Sermon Summary: The Love of God by Johnny Sharkawi
The following is a written summary of a sermon initially delivered by Johnny Sharkawi.
Ephesians 3:17-19 - “That Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height- to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.”
Whatever idea we have of God is not accommodating of God’s love because God’s love is far beyond comprehension.
1. We know His love through His patience.
Mark 8:22-33 – Healing of the blind man at Bethsaida, Jesus slowed down for the sake of another person, “He took the blind man by the hand and led him out of the town.”
God takes time for us.
Do we take time out for others? People that are so often neglected? Do we take time to share God’s love with them?
2. We know His love through His desire.
1 Timothy 2:3-4 - “For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.”
If we can recognise God’s desire for our lives, we can come to understand the extent of His love, which is that everyone should be saved and come to the knowledge of truth.
3. We know His love when He answers our prayers, even when we deliberately turn away from Him.
Jonah 2:1-2 - “Then Jonah prayed to the Lord his God from the fish’s belly. And he said: “I cried out to the Lord because of my affliction, And He answered me.“
We often believe that God only answers the prayers of those that are perfect.
However, in the story of Jonah, Jonah deliberately turned away from God, yet God answered Jonah and heard his voice.
God still hears us and answers us even after we have deliberately turned away from Him.
God is love and what we do will never change who He is.
4. We know His love through His nature.
“At sunset: it is not that the sun has hidden its face from the earth, but rather that the earth has turned its back on the sun.” - H.H. Pope Shenouda III
The sun does not stop shining but rather the earth rotates away from it.
Likewise, the love of God never stops shining, however, we turn our back on His love.
5. We know His love through His giving.
John 3:16 - “For God so loved the world that He gave His son, that whoever believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life.”
God notices love, He does not forget the actions of love that we commit.
Luke 7:44-48 - story of the Sinful Woman – “she has washed My feet with her tears and wiped them with the hair of her head…her sins, which are many, are forgiven, for she loved much”
Fr. Jonathan Ishak describes love as the currency of Heaven.
Whatever acts of love we show on earth will never be forgotten.
Hebrews 6:10 - “For God is not unjust to forget your work and labor of love”
What leads us to labor in love? What can encourage us to show love?
Jesus loves me: His love is not like man’s love; it does not fail nor forget.
We see this in the life of St. Paul – he really understood that Jesus loved him which is clear in his writing.
Galatians 2:20 - “I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.”
St. Paul shows the depth of his understanding of God’s love in Romans 8.
“For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
St. Silouan the Athonite - “but in any position, it is possible to love God and to please Him and only this is important, and whoever loves God more on this earth will be in greater glory in His kingdom.”
Be present before God so that you can immerse yourself into His love - gaze at His crucifix.
If you ever doubt the God’s love for you: Behold your cross and behold your answer.
Often, we are told that to love others we must first love God and ourselves - To love yourself in the best way possible, leave yourself to God’s disposal.
Matthew 10:39 - “He who finds his life will lose it, and he who loses his life for My sake will find it.”
Love yourself in the right way and to do this, the Lord says we should lose our life.
We lose our life in Him; we look at His word e.g. he tells us to forgive our enemies…submit yourself, suppress your ego.
To love ourselves is to allow God to use us as He sees fit, to use us in our full potential.
We are God’s creation, if we leave ourselves to follow Him, we will experience God’s love.
