1 The things that we are going to study together today are particularly hard-hitting and life-changing. Let’s all ask the Lord to make what we learn today relevant to our hearts and our choice. I want you to think very deeply about what we will see, and I want you open your hearts to our message today on how LOVE is the first benefit to becoming a disciple of Jesus.

2 “Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. The one who does not love does not know God, for God is love. By this the love of God was manifested in us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world so that we might live through Him. In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has seen God at any time; if we love one another, God abides in us, and His love is perfected in us. By this we know that we abide in Him and He in us, because He has given us of His Spirit. We have seen and testify that the Father has sent the Son to be the Savior of the world. Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. We have come to know and have believed the love which God has for us. God is love, and the one who abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him. By this, love is perfected with us, so that we may have confidence in the day of judgment; because as He is, so also are we in this world.” 1John 4:7–17

3 Let’s continue our study of what “perfects love” in us.

4 “Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. The one who does not love does not know God, for God is love. By this the love of God was manifested in us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world so that we might live through Him. In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has seen God at any time; if we love one another, God abides in us, and His love is perfected in us. By this we know that we abide in Him and He in us, because He has given us of His Spirit. We have seen and testify that the Father has sent the Son to be the Savior of the world. Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. We have come to know and have believed the love which God has for us. God is love, and the one who abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him. By this, love is perfected with us, so that we may have confidence in the day of judgment; because as He is, so also are we in this world.” 1John 4:7–17 That is, as we love others with the love that the Lord has breathed into us, we are strengthened and we pass on to other starving people what has given life to us, and are thus ready to take our next breath of life. In other words, as we choose to focus on our Lord and submit our hearts and thoughts to Him, He actually loves through us. As we love others as He shares His love with us and in us, we continue walking away from the one thing that propagates our miserable slavery: loving ourselves. Thus as we love others, His love is perfected or “completed” in us.

5 “Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. The one who does not love does not know God, for God is love. By this the love of God was manifested in us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world so that we might live through Him. In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has seen God at any time; if we love one another, God abides in us, and His love is perfected in us. By this we know that we abide in Him and He in us, because He has given us of His Spirit. We have seen and testify that the Father has sent the Son to be the Savior of the world. Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. We have come to know and have believed the love which God has for us. God is love, and the one who abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him. By this, love is perfected with us, so that we may have confidence in the day of judgment; because as He is, so also are we in this world.” 1John 4:7–17 That is, the love that we need so desperately is freely given to us, if we will receive it from Him. As a new-born baby has to breathe once it is delivered from the womb, so too we must choose to receive the breath of life from God and begin that constant process of breathing in Jesus and breathing Him out until we die and step into the eternal state. But any way you look at it, the simple fact is that the love you receive from God, the one that has the power to satisfy, fulfill and provide rest to the soul, originates and exists only in God. Similarly, the love that we would like to give to our beloved mates, children, grandchildren and friends, also originates and exists only in God. Therefore, the only way for you to truly love, is to receive it, breathing it in and out first in your intimacy with God, and then to others. Anything short of that is actually self-love and will ultimately fail – in any relationship it engages.

6 “Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. The one who does not love does not know God, for God is love. By this the love of God was manifested in us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world so that we might live through Him. In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has seen God at any time; if we love one another, God abides in us, and His love is perfected in us. By this we know that we abide in Him and He in us, because He has given us of His Spirit. We have seen and testify that the Father has sent the Son to be the Savior of the world. Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. We have come to know and have believed the love which God has for us. God is love, and the one who abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him. By this, love is perfected with us, so that we may have confidence in the day of judgment; because as He is, so also are we in this world.” 1John 4:7–17 But what about those who don’t really have an intimate relationship with God, who aren’t breathing in and out the love that originates only with God, who seem to have great relationships with their mates? What are they sharing if they aren’t sharing a love they have received from God? They are actually sharing a self-centered love that will function and look good until what selfishness demands is no longer being supplied by the other party. This is one of the greatest causes of relationship failure that we see today. It is counterfeit because it originates in selfish human need.

7 How can you identify relationships you engage with counterfeit self-love? Those will be the ones where selfishness comes out in forms like anger and rejection when the self does not get what it wants. You will always find anger, manipulation and isolation in relationships where the flesh is counterfeiting love, especially when the circumstances surrounding the relationship are less than optimal. When circumstances are optimal, like when people are newly married and filled with new hope of satisfaction, it is harder to see self-love because there has not been hard collisions of will. It won’t be long. The flesh is self-seeking beyond imagination.

8 How can you identify relationships you engage with counterfeit self-love? Those will be the ones where selfishness comes out in forms like anger and rejection when the self does not get what it wants. You will always find anger, manipulation and isolation in relationships where the flesh is counterfeiting love, especially when the circumstances surrounding the relationship are less than optimal. When circumstances are optimal, like when people are newly married and filled with new hope of satisfaction, it is harder to see self-love because there has not been hard collisions of will. It won’t be long. The flesh is self-seeking beyond imagination. We should probably mention here that we all only love one way. We use the same “love model” in all of our love interests. You will never love God differently than you love your mate, your child or a friend. Let me explain.

9 How can you identify relationships you engage with counterfeit self-love? Those will be the ones where selfishness comes out in forms like anger and rejection when the self does not get what it wants. You will always find anger, manipulation and isolation in relationships where the flesh is counterfeiting love, especially when the circumstances surrounding the relationship are less than optimal. When circumstances are optimal, like when people are newly married and filled with new hope of satisfaction, it is harder to see self-love because there has not been hard collisions of will. It won’t be long. The flesh is self-seeking beyond imagination. The “love” you practice is exclusively either incoming (selfishness) or out-going (genuine authentic love). Obviously I love my wife differently than I love my children, or a friend, but while the expression of love varies, I am talking about the goal of the forms of love. It either exploits others for the satisfaction of self, or it sacrifices self for the benefit of others – including God. There is no escaping this principle. You only love one way in all your relationships and that will be either incoming, or outgoing – including your engagement with God.

10 Is it possible for us to love God with an outgoing, genuine love, and get mad at Him for not performing? When we become frustrated with God, not trusting Him, because He failed to perform as we desired, it is only because we love ourselves. We want our own will and when He fails to please our will, we decide to isolate ourselves from Him. We have to find a better God who will properly perform our will and please our flesh. In a nutshell, the formula is simple. If you aren’t getting your initial love from God, and exercising His love in your relationship with Him and with everyone else in your life, you are simply defaulting to a chronic, incoming, self- serving love, that will ultimately turn on every relationship in your life when it no longer gets what it wants from them.

11 Is it possible for us to love God with an outgoing, genuine love, and get mad at Him for not performing? When we become frustrated with God, not trusting in God because He failed to perform as we desired, it is only because we love ourselves, want our own will, and when He fails to perform our will, we decide to isolate ourselves from Him. We have to find a better God who will properly perform our will and please our flesh. In a nutshell, the formula is simple. If you aren’t getting your initial love from God, and exercising His love in your relationship with Him and with everyone else in your life, you are simply defaulting to a chronic, incoming, self- serving love, that will ultimately turn on every relationship in your life when it no longer gets what it wants from them. Now we can clearly see how receiving love from God as a primary benefit of becoming a disciple of Jesus, is absolutely essential to our daily lives! Without this love, it is impossible to live properly – and by extension, it is impossible to live properly without being a disciple of Jesus!

12 “Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. The one who does not love does not know God, for God is love. By this the love of God was manifested in us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world so that we might live through Him. In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has seen God at any time; if we love one another, God abides in us, and His love is perfected in us. By this we know that we abide in Him and He in us, because He has given us of His Spirit. We have seen and testify that the Father has sent the Son to be the Savior of the world. Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. We have come to know and have believed the love which God has for us. God is love, and the one who abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him. By this, love is perfected with us, so that we may have confidence in the day of judgment; because as He is, so also are we in this world.” 1John 4:7–17 There are many who are “born of God” (heaven bound) who do not yet “know” God. This word for “know” is the word “γινώσκει” which is present tense, which means that it is presently active with the projection of continuous action. It is also active voice voice, which means that the subject is responsible for the action. So it indicates that the subject of the sentence has chosen to experience God, is doing it now, and will continue to experience God. Let’s get some more on the use of the present tense here.

13 “Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. The one who does not love does not know God, for God is love. By this the love of God was manifested in us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world so that we might live through Him. In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has seen God at any time; if we love one another, God abides in us, and His love is perfected in us. By this we know that we abide in Him and He in us, because He has given us of His Spirit. We have seen and testify that the Father has sent the Son to be the Savior of the world. Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. We have come to know and have believed the love which God has for us. God is love, and the one who abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him. By this, love is perfected with us, so that we may have confidence in the day of judgment; because as He is, so also are we in this world.” 1John 4:7–17 "With reference to aspect, the present tense is internal (that is, it portrays the action from the inside of the event, without special regard for beginning or end), but it makes no comment as to fulfillment (or completion). The present tense’s portrayal of an event “focuses on its development or progress and sees the occurrence in regard to its internal make-up, without beginning or end in view.” Greek Grammar Beyond the Basics In other words, the present tense is saying, “HEY have you SEEN the amazing benefits and changes that God’s love has done in and for you?!! I mean – you can actually EXPERIENCE, ENGAGE, and ENJOY the same love that the Father and the Son share! You can do it now and without end! Will you ever get a deal like this from the flesh, the world or the devil? I DON’T THINK SO!!!”

14 “Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. The one who does not love does not know God, for God is love. By this the love of God was manifested in us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world so that we might live through Him. In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has seen God at any time; if we love one another, God abides in us, and His love is perfected in us. By this we know that we abide in Him and He in us, because He has given us of His Spirit. We have seen and testify that the Father has sent the Son to be the Savior of the world. Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. We have come to know and have believed the love which God has for us. God is love, and the one who abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him. By this, love is perfected with us, so that we may have confidence in the day of judgment; because as He is, so also are we in this world.” 1John 4:7–17 The process and the goal of God’s love for, in and through us is that we would tap His life and actually experience His heart, passion and His life, and share the whole package with the Father, Son and Spirit, and then with every human being that we can. The design is twofold: We experience the very personality and person of God and are satisfied deeply first in this relationship, and then we share that same experience with others in the world who are just as empty. The natural function of this system is first, personal and deep satisfaction, for both God as well as man, and secondly, the attraction of other empty people who live in darkness, so that they may be personally intimate with God, enter into union with Him, and become agents of attraction to still other needy people who are dying.