Latest / The Daily Word / August 25 – This Is Love
Transcript
- Brandon: Well, good morning and welcome again to the Daily Word Podcast. So thankful that you're joining us today. In case we haven't met, my name is Brandon, and I am one of the pastors at our church, Lake Shore Christian Fellowship. And whether you're a part of our church or not, I just want to say thank you so much for joining us today and for being potentially a faithful listener of the Daily Word Podcast. Hey, the whole goal of this podcast is in a very unscripted, unpolished, just casual. conversational way to share with you what it is that we're right catching rather writing down I suppose but catching from our daily Bible reading and journaling. And the point of us doing this really is twofold. Number one, to provide encouragement to you. Maybe you're driving in the car on the way to work, maybe you're getting the kids ready for school, maybe you're on a walk, just to bring encouragement to you and bring a daily word to to hopefully encourage, inspire, maybe challenge you in your faith. But also to remind you that God really does love you and God wants to spend time with you on a regular basis. And so go spend time with God today. Open the Bible. Let God speak to you. that being said, today is August the 25th, and our New Testament reading today is which is what we use for this podcast. It's 2 John chapter 1. 2 John chapter 1. And I gotta tell you a little funny story do doing the read through. And I looked at Pastor Jenny, my wife, and I said, I just, I'm not. I'm not getting anything out of 2 John. Like I just I'm not getting anything out of this. And she reads to me 2 John verse 5 and 6. I'm gonna read it to you. She she reads me this. And now I plead with you, lady, not as though I wrote a new commandment to you, but that which we have heard from the beginning, that we love one another. This is love, that we walk according to his commandments. This is the commandment that as you have heard from the beginning, you should walk in it. And she looks at me and she goes, How hard was that? So touche, good point, Pastor Jenny. That was not very difficult. Maybe I just wasn't reading with with ears to hear necessarily. But that being said, I do want to just share with you from that passage that Pastor Jenny brought to me today on August the 25th. And so just just imagine. really, this isn't my daily word podcast. This is her daily word podcast, and she is sharing with you today via me and technology. But I'll re-read you the scripture again, second John chapter, really it's only one chapter, so just verse five and six. And now I plead with you, lady, not as though I wrote a new commandment to you, but that which you have heard from the beginning, that we love one another. Pause. Jesus, when he was asked, What is the greatest commandment of all, this is what Jesus said. Jesus said that you love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your mind, all your soul, all your strength. That's the greatest commandment. But second, second, the second one is that you would love one another the way that you love yourself. The writer here in this passage is writing to his audience and he's saying, Listen, we we've had we've had the commandment of God, of the commandment of Jesus from the beginning, that we love one another. That we live and we walk in love for God and and for one another. That's been the commandment. And essentially what the author is saying is like that commandment has not changed. Verse six, this is love. So so now, listen now, he he's going to define love. Because we're living in a world where we're trying to define love in our own ways. He's gonna define love. This is love that we walk according to his commandment. Commandments to his commandments. This is the commandment that you've heard from the beginning that you should walk in it. a way to think about this is like if I were to give my kids some some some commandments. hey guys, today your mom and I we're gonna be let's just say we're doing yard work in the backyard. You guys are in the in the house, you know, we trust you, we're we're in the backyard doing yard work. So don't play with knives while we're in the backyard. Don't play with fire. Let's not play with the lighters and don't go run outside and run into the middle of the road where potentially cars will be driving by. Now, all of those commandments are to protect them, are to preserve them from potential danger and harm. It's not to restrict them, it's not to control, it is to protect and preserve their life ultimately so they can have an awesome life. An awesome life where they don't got. Scars from where they got cut playing with knives, and burns from where the lighter burned them, and broken bones because they got hit by a vehicle. It it is to protect and preserve them. And let's just say that I say to one of my kids, hey, love your siblings. One of the ways that they could and should walk in love towards their sibling is saying, you know what? I'm gonna follow mom and dad's rules because mom and dad love me and they want what's best for me. And also I'm gonna so love my siblings that I'm not gonna let them break the rules either. I'm gonna encourage them to follow the rules because I love them and I don't wanna see them get hurt. And so because I love them and I want what's best for them, I'm I'm gonna be mindful of the commandments, the instructions of my parents. Now that that analogy could break down and fail at many, many different points. But but that being said, here here here is my point. That God so loved you and I that he sent his son Jesus and Jesus so loved us that he gave us his his commandments. Jesus, he he says, follow me, and I'm gonna lead you into life and life more more abundantly. That that like a wise master builder, if you want a solid life, listen to me and follow me, and I'm gonna help you build a life upon the rock. Following the commandments of God, it ultimately it it is it's loving God because we're we're we're we're saying, God, I honor you and I I I I I revere you as God. And so how I love you is I I follow and I listen to you. But but also you could say part of how we love one another, part of how we love one another, is actually by encouraging and challenging and sharpening and helping helping one another to walk in the commandments of Jesus. It's not just being nice, it's not just being polite, it's not just Preferring other people over yourself and going, Yeah, you know, not a big deal. We can listen to that music instead of the one I want to listen to. No, it it it it starts there, but it's bigger than that. First Corinthians 13 talks about love, and part of what it says is that love it hates evil, but it delights in what is good. Love, it hates what is wrong, but it delights in the truth. And here the author, again, I'll just re-read these scriptures, says, Listen, I'm not writing a new commandment to you. But that which you we have heard from the beginning, that we should walk in love. But then he transitions. And this is love. so you're gonna define it. That we walk according to his command. The way that we love God and the way that we love one another, ultimately, it's by honoring God by living in his ways and by loving one another so much that we help one another to do the same. This is love that we walk in his commandments, that you have heard from the beginning. And he Concludes by saying, so so so walk in it. Do it. My observation, my application today is that there is no more loving way, that's kind of like a double double word just saying loving multiple times, but there's no more loving way to love one another than to help one another walk in the commandments of God. Why? Because God loves us and God desires good life for us, God desires peace and joy. And satisfaction and like god wants life abundantly for us here on earth and eternally, and therefore he's given us his ways to walk in. And yes, we love and honor God by by following his ways, but also we love and honor one another by being a constant source of encouragement to help other people do the same. So my application is how how can I love people around me today by By helping them to walk in God's. How can I love people around me by graciously sharing the truth and coming alongside them and lifting them up and helping them to be the best version of who God's called them to be? That is a way in which we love one another. So thank you so much, Pastor Jenny, for the encouragement and the insight today from the scripture. Hey, I hope that was a blessing to you. And I want to pray for you before we we end this podcast. Lord Jesus, for every single person who's listening, would you remind them today of how much That you love them. Would you remind them today that because you love them, you gave them instructions to protect and preserve them under the purpose and plan that you have for their life? And God, I pray as we receive that love, that you would help us to love you by walking in those ways and help us to love one another by encouraging, lifting up, and coming alongside other people so they could walk in your ways as well. In Jesus' name, amen. Hey, thank you once again for listening to the Daily Word podcast. Love you so much. We'll see you tomorrow on another episode.