6/1/25 “Obedient Love”
“Obedient Love”
John 15:9-17
If any of you were watching the news this past week, you may have heard about a story that came out of Seattle, Washington…
It involved a group of evangelical Christians who decided to hold a peaceful worship event last Saturday at Cal Anderson Park…near downtown Seattle…
One of the purposes of the event was to shed light upon the growing anti-Christian (Specifically…Anti-Biblical) sentiment being experienced in the Seattle community…
In response to this worship service, a couple of groups holding opposing views held a demonstration across the street…
…protesting – specifically - what they believed was going to be hate-speech directed towards members of the LGBTQ community…
When the city received word that these groups were planning on demonstrating near the worship service…
…The Seattle police were called in to form a line of defense around the worship service…
Unfortunately, however, some of the anti-Christian protesters circumvented the police lines, throwing projectiles at the worshippers…
Many shouted profanities…others made threats…
Some even attempted to assault worshippers while they were leaving the park.
In all, about 25 people were arrested and taken into custody…and a few police officers were injured.
One thing that caught my eye while looking at some of the pictures from that day were 2 specific signs being displayed…
These signs had very similar messages…
…however…they were being displayed by people with opposing ideologies.
Both signs spoke of “God” and “Love”
A sign being held by one of the worshippers said “God loves you”
…While the sign being held by the demonstrator said “God is Love”
…at first I had to take a moment to process the irony of the situation…
Someone displaying a sign that speaks of love…
while at the same time…aligning themselves with people who were attempting to inflict harm upon others…
It also made me think about how people today view the nature of God…and the definition of Love.
Who is God?....and What is Love?
These sign-carrying individuals seem to have very different ideas regarding both of these words…
This seems to be indicative of the culture in general.
If you were to ask 10 random people the question “Who is God?”…you will most likely receive 10 very different answers.
To some, God is just an impersonal force…kind of like the ‘Force’ in Star Wars.
He’s a distant, cold, manager of the cosmos who really doesn’t have time to deal with the lives of individual human beings.
To some, God is in all the things we see around us….
Trees, mountains, rivers, oceans, the air, the ground, the spider I just stepped on…kind of an eastern mystical ‘God is in everything’ philosophy.
To others, God is in the mirror…
They probably wouldn’t admit to thinking of themselves as god…
…but if all of their decisions glorify, satisfy, and indulge the person looking back at them in the mirror…then they are serving that person…they are – by definition - their own god.
To some, God is emotion. Whatever they feel like doing…that becomes ‘their truth’….and with it comes obedience to that truth.
God is a slippery word…a culturally malleable title – and it can mean very different things to different people.
Unfortunately, many people today are ignorant of – or simply choose to ignore – the biblical revelation of who God is.
Thank God we have a book that clearly defines who He is…and what He does.
Thinking correctly about God is of utmost importance – because an incorrect or incomplete idea about God is nothing short of idolatry.
So…who is God? (According to the Bible)
Well…Overall, God is the Supreme being…the creator and ruler of all that is, the self-existent One who is perfect in power, goodness, and wisdom.
God also exists in three persons; God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit….
The account of Jesus’ baptism in Matthew chapter three gives us a beautiful image of the Triune Godhead all taking part in one event.
God is infinite. The apostle Paul says in 1 Timothy 1:17 says “Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory for ever and ever. Amen.”
God is incomparable. King David says in 2 Samuel 7:22 “How great you are, O Sovereign Lord! There is no one like you, and there is no God but you, as we have heard with our own ears.”
God is unchanging. Malachi 3:6 says “I the Lord do not change.”
God is omnipresent. Psalm 139:7-8 says “Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? If I go up to the heavens, you are there. If I make my bed in the depths, you are there.”
God is omniscient. Psalm 147:5 says, “Great is our Lord and mighty in power; His understanding has no limit.”
God is omnipotent. Genesis 1:1 says, “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.”
God is just. Acts 17:31 says, “For He has set a day when He will judge the world with justice…”
God is loving. Ephesians 2:4-5 says, “But because of His great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions…”
God is holy. 1 John 1:5 says, “….God is light; in Him there is no darkness at all.”
..And finally, God walked among us in the person of Jesus…
…Jesus says in John 14:6-7, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. If you really knew me, you would know my Father as well. From now on, you do know Him and have seen him.”
When we look at Jesus…we are looking at - God.
Folks, what is written about Jesus is the key to understanding who God is.
…Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John provide a way for all of humanity to really know who God is….
…but – sadly – many people today believe they can know something about God outside of these books.
…and this is why our culture is so confused about God…and who He is…
…because we have stopped reading and respecting this book.
This book is no longer respected in public schools…it is no longer respected in the court of law…it is no longer respected as the final authority on life.
…and we have seen the cultural collateral damage in the form of increased depression, suicide, gender confusion, anxiety, hopelessness, drug abuse, alcoholism, etc. etc. etc.
So….if this is who God is…then, how about the other key word on those signs seen in Seattle?....
…What is - Love?
Love is what our passage for today from John chapter 15 deals with…
Jesus mentions the word ‘love’ or ‘loved’ 9 times in the span of our 9 verses for today.
Love was obviously very important to Jesus…
…but, what is love?...how do we go about defining it?
Over the years…man has made many attempts to discover what love is…through books, movies, poems, songs.
Back in 1984, the rock group ‘Foreigner’ actually recorded a song called “I Want to Know What Love Is”…..(and they want someone to show them) 😊
In 1961, Elvis recorded a song we often still hear today “Can’t Help falling in Love”
Back in the 50’s there was a film and song both titled “Love is a Many-Splendored Thing”….well, that narrows the definition down for us, right?
In the 60’s, the Supremes told us to “Stop in the Name of Love.”
In the 70’s, Larry Gatlin & the Gatlin brothers told us that “Love is Just a Game”
In the 80’s singer Pat Benatar sang that “Love is a Battlefield.”
In the 90’s, a group called Haddaway had a dance hit with a song that was actually called “What is Love?”….
…By the way, this song has very deep, meaningful lyrics…the Chorus goes like this: What is love, baby, don’t hurt me, Don’t hurt me no more. What is love? Oh, baby don’t hurt me, don’t hurt me, no more….
…(And this is where it gets really good) woah, woah, woah, woah, Oh, woah, woah, woah…uh-huh.”
I don’t know how you get more specific than that! 😊
Obviously, man on his own has tried to define what love is…but never truly understanding its full meaning.
For that – as always – we need to go back to scripture.
…And our passage for today helps us to tighten our spiritual grasp on what love truly is.
Look at verses 9-10 (John 15:9-10) “As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father’s commands and remain in His love.”
First of all, what does Jesus mean when he says that he has loved his disciples in the same way that the Father has loved him…what does this look like in day-to-day application.
Let’s think about some of the things that Jesus did for others.
First off, he showed compassion. When Mary & Martha are grieving over the loss of their brother Lazarus, Jesus grieves with them.
Jesus protected others. On two occasions, Jesus calms the storm while the disciples are out on the Sea of Galilee….a demonstration of love through shielding his friends from the elements.
Jesus showed forgiveness. He tells the woman who was caught in adultery in John chapter 8 that she is no longer condemned…but to go and sin no more.
Jesus taught his disciples. One of the ways we can show love to others is by teaching them in the ways of spiritual truth.
…If someone in your life took the time to read you Bible stories when you were a child…or gently corrected you when your decisions were not aligning with God’s Word….this was an act of immense love & compassion.
Jesus served his disciples. Just a couple of chapters earlier in John 13, we see Jesus wash the dirty feet of his own pupils…an amazing act of humility and love!
And last – but certainly not least – Jesus lovingly sacrifices his own life for all of mankind…
…so that all people…across all time periods…would be able to inherit eternal salvation - if - they choose to respond in faith to the one true God.
Jesus says in our passage for today in verse 13 (John 15:13) “Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.”
Jesus is being obedient to the Father’s plan & moral commands….
…and obedience seems to be a central component of what love truly consists of.
Again, he says in verse 10 (John 15:10) “If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love.”
…and in verse 12 (John 15:12) He states “My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you.”
These verses paint a clear picture of how love needs to be firmly rooted in obedience…without obedience to God’s moral law…true love cannot exist.
In other words, if we emulate the characteristics of love that Jesus continually displayed: Compassion, protection, forgiveness, instruction, service & sacrifice…
…and combine them with the attributes of love that the apostle Paul writes of in 1 Corinthians chapter 13:
“Love is patient, love is kind, it does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud, it is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. (1 Corinthians 13:4-7)
If we combine all of these attributes…we end up with a mosaic of what love truly is….
….and the material that the mosaic of love is made out of – that material must be…obedience.
Another way to put it would be to think of a graduation ceremony…there’s quite a few of those going on this time of year…
…think of each graduate crossing the stage as a different attribute of love (Patience, kindness, forgiveness, instruction, etc) …
…different aspects of love…..all holding a diploma that says the exact same thing…
…the diploma common to all of them…would be obedience.
…different people – with one common element uniting them.
All of the attributes of true love lose their meaning if they are not united and rooted in obedience to God.
Returning to the two signs in Seattle.
The individual who was holding the sign saying “God is Love” probably isn’t thinking about love needing to be rooted in God’s moral commands.
…especially standing in a group of people who are celebrating their choice to engage in lifestyles that are contrary to what God’s word clearly teaches.
As many of you know, today begins the month each year when our society enhances its efforts to recognize and celebrate lifestyles that are in direct opposition to God’s commands regarding marriage and human sexuality.
To many people, love simply means accepting…and celebrating…the choices of others – even if these choices are rooted in moral disobedience.
As followers of Jesus, we are called to love everyone…we are told to reflect the attributes of obedient love to all people…
…however, we are also told that we must not celebrate the choices of others that run contrary to the explicit teachings of scripture.
Paul discusses these kinds of sinful choices in Romans chapter 1, where he ends the chapter with these words: “Although they know God’s righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them.” (Romans 1:32)
Look at the final 8 words of this verse.
‘but also approve of those who practice them’
Folks, we as bible-believing Christians need to take these words very seriously.
Paul is essentially saying here that if we give moral consent to any of the sins mentioned in Romans chapter one – which, by the way, aren’t just sins involving unnatural, perverted human sexuality….
….he also mentions idolatry, envy, gossiping, pride…any of these hitting home?
…If we give consent to any of these sins – in our lives, or anyone else’s life – scripture says we fall under condemnation.
…those are heavy words, folks.
This is why love needs to be completely rooted in obedience.
…And it is this obedience to a higher moral standard that causes the world to rise up in aggressive defiance to the proclamation of God’s word…
It is this obedience to a higher moral standard that causes people to toss urine-filled balloons on families who are singing praise songs in a city park…while – all the while - holding signs referencing God and love.
It is this obedience to a higher moral standard that will undoubtedly bring heightened cultural and legal persecution to bible-believing, truth-proclaiming churches…like ours.
I pray that we will be ready to experience that kind of persecution, should it ever come our way.
Sadly…there are many pastors, churches - entire denominations - that have chosen to ignore the obvious teachings of scripture in passages such as Romans chapter 1…
…all in the attempt to remain culturally relevant and inoffensive to everyone.
Pual warns of this in 2 Timothy 4:3 when he says “For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear.”
We live amongst a large percentage of people today who want nothing more than to suit their own desires…
…they crave the lane of sinful self-indulgence…the path of least spiritual resistance.
…and they want everyone else to approve of disobedient decisions of depravity.
Folks, we as Christ-followers are called to a higher moral standard.
…and because of that, you will run across people who simply do not like you because of what you stand for – and who you follow.
Our sermon passage for next week begins with these words of Jesus: “If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first.” (John 15:18)
Darkness will always despise the light….because light reveals sin.
Light reveals the mold of depravity growing deep in the basement of the human heart…
Mankind hates submission…it hates the idea that we all need a savior.
Like the young rich ruler, we so often walk away from the truth of the gospel because we are so caught up in our own pride and self-indulgence.
The second sign in Seattle said “God Loves You”
This is true in a general sense…God does indeed love His creation…
…however, in a salvific sense, the sign would be more correct if it read: “God loves you as you abide in Him”
Someone once said that love is like a river running between the banks of obedience and truth.
Obedience and truth direct love in the way it should go.
Within its banks, love is indeed a many splendored thing…it actually becomes the most precious commodity on earth.
But when love runs over the banks of obedience and truth, it causes flooding.
…and flooding destroys.
As both this village and the village of Rock Springs have seen, flooding can devastate an entire community.
…So – also - can love, when it goes unchecked.
…fueled by the torrential rains of emotion and self-gratification, love that rises above its banks has the power to destroy everything in its wake.
Love for someone else’s spouse will lead to spiritual destruction.
Love outside of God’s original design for marriage will lead to spiritual destruction.
Love for money will lead to spiritual destruction.
Love for an idol will lead to spiritual destruction.
Love for man’s godless philosophies will lead to spiritual destruction.
Love is like fire…it’s beautiful and extremely useful when contained within healthy boundaries…
…but love can be an absolute beast of destruction when it becomes a raging forest fire of uncontained liberty and license.
Brothers and Sisters…don’t let the culture deceive you into believing that love must also equate to acceptance and celebration of sin.
Jesus spent a significant amount of time showing love to people who were choosing to live in such a way that was contrary to God’s moral standard…
…yet he never condoned their behavior.
Let us strive to do the same.
…Let us carry the banner of love rooted in obedience…and truth rooted in God’s word…to a lost and desperate world.
Let’s Pray.