Study Notes

FOUNDATION STATEMENT: As believers we must understand that there is no loss associated with keeping the commandment of love, there is only gain.  God has given us this commandment to benefit us & lead us to the best possible life.  In order to keep this commandment, we have to believe the love of God and overcome the fear of walking in love. - Romans 8:36

 

I.      The character of love is the qualification for power (No character = No power = No results)

A.    Without walking in the character that the name of Jesus carries, you will never see the power that name has (Acts 19:13, Philippians 2:8)

II.     The Love of God has the appearance of weakness, but in reality it is the most powerful force in existence because it is God

A.    The agape love of God appears to make you vulnerable, but ultimately it is the most protected place that you can be (Luke 6:27-37)

1.      Someone who is against you, you love them

2.      Someone who hates you and is doing bad to you, do good to them

3.      Those that talk negatively about you, you bless them

4.      Those that are trying to use you, you pray for them

5.      Those that slap you on one cheek, offer the other

6.      Those that treat you bad, you treat them the way you want to be treated

B.     Satan had deceived many believers out of the most powerful force in the universe by getting us to believe that the way of love is weak

1.      Fear wants you to believe a lie is the truth and the truth is a lie

2.      Satan has tried to keep us in the dark (carnal way of thinking) on this issue-2 Cor 4:4)

a.    In the dark (from a carnal mindset)  love appears to be a weak thing, but when the light of God’s Word comes in that dark place, you’ll see that love is not weak at all, but it is the most powerful force in existence

b.    Love is the most powerful force b/c it is God & it never fails-1 Cor 13:8

3.      1 Corinthians 2:14-3:3-This love walk is foolish to carnal unrenewed mind

a.    When you walk in strife and out of love you live as mere natural men

b.    When u walk in love, u become supermen with God (Love) working through you

1)       God wants us to be Supermen, but we’re walking around in strife as Clark Kent

C.    One of the main reasons why people don’t walk in love is they are afraid to – If I walk in the agape love of God, they’ll walk all over me?

1.      If you’re not walking in love Satan’s already walking all over u everyday of your life

2.      This is a commandment from your commander and chief so even if they were going to walk all over you, you should do it any way

3.      This is not about you, it’s about God and other people

III.   To overcome the fear of walking in love you got to believe the love of God (1 John 4:16)

A.    You got to have faith in the love of God knowing that anything God told you to do is not for your demise, but it is for your benefit.

1.      God always has your prosperity on His mind and if he ever gives you a command, it’s for your benefit not His, because He’s not selfish

a.    Every thought that He has ever had, every Word that He’s every spoke, every action that He’s made, and every breath that he’s every taken has been directed toward your prosperity.

2.      If God told me to do it, then it’s the best thing for me

a.    I don’t even have to understand it with my natural mind because I know he loves me and he would never tell me to do something that would harm me

3.      If ur violating the commandment of love then u lack revelation of God’s love for you

a.    If God commanded you to do it, it’s in your best interest to do it because He would never tell you to do something that would harm you in any way

B.     There is no loss associated with doing what God tells you to do

1.      His commandments are not grievous-burdensome, heavy (1 John 5:3, 1 John 3:22)

a.    His commandments are not to put burdens on u, they are there to keep them off

b.    There is only gain with keeping his commandments; no loss (Deut 28:1-2, 15)

1)       Disobedience is grievous – There’s loss attached to it

2)       You live your life in violation to the commandment of love and you’re going to find yourself missing out on a whole lot of things

3)       When God gives you a commandment it’s nothing, but an opportunity for you to be blessed, but the blessing is attached to the obedience and when you passed by the obedience, then you passed by the blessing

2.      The rich young ruler was afraid that if he did what Jesus told him to do then he would miss out on something (Mark 10:17-22)

a.    He thought if he did what Jesus told him to do he was going to lose out when in reality he was going to gain like he had never gained before

b.    Jesus was giving this guy an opportunity receive a 100 times what he had

1)       The rich young ruler was blinded he couldn’t see

3.      Adam believed if they did what God told them to do they would miss out-Gene 3:1

a.    The loss was attached to the disobedience and when they disobeyed loss

4.      When you make the decision to keep this commandment it’s a guaranteed fact that you will only gain (Daniel 3:14, Exodus 20:3-6)

a.    Satan tried to give them the thought if they kept that commandment they’ll die

b.    The blessing is if ur enemy comes against u 1 way, I’ll make him flee 7 ways

C.    The reward for doing agape is great (Luke 6:35-38)

1.      Religion has taught us that our reward comes in Heaven, but our reward is Heaven on the Earth

2.      What is the reward?-Give/Sow agape and agape Himself will be manifested unto you, good measure, pressed down shaken together and running over

3.      You got to believe that the way of love is the only way & you won’t miss out-Jn 14:21

a.    When Zoë’s manifested there is no missing out to be found

b.    There’s no vulnerability there when zoe is flowing out of you

4.      Deuteronomy 11 – Zoe will turn hell on Earth into Heaven on the Earth

IV.   The Love of God is the only safe place on this planet

A.    You have no reason to fear when you’re walking in love, b/c in love there is no failure

1.      The walk of love appears to be weak and vulnerable, but in reality the love of God is the only thing that keeps you protected (Psalm 91)

a.    To dwell in the secret place of the most High is 2 dwell in the love of God-1 Jn 4:16

b.    14-The Psalmist set his love upon God and that’s why he dwelled in the secret place of the Most High and that’s why he was so bold to say what he said

c.     1 John 1:4-5 – God is light and in him there is no darkness

B.     Romans 8:35-39-When you walk in love it looks like a weak & foolish thing;

1.      It’s the love that makes you a conqueror

C.    Jesus lived in the love of God & he always had abundance & was always protected

1.      They tried to kill him and never succeeded until he said it was ok

a.    Luke 4, John 8-They tried to kill him, but they couldn’t b/c he dwelled in love

b.    John 19:10 – He told Pilate you couldn’t do this without my permission

c.     Matt 26:53 -He told Peter he could call more than 80,000 angels to his assistance

2.      What looked weak on the cross didn’t look so weak when he defeated hell and rose from the dead

D.    Overcome evil with good – God (Romans 12:17-21)

1.      When you repay evil with evil, you are sowing the seed for more evil in your life

a.    Galatians 6:7, Luke 6:31, 38 – Whatsoever you sow you’ll reap

b.    The world’s backwards, TWISTED

2.      You make every effort to stay in love (Why? So that you can be blessed!)

3.      You overcome evil with do-good seed

a.    You overcome darkness with light, not with more darkness

E.     Man outside of agape is a failure and there is nothing tough about failing-1 John 5:18