WEBVTT 00:00:06.359 --> 00:00:09.199 Hebrews chapter 13, that's going to be kind of 00:00:09.199 --> 00:00:13.060 toward the back part of your Bible. Hebrews chapter 00:00:13.060 --> 00:00:18.219 13, verse 1. It's a lot of good instruction there 00:00:18.219 --> 00:00:22.359 at the end of Hebrews chapter 13. The author 00:00:22.359 --> 00:00:25.100 of Hebrews there is concluding the book, and 00:00:25.100 --> 00:00:28.460 this is kind of the last section with his final 00:00:28.460 --> 00:00:31.559 thoughts, his final instructions to his audience. 00:00:31.719 --> 00:00:34.359 We looked at one of these. It hadn't been too 00:00:34.359 --> 00:00:37.189 long ago. Well, I always say that, and then Michelle 00:00:37.189 --> 00:00:39.429 will be like, that was two years ago, and I'll 00:00:39.429 --> 00:00:42.210 think it was like two months ago. But it really 00:00:42.210 --> 00:00:44.130 hadn't been too long ago. We looked at a little 00:00:44.130 --> 00:00:49.549 bit of Hebrews chapter 13, talked about the idea 00:00:49.549 --> 00:00:52.689 of being satisfied. But we're just going to look 00:00:52.689 --> 00:00:56.570 at one verse tonight in Hebrews chapter 13, verse 00:00:56.570 --> 00:01:01.750 1, and it says, let brotherly love continue. 00:01:02.270 --> 00:01:05.140 Let's pray. God, we thank you for your word. 00:01:05.379 --> 00:01:08.599 This is a short and a simple word, but there's 00:01:08.599 --> 00:01:10.540 a lot of power in this, God, if we would just 00:01:10.540 --> 00:01:14.140 live this scripture out. So I pray that you would 00:01:14.140 --> 00:01:16.599 help us to do that in our life, dear Lord, that 00:01:16.599 --> 00:01:18.439 we would live out your word. I pray that you'd 00:01:18.439 --> 00:01:20.819 free us of the distractions and the worries and 00:01:20.819 --> 00:01:22.900 the thoughts of this world tonight, dear Lord, 00:01:23.000 --> 00:01:25.480 that we would just focus on you and grow in you. 00:01:25.599 --> 00:01:29.079 And I ask these things in Jesus' name. Amen. 00:01:31.209 --> 00:01:34.510 When we see the word love in English, we just 00:01:34.510 --> 00:01:37.969 have one word for love. L -O -V -E is the only 00:01:37.969 --> 00:01:41.450 English word we have. But when you read the Bible, 00:01:41.629 --> 00:01:46.099 you see the word love quite often. It's a lot 00:01:46.099 --> 00:01:48.560 of different Greek words. There are a lot of 00:01:48.560 --> 00:01:51.959 different words for love in the Greek that describe 00:01:51.959 --> 00:01:55.859 love in a different way. There's agape, which 00:01:55.859 --> 00:01:58.420 is this sacrificial love. We think about maybe 00:01:58.420 --> 00:02:01.780 Jesus when we think about that love that loves 00:02:01.780 --> 00:02:04.099 somebody so much that they're willing to give 00:02:04.099 --> 00:02:07.099 their life for somebody else. Greater love have 00:02:07.099 --> 00:02:09.280 no one than this, that a man would lay down his 00:02:09.280 --> 00:02:13.229 life for his friends, the scripture says. We 00:02:13.229 --> 00:02:16.090 see eros is another word for love. That's kind 00:02:16.090 --> 00:02:18.270 of the type of love that you would have between 00:02:18.270 --> 00:02:23.389 a husband and a wife. Phileo or philia in different 00:02:23.389 --> 00:02:28.150 forms is a word for love. And that's the word 00:02:28.150 --> 00:02:30.250 that's used here. The word that's used here in 00:02:30.250 --> 00:02:34.409 Hebrews chapter 13 is Philadelphia. So if we 00:02:34.409 --> 00:02:36.229 were going to read it literally, it would be 00:02:36.229 --> 00:02:40.849 let Philadelphia continue. if you see this picture 00:02:40.849 --> 00:02:42.849 here behind me some of you have probably seen 00:02:42.849 --> 00:02:45.689 this before maybe in real life this is the famous 00:02:45.689 --> 00:02:49.689 love statue that's in kennedy park in philadelphia 00:02:49.689 --> 00:02:53.770 this statue was made in 1970 and it's interesting 00:02:53.770 --> 00:02:57.110 that the city of philadelphia is called the city 00:02:57.110 --> 00:02:59.789 of brotherly love and that comes from the word 00:03:00.479 --> 00:03:02.319 Philadelphia, that's what the word means, is 00:03:02.319 --> 00:03:05.360 brotherly love. So when we say Philadelphia is 00:03:05.360 --> 00:03:07.919 the city of brotherly love, we're getting that 00:03:07.919 --> 00:03:11.120 from the Greek word. But the sad part about that 00:03:11.120 --> 00:03:14.879 is, is that even though the city is called the 00:03:14.879 --> 00:03:18.599 city of brotherly love, it doesn't really appear 00:03:18.599 --> 00:03:21.439 as though that there is as much love there as 00:03:21.439 --> 00:03:24.159 should be. Because when you look at the list 00:03:24.159 --> 00:03:26.120 of all the cities in the United States, over 00:03:26.120 --> 00:03:30.280 19 ,000 of them, In many categories, Philadelphia 00:03:30.280 --> 00:03:34.199 is at the top of the list for crimes and murders 00:03:34.199 --> 00:03:37.280 and violent crimes against other people and thefts 00:03:37.280 --> 00:03:41.240 and larceny and arson and all these things, all 00:03:41.240 --> 00:03:43.879 these different crimes that people commit. And 00:03:43.879 --> 00:03:46.280 these are not the things that we do if we love 00:03:46.280 --> 00:03:49.259 people. And so even though they're called the 00:03:49.259 --> 00:03:52.539 city of brotherly love, their actions would say 00:03:52.539 --> 00:03:56.150 something different. Now, a place that's called 00:03:56.150 --> 00:03:58.370 the city of brotherly love, you would think people 00:03:58.370 --> 00:04:01.210 would be helping each other, that nobody would 00:04:01.210 --> 00:04:04.449 have a need, that everybody would sacrifice for 00:04:04.449 --> 00:04:07.310 the good of somebody else, that everyone would 00:04:07.310 --> 00:04:09.610 support one another and encourage one another. 00:04:10.250 --> 00:04:14.289 And so we know what it means to love, but the 00:04:14.289 --> 00:04:18.649 question is, do we love? We know what it means 00:04:18.649 --> 00:04:22.449 to love, but it's not always easy to love. That's 00:04:22.449 --> 00:04:25.370 one of the hardest commands in Scripture, is 00:04:25.370 --> 00:04:27.569 that we're supposed to love everybody, that we're 00:04:27.569 --> 00:04:30.589 supposed to love our enemies. This is a hard 00:04:30.589 --> 00:04:33.589 command, but yet this is the most important command. 00:04:35.110 --> 00:04:39.050 In Matthew chapter 22, Jesus is asked by an expert 00:04:39.050 --> 00:04:42.490 in the law who wants to test Jesus. He's trying 00:04:42.490 --> 00:04:46.149 to trip him up. And he says to Jesus, he says, 00:04:46.189 --> 00:04:49.839 what is the most important command? Now, I don't 00:04:49.839 --> 00:04:51.980 know what the man was expecting Jesus to say. 00:04:52.500 --> 00:04:56.279 Maybe he was expecting Jesus to say, do not murder, 00:04:56.459 --> 00:04:58.800 do not commit adultery. I don't know what he 00:04:58.800 --> 00:05:02.379 expected. But I suspect he was caught off guard 00:05:02.379 --> 00:05:05.980 by what Jesus said. Maybe not, though. But Jesus 00:05:05.980 --> 00:05:08.139 said the greatest command is this, to love the 00:05:08.139 --> 00:05:10.040 Lord your God with all your mind, with all your 00:05:10.040 --> 00:05:11.779 soul, with all your heart, with all your strength. 00:05:12.019 --> 00:05:14.439 Everything you got, Jesus says, you need to love 00:05:14.439 --> 00:05:18.230 the Lord your God. And then Jesus gave him a 00:05:18.230 --> 00:05:20.370 bonus one too. Not only did he tell him the most 00:05:20.370 --> 00:05:22.509 important command, and he said the second most 00:05:22.509 --> 00:05:25.050 important is just like it, that you are to love 00:05:25.050 --> 00:05:29.009 your neighbor as yourself. Now, that is a beautiful 00:05:29.009 --> 00:05:31.870 scripture and one that we need to know and we 00:05:31.870 --> 00:05:33.990 need to think about because if we know that scripture 00:05:33.990 --> 00:05:37.430 and remember that scripture, it'll drive everything 00:05:37.430 --> 00:05:41.230 we do. And as long as we follow those two things, 00:05:41.310 --> 00:05:44.079 we'll be living in obedience to God. Because 00:05:44.079 --> 00:05:46.379 those things sum up everything that we see in 00:05:46.379 --> 00:05:48.860 the Ten Commandments. The first of the Ten Commandments 00:05:48.860 --> 00:05:50.920 talk about our relationship with God and loving 00:05:50.920 --> 00:05:53.699 God. And the rest of them talk about our relationship 00:05:53.699 --> 00:05:56.139 with people. And that's really all of the law, 00:05:56.259 --> 00:05:58.300 not just the Ten Commandments, but all of the 00:05:58.300 --> 00:06:02.980 law. That what's most important to God is that 00:06:02.980 --> 00:06:05.740 we would love Him more than anything, be obedient 00:06:05.740 --> 00:06:08.879 to Him, and that the love that we have for Him 00:06:08.879 --> 00:06:11.339 and the love we receive from Him, that we would 00:06:11.339 --> 00:06:14.259 love others. That even though we are sinners 00:06:14.259 --> 00:06:18.220 and undeserving of God's love, God loves us anyway. 00:06:19.139 --> 00:06:21.600 And therefore he wants us to share that grace 00:06:21.600 --> 00:06:24.360 to others that we encounter. To share that kind 00:06:24.360 --> 00:06:27.279 of love to others that we encounter. And in Hebrews 00:06:27.279 --> 00:06:30.300 chapter 13 verse 1, as the author of Hebrews 00:06:30.300 --> 00:06:33.480 is preparing to close the book, he gives a simple 00:06:33.480 --> 00:06:36.339 instruction. Simple words that every one of us 00:06:36.339 --> 00:06:38.740 can have memorized before we leave this place. 00:06:38.920 --> 00:06:44.709 Let brotherly love continue. So what about us 00:06:44.709 --> 00:06:48.870 tonight? Are we any better than the city of Philadelphia? 00:06:49.949 --> 00:06:52.389 Do we call ourselves a loving people, but yet 00:06:52.389 --> 00:06:55.269 our actions show something otherwise? Our actions 00:06:55.269 --> 00:06:58.910 will speak louder than our words. Nobody's fooled 00:06:58.910 --> 00:07:02.069 by Philadelphia's big love sign. Just because 00:07:02.069 --> 00:07:04.089 they've got it made out of aluminum and standing 00:07:04.089 --> 00:07:06.230 up in the park, nobody's fooled with the crime 00:07:06.230 --> 00:07:07.949 and the violence and the hatred and the murder 00:07:07.949 --> 00:07:11.800 and all the things that go on there. And perhaps 00:07:11.800 --> 00:07:15.500 we are guilty of the same shortcoming, the same 00:07:15.500 --> 00:07:18.660 sin. That maybe we say we are those that love, 00:07:18.779 --> 00:07:21.500 but maybe our actions say otherwise and our words 00:07:21.500 --> 00:07:25.740 say otherwise sometimes. But what God calls us 00:07:25.740 --> 00:07:29.279 to tonight is to love Him. Do you love God? Maybe 00:07:29.279 --> 00:07:31.060 a better question, do you know that God loves 00:07:31.060 --> 00:07:34.839 you tonight? He does. He loves you. He cares 00:07:34.839 --> 00:07:37.220 for you. He sent Jesus Christ to die for you. 00:07:38.000 --> 00:07:40.930 Do you love God? Well, if we answer yes to that 00:07:40.930 --> 00:07:43.490 question, then our response should be that we 00:07:43.490 --> 00:07:48.069 serve Him. Do we love other people? Then what 00:07:48.069 --> 00:07:49.949 are some ways that we can serve? We need to pray 00:07:49.949 --> 00:07:52.029 that God will help us to see those areas. God, 00:07:52.110 --> 00:07:54.050 help me to see areas where I can serve others. 00:07:54.230 --> 00:07:56.189 God, help me to see where I can love others. 00:07:56.350 --> 00:07:58.610 God, just give me those opportunities. Put them 00:07:58.610 --> 00:08:01.189 right in my path so that the people I encounter 00:08:01.189 --> 00:08:04.170 in this world can see what love is. Our world 00:08:04.170 --> 00:08:06.490 needs to see that. That is the only thing that 00:08:06.490 --> 00:08:09.819 will change our world. is if the world sees what 00:08:09.819 --> 00:08:13.639 love truly is. It's a powerful thing. And if 00:08:13.639 --> 00:08:17.740 our world sees what love is, then it will change 00:08:17.740 --> 00:08:22.480 our world. So let us be those tonight who strive 00:08:22.480 --> 00:08:26.800 to let brotherly love continue in our life. Let's 00:08:26.800 --> 00:08:30.259 pray. God, we thank you for your good word. I 00:08:30.259 --> 00:08:32.980 pray that you just would help us to be able to 00:08:32.980 --> 00:08:35.779 experience your love, dear Lord. God, that we 00:08:35.779 --> 00:08:38.220 would know that you love us and that you would 00:08:38.220 --> 00:08:40.299 help us to share that love with others. God, 00:08:40.419 --> 00:08:42.179 that you would help us to love you with all of 00:08:42.179 --> 00:08:44.299 our heart, that you would help us to love our 00:08:44.299 --> 00:08:47.500 neighbor as ourself tonight. I pray, dear Lord, 00:08:47.639 --> 00:08:49.440 that we would take those instructions to heart. 00:08:49.519 --> 00:08:52.519 We thank you for these simple words, and I ask 00:08:52.519 --> 00:08:54.720 these things in Jesus' name. Amen.