Sermon Slide Deck: "Practice Resurrection: Loving One Another"

Practice Resurrection: Loving One Another

~ 1 Thessalonians 4:9-10~

Practice Resurrection~ 1 Thessalonians 4:9-10~

Is it possible that instead of being a loving person, youre

just nice?

Culturallywe are told to see everyone as nice and to be

nice, but this is really a sinister slippery slope toward taking no one in the least bit seriously. If we are only nice, we do not truly appreciate the

others uniqueness and potential blessing in my life.

We just walk by with a shallow smile, wave, and nod.

If we are only nice, we have yet to care for the wholeness and well-being of the other. If we are only nice, we take no interest in the story that has

shaped their beauty, pain, and even ugliness. And to our

great shock, we discover that no one knows our story either. Nor does it seem they care.

Our world is left to us desolate.

Nice is an entirely unbiblical notion. Nice is a dismissive

term; the jargon of non-relationship. We are nice strangers, indifferent and

tolerant from a safe distance.

Practice Resurrection: Loving One Another

~ 1 Thessalonians 4:9-10~

9 Now concerning brotherly love you

1 Thessalonians 4:9-10

have no need for anyone to write to you

brother love

The Greek word is

philadelphia ()

~ The Apostle Paul in Acts 20:28

Pay careful attention to yourselves and to all the flock,

in which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to care

for the church of God, which he obtained with his own blood.

~ The Apostle Peter in 1 Peter 1:18-19

you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from

your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, but with the precious blood of Christ.



have no need for anyone to write to you,for you yourselves have been taught by God to love one another.

For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him might not perish, but

have eternal life.~ The Apostle John in

The Gospel of John, 3:16

This is how we know what love is: Jesus laid down his life for us. And

we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers

and sisters. ~ The Apostle John in 1 John 3:16 (NIV)

If Christ had practiced the kind of love we

advocate nowadays, he would have lived to

a ripe old age.

Gods love has been poured into our

hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.~ The Apostle Paul in Romans 5:5

We love because he first loved us. If anyone says, I love God, and hates his

brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his bother

whom he has see cannot love God whom he has not seen.

And this is the commandment that we have from him:

whoever loves God must also love his brother.

~ The Apostle John in 1 John 3:16 (NIV)



have no need for anyone to write to you,for you yourselves have been taught by God to love one another.



have no need for anyone to write to you,for you yourselves have been taught by God to love one another, 10 for that indeed is what you are doing to all thebrothers throughout Macedonia. But weurge you, brothers to do this more and more.

~ The Apostle Paul in 2 Thessalonians 1:3

We ought always to give thanks to God for you,

brothers and sisters, as it is right, because your faith is

growing abundantly, and the love of every one of you for one another is increasing.

Were not called to simply be nice, but to love one another

because God first loved us.

Welcome One Another1

Welcome one anotheras Christ has welcomed you, of the glory of God.

~ The Apostle Paul in Romans 15:7

To all who are spiritually weary and seek rest, to all who mourn and long for comfort, to all who struggle and desire victory,

to all who sin and need a Saviour,

to all who are strangers and want fellowship, to all who are broken and long for healing,

to all who hunger and thirst for righteousness, and to whosoever would come,

New City Church opens wide her doors and offers welcome in the Name of Jesus Christ.

~ The Apostle Paul in 1 Thessalonians 2:8

Because we loved you so much, we were delighted to share with you not only the gospel of God but our lives

as well.

Practice Hospitality1

seek to show hospitality.

Do not neglect to show hospitality.

Show hospitality to one anotherwithout grumbling.

~ Romans 12:13

~ Hebrews 13:2

~ 1 Peter 4:9

Hospitality involves welcoming, creating space, listening, paying attention, and providing. Meals slow things down. Some of us

dont like that. We like to get things done. But meals force

you to be people oriented instead of task oriented.

Sharing a meal is not the only way to build relationships, but

it is number one on the list.

I dont think most Christians today understand how essential

hospitality is to fanning the flames of love and strengthening the

Christian family. Hospitality fleshes out love in a uniquely personal and

sacrificial way. Through the ministry of hospitality, we share

our most prized possessions. We share our family, home, finances,

food, privacy, and time. Indeed, we share our very lives.

So, hospitality is always costly. Through the ministry of hospitality, we provide friendship, acceptance, fellowship, refreshment, comfort, and love in one of the richest and

deepest ways possible for humans to understand. Unless we open the doors of our homes to one another, the reality of the local church as a close-knit family of loving brothers

and sisters is only a theory.

image credit: maxime raynal https://www.flickr.com/photos/108892623@N02/18208923893/https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/

flickr images courtesy of:

other images used for educational purposes:

http://www.freeimages.com/photo/dinner-with-candles-in-the-gar-1520545

about

http://thelibertarianrepublic.com/the-syrian-civil-war-a-global-game-of-thrones/

Ian Britton: http://www.flickr.com/photos/freefoto/2747072912/

image credit: Christian Schnettelkerhttps://www.flickr.com/photos/manoftaste-de/14049520074/https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/

https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/http://www.freeimages.com/photo/dinner-with-candles-in-the-gar-1520545https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.0/

Lord, deliver me from being merely a nice person,and remake me into a loving person

who extends the welcome of Christ to othersand who seeks to be a tangible expression

of the love of Christ to others.

Spiritual

Sermon Slide Deck: "Practice Resurrection: Loving One Another"