Sermon Archives
The Mark of a Disciple
John 13:35Love One Another
J. Josh Smith
January 29, 2017
Description:
Love is the unconditional and sacrificial gift of yourself. It is the greatest commandment for the people of God and is the dominant theme of Jesus’ final discourse with His disciples. We are to love one another as Christ loved us. The only way we can manifest this type of love is by abiding in the love of Christ. He is the vine, and we are the branches. If we are disconnected from the vine, we cannot bear the fruit of love, but when we abide in Christ, His love flows through us. Our greatest effort, therefore, should be abiding in Christ.
The result of our love for one another is that all people see that we belong to Jesus. Love is the greatest mark of a disciple of Jesus. This love will only be noticeable if we are close to Christ and close to one another. By our love, we know and our church family knows that we are children of God. Love is the greatest evidence that we have the life of Christ in us. By our love, the world also knows we are disciples of Jesus. The world sees our love when we gather together, a group of multi-ethnic and multi-generational individuals, as one people united by the blood of Jesus. The world also sees our love when we minister to each other’s physical, emotional, and spiritual needs. This is God’s plan for the church: to unite a people from every nation together, filling them with the love of Christ so that through their love for each other, the world might see the glory of God and the power of the Gospel.
Keywords:
Church, Community, Family, Fellowship, Love