We know what love is because Jesus gave his life for us. That is why we must give our lives for each other.” (The Bible for Today’s Family)
“This is how we’ve come to understand and experience love: Christ sacrificed his life for us. This is why we ought to live sacrificially for our fellow believers, and not just be out for ourselves.” (The Bible in Contemporary Language)
What Jesus did for us is the greatest expression of love that can be given; there is no greater love. An individual’s life is the most valuable possession that he has. When an individual lays down that life for another individual or country, that is the greatest expression of love that can be made. Not many individuals are willing to give up their lives to save the life of another individual.
Jesus not only died for His friends, He died for His enemies: those who ridiculed Him, those who spit upon Him, those who beat Him. those who rejected His reign, and eventually those who crucified Him.
He so loved the world so much that He was willing to undergo the cruelest death that there was, death by crucifixion. He did that for all of mankind, friends and enemies.
The love of Jesus Christ is extended to all sinners. He grants them pardon, cleansing, peace, and a brand-new life!
(John 13:35) “By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.”
“. . . your love for each other shall be so decisive evidence that you are like the Saviour, that all men shall see and know it. It shall be the thing by which ye shall be known among all men. . . . by deep, genuine, tender love.” (Albert Barnes)
A real Christian is not known by a cross that he wears, or some peculiar clothes that he is attired in, but by his love for others.
There is an absence of self-denial today, pride of rank and wealth. The true Christian deeply loves other Christians wherever they are found, and in whatever conditions they are found.
“These Christians love each other even before they are acquainted.” (St. Celsus)
An anonymous author made this statement: “Love is more than a characteristic of God; it is His character.”
The Love of God
Frederick M. Lehman
1. The love of God is greater far
Than tongue or pen can ever tell;
It goes beyond the highest star,
And reaches to the lowest hell;
The guilty pair, bowed down with care,
God gave His Son to win;
His erring child He reconciled,
And pardoned from his sin.
o Refrain:
Oh, love of God, how rich and pure!
How measureless and strong!
It shall forevermore endure—
The saints’ and angels’ song.
2. When hoary (ancient) time shall pass away,
And earthly thrones and kingdoms fall,
When men who here refuse to pray,
On rocks and hills and mountains call,
God’s love so sure, shall still endure,
All measureless and strong;
Redeeming grace to Adam’s race—
The saints’ and angels’ song.
3. Could we with ink the ocean fill,
And were the skies of parchment made,
Were every stalk on earth a quill,
And every man a scribe by trade;
To write the love of God above
Would drain the ocean dry;
Nor could the scroll contain the whole,
Though stretched from sky to sky.
(Frederick Lehman tells us that verse 3 “had been found penciled on the wall of a patient’s room in an insane asylum after he had been carried to his grave.”)
In sign language, the language of the hearing impaired, pointing to the palms of one’s hands is the sign for Jesus Christ. The nail prints symbolize our Jesus Christ.
Someone said that the cross resembles a double window; we can look into the love of God and we can also look at the dark contrast when we see the sins of mankind.
In closing, let us reread our opening Scripture Reading.
12This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you. 13Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. 14Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you. 15Henceforth 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. 16Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain: that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you. 17These things I command you, that ye love one another.
“Love is the greatest thing that God can give us, for himself is love; and it is the greatest thing we can give to God, for it will also give ourselves, and carry with it all that is ours. The apostle calls it the bond of perfection (Colossians 3:14); it is the old, the new, and the great commandment, and all the commandments, for it is the fulfilling of the law. It does the work of all the other graces without any instrument but its own immediate virtue.” (Jerry Taylor)
Church, let us do our very best to emulate the love of Jesus Christ. There Is No Greater Love! The Apostle Paul wrote, “All the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this; Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.” (Galatians 5:14)