"Classis, Do You Love Me?" Sermon: I John 3:13-16

“Classis, Do You Love Me?”
[I John 3:13-16]
June 22, 2010 Second Reformed Church

Do you like your body? Is your body everything you would like it to be? I suspect not. Probably most, if not all of us, have things about our bodies that we would like to change. But let me ask a different question: do you love your body?

In the short time that we have this evening, let us look at the passage that I just read for us and see in it four doctrines and four applications:

First, John tells us that we should not be surprised that the world hates us, because the world hates Jesus. Jesus said, “If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of this world, but I chose you out of this world, therefore the world hates you. Remember the word that I said to you, ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you. If they kept my word, they will also keep yours” (John 15:18-20, ESV).

So, we should not be surprised if non-Christians don’t like what we teach. We should not be surprised if they take action against us. Instead, we ought to understand that we – those who preach and teach and proclaim that Gospel of Salvation in Jesus Alone – are called to a life of persecution.

Second, we who have received Salvation in Jesus Alone love our brothers and sisters in Christ, which proves we have passed from death into life. Paul writes, “It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me” (Galatians 2:20, ESV). And, “May you be strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy, giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light. He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins” (Colossians 1:11-14, ESV).

Christ has moved us from the Kingdom of Death into the Kingdom of Life by taking on God’s Wrath for all of our sin and by imputing to us – crediting to us – His Righteousness. And one of the natural results of this is that we love our brothers and sisters in Christ, simply because they are our brothers and sisters in Christ.

Third, we cannot claim to have received Jesus Alone as our Savior and hate our brothers and sisters in Christ. Why not? (After all, some Christians are creepy.) We cannot, because one who hates is a murderer – a descendant of Cain – and anyone who persists, unrepentantly, in murder – in hatred – does not have eternal life.

Understand, John is not telling us that we have to like every Christian and be best friends with every Christian. There are Christians that we are more naturally attracted to as friends due to temperament or interests, and so forth. What John is telling us is something different – we cannot hate – we must love – our brothers and sisters in Christ – whether or not any particular person is someone we would want to spend a great deal of time with.

And fourth, we know Love and we know how to love in this: Jesus laid down His Life for us, and so we ought to lay down our lives for each other. Jesus laid down His Life to glorify the Father and to secure the salvation of all those who would believe, but He also lay down His Life as an example of what we ought to do for each other.

So, what does this look like?

First, we won’t bad-mouth each other or spread rumors or gossip or take revenge on perceived wrongs or be jealous of each other or tear each other down.

We know very well that believing Christians in our churches have engaged in these hateful pursuits against fellow Christians. We know very well that believing Christians in our Classis have engaged in these hateful pursuits against fellow Christians. And before we shake our heads and say to ourselves, “Yes, I remember when so-and-so did such-and-such – what a terrible person” – let us consider ourselves – whether we have ever acted in a hateful way towards our brothers and sisters in Christ.

This ought not to be. There are appropriate ways to confront a wrong, and then there are inappropriate ways. Let us consider whether what we are about to say or do is hallowing to the Name of Jesus, and not bad-mouth each other or spread rumors or gossip or take revenge on perceived wrongs or be jealous of each other or tear each other down.

Second, let us biblically confront each other when we are persisting in sin or false doctrine.

We, pastors and elders of the Church, will be judged more strictly on the Day of Judgment – we who have been called to speak and teach the Word of God (James 3:1). It is a terrible and honorable thing to ascend the pulpit and also to teach God’s people. And it is a good and loving thing to biblically confront each other when we are persisting in sin or false doctrine.

Jesus said, “If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have gained your brother. But if he does not listen, take one or two others along with you, that every charge may be established by the evidence of two or three witnesses. If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church. And if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector” (Matthew 18:15-17, ESV).

Third, we are to encourage each other in pursuing the good works that “God has prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them” (Ephesians 2:10b, ESV).

We are in a race, but not in a competition. God has given us work to do, and I truly believe, as we have heard it in Classis before – God gives us the church we can handle. God has gifted and fitted each of us for a work to glorify Him and give us joy. Some of us are gifted with youth. Some of us are gifted with the elderly. Some of us are gifted in music. Some of us are gifted in writing. Some of us are strong administrators. Some of us are not. We each have different gifts and abilities and churches, and it is to the glory of God that we encourage each other in the ministries that God has given to us.

Someone might tell you about a work going on in his church, and you might be thinking to yourself, “Thank you God for not giving me those people or that work, because I don’t have the temperament or abilities to handle that work.” That’s ok to think. But rather than say to the person, “Better you than me ” Let us find a way to encourage each other in the unique works that God has called each of us to – for His Glory.

And, fourth, let us do anything and everything we can do to maximize our joy in glorifying our Triune God – even to the end of laying down our lives for each other.

Few of us, in this day, in the United States, have or will be asked to lay down our lives for the sake of the Gospel – for our brothers and sisters in Christ. But the day may come – and it is already happening throughout the world – Christians are being put to death. We ought to be in prayer for them and doing what we can as individuals and as the Church to support the work of the Gospel in these dangerous lands.

Yet, we can also lay down our lives for the Body of Christ – for our brothers and sisters in Christ – we are His Body – in a less dramatic way: We already saw that God has gifted us for the congregations that He has called us to. Yet, it is also true that God has given each church and each Christian needs and gifts and abilities that are not met or used in-and-of themselves.

What does that mean? It means that we must get our eyes off of ourselves and look to the larger Church – to the Body of Christ. We ought to look to the Body when we have needs that we are unable to meet on our own – there are people or churches that have the means, the gifts, the abilities to address our needs. Let us ask. We ought to also look to the Body with the gifts and abilities that go beyond what we need – we have gifts and abilities – in each person and each church – which are more than what we need, so we ought to be ready and willing and looking for opportunities to share them with the Body. Each one of us and each of our churches has something in such abundance that we can share it with others who need it. Let us figure out what those things are and help fulfill the work of the Gospel by sharing them.

If we love Jesus, we will do these things. If we love the Body, we will do these things.

Classis, do you love me?

Let us pray:
Almighty God, we thank You for making us brothers and sisters in Christ. Help us to love each other as members of Your Body, seeking out ways that we can help and mature each other that You would be glorified and our joy in You might grow. And we pray this in the Name of our Savior, Your Son, Jesus, Who taught us to pray, saying...