In preparation for this message, please read Proverbs 14:30; 15:17; 17:9, 17; and 22:11.
Let us pray.
Our Father, we do commit Thy word into Thy hand, and ask Thee to bless it, to break it, and to give it to us, that it may be food, life, and spirit to us. O Lord, we do desire that whatever Thou dost want may be fully fulfilled in each and all of our lives. For this end, we commit ourselves to Thee for Thy Spirit’s breathing and working this morning. In the name of our Lord Jesus. Amen.
The third pillar with which wisdom deals is the pillar of love.
Now, brothers and sisters, oftentimes we think that love is just an emotion. It is an emotion, but love is something deeper—more than just an emotion—because the Bible says, “God is love.” In other words, love is a nature. The divine nature of God is love. As His love is developed and practiced continually, it becomes a character.
Our God is the God of love. With Him, it is not just an emotional reaction. If love is just an emotion, then it is mainly a reaction to circumstances, the environment, or the stimulus given to a person. You are stimulated in one way and react with an emotion called love. If you are stimulated in another way, probably you will react with another emotional expression of hate.
So, if it is just an emotion, it is changing; it is subject to changes. It is governed by outward circumstances and environment. It is never steady. But love as a nature, as a character of God, is permanent. It never changes. It does not depend upon an outside environment or stimulus, but rests in God Himself.
So, brothers and sisters, first of all, we need to recognize that love is more than an emotion. It is a character, a nature, a divine nature that is fully developed and becomes a character in us. God loves not because He is affected by outside things. God loves because He is love.
Love simply comes from within Him, and He cannot deny Himself. He cannot but love. It is His nature, and it has become His character. As you read the Bible, you find that one character of God is love.
Naturally, we do not have this love. We have a kind of love which is really a natural inclination.
In the New Testament, the word phileo is used. It means that you are naturally inclined; there is some affection, some tendency toward a person, a kind of friendship. We know this kind of thing. But as to love that is independent of circumstances, this is something we do not have.
In Greek, the word agape is used for absolute, pure love. Only God has that love.
But, you know, brothers and sisters, we often think we have love. We start out to love God, and then one day we discover, to our surprise, that we simply do not have that love in us. If we are to have that love, it has to come from God.
Take Peter as an illustration. Peter thought he had great love for the Lord, and you can say that he did.
One day, when the Lord began to tell His disciples how He would be betrayed and how they would all be scattered, trying to save their own lives, Peter stood up and said, “This may happen to the others, but not to me. I love You so much. I am confident that I am willing to go and die with You.”
He was sincere. It was not merely something from his lips; he meant it well. But when the real test came, you remember the story. He followed afar off when the Lord was taken into the house of Caiaphas. He was standing outside in the court, and it was very cold that night. The servants and others had made a fire to warm themselves, and Peter was with them.
Then a little maid came out and said, “Art not thou also one of His disciples?” You remember how he denied the Lord. He denied the Lord, even with a curse, three times. He thought that he had that love in him, and he discovered that he did not have it. He went out and wept.
After the resurrection of our Lord, one morning the Lord appeared to His disciples while they were fishing. As they were on the shore eating breakfast, the Lord asked Peter three times, “Simon, son of John, lovest thou Me more than these?”
And what are “these”? The fire, the fish, the bread, the companions. “Dost thou love Me more than these? Dost thou love Me more than the fire? Once you loved the fire more than Me. By the fire, you denied Me. You loved that comfort, that warmth, and ease of life more than you loved Me. Once you loved your own life; you tried to save your own skin. Once you loved companions; you did not want to be unpopular. Now, dost thou love Me more than these?”
Peter said, “Lord, Thou knowest that I love Thee.” But the word the Lord used there was agape: “Dost thou love Me with a pure and absolute love?” Peter’s answer was, “I phileo Thee. I do have some inclination toward Thee. I cannot say that I love Thee with a pure love.”
And the Lord said, “Feed My lambs.” The second time the Lord said, “Dost thou love Me?” The Lord did not compare Peter with anything; He simply asked, “Dost thou love Me?” Again, Peter, knowing himself, said, “Lord, Thou knowest that I phileo Thee. I cannot say that I love Thee absolutely. I have fallen. I know myself now, but I do have some inclination toward Thee. I do desire Thee.”
And the Lord said, “Tend My sheep.” For the third time, the Lord said, “Simon, son of John, dost thou love Me?” The word the Lord used the third time was no longer agape; it was phileo: “Art thou inclined toward Me?”
When the Lord used that word, Peter was sad. He could not reach up or rise above to that divine love. He knew it was not in him. Sadly, he said, “Lord, Thou knowest; I do have some friendship toward Thee. Thou knowest that.” And the Lord said, “Feed My sheep.”
So, brothers and sisters, in this instance we can see that even though we have some kind of phileo love in us, we do not have that agape love in us. Our love is more or less dependent upon the people around us and the circumstances about us. Our love is not something within us that is so strong that it is not subject to what is outside.
We love because we love, because there is love in us. It is a nature, and it is to become a character.
We can love the lovable, but we cannot love the unlovable. It is beyond us. We cannot love with an absolute love, a pure love—love for love’s sake, not for ulterior reasons and not for selfish reasons. When we love, there is often a selfish reason in it.
But God loves us with selflessness, and that is not us. It has to be of God. The Bible says that love is of God, and he who loves is born of God. It has to come from the Lord.
We do not have this love naturally, and one day we have to acknowledge that. Probably the sooner we acknowledge it, the better. Otherwise, we keep trying, and what comes out is ourselves. It is a counterfeit. It may deceive us until one day we suddenly wake up and see that it is just nothing but ourselves.
If we can realize this as early as possible, that will be a real blessing to us. It may be a shock, but it is a blessing.
However, we do have this love. Why? Because, in Romans 5, God has shed abroad in our hearts His love through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.
Naturally, we do not have this love. But we have believed in the Lord Jesus; we are now children of God. As God’s children, He has shed abroad His love in our hearts by the Holy Spirit.
In other words, the indwelling Holy Spirit has brought to us a life. He is the Spirit of life, and within that life is a nature. One of the characteristics of that nature is love. God is love, and we are begotten of God. Because of that, we have within us a love that we did not have before.
We do have the love of God in us. We do have a life that is a life of love. The very nature of that life is love. So, brothers and sisters, if we learn to live by that life, then you will find that a character of love can be built up in us.
In other words, the potential is already in us. We have the life of Christ in us, and the life of Christ is love. If we learn to live by that life, then we can love naturally and supernaturally. If we continue to follow that life, love will begin to be built in us and become a character. With this character, God is to build His church.
In John 15, we read this:
“Even as the Father hath loved Me, I also have loved you: abide ye in My love.
If ye keep My commandments, ye shall abide in My love; even as I have kept My Father’s commandments, and abide in His love.
These things have I spoken unto you, that My joy may be in you, and that your joy may be made full.
This is My commandment, that ye love one another, even as I have loved you.
Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.”—John 15:9-13
The Lord said, “As the Father has loved Me, and I have loved you, abide in My love.” The Father has loved the Son; that is a fact. The Lord has loved us; that is a fact. Nothing can change these facts. They are eternal facts.
Having this fact, the Lord says, “Now you go into experience: abide in My love.” Has the Lord loved us? He has. We know His love, and the measure in which we know His love shall be the measure of our love.
Why? Because the very source of love is God Himself. You cannot find love anywhere else. You find love in God; you find love in the Lord Jesus. As you know His love, as His love begins to constrain you, then you begin to abide in love. You make His love your home.
As you make His love your home, you will discover that you begin to love. If love is to be built up in us, first of all we have to abide in His love. It is only His love that becomes our love. Otherwise, there is no love in us.
The problem with us believers is this: after we are saved, we are told that we must love. We must love one another, love our enemies, and love God. Because we are told that we must love, we strive to love.
We try to love God. We try to love our brothers and sisters. We try to love the people of this world, even our enemies, and we try very hard. Why? Because we want to be good Christians.
But oftentimes, when you try to love God, you may tell God, “Lord, I love You. I love You very, very much.” Yet if the Lord should reveal His mind to you in a way that is not pleasing to you, which does not fit with your idea, where is your love for God?
Our love should not be merely in lips and words. How can we prove our love to God? “If ye keep My commandments, ye shall abide in My love.” But sometimes we find His commandments burdensome, unpleasing, a great load. We do not want to do them. Then we discover that there is no love in us toward God.
We love Him when everything is fine—when He gives us everything and seems to allow us to do anything we like. But when God begins to show us something contrary to our desire, immediately we find His commandments too hard.
Only when we remember His love, only when His love appears to us, only when we are constrained by His love, then His commandments are not hard. We find that it is our delight to do His will. Why? Because it is love that inspires us. We love Him; therefore, His commandments are not heavy.
We think we love one another. We love our brothers and sisters. Oh, we love everybody. Fine.
Oftentimes, you find that you are able to love someone who is a thousand miles away much better than one who lives with you. Why? Because there is no rubbing. But when you rub against one another, then see how much you can love your brothers and sisters.
One day Peter came to the Lord and said, “Lord, I have a brother. Such a good brother: he sins against me seven times, and I forgive him. Is that enough? Have I loved enough?”
Peter’s love had a limit: seven times. The Lord said, “I say not unto thee, Until seven times; but, Until seventy times seven.” There is no limit.
The disciples said, “Lord, increase our faith.” They did not say, “Give us more love,” but, “Give us more faith.” We have no faith in our brother or sister. We cannot believe them anymore. How can we love them?
It has to come from God. Have you ever been brought to a point when you find that you just cannot love your brother or sister? Just cannot. No matter how you try, you cannot do it.
If you do not hate them, you feel that you are good enough. But to love them—you just cannot. There is a difference between liking and loving. You may not like him, but you have to love him.
The Lord does not say that we must like everybody. You do not find that in the Bible. But the Lord does say that you must love everyone.
Can we love? Oh, if we love, it is so-called brotherly love. Why is it called brotherly love? Because you love for one reason: you are brothers—not for any other reason.
Oftentimes, our love has some other reason. We love this brother or this sister because somehow our temperaments seem to fit. Somehow we seem to have the same interests. Somehow we seem to like each other.
But brotherly love makes no distinctions; it is not discriminating. You love simply because the person is a brother. That is all. It has to come from God. It is not in us.
The same is true with the people of this world—your enemies, people with whom you work in the same office. You may find it very difficult. Sometimes a person gives you many headaches. What are you going to do? Can you love that person? Can you pray for that person? It has to come from God.
Brothers and sisters, if love is a character, if it is a nature, remember: it has to come from God. It is not in us. We have to go to the Lord and ask Him to do it.
Why love? According to Proverbs, “Love covereth all transgressions” (Proverbs 10:12).
How can the church of God be built if there is no love? The building of the house of God is not a mechanical work; it is not a technical work. The building of the house of God is a spiritual work, and love is essential to build that house.
If there is no love, there can be no building. Why? Because love covers many transgressions.
I think the best illustration in the Bible concerning this verse is Noah. After the flood, Noah became a farmer. He planted a vineyard, made wine, and got drunk. Think of that: this righteous Noah got drunk.
He was there naked because he was unconscious; he was drunk. And you know what happened. Evidently, I do not know whether it was Ham in the first place or whether it was his son Canaan in the first place—probably it was Canaan in the first place.
Canaan came and saw his grandfather naked. He went to tell his father, probably jokingly and laughingly, “Oh, grandfather is naked. Look at that. Is that not interesting?”
Ham, when he was told by his son, went to see the sight. When he saw it, he had the same reaction: “Ah, look at that. My father got drunk and is naked. My father often disciplined us and told us things, and now look at him.”
So he went to see his two brothers, Shem and Japheth, and told them about it as a joke, as something to pass around—gossiping with great delight.
But when Shem and Japheth heard it, what did they do? They put a garment upon their shoulders and went backward, not to see their father’s nakedness. When they came to the place where their father lay, they dropped the garment upon him and went away. They covered their father’s nakedness.
Now, brothers and sisters, this is love. If there is no love, when we see any fault, shortcoming, or weakness in our brothers and sisters, we are so happy that they are not perfect. We go out and broadcast the whole thing.
Within the hour, every brother and sister in the church will know about it. News travels fast. Rumours travel faster. Oh, how we love to gossip.
When brothers and sisters come together, do you notice one thing? People of this world may talk about the weather, politics, and so forth. When Christians come together, what do they talk about? Different brothers and sisters: “Now, do you know? Have you heard? Did you notice that this brother or sister did this thing and that thing?” We gossip. We spread the news. We spread the rumours.
Is that love? Love covers many transgressions. It does not mean that love condones sin—not at all. It does not mean that love compromises with sin—not at all. It means that love covers many transgressions.
Love tries to cover in order to help recover. Brothers and sisters, sometimes a brother or sister has some weakness, and if we broadcast it to the point that there can be no recovery anymore, then no recovery is possible.
But love covers—not to condemn, but first to cover and then to recover. Recover. Here in the book of Proverbs, love is important because it covers many transgressions.
Not only that, but love gives us a sound heart. Envy gives us rottenness of the bones.
Suppose you envy a person. Not only may the person whom you envy suffer because you may take action against that person to bring him down, but even if nothing is done to that person, simply envying him rots your bones. It corrupts you.
But love gives you a sound heart. Oh, if you love, your heart is fresh and refreshing; it is healthy and strong.
So you find that love does not only do good to other people. Love does good to yourself too.
People who love dispense grace. Love and grace are closely related. God is love, and in the Gospel of John you find that our Lord Jesus is full of grace. Why? Because love is a nature within a person, and when love characterizes that person, it comes out in grace.
We do not have much grace. Why? Because we do not have much love. If there is love in you, then you can be gracious. You can be very gracious.
The book of Proverbs says that he who loves pureness of heart has grace on his lips (Proverbs 22:11). In other words, he drops grace everywhere he goes. Love gives grace, and it gives peace too. Where there is love, there is peace.
The person who loves can stand before the king. So, brothers and sisters, there is something that needs to be built up in us. We already have this divine nature of love within us, but this divine nature of love needs to be built up in us. We need that.
What is love? In 1 Corinthians 13, we have a whole chapter on love. We will not go into the details, but I like the Phillips translation. It is very lively, so I will read it to you. Just listen to it.
The love of which I speak is slow to lose patience.
It looks for a way of being constructive.
It is not possessive.
It is neither anxious to impress nor does it cherish inflated ideas of its own importance.
Love has good manners and does not pursue selfish advantage.
It is not touchy.
It does not keep account of evil or gloat over the wickedness of other people.
On the contrary, it is glad when truth prevails.
Love knows no limit to its endurance, no end to its trust, no fading of its hope.
It can outlast anything.
I think that is a good translation.
The first quality of love that you find in 1 Corinthians 13 is that love suffers long. Why? Because Paul is talking about love among brothers and sisters.
In 1 Corinthians 12, you have the body. In 1 Corinthians 14, you have the operation of the body—how the gifts function in the body. So, in 1 Corinthians 13, you have love.
Here you have the body of Christ with all its various members. All the members are different, and they are differently gifted. God gives gifts according to His pleasure. Here you find the body with all the members and all the gifts, but before they can begin to function and exercise those gifts for the building of the body, you need love.
Love. The first element of love is that love suffers long: longsuffering, longsuffering.
Because we are members of one body, because we are so closely knit, God does not want us to be loosely related like the sand on the seashore. God wants us to be closely knit in spirit, in soul, in every way. Because we are members one of another and so closely related, we need to suffer long.
If we meet only occasionally, we all put on our best Sunday manner. We can be very kind and courteous, polite to one another. But if we are really members of one body, knitted together in spirit, there is still much fleshiness in us. There is still much rubbish in us other than Christ.
We have Christ, and the Christ in us unites us. But the flesh outside of Christ in every one of us tends to divide us.
No two persons are really alike, not even twins. You can always find some difference. How can we be together and not be divided? How can we learn to build up one another and not destroy one another? How can we be together and not be scattered?
By divine love—love that suffers long. Love does not lose its patience. We have to be patient with one another, and that involves much suffering.
If we do not know how to suffer long, we cannot learn how to be kind—that is, how to find a constructive way of helping one another. That is love.
Of course, love is the fruit of the Spirit. In other words, it is not a work that we work out by ourselves. It is the fruit of the Spirit. If we are filled with the Spirit of God, then love is the fruit of it. It is not an effort or something produced by our own effort; it is the outgrowth of life.
Dear brothers and sisters, thank God, we have that love in us. It is there. Why is it that the love in us is not developed? How can that love be developed from being a nature to becoming a character, so that we may truly love one another?
We are told that in the early church, what impressed the world most was that the world would point to these Christians and say, “See how they love one another.”
How can love be developed as a character that characterizes the church? I think there are a few things we need to remember.
First, we have to see that it is not in us, nor is it us. It must be of God. It must come from God.
Second, we have to believe that even though love is not naturally in us, it is supernaturally with us because the Lord is in us. His life is in us, and His life has the nature of love. We have to believe that.
Third, the reason we have this life of love in us and yet cannot live a life of love is because we stand in the way. We stay in the way. That is why the Bible says that we must deny ourselves, take up our cross, and follow Him.
In other words, God, in His mercy, will raise up circumstances to test us on this point of love. We have the treasure in earthen vessels. The life of Christ in us is the treasure, and one glory of that treasure is love. But this treasure is in an earthen vessel. We are that earthen vessel, and we have no lustre or glory whatsoever.
God raises circumstances around the earthen vessel, seeking to break down the earthen vessel. We try to keep our integrity. We try to protect ourselves. We try to build up ourselves in order to face all these circumstances. In other words, we try to harden ourselves against them.
But we come to a point where we are cracked; we are broken. God uses the environment to bring us to a point where we see that we are hopeless. We just cannot love. There is no way.
In a practical way, there is no way. We crack. We break. It is at this very point that we look up to the Lord and say, “Lord, if You want me to love, You have to do it.” And, to your surprise, He does it.
Because the surpassing greatness of the power is not of us, but of God.
Again, Phillips translates 2 Corinthians 4 in this way:
We are handicapped on all sides, but we are never frustrated.
We are puzzled, but never in despair.
We are persecuted, but we never have to stand it alone.
We may be knocked down, but we are never knocked out.
Here you find that we may be surrounded and tested to our very limit—and beyond our limit. Why does God allow such things to happen to us? To bring us to a point where there might be brokenness in us, so that His life of love may be expressed.
This is the way. In going through that process, you have to deny yourself, take up your cross, and follow Him.
If we continue with Him in this way, gradually we find that love is more than a nature to us. It gradually becomes a character.
In the beginning, probably you have to go through death and resurrection. You have to go through denying yourself, taking up the cross, and knowing the power of His resurrection in love.
But gradually, you find that you may be able to love unconsciously. It has become so natural to you. It has become a character. When it becomes a character, you are not conscious of it anymore.
In the process of development, you are conscious of it. That means it is not mature yet. But when you begin to be unconscious of it, and yet love is spreading and diffusing out of your life, it has become a character.
This is the character with which Christ is building His church. So may the Lord be gracious and merciful to us. Shall we pray?
Lord, Thou hast greatly encouraged us because Thou dost show us that even if love is not naturally in us, yet Thou hast miraculously put Thy love in us. Thou hast shed abroad Thy love in our hearts.
Lord, we want to know more of this love. We desire to give ourselves to Thee and let Thee live out Thy love.
O Lord, we thank Thee for bringing us many times to a place where we just cannot love anymore. We have come to our limit, but we do praise Thee that Thou art the infinite God, and Thy love is unlimited.
So, Lord, may Thou increase this Thy love in all of us. May Thou be increasing us. Oh, may Thy church be characterized by love, that Thy church may be built to the praise of Thy glory. In Thy precious name we ask. Amen.