WEBVTT 00:00:04.240 --> 00:00:05.646 Before we start this morning, 00:00:05.646 --> 00:00:09.462 I just want to ask y'all some questions I've been dying to know. 00:00:09.462 --> 00:00:10.330 You ready? 00:00:11.710 --> 00:00:13.690 What is the greatest NFL team? 00:00:15.150 --> 00:00:16.182 If you say the Panthers, 00:00:16.182 --> 00:00:17.294 I know you're lying right now. 00:00:17.294 --> 00:00:18.010 Okay. 00:00:18.750 --> 00:00:19.854 It's not nobody. 00:00:19.902 --> 00:00:20.606 No? No. 00:00:20.678 --> 00:00:22.770 Okay. Huh? 00:00:23.270 --> 00:00:24.850 Casey. Okay. 00:00:25.840 --> 00:00:26.560 All right. 00:00:26.680 --> 00:00:28.600 Well, since nobody had a rec. 00:00:28.600 --> 00:00:29.864 What is that one? 00:00:29.360 --> 00:00:30.200 Vikings. Okay. 00:00:30.240 --> 00:00:32.392 Okay. All right. 00:00:32.456 --> 00:00:33.940 Who's the greatest singer? 00:00:38.240 --> 00:00:39.500 Nobody knows. 00:00:41.200 --> 00:00:42.160 There you go. 00:00:42.160 --> 00:00:43.860 That was the right answer. 00:00:47.040 --> 00:00:47.456 All right. 00:00:47.456 --> 00:00:48.860 Who's the best actor? 00:00:49.440 --> 00:00:50.740 Anybody got any? 00:00:53.050 --> 00:00:57.378 No? Nobody has any thoughts on who is the greatest of any of these? 00:00:57.378 --> 00:00:58.210 Oh, man. 00:00:58.290 --> 00:01:01.260 Okay. I might be asking the wrong questions then. 00:01:02.210 --> 00:01:06.738 Well, the reason I'm starting out with this this morning is because I 00:01:06.754 --> 00:01:10.470 want us to turn to Matthew 22 this morning. 00:01:11.530 --> 00:01:13.314 There is a reason for those questions, 00:01:13.314 --> 00:01:14.618 just so you know. 00:01:14.618 --> 00:01:18.346 Because I'm not the only one who wanted to know what is the greatest and 00:01:18.346 --> 00:01:19.954 most important of all those things, 00:01:19.954 --> 00:01:23.490 right? There was a scribe, 00:01:23.570 --> 00:01:24.058 a lawyer, 00:01:24.058 --> 00:01:28.826 a pharisee that Jesus was talking to that came up to him and asked him, 00:01:28.826 --> 00:01:31.266 what is the greatest commandment? 00:01:31.378 --> 00:01:35.114 It's something that people just want to know, 00:01:35.162 --> 00:01:37.242 what is the greatest thing, 00:01:37.346 --> 00:01:37.676 right? 00:01:37.714 --> 00:01:39.106 In any arena, 00:01:39.138 --> 00:01:40.002 in any category, 00:01:40.002 --> 00:01:41.082 what is the greatest? 00:01:41.082 --> 00:01:43.522 And we spend a lot of time trying to figure it out, 00:01:43.522 --> 00:01:49.022 right? And that was not something that's uncommon or unique to us is 00:01:49.046 --> 00:01:50.934 something that's spanned all of time, 00:01:50.934 --> 00:01:56.038 right? So let's read Matthew 22 36 through 38 together. 00:01:56.134 --> 00:01:56.758 Then we'll pray, 00:01:56.758 --> 00:01:59.398 and then we'll dive in for the morning. 00:01:58.022 --> 00:02:00.450 So says, 00:02:01.430 --> 00:02:03.678 well, I'm going to start back in 34. 00:02:03.678 --> 00:02:05.598 Sorry, I know I don't have the slides for that, 00:02:05.598 --> 00:02:08.038 but I want to start back in 34. 00:02:08.134 --> 00:02:10.710 But when the Pharisees heard that he had silenced the sadducees, 00:02:10.710 --> 00:02:11.706 they gathered together, 00:02:11.838 --> 00:02:12.562 and one of them, 00:02:12.562 --> 00:02:13.426 a lawyer, 00:02:13.578 --> 00:02:15.610 asked him a question to test him, 00:02:15.610 --> 00:02:18.870 teacher, which is the great commandment in the law. 00:02:19.210 --> 00:02:20.378 And he said to him, 00:02:20.378 --> 00:02:23.082 you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, 00:02:23.082 --> 00:02:24.314 with all your soul, 00:02:24.314 --> 00:02:25.762 and with all your mind. 00:02:25.762 --> 00:02:27.550 This is the great commandment. 00:02:27.890 --> 00:02:28.234 All right, 00:02:28.234 --> 00:02:29.394 so we're stopping right there for today, 00:02:29.394 --> 00:02:32.562 okay? Because next week we're going to unpack the next part a little bit. 00:02:32.562 --> 00:02:34.866 But today we're focusing on that part. 00:02:34.866 --> 00:02:38.034 And there is a hebrew word for it called the Shema. 00:02:38.034 --> 00:02:41.570 And so if you want to go ahead and prep and if you have a physical Bible 00:02:41.570 --> 00:02:43.146 with you and turn to deuteronomy, 00:02:43.146 --> 00:02:45.474 chapter six is where we're going to camp out for the morning. 00:02:45.266 --> 00:02:46.922 But I'm going to pray while you're flipping pages. 00:02:46.922 --> 00:02:47.986 So, God, 00:02:48.018 --> 00:02:49.490 we just thank you for this morning, 00:02:49.490 --> 00:02:52.790 God. Thank you for being the God who reveals himself, 00:02:53.250 --> 00:02:56.950 God. And has written and spoken his word. 00:02:57.610 --> 00:03:00.580 God, just to let us know who you are, 00:03:01.210 --> 00:03:05.082 God, we thank you that we have the opportunity to come together and study 00:03:05.082 --> 00:03:06.440 your word together, 00:03:06.820 --> 00:03:09.500 God, so that we can worship and praise you. 00:03:09.276 --> 00:03:10.580 The king of kings, 00:03:10.580 --> 00:03:11.852 the God of all creation, 00:03:11.852 --> 00:03:16.480 the God who loves us dearly and knows us so well. 00:03:17.500 --> 00:03:19.180 God, we just want to thank you for this morning. 00:03:19.180 --> 00:03:21.380 Pray that you would be with us. 00:03:21.380 --> 00:03:23.044 God, I pray that you would, 00:03:23.044 --> 00:03:26.324 God, just reveal your word to us. 00:03:26.492 --> 00:03:27.396 We thank you. 00:03:27.212 --> 00:03:28.596 It's in your beautiful and precious name. 00:03:28.596 --> 00:03:29.196 We pray. 00:03:29.196 --> 00:03:31.340 Amen. All right, 00:03:31.380 --> 00:03:34.324 so I've never preached on a pier before, 00:03:34.372 --> 00:03:39.508 so if I start making too much rack and creaking too much, 00:03:39.524 --> 00:03:40.108 y'all let me know, 00:03:40.108 --> 00:03:41.636 okay? So, 00:03:41.668 --> 00:03:42.004 like I said, 00:03:42.004 --> 00:03:43.348 we're going to hang out in deuteronomy, 00:03:43.348 --> 00:03:44.492 chapter six today. 00:03:44.636 --> 00:03:48.076 And it's what the section that we're going to be reading is called the 00:03:48.076 --> 00:03:51.828 Shema. The word shema is the hebrew word for listen, 00:03:51.924 --> 00:03:53.444 right? So essentially, 00:03:53.532 --> 00:03:55.228 what Moses is trying to get across is like, 00:03:55.228 --> 00:03:59.852 hey. And the words that God had spoken is, 00:03:59.876 --> 00:04:01.444 hey, listen up, 00:04:01.492 --> 00:04:05.028 Israel, there's something important that I got to tell you, 00:04:05.204 --> 00:04:06.020 all right? 00:04:06.180 --> 00:04:07.170 And don't forget, 00:04:07.276 --> 00:04:10.316 Jesus said that this is the greatest and most important thing, 00:04:10.316 --> 00:04:10.960 right? 00:04:11.940 --> 00:04:12.628 He says, 00:04:12.724 --> 00:04:13.680 listen up, 00:04:14.100 --> 00:04:15.200 the Lord. 00:04:16.100 --> 00:04:17.276 Hear, O Israel, 00:04:17.388 --> 00:04:18.380 the Lord our God, 00:04:18.380 --> 00:04:19.516 the Lord is one. 00:04:19.516 --> 00:04:23.108 You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your 00:04:23.108 --> 00:04:25.088 soul and with all your might. 00:04:25.156 --> 00:04:28.572 And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. 00:04:28.572 --> 00:04:32.114 You shall teach them diligently to your children and shall talk of them 00:04:32.114 --> 00:04:35.930 when you sit in your house and when you walk by the way and when you lie 00:04:35.930 --> 00:04:36.260 down. 00:04:36.234 --> 00:04:37.482 And when you rise, 00:04:37.482 --> 00:04:39.650 you shall bind them as a sign on your hand, 00:04:39.650 --> 00:04:42.330 and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. 00:04:42.330 --> 00:04:46.570 You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates. 00:04:46.570 --> 00:04:49.546 And when the Lord your God brings you into the land that he swore to your 00:04:49.546 --> 00:04:50.898 fathers, to Abraham, 00:04:50.954 --> 00:04:51.426 to Isaac, 00:04:51.426 --> 00:04:51.986 and to Jacob, 00:04:51.986 --> 00:04:56.538 to give you with great and good cities that you did not build and houses 00:04:56.538 --> 00:04:58.546 full of all good things that you did not fill, 00:04:58.546 --> 00:05:00.718 and cisterns that you not dig, 00:05:00.774 --> 00:05:03.510 and vineyards and olive trees that you did not plant, 00:05:03.510 --> 00:05:05.446 and when you eat and are full, 00:05:05.446 --> 00:05:06.436 then take care, 00:05:06.454 --> 00:05:10.478 lest you forget the Lord who brought you out of the land of Egypt, 00:05:10.478 --> 00:05:12.118 out of the house of slavery. 00:05:12.118 --> 00:05:12.838 It is the Lord, 00:05:12.838 --> 00:05:13.278 your God. 00:05:13.278 --> 00:05:16.398 You shall fear him you shall serve, 00:05:16.454 --> 00:05:18.830 and by his name you shall swear. 00:05:18.950 --> 00:05:21.734 Okay, so again, 00:05:21.782 --> 00:05:23.382 going back to the first thing that was said, 00:05:23.382 --> 00:05:24.158 hear, o Israel, 00:05:24.158 --> 00:05:26.138 the Lord our God is one, 00:05:26.340 --> 00:05:29.348 and you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, 00:05:29.348 --> 00:05:30.748 soul, mind. 00:05:30.884 --> 00:05:31.874 And in mark, 00:05:31.908 --> 00:05:32.956 he adds strength. 00:05:33.028 --> 00:05:34.396 I love it because mark was like, 00:05:34.396 --> 00:05:37.696 just in case you didn't think you had anything left, 00:05:37.780 --> 00:05:40.036 there's still some strength that you can put into, 00:05:40.036 --> 00:05:41.180 and not just some of it, 00:05:41.180 --> 00:05:42.004 but all of it. 00:05:42.004 --> 00:05:43.654 We'll get to that later. 00:05:44.940 --> 00:05:50.412 But if the most important thing that we can do in life is love God, 00:05:50.596 --> 00:05:53.428 I have at least three questions, 00:05:53.564 --> 00:05:53.894 right? 00:05:53.868 --> 00:05:56.180 There's three questions that come to mind immediately, 00:05:56.180 --> 00:05:57.820 and I could probably come up with more, 00:05:57.820 --> 00:06:00.860 but I want us to cover these three questions this morning. 00:06:00.860 --> 00:06:02.920 And the first one is, 00:06:03.340 --> 00:06:05.796 if love is what we're supposed to do, 00:06:05.796 --> 00:06:07.120 then what is love? 00:06:07.740 --> 00:06:09.724 Right? Because we've got to define the terms, 00:06:09.724 --> 00:06:13.076 right? This is an internal debate and struggle for all of us, 00:06:13.076 --> 00:06:15.056 whether we know it or not. 00:06:14.836 --> 00:06:16.816 It's something that kind of comes. 00:06:18.350 --> 00:06:22.070 It's just kind of innate in us as we love things, 00:06:22.150 --> 00:06:25.238 right? Because we have one word for love. 00:06:25.374 --> 00:06:26.518 We love our wife and kids, 00:06:26.518 --> 00:06:28.622 and we love peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, 00:06:28.622 --> 00:06:31.330 right? So we have one word in English, 00:06:31.790 --> 00:06:36.014 but what we need to understand is that love is not a feeling. 00:06:35.862 --> 00:06:37.654 It's a decision that we make, 00:06:37.654 --> 00:06:41.806 right? And I know that may be a phrase that y'all have heard and are 00:06:41.806 --> 00:06:42.710 familiar with, 00:06:42.830 --> 00:06:45.998 but I really want us to break even that down a little bit more, 00:06:45.998 --> 00:06:46.736 too, right? 00:06:46.768 --> 00:06:52.180 So does anybody have any idea how many hebrew words there are for love? 00:06:53.320 --> 00:06:54.660 There's more than that. 00:06:55.680 --> 00:07:00.224 There's actually a lot more words for love than five even. 00:07:00.312 --> 00:07:02.168 There's a ton of hebrew words for love, 00:07:02.168 --> 00:07:05.680 but there's four primary words for love that are used in the Bible. 00:07:05.680 --> 00:07:06.552 All right? 00:07:06.736 --> 00:07:08.360 And if y'all know anything about me, 00:07:08.360 --> 00:07:09.840 I'm going to tell you what they are. 00:07:09.840 --> 00:07:12.408 So the first one is ahavda. 00:07:12.454 --> 00:07:13.980 It's used about 200 times, 00:07:14.060 --> 00:07:16.920 and it's used in a familial context. 00:07:17.220 --> 00:07:19.452 The second word is ahava, 00:07:19.596 --> 00:07:20.600 very similar. 00:07:21.100 --> 00:07:22.420 It's used about 30 times. 00:07:22.444 --> 00:07:24.880 And it's an intrapersonal context. 00:07:26.460 --> 00:07:27.804 Another one is doed. 00:07:27.892 --> 00:07:29.276 It's used about 40 times. 00:07:29.388 --> 00:07:30.276 It is. 00:07:30.468 --> 00:07:33.244 We're going to say a Spousal Love. 00:07:33.292 --> 00:07:35.812 You can infer what you need to know about that. 00:07:35.812 --> 00:07:37.004 And Hesed is another one. 00:07:37.004 --> 00:07:40.174 It's just like a general Love of things, 00:07:40.302 --> 00:07:40.970 right? 00:07:41.510 --> 00:07:45.140 Those are the four most prominent words for love in Hebrew. 00:07:45.550 --> 00:07:49.430 And the word used here in deuteronomy six is ahav, 00:07:49.590 --> 00:07:52.518 which is that familial Love. 00:07:52.654 --> 00:07:55.970 Okay? So it's a relational kind of love. 00:07:56.510 --> 00:07:59.494 And the best example that we have for it is marriage, 00:07:59.494 --> 00:07:59.934 right? 00:08:00.022 --> 00:08:01.012 God created marriage, 00:08:01.038 --> 00:08:05.246 and it's a perfect example for what God is trying to communicate here. 00:08:05.246 --> 00:08:06.290 In this instance, 00:08:09.810 --> 00:08:11.790 I almost coughed into the mic. 00:08:12.930 --> 00:08:13.378 All right, 00:08:13.378 --> 00:08:15.650 so keep that in mind, 00:08:15.690 --> 00:08:17.430 ahav. It's familial. 00:08:17.930 --> 00:08:20.594 This is the picture that God is trying to paint for us. 00:08:20.370 --> 00:08:23.154 He's trying to paint a marriage picture, 00:08:23.242 --> 00:08:26.850 right? And if you know anything about marriage, 00:08:26.930 --> 00:08:30.230 this is the one relationship that you get to choose, 00:08:30.378 --> 00:08:31.710 right, besides friends. 00:08:32.820 --> 00:08:34.452 But you get to choose your spouse. 00:08:34.452 --> 00:08:36.268 You get to choose your best friend. 00:08:36.268 --> 00:08:39.572 You don't get to choose your kids or your parents, 00:08:39.756 --> 00:08:40.532 right? 00:08:40.716 --> 00:08:42.876 You get who God's given you, 00:08:43.028 --> 00:08:43.756 but your spouse, 00:08:43.756 --> 00:08:44.316 you get to choose. 00:08:44.316 --> 00:08:46.348 And I will say God gives you your spouse, 00:08:46.348 --> 00:08:48.440 too. But, 00:08:48.780 --> 00:08:50.084 like, we get to make that decision, 00:08:50.084 --> 00:08:52.394 and then you have to daily decide, 00:08:52.660 --> 00:08:54.220 I'm going to love this person. 00:08:54.220 --> 00:08:58.080 Right? So just keep that in the back of your mind. 00:08:59.840 --> 00:09:02.680 The words for love in Greek, 00:09:02.840 --> 00:09:07.104 there are four that are common because cs Lewis wrote the book the four 00:09:07.104 --> 00:09:07.968 loves. And I'll tell you, 00:09:07.968 --> 00:09:12.344 I will quote him a little bit because I am no expert on love, 00:09:12.344 --> 00:09:15.712 but so I'm going to steal from him a little bit. 00:09:15.712 --> 00:09:16.780 The first one. 00:09:17.360 --> 00:09:19.752 The first greek word for love is storge. 00:09:19.752 --> 00:09:20.256 All right? 00:09:20.096 --> 00:09:22.520 So that's like a parental love. 00:09:22.560 --> 00:09:24.744 It's an affectionate love that's just kind of innate. 00:09:24.744 --> 00:09:26.794 You care for your kids. 00:09:26.992 --> 00:09:27.910 It's kind of. 00:09:27.910 --> 00:09:28.862 It's ingrained, 00:09:28.966 --> 00:09:29.542 right? 00:09:29.686 --> 00:09:32.758 Eros is that spousal love. 00:09:32.814 --> 00:09:37.190 Again, Phileto is brotherly love. 00:09:37.230 --> 00:09:38.790 And if that sounds familiar, 00:09:38.790 --> 00:09:39.982 we've got Philadelphia, 00:09:40.046 --> 00:09:42.026 right? The city of brotherly love. 00:09:42.078 --> 00:09:44.494 So that's a way to remember that Phileto. 00:09:44.230 --> 00:09:45.286 And then the last one, 00:09:45.286 --> 00:09:48.086 the one that probably everybody is more familiar with than any of the 00:09:48.086 --> 00:09:48.518 other ones, 00:09:48.518 --> 00:09:49.430 is agape. 00:09:49.590 --> 00:09:50.566 Everybody knows that one, 00:09:50.566 --> 00:09:53.520 right? And that is God love. 00:09:53.980 --> 00:09:57.660 So something that I thought was really interesting is that the New 00:09:57.660 --> 00:10:00.640 Testament really only uses two words for love, 00:10:01.300 --> 00:10:04.140 and that is Agape and Phileo. 00:10:04.300 --> 00:10:07.400 So God love and brotherly love. 00:10:07.900 --> 00:10:09.600 And in Matthew 22, 00:10:10.220 --> 00:10:12.040 Jesus uses agape. 00:10:12.420 --> 00:10:16.000 Right. Agape is that God love. 00:10:16.500 --> 00:10:18.964 And there's something really interesting about Agape. 00:10:19.052 --> 00:10:20.908 And I know the Bible doesn't use Eros, 00:10:20.908 --> 00:10:25.280 but I found it really interesting that those two stand in stark contrast 00:10:25.360 --> 00:10:26.380 to one another. 00:10:27.000 --> 00:10:32.060 Right? So Eros seeks to possess. 00:10:32.520 --> 00:10:37.900 Right. And it's only given to those who are worthy of it. 00:10:38.320 --> 00:10:39.060 Right? 00:10:39.760 --> 00:10:44.140 Agape seeks to give and without merit, 00:10:44.480 --> 00:10:48.944 there is nothing holding this love back. 00:10:49.112 --> 00:10:49.820 Right? 00:10:52.300 --> 00:10:54.644 So I've got two conclusions here, 00:10:54.692 --> 00:10:54.924 all right? 00:10:54.924 --> 00:10:56.772 I'm trying to keep this really concise, 00:10:56.772 --> 00:11:01.020 because I don't want to spend too much time on language studies. 00:11:01.140 --> 00:11:02.780 That's not what we're here for. 00:11:02.780 --> 00:11:04.084 But I've got two conclusions. 00:11:04.084 --> 00:11:05.940 The first one is that, 00:11:06.060 --> 00:11:07.268 like in marriage, 00:11:07.444 --> 00:11:08.840 love is chosen, 00:11:09.180 --> 00:11:09.612 right? 00:11:09.676 --> 00:11:15.708 It's not always something you're born into and it's decided or vowed and 00:11:15.724 --> 00:11:17.040 it's not obligatory, 00:11:17.540 --> 00:11:20.364 right? So this is the kind of love that we're talking about here in 00:11:20.364 --> 00:11:22.440 deuteronomy six and in Matthew 22, 00:11:23.380 --> 00:11:28.960 and then it seeks the good of others at the expense of myself. 00:11:30.460 --> 00:11:35.316 So the kind of love that we're talking about here in deuteronomy six that 00:11:35.348 --> 00:11:37.076 God said to his people, 00:11:37.268 --> 00:11:40.724 and the kind of love that he is saying is that Jesus is saying is the 00:11:40.724 --> 00:11:46.794 most important that you can have for goddesse is to have premeditated 00:11:46.882 --> 00:11:50.430 delight at the expense of myself. 00:11:52.210 --> 00:11:55.830 So that sounds kind of. 00:11:57.130 --> 00:11:58.190 It's a long, 00:11:58.530 --> 00:11:59.618 kind of a long sentence, 00:11:59.618 --> 00:12:00.826 premeditated delight, 00:12:00.898 --> 00:12:01.250 right. 00:12:01.330 --> 00:12:06.154 It means you're choosing beforehand that you're going to take delight and 00:12:06.242 --> 00:12:11.586 treasure and care for and grow this love, 00:12:11.698 --> 00:12:15.978 right? And all at the expense of myself, 00:12:16.034 --> 00:12:17.802 which means everything I am, 00:12:17.866 --> 00:12:19.058 everything I will be, 00:12:19.058 --> 00:12:20.162 everything I have, 00:12:20.266 --> 00:12:21.890 everything I think I have, 00:12:21.890 --> 00:12:23.042 all my time, 00:12:23.226 --> 00:12:27.830 money and treasure will all be spent on this thing, 00:12:28.450 --> 00:12:31.630 right? So just like Mark said, 00:12:32.930 --> 00:12:33.882 with all my heart, 00:12:33.882 --> 00:12:34.618 with all my soul, 00:12:34.618 --> 00:12:36.802 with all my mind and with all my strength, 00:12:36.802 --> 00:12:39.550 there is nothing left after you give from that, 00:12:39.550 --> 00:12:43.570 right? It's going to cost something. 00:12:45.470 --> 00:12:46.198 And like I said, 00:12:46.198 --> 00:12:47.570 I'm no love expert, 00:12:48.390 --> 00:12:53.622 but there are examples quoted just from people throughout time that I 00:12:53.646 --> 00:12:56.286 think define this kind of love really well. 00:12:57.110 --> 00:12:59.350 That Jesus is expecting of people, 00:12:59.430 --> 00:13:03.390 right? And what he says is the most important thing in life. 00:13:04.230 --> 00:13:08.494 So the Westminster shorter catechism says that man's chief end is to love 00:13:08.494 --> 00:13:10.380 goddess and enjoy him forever. 00:13:11.080 --> 00:13:13.376 Right. We're supposed to love God, 00:13:13.408 --> 00:13:14.768 that agape love, 00:13:14.824 --> 00:13:19.640 that love that costs something and enjoy him forever. 00:13:19.680 --> 00:13:24.576 We're supposed to take delight in spending time with our God, 00:13:24.728 --> 00:13:28.672 right? Because that's what he wants to do with us, 00:13:28.696 --> 00:13:31.168 too. He wants to spend time with us. 00:13:31.168 --> 00:13:35.190 He yearns for that like a father yearns for time with his kids, 00:13:35.190 --> 00:13:41.966 right? And then what's really neat is that this agape love serves as the 00:13:41.998 --> 00:13:45.370 foundation for all other kinds of love. 00:13:45.830 --> 00:13:47.006 Cs Lewis said it best. 00:13:47.006 --> 00:13:47.334 Like I said, 00:13:47.334 --> 00:13:48.750 I'm going to quote him a couple more times, 00:13:48.750 --> 00:13:51.930 but natural loves are not self sufficient. 00:13:52.630 --> 00:13:57.454 There is no other love that can stand without the basis of God's love 00:13:57.502 --> 00:13:59.614 first, because it's all his, 00:13:59.662 --> 00:14:01.310 right. God is love. 00:14:01.470 --> 00:14:03.110 If God's love doesn't exist, 00:14:03.110 --> 00:14:05.750 then no other kind of love could exist. 00:14:07.060 --> 00:14:07.940 And he also said, 00:14:07.940 --> 00:14:09.428 when God rules in a human heart, 00:14:09.428 --> 00:14:13.884 though he may sometimes have to remove certain of its native authorities 00:14:13.932 --> 00:14:17.980 altogether, he often continues others in their offices by subjecting 00:14:18.020 --> 00:14:23.324 their authority to his and gives for the first time a firm foundation. 00:14:23.452 --> 00:14:23.996 In other words, 00:14:23.996 --> 00:14:26.452 what he's saying is that again, 00:14:26.516 --> 00:14:27.596 there is nothing, 00:14:27.668 --> 00:14:31.428 there is no other kind of love that can exist without God's love. 00:14:31.428 --> 00:14:34.980 God's love is the foundation for all other kinds of love. 00:14:34.980 --> 00:14:38.524 The only reason you know how to love your kids well is because God's done 00:14:38.524 --> 00:14:39.240 it first, 00:14:39.900 --> 00:14:43.428 right? The only reason you know how to love your spouse well is because 00:14:43.428 --> 00:14:44.524 God's done it first. 00:14:44.364 --> 00:14:47.680 He loves his church right to the point of death. 00:14:48.060 --> 00:14:50.700 He died for every single one of us, 00:14:51.940 --> 00:14:56.828 right? The only reason that we can love our brothers and sisters and 00:14:56.884 --> 00:15:01.052 those in the community around us is because God has done it first and 00:15:01.052 --> 00:15:02.280 done it best. 00:15:05.460 --> 00:15:07.076 And without God's love, 00:15:07.148 --> 00:15:11.400 there is no reason or purpose for any other love. 00:15:11.700 --> 00:15:13.140 So not only would it not exist, 00:15:13.140 --> 00:15:14.660 but there's no reason or purpose for it, 00:15:14.660 --> 00:15:18.380 right? Because again, 00:15:18.500 --> 00:15:19.196 CS Lewis, 00:15:19.228 --> 00:15:19.660 like I said, 00:15:19.660 --> 00:15:21.310 we want to quote him, 00:15:21.540 --> 00:15:24.276 if love is to be a blessing and not a misery, 00:15:24.276 --> 00:15:28.604 it's got to be founded on the only beloved who will never pass away, 00:15:28.604 --> 00:15:30.810 because everything else disintegrates, 00:15:32.750 --> 00:15:39.530 right? And it requires everything of you to love the way that God loves. 00:15:40.710 --> 00:15:41.870 Sinclair Ferguson said, 00:15:41.910 --> 00:15:46.838 God is never satisfied with anything less than the devotion of our whole 00:15:46.894 --> 00:15:50.010 lives for the whole duration of our lives, 00:15:51.230 --> 00:15:51.638 right? 00:15:51.694 --> 00:15:52.982 So from beginning to end, 00:15:52.982 --> 00:15:54.090 everything you have, 00:15:55.140 --> 00:15:57.804 that's what it takes to love like God loves. 00:15:57.804 --> 00:15:58.692 Because again, 00:15:58.836 --> 00:16:01.524 he's done it first and he's done it best. 00:16:01.524 --> 00:16:04.164 He is the example and that is that. 00:16:04.188 --> 00:16:05.188 Agape love. 00:16:05.324 --> 00:16:11.508 Okay, so this was a long intro, 00:16:11.684 --> 00:16:12.164 alright? 00:16:12.212 --> 00:16:14.192 But that was what is love? 00:16:14.252 --> 00:16:14.956 Because I tell you, 00:16:14.956 --> 00:16:16.388 like, I was thinking the other day, 00:16:16.388 --> 00:16:17.156 like how, 00:16:17.308 --> 00:16:19.612 and this is before I even found out I was going to be preaching, 00:16:19.612 --> 00:16:20.188 which I. 00:16:20.188 --> 00:16:21.902 It's just cool how God lines stuff up, 00:16:21.902 --> 00:16:23.630 but just thinking, 00:16:23.670 --> 00:16:27.650 like, how do you explain to a kid what love is, 00:16:28.150 --> 00:16:30.210 right? Like it. 00:16:30.590 --> 00:16:33.030 I'm thinking of my two and a half year old, 00:16:33.030 --> 00:16:33.360 right? 00:16:33.342 --> 00:16:36.566 Like he knows that whenever I say I love you, 00:16:36.566 --> 00:16:37.654 that. Well, 00:16:37.742 --> 00:16:39.710 the good answer is to say it back, 00:16:39.710 --> 00:16:42.130 right? But why? 00:16:43.110 --> 00:16:46.602 Does he really understand what's going on here? 00:16:46.726 --> 00:16:49.986 Does he understand this verbal transaction that we're doing? 00:16:50.138 --> 00:16:51.130 Does he understand, 00:16:51.250 --> 00:16:55.226 like, what all entails in being loved? 00:16:55.418 --> 00:16:57.550 And the thing is he doesn't, 00:16:57.970 --> 00:17:03.070 right? And sometimes we struggle to understand what love truly is. 00:17:03.930 --> 00:17:05.990 But we have the perfect example. 00:17:06.610 --> 00:17:12.042 So loving that godlike love towards God and towards others, 00:17:12.186 --> 00:17:12.634 right. 00:17:12.722 --> 00:17:16.510 That love that costs something and is given without merit. 00:17:17.010 --> 00:17:18.910 So the next question, 00:17:19.610 --> 00:17:21.138 I don't want to stray too far from this, 00:17:21.138 --> 00:17:22.514 but who do we love? 00:17:22.514 --> 00:17:24.834 Right. The answer is pretty simple. 00:17:24.882 --> 00:17:26.030 Jesus says it, 00:17:27.010 --> 00:17:28.270 God said it. 00:17:28.970 --> 00:17:29.730 He says, 00:17:29.850 --> 00:17:31.522 the Lord our God is one. 00:17:31.522 --> 00:17:34.190 You shall love the Lord your God. 00:17:35.970 --> 00:17:36.386 All right, 00:17:36.386 --> 00:17:36.802 next point, 00:17:36.802 --> 00:17:39.568 right. But the thing is, 00:17:39.584 --> 00:17:40.792 is that this is actually, 00:17:40.792 --> 00:17:42.104 it's a really personal question. 00:17:42.104 --> 00:17:43.424 Who do we love? 00:17:43.240 --> 00:17:45.960 Because the answers are varied, 00:17:46.120 --> 00:17:49.840 right? Because you have a million people in your life that you love. 00:17:49.840 --> 00:17:51.568 Maybe not a million literally, 00:17:51.624 --> 00:17:53.128 but a million figuratively. 00:17:53.264 --> 00:17:54.640 But between all of us, 00:17:54.640 --> 00:17:56.272 we probably do have a million people, 00:17:56.272 --> 00:17:59.572 right? There's a lot we can share love with people. 00:18:00.360 --> 00:18:01.144 And, you know, 00:18:01.144 --> 00:18:06.042 like, we can use the example of people going up to western North Carolina 00:18:06.106 --> 00:18:06.594 right now, 00:18:06.594 --> 00:18:08.244 right? We love those people, 00:18:10.450 --> 00:18:14.770 but it all stems out of that love for God. 00:18:14.930 --> 00:18:17.346 So to answer the question honestly, 00:18:17.538 --> 00:18:19.848 we've really got to analyze our priorities, 00:18:19.866 --> 00:18:23.026 right? So we were given a challenge, 00:18:23.218 --> 00:18:24.490 the pastoral group, 00:18:24.530 --> 00:18:29.488 whenever we were all coming up into ordination, 00:18:29.674 --> 00:18:32.800 right. We did a pastoral journey group. 00:18:33.100 --> 00:18:35.308 It was myself, 00:18:35.444 --> 00:18:36.660 Nick, John, 00:18:36.700 --> 00:18:39.000 McGew, Jordan. 00:18:39.620 --> 00:18:42.572 Yeah. And then Scott and Bobby were kind of leading it. 00:18:42.572 --> 00:18:43.960 They led both groups. 00:18:45.380 --> 00:18:49.340 But one of the questions that Bobby posed to us is what? 00:18:49.260 --> 00:18:53.684 Like, strip away everything that you think should be the answer and 00:18:53.732 --> 00:18:56.372 really analyze and give me a truthful answer. 00:18:56.372 --> 00:18:58.520 What are your priorities in life? 00:18:59.140 --> 00:19:01.668 And it really caused me to really think, 00:19:01.668 --> 00:19:02.380 because you have to think, 00:19:02.380 --> 00:19:03.636 where is my time, 00:19:03.636 --> 00:19:05.428 energy and money spent? 00:19:05.484 --> 00:19:09.444 Right? Because those will show you what your priorities are in life. 00:19:11.340 --> 00:19:12.268 And, you know, 00:19:12.268 --> 00:19:13.108 and I've always heard, 00:19:13.108 --> 00:19:14.044 too, now, 00:19:14.212 --> 00:19:16.524 as I've been growing up, 00:19:16.572 --> 00:19:17.252 you know, 00:19:17.396 --> 00:19:19.084 you have those three commodities, 00:19:19.172 --> 00:19:20.596 and at any point in time in life, 00:19:20.596 --> 00:19:22.060 you have to choose two. 00:19:22.060 --> 00:19:23.380 Time, energy and money. 00:19:23.420 --> 00:19:25.070 You can only have two, 00:19:25.420 --> 00:19:27.560 but where are those things spent? 00:19:28.080 --> 00:19:32.496 And what we talked about is the first priority has to be God, 00:19:32.608 --> 00:19:33.700 no matter what. 00:19:34.120 --> 00:19:35.136 Second priority, 00:19:35.208 --> 00:19:38.838 again, because it's a chosen love and not an obligatory love. 00:19:39.480 --> 00:19:41.584 Your wife has got to be second. 00:19:41.584 --> 00:19:44.360 That is the person you are tied to for life. 00:19:44.360 --> 00:19:45.888 Third, right, 00:19:46.024 --> 00:19:47.580 is kids. 00:19:48.520 --> 00:19:50.288 Fourth is, 00:19:50.464 --> 00:19:53.592 well, you can fill out the rest of it like, 00:19:53.592 --> 00:19:54.912 like you want to, 00:19:55.760 --> 00:19:57.096 whatever those priorities are. 00:19:57.128 --> 00:19:59.460 But top three are really important, 00:20:00.160 --> 00:20:03.460 and they kind of have to go in that order. 00:20:03.640 --> 00:20:06.672 Because the warning that Bobby gave us was, 00:20:06.776 --> 00:20:08.936 if you get any of those three out of order, 00:20:08.936 --> 00:20:11.246 you're bound to lose all of them, 00:20:11.600 --> 00:20:13.584 right? So God first, 00:20:13.712 --> 00:20:14.856 spouse second, 00:20:15.048 --> 00:20:16.900 kids and family third. 00:20:18.520 --> 00:20:19.448 Get those out of order, 00:20:19.448 --> 00:20:21.428 you're bound to lose all three. 00:20:22.160 --> 00:20:25.060 So who do we love then? 00:20:25.960 --> 00:20:27.280 Who do we love? 00:20:27.040 --> 00:20:28.380 What are your priorities? 00:20:28.920 --> 00:20:32.060 If we say God is number one, 00:20:32.680 --> 00:20:34.330 then we've got to think, 00:20:34.520 --> 00:20:37.720 we've got to really define that relationship, 00:20:37.880 --> 00:20:41.100 right? Because if he is. 00:20:42.040 --> 00:20:42.432 Hold on, 00:20:42.432 --> 00:20:43.400 let me look at my notes. 00:20:43.400 --> 00:20:45.024 If he is a personal God, 00:20:45.024 --> 00:20:48.822 if he is the God who created all of all things and resides outside of 00:20:48.822 --> 00:20:49.638 that creation, 00:20:49.734 --> 00:20:52.974 if he is the God that sent his son to die for you, 00:20:52.974 --> 00:20:58.286 then you must give him exactly what he demands because he's worthy of it 00:20:58.318 --> 00:21:00.006 and deserves all of it. 00:21:00.158 --> 00:21:03.710 Right? So what we have to do then is that, 00:21:03.790 --> 00:21:04.286 I mean, 00:21:04.286 --> 00:21:05.766 we've got to follow through. 00:21:05.766 --> 00:21:09.450 We have to fix our eyes on Jesus, 00:21:10.030 --> 00:21:12.822 right? Because we've got a point, 00:21:12.846 --> 00:21:14.826 our love in the right direction. 00:21:15.670 --> 00:21:16.410 So. 00:21:17.310 --> 00:21:19.918 And it's not just a challenge that we face today, 00:21:19.918 --> 00:21:25.990 right. I have a list right here of seven different examples throughout 00:21:26.030 --> 00:21:26.662 time of, 00:21:26.662 --> 00:21:33.374 again, quotes that people have said to point like our hearts are prone to 00:21:33.422 --> 00:21:37.930 wander. Even though God has given us so much, 00:21:38.720 --> 00:21:44.736 we still are prone to wander and put him in second or in third. 00:21:44.848 --> 00:21:46.960 Or man. 00:21:47.040 --> 00:21:48.030 Sometimes it sucks. 00:21:48.000 --> 00:21:49.568 But even further down the list, 00:21:49.568 --> 00:21:54.256 right? This is a problem common to man, 00:21:54.328 --> 00:21:59.056 unfortunately. Most recent example again, 00:21:59.168 --> 00:22:00.032 CS Lewis, 00:22:00.136 --> 00:22:01.328 in every wife, 00:22:01.464 --> 00:22:02.600 mother, child, 00:22:02.680 --> 00:22:03.824 I want to add father, 00:22:03.824 --> 00:22:07.992 spouse, just all of your relationships, 00:22:08.176 --> 00:22:10.980 there is a possible rival to God. 00:22:11.400 --> 00:22:14.370 We can make idols out of our closest family, 00:22:14.440 --> 00:22:17.580 friends, ideals. 00:22:19.400 --> 00:22:20.864 In the song come thou, 00:22:20.864 --> 00:22:21.960 Robert Robertson wrote, 00:22:22.000 --> 00:22:22.990 prone to wander, 00:22:23.096 --> 00:22:26.184 lord, I feel it prone to leave the God I love. 00:22:25.952 --> 00:22:27.620 That was in 1758. 00:22:28.480 --> 00:22:29.384 John Calvin said, 00:22:29.384 --> 00:22:30.168 in the 15 hundreds, 00:22:30.168 --> 00:22:32.980 the human heart is an idol factory, 00:22:33.790 --> 00:22:35.742 man. We can churn them out all day long, 00:22:35.742 --> 00:22:40.150 right? Paul in romans seven said, 00:22:40.310 --> 00:22:43.366 so I find it to be a law that when I want to do right, 00:22:43.366 --> 00:22:44.566 evil lies close at hand. 00:22:44.566 --> 00:22:47.150 For I delight in the law of my God and my inner being. 00:22:46.910 --> 00:22:50.540 Like, we know this is who we ought to long for. 00:22:53.350 --> 00:22:54.902 But I see in my members, 00:22:54.902 --> 00:22:55.438 in other words, 00:22:55.438 --> 00:22:56.630 my actions, 00:22:56.790 --> 00:22:59.810 just in my deepest, 00:23:01.430 --> 00:23:06.950 I see in my members another law waging war against the law of my mind and 00:23:06.990 --> 00:23:09.958 making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members, 00:23:09.958 --> 00:23:11.654 wretched man that I am, 00:23:11.702 --> 00:23:14.630 who will deliver me from this body of death. 00:23:14.630 --> 00:23:18.390 Right? So we've gone from the 19 hundreds all the way back to the first 00:23:18.390 --> 00:23:19.250 century already. 00:23:22.550 --> 00:23:25.182 Isaiah in 740 BC, 00:23:25.326 --> 00:23:25.918 he said, 00:23:25.918 --> 00:23:26.998 we all like sheep, 00:23:26.998 --> 00:23:27.822 have gone astray. 00:23:27.822 --> 00:23:30.792 Each of us has turned to our own way. 00:23:31.780 --> 00:23:35.372 Are y'all finding any kind of like, 00:23:35.396 --> 00:23:36.172 y'all feel this, 00:23:36.172 --> 00:23:43.276 right? We've all been here and then we can go all the way back to Adam 00:23:43.308 --> 00:23:43.900 and eve, 00:23:43.900 --> 00:23:48.852 they were the first ones who chose right to turn away from the God who 00:23:48.876 --> 00:23:52.484 had given them anything and everything they could have ever wanted. 00:23:52.484 --> 00:23:54.680 And he only had one rule, 00:23:55.300 --> 00:23:56.620 don't eat the fruit. 00:23:59.040 --> 00:24:01.496 It just goes to show us like it is, 00:24:01.496 --> 00:24:11.300 if for some reason we have this ease of falling into non love for God, 00:24:11.600 --> 00:24:16.376 we have this ease of falling into chasing after things that aren't good 00:24:16.408 --> 00:24:17.080 for us, 00:24:17.200 --> 00:24:22.580 we have this ease of loving other things more than we love God. 00:24:23.920 --> 00:24:27.960 And it's not unique to us in this day and age. 00:24:28.120 --> 00:24:30.100 It's not because of cell phones, 00:24:30.480 --> 00:24:33.344 it's not because of the economy, 00:24:33.432 --> 00:24:34.784 it's not because of politics, 00:24:34.784 --> 00:24:37.480 it's not because of any of those things. 00:24:37.600 --> 00:24:39.256 They might aid it a little bit, 00:24:39.256 --> 00:24:40.200 but I tell you what, 00:24:40.200 --> 00:24:42.300 it's not because of those things. 00:24:42.760 --> 00:24:43.904 It's because it's in here. 00:24:43.784 --> 00:24:48.074 And that's something that we have to wage war against every single day. 00:24:48.450 --> 00:24:49.298 Right? Again, 00:24:49.394 --> 00:24:50.842 going back to that second point, 00:24:50.842 --> 00:24:52.658 it is premeditated delight. 00:24:52.714 --> 00:24:57.790 We've got to decide beforehand that we're going to love God, 00:24:58.970 --> 00:25:01.826 because Jesus said in Luke 1426, 00:25:01.858 --> 00:25:04.722 if anyone comes to me and does not hate father and mother, 00:25:04.722 --> 00:25:05.690 wife and children, 00:25:05.690 --> 00:25:06.650 brothers and sisters, 00:25:06.650 --> 00:25:08.242 yes, even their own lives, 00:25:08.242 --> 00:25:10.630 such a person cannot be my disciple. 00:25:11.370 --> 00:25:12.074 In other words, 00:25:12.074 --> 00:25:15.930 you've got to love God above everything else, 00:25:16.750 --> 00:25:18.646 and you don't have to literally hate him. 00:25:18.438 --> 00:25:20.622 That's not what he's trying to get across. 00:25:20.622 --> 00:25:25.198 What he's trying to get across is that in comparison to our love for God, 00:25:25.198 --> 00:25:28.168 it should almost look like we hate everybody else, 00:25:28.430 --> 00:25:30.550 but we're commanded to love other people, 00:25:30.550 --> 00:25:31.250 right? 00:25:33.630 --> 00:25:35.590 So going back to deuteronomy six, 00:25:35.590 --> 00:25:37.330 you shall love the Lord. 00:25:38.190 --> 00:25:38.886 And right there, 00:25:38.886 --> 00:25:40.216 the Lord is Yahweh, 00:25:40.318 --> 00:25:42.400 right? It's that personal God. 00:25:43.380 --> 00:25:45.028 You shall love the Lord. 00:25:45.028 --> 00:25:45.756 Your protector, 00:25:45.788 --> 00:25:46.448 your caregiver, 00:25:46.452 --> 00:25:47.260 your accountability, 00:25:47.380 --> 00:25:48.020 your God, 00:25:48.020 --> 00:25:48.964 the elohim, 00:25:49.012 --> 00:25:49.628 the creator, 00:25:49.628 --> 00:25:50.840 the powerful one. 00:25:51.340 --> 00:25:52.440 Oh, man. 00:25:53.060 --> 00:25:56.840 Okay, I got. 00:25:57.140 --> 00:25:57.748 What is that, 00:25:57.748 --> 00:25:58.680 five minutes? 00:26:00.420 --> 00:26:01.560 Not anymore. 00:26:05.220 --> 00:26:07.860 Good thing my third point's a short one. 00:26:10.010 --> 00:26:10.794 We've got to love him, 00:26:10.794 --> 00:26:14.162 y'all. The last question I'm going to ask is, 00:26:14.266 --> 00:26:15.586 how do we love, 00:26:16.690 --> 00:26:17.146 you know, 00:26:17.146 --> 00:26:17.978 because that's a big thing, 00:26:17.978 --> 00:26:21.210 to know what love is and to know who to love, 00:26:21.210 --> 00:26:22.634 but how you love him, 00:26:22.634 --> 00:26:23.954 that's the real kicker, 00:26:23.962 --> 00:26:26.594 because that's where it comes into actually living it out, 00:26:26.594 --> 00:26:30.870 right? Because it's no good to anybody if it's all up here. 00:26:31.690 --> 00:26:36.276 Don't be just hearers of the word but doers also, 00:26:36.428 --> 00:26:40.372 right? And it's a quick and easy question to answer. 00:26:40.476 --> 00:26:41.840 How you love somebody, 00:26:42.700 --> 00:26:43.436 and honestly, 00:26:43.468 --> 00:26:45.436 I'm going to give you a quick and easy answer. 00:26:45.436 --> 00:26:47.086 It's a real simple thing. 00:26:47.460 --> 00:26:48.796 It's just not easy to do, 00:26:48.796 --> 00:26:51.436 right? Pastor Nick says that all the time. 00:26:52.100 --> 00:26:57.800 And really the first answer is to truly just take delight in the Lord, 00:26:58.870 --> 00:26:59.610 right? 00:27:00.670 --> 00:27:03.510 Do you actually delight in spending time with him, 00:27:03.510 --> 00:27:06.014 in spending time in his word, 00:27:06.062 --> 00:27:07.086 in prayer, 00:27:07.198 --> 00:27:08.126 in meditation, 00:27:08.198 --> 00:27:09.798 in spending time with his people, 00:27:09.798 --> 00:27:11.690 in coming here to worship? 00:27:12.310 --> 00:27:13.970 Take delight in it, 00:27:14.510 --> 00:27:16.278 right? Just like you do in your spouse, 00:27:16.278 --> 00:27:17.606 you spend time with them. 00:27:17.606 --> 00:27:18.918 And the more time you spend with them, 00:27:18.918 --> 00:27:20.568 the more delight you have. 00:27:20.790 --> 00:27:21.530 Right? 00:27:21.910 --> 00:27:22.838 So take delight. 00:27:22.838 --> 00:27:23.678 The second thing, 00:27:23.678 --> 00:27:25.090 learn from the master. 00:27:25.520 --> 00:27:27.552 The person who did it best was Jesus, 00:27:27.552 --> 00:27:31.496 right? He would get away early to pray because he took delight in 00:27:31.496 --> 00:27:33.146 spending time with the father. 00:27:34.000 --> 00:27:36.672 So use Jesus example. 00:27:36.856 --> 00:27:37.872 Ask yourself, 00:27:38.016 --> 00:27:39.808 and I think I said this the last time I preached. 00:27:39.808 --> 00:27:40.798 I don't think, 00:27:40.944 --> 00:27:41.568 you know, 00:27:41.568 --> 00:27:46.518 WWJD became a trope in the nineties and we kind of quit using it because 00:27:46.920 --> 00:27:48.200 I don't know why. 00:27:48.200 --> 00:27:50.008 I think it's a good question to ask ourselves, 00:27:50.008 --> 00:27:51.680 what would jesus do in this minute, 00:27:51.680 --> 00:27:52.680 in this moment? 00:27:55.500 --> 00:27:59.692 Because I want to have and encourage you guys to live a life where we can 00:27:59.692 --> 00:28:02.140 say, no reserves, 00:28:02.220 --> 00:28:02.868 no retreats, 00:28:02.868 --> 00:28:03.756 no regrets. 00:28:03.868 --> 00:28:05.364 Something. William Borden, 00:28:05.532 --> 00:28:06.640 he was a. 00:28:09.420 --> 00:28:10.084 Oh, jeez, 00:28:10.132 --> 00:28:11.212 I lost the word. 00:28:11.212 --> 00:28:12.628 Anyway, he went around, 00:28:12.764 --> 00:28:13.700 he was a missionary. 00:28:13.700 --> 00:28:15.236 I don't know why I couldn't think of that word. 00:28:15.236 --> 00:28:16.324 He was a missionary, 00:28:16.324 --> 00:28:17.204 went around the world, 00:28:17.204 --> 00:28:18.220 preached the gospel. 00:28:18.340 --> 00:28:19.004 But I tell you what, 00:28:19.004 --> 00:28:19.548 he gave up, 00:28:19.548 --> 00:28:19.828 you know, 00:28:19.828 --> 00:28:23.172 Borden milk that you see in the grocery aisle or borden cheese or any of 00:28:23.172 --> 00:28:23.604 that. 00:28:23.732 --> 00:28:27.362 He gave up that empire to go and preach the gospel. 00:28:27.860 --> 00:28:30.388 That was a big empire back in the day, 00:28:30.388 --> 00:28:31.132 in his time. 00:28:31.132 --> 00:28:34.556 And he gave it all up because he knew that God had called him to do 00:28:34.556 --> 00:28:35.356 something else. 00:28:35.508 --> 00:28:39.138 And he loved him so much that he gave up everything. 00:28:39.780 --> 00:28:40.520 Right? 00:28:40.820 --> 00:28:43.460 Doesn't that sound like our definition of agape love? 00:28:43.460 --> 00:28:44.780 It cost him something. 00:28:45.980 --> 00:28:49.940 It sounds like the kind of love that Jesus is talking about. 00:28:50.230 --> 00:28:50.934 So let me tell you, 00:28:50.934 --> 00:28:52.678 the last thing you got to do is actually follow through. 00:28:52.678 --> 00:28:56.130 So take delight and follow through. 00:28:56.710 --> 00:28:58.360 Plan for the long haul, 00:28:58.790 --> 00:29:00.982 because it's not a sprint, 00:29:01.046 --> 00:29:02.696 right? This is a marathon. 00:29:03.190 --> 00:29:06.374 Whether we live 25 years like William Borden did, 00:29:06.502 --> 00:29:08.650 or if we live to 125, 00:29:09.510 --> 00:29:10.830 it's a long haul. 00:29:11.870 --> 00:29:13.520 Marriage isn't easy that long. 00:29:13.990 --> 00:29:17.080 A relationship with Goddesse isn't easy that long, 00:29:17.240 --> 00:29:18.560 but it's worth it. 00:29:19.440 --> 00:29:24.816 So take premeditated delight and then share your passion with other 00:29:24.848 --> 00:29:27.128 people. That's how you can show what you truly love, 00:29:27.128 --> 00:29:32.432 too. That's why we wear t shirts with NFL teams on them. 00:29:32.576 --> 00:29:37.196 That's why we get foam fingers and go and stand in the freezing cold, 00:29:38.440 --> 00:29:40.664 right? And root for our favorite teams. 00:29:40.472 --> 00:29:44.048 That's why we go to concerts and spend an inordinate amount of money. 00:29:44.048 --> 00:29:45.560 They're not $20 tickets anymore, 00:29:45.600 --> 00:29:51.346 y'all. But it's because we love those things and we should love God even 00:29:51.378 --> 00:29:51.950 more. 00:29:54.570 --> 00:29:55.898 Don't forget to do it. 00:29:55.898 --> 00:29:57.674 That's the very last point I have, 00:29:57.674 --> 00:30:00.482 and I have got to end now because I am probably four minutes over. 00:30:00.482 --> 00:30:04.762 So let's pray and then I'll get morning glory to come on back up. 00:30:04.762 --> 00:30:06.802 God, we thank you for this morning. 00:30:06.802 --> 00:30:10.946 God, we thank you for showing and sharing in your word, 00:30:11.058 --> 00:30:15.962 God, the encouragement to love you, 00:30:15.986 --> 00:30:16.314 God. 00:30:16.186 --> 00:30:17.066 And not just the encouragement, 00:30:17.066 --> 00:30:18.906 but the command to love you, 00:30:18.906 --> 00:30:20.634 God. We don't do it out of obligation. 00:30:20.634 --> 00:30:26.778 We do it because you care for us and because you've shown us how we do 00:30:26.794 --> 00:30:27.138 it, God, 00:30:27.138 --> 00:30:29.230 because you deserve it. 00:30:29.810 --> 00:30:30.370 So, God, 00:30:30.370 --> 00:30:33.610 help us to love you the way that you love us. 00:30:33.610 --> 00:30:37.550 God, help us to take premeditated delight in you. 00:30:38.900 --> 00:30:40.636 Help us to want to spend time with you. 00:30:40.636 --> 00:30:42.524 Help us to want to be with your people. 00:30:42.524 --> 00:30:45.494 Help us to love the way that you love. 00:30:47.540 --> 00:30:48.044 And, God, 00:30:48.044 --> 00:30:50.380 we just pray that you would be with us this week. 00:30:50.380 --> 00:30:52.004 Help us not to forget these words, 00:30:52.004 --> 00:30:52.804 not my words, 00:30:52.804 --> 00:30:53.540 but God, 00:30:53.580 --> 00:30:54.240 your words, 00:30:54.260 --> 00:30:55.716 that we should love the Lord our God, 00:30:55.716 --> 00:30:56.636 with all of our heart, 00:30:56.636 --> 00:30:57.628 soul, mind and strength, 00:30:57.628 --> 00:31:00.772 with everything that we have within us. 00:31:00.916 --> 00:31:02.412 God, we ought to love you. 00:31:02.412 --> 00:31:04.062 Help us to do it. 00:31:05.030 --> 00:31:06.020 We thank you. 00:31:05.910 --> 00:31:06.630 We love you. 00:31:06.630 --> 00:31:08.246 It's in Jesus beautiful and precious name. 00:31:08.246 --> 00:31:08.886 We pray. 00:31:08.886 --> 00:31:09.190 Amen.