Topics – Identity in Christ, Love
We, as Jesus followers, are called to reflect God’s love in this world. We are to live lives of love, as imitators of God. We are to do everything in love and live in the unity of love with other Christ followers.
Focus Scripture – II Corinthians 5:14-15HIDESHOW
14 For Christ's love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. 15 And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again.
Extended SummaryHIDESHOW
In the Scandalous Love series, we have highlighted the vital truth “God is love” and sought to clarify what that means when we imagine God. This weekend Greg Boyd pointed out that we, as Jesus followers, are called to reflect God’s love in this world. We are to live lives of love, as imitators of God. We are to do everything in love and live in the unity of love with other Christ followers. This often leads people to ask the questions “How can I get more love?” or “How can I become more loving?” However, there is a problem with the assumption of these questions: they focus on the self, as if the source of love is within us. In contrast, Greg pointed out that in and of ourselves, we are like a black hole, consuming everything around us for the sake of ourselves. Because of this, we try to do love with others through a contract relationship defined by self-protection and evaluation of the other. God, on the other hand, is over-flowing love and that love flows into our lives so that we can freely give love to others, without self-protection and without other evaluation.
This leads us to the primary passage of the week from 2 Corinthians. There we learn that love compels us to live for Christ. Greg unpacked this verse so that we can understand the reason for the compelling nature of love. First, “one died for all, therefore all have died.” God’s love is not dependent upon whether or not we want it, acknowledge it or even receive it. It is just a fact that Christ died for all in love. Second, “we are convinced” of the fact that Christ died for all. If we want to change our actions and become more loving, then we start with what we believe and then that will impact how we live. Changing our actions does not come by reciting a certain prayer formula, reading specific books or developing a specific discipline. It depends on the reality of seeing ourselves as dead and therefore we can freely love because Christ first loved us.
This leads us to the primary passage of the week from 2 Corinthians. There we learn that love compels us to live for Christ. Greg unpacked this verse so that we can understand the reason for the compelling nature of love. First, “one died for all, therefore all have died.” God’s love is not dependent upon whether or not we want it, acknowledge it or even receive it. It is just a fact that Christ died for all in love. Second, “we are convinced” of the fact that Christ died for all. If we want to change our actions and become more loving, then we start with what we believe and then that will impact how we live. Changing our actions does not come by reciting a certain prayer formula, reading specific books or developing a specific discipline. It depends on the reality of seeing ourselves as dead and therefore we can freely love because Christ first loved us.
Practical Applications (homework)HIDESHOW
A lot of the way love is talked about in the New Testament seems impossible or crazy because we’re so unfamiliar with agape love (other-oriented, self-sacrificial, choice-based love). Loving enemies, for example, isn’t something we’re able to do naturally. But how do we get more of the love of God so that we can? In this sermon we learned that we already have it. But it takes a lot of work to train ourselves to believe it and live it out. Go through this exercise for your homework this week to help you focus on living more in God’s love:
- Even if we know we’re “already dead” in our minds, all of us have ways that we don’t reflect that, and instead act like black holes. We suck things into our lives to try to feel alive and whole. With someone you’re very close to, commit to having a very honest (and potentially painful) conversation about the ways that each of you try to get worth from things other than God.
- Take some time to slowly pray with each other. In your imagination, walk through one of these situations. At the point when you would normally do your “black hole” behavior, imagine Jesus entering the scene and giving you all the love, worth and acceptance that you need.
- Take time to reflect on and bask in that love. In your imagination, sit with him and hear him tell you how much he loves you, and that you don’t need anything or anyone else to be whole.
- Remember this exercise the next time you notice yourself repeating your “black hole” pattern.
Reflection QuestionsHIDESHOW
- What stood out to you the most from this message and the scriptures that were highlighted?
- How does the concept of being a black hole help us comprehend how we fail to love others?
- Why is it so crucial to view our love for others as coming from the overflowing love of God? What are some ways that you have seen God’s love flowing through you to others?
- In what ways has this groups experienced this reality?