Love One Another Womens Ministries Department General Conference of the Seventh-day Adventists 2009 Abuse Prevention Emphasis Day

Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. I John 4:7-11 (NIV)

As Christians God gives each of us a choice. Remember the words of Joshua to the children of Israel in Joshua 24:15 And if it seem evil unto you to serve the LORD, choose you this day whom ye will serve.

LIVING IN A PAINFUL WORLD We live in a world filled with pain, suffering and evil of every kind. But we serve a mighty God. A God who is concerned with everything that concerns us. A God who gives us hope and joy in a world longing for peace and healing. A God who loves us.

The Bible text reminds us, Fear not; I am with you, I am He that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive forevermore Rev 1:18.What a beautiful reminder. It doesnt matter where we are today, God is with us.

1 John 5:18, 19 says, There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear…We love Him because He first loved us. Once we are filled with the love of God we dont have to fear.

But for many in this world fear is their constant companion, they have not experienced the love of God; and that is why on this Abuse Prevention Emphasis day we are going to take a closer look at the violence that women in our time and Bible times had to suffer

As we do this we must ask ourselves, What can I do to help? How can I make a difference? How can I love in a healing way.

Definition of the term violence against women, as voted by the United Nations General Assembly in …violence against women" means any act of gender- based violence that results in, or is likely to result in, physical, sexual or psychological harm or suffering to women, including threats of such acts, coercion or arbitrary deprivation of liberty, whether occurring in public or in private life.

There are many stories in the Bible of women who suffered abuse of various kinds; we just spoke about Tamar, daughter-in-law of Judah (Genesis 38). Theres the story of Jepthas daughter (Judges 11); the Woman Caught in Adultery (John 8); the Woman at the Well (John 4); the Levites Concubine (Judges 19);

Tamar, daughter of King David who was raped by her brother (2 Samuel 13); Hagar, Sarahs servant (Genesis 16); Dinah, daughter of Jacob (Genesis 34); and Hannah mother of Samuel (1 Samuel 1). And these are just some of stories of abuse against women found in the Bible.

Come on a journey with me as we take a closer look at this problem of violence against women that has scourged the earth from its ancient times to present day.

Dinah, daughter of Jacob (Genesis 34) Read with me Genesis 34:1-2 Now Dinah the daughter of Leah, whom she had borne to Jacob, went out to see the daughters of the land. And when Shechem the son of Hamor the Hivite, prince of the country, saw her, he took her and lay with her, and violated her.

One of the missing elements in this story was respect. Respect for Dinah, respect for the request of Hamor and Shechem to make right their wrong, respect for the sanctity of human life, and respect for their father Jacob.

E. G. White tells us that we should, Cherish the love of Jesus in the heart, respect each other, for Christ has given His life for you. Every soul is precious in the sight of God. It is a wonderful thing to be remembered and cared for every hour by God. 7 Manuscript p 204

Did you know that in the United States a woman is raped every six minutes? Did you know that that in Peru, 90% of 12 to 16 year old girls giving birth were pregnant from rape and often incest? Did you know that in South Africa a sex crime happens every twenty seconds?

Hagar, servant of Sarah (Genesis 16) and 16:4 Then Sarai, Abrams wife, took Hagar her maid, the Egyptian, and gave her to her husband Abram to be his wife, after Abram had dwelt ten years in the land of Canaan. So he went in to Hagar, and she conceived. And when she saw that she had conceived, her mistress became despised in her eyes.

Hannah, mother of Samuel (1 Samuel 1) 1:7 And her rival also provoked her severely, to make her miserable, because the Lord had closed her womb. So it was, year by year, when she went up to the house of the Lord, that she provoked her; therefore she wept and did not eat.

But what did God do in each of these situations To Hagar he said I will multiply your descendants exceedingly… (vs 10). God made a promise to Hagar. To Hannah, God made her a promise through the priest Eli that she would have a son and she promised to return her son to God.

Four cases of abuse against women 1.Tamar, daughter-in-law of Judah – abuse of power 2.Dinah, daughter of Jacob – sexual abuse, abuse of power 3.Hagar, servant of Sarai 4. Hannah mother of Samuel – emotional abuse by another woman

LOVE ONE ANOTHER Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. He who does not love does not know God, for God is love. 1 John 4: 7 – 9

No one has seen God at any time. If we love one another, God abides in us, and His love has been perfected in us. By this we know that we abide in Him, and He in us, because He has given us of His Spirit. And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent the Son as Savior of the world. 1 John 4. Look at verse 12 to 16:

Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. And we have known and believed the love that God has for us. God is love, and he who abides in love abides in God, and God in him.

So what can we do? Recognize that gender-based violence is a tremendous evil, that it is never acceptable and cannot be condoned. Help raise awareness. Share materials about gender-based violence with your church and surrounding community

Provide ongoing support to a local womens shelter or other organization benefitting victims of gender-based violence. Prison Ministries – ministering to the abuser Care for hurting people in our church. Be non- judgmental. Develop support groups.

We can show Gods love.