God is love. In the New Testament, God is described with adjectives: God is holy; God is just; God is merciful. But in 1 John, God is defined when the text says God is Love (1 John 4:8). In this is love, not that we loved God but that he loved us and sent His Son to die for us (1 John 4:10). Rarely will anyone die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person someone might actually dare to die. But God commends/shows/displays/proves his love for us in that while we were still sinners Christ died for us” (Rom 5:7-9). See what manner of love the Father has bestowed upon us—that we should be called children of God. And that is what we are (1 Jn 3:1)! This is why…This is why…inspiration says that God IS love. It was Karl Barth who suggested that we insert the name “Jesus” every place you find the word “love” in your New Testament. I told you this morning that the theme of every sermon, and the heart of every story in the Bible is Jesus Christ. But it’s also true that the theme of every sermon, the heart of every story in the Bible is love.

The sermon today is titled "Love." It is the first installment in our "Fruit of the Spirit" Series. The Scripture reading is from Galatians 5:22. Originally preached at the West Side Church of Christ (Searcy, AR) on July 10, 2022. These lessons fit under one of 5 broad categories: Begin, Discover, Grow, Learn, and Serve. This sermon is filed under Grow: Spiritual Formation.

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