Sunday Sermon

Loving on Empty Dave Shaner October 24, 2004

Introduction: Has your pride ever put you in an embarrassing situation? Pride creates uneasy moments and unloving attitudes.

Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.  - I Corinthians 13:4

I. To be full of love you must __________ ______________.

A. John 13:1; 13:12f; 13:34-35

...he showed them the full extent of his love.

When he had finished washing their feet, he put on his clothes & returned to his place. "Do you understand what I have done for you?" he asked them. "You call me 'Teacher' & 'Lord,' & rightly so, for that is what I am. Now that I, your Lord & Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another's feet.

A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.

B. You will get the full attention of the world when you love on empty.

II. What does this kind of love look like?

A. Love will __________ over others having more ____________.

1. Envy is one of the great problems of the world.

2. Envy is pervasive but we never talk about it.

3. Envy is a sin against love:

a. It produces attitudes and actions of __________.

1. James 3:16

For where you have envy & selfish ambition, there you find disorder & every evil practice.

2. Matthew 27:18

For he knew it was out of envy that they had handed Jesus over to him.

b. It indicts the __________ of __________.

1. Envy says I dislike how good God has been to somebody else.

2. I Corinthians 4:7

Isn’t everything you have and everything you are sheer gifts from God? So what’s the point of all this comparing and competing? (Message)

c. It reveals an unhealthy ____________ with __________.

4. I Peter 2:1,3

Therefore, rid yourselves of all malice and all deceit, hypocrisy, envy and slander of every kind. … now that you have tasted that the Lord is good.

B. Love will __________ all opportunities of ____________.

1. Envy says, "I want what you have."

2. Boasting says I want you to know what I have.

3. Romans 12:3

Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the measure of faith God has given you.

4. Philippians 2:3-4

Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.

C. Love will __________ to determine worth by _________.

1. People who envy and boast are insecure.

2. John 13:3

Jesus knew that the Father had put him in complete charge of everything, that he came from God & was on his way back to God.

III. For the call is to __________ your __________ to __________.

A. The call is to minister, not to matter.

B. When I make my agenda God's applause, I can love anybody.

Conclusion: James 4:6

God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.

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