Spoken
Word no. 173
While
Patiently Waiting
Brian Kocourek, Pastor
June 26th,
2010
Habakkuk 2 : 3 For the vision is yet for an appointed time, but at
the end it shall speak, and not lie: though it tarry, wait for it; because it
will surely come, it will not tarry.
Psalms 123 : 2 Behold, as the eyes of servants look unto the hand
of their masters, and as the eyes of a maiden unto the hand of her mistress; so
our eyes wait upon the LORD our God, until that he have mercy upon us.
Isaiah 40 : 31 But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their
strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be
weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.
Let’s pray,
Dear father we see the importance of waiting, and we would ask that you
would help us in this time, when we see the hand writing on the wall that is
all just about over, and yet we still wait for the next phase of your Great
Appearing when we move from the Shout to the Voice of the resurrection, and yet
seeing this by the eyes of your understanding, yet we do not see this with the
natural eye, so we ask that you would renew our strength as you do the eagle
during this time of waiting for we ask it in Jesus Christ’s Precious name amen.
Now, for our study this morning, I want to take our thoughts from paragraph 26-30
from the second half of The Spoken Word is the Original Seed 26 Now, He gave him a bride: a type of the second Adam.
He gave the first Adam a bride; she fell. He gave the second Adam, Christ, a
bride; she fell. That's exactly. Why?
She's not an original; she is a
byproduct. The bride today is a
byproduct. See, calls herself the
bride. But what she is, she's made
up of a material of organization, not of the Word, so much Word in it to make
it kind of a byproduct to make it hypocritical. Eve believed most of the
Word, but she doubted one part of
It. Today she can't even get Matthew 28:19 straight
with Acts
2:38. See? It
confuses her. That's just one little place of the hundreds of others.
27 Now, the bride
of Adam was a type of the second Adam's bride, Now, Adam's bride could not wait. God had told Adam and Eve, "Multiply and replenish the earth." It was an oncoming thing, a promise. She was not his wife as
yet, because she had never lived with her. The
Bride of Christ is not His Wife yet; the wedding supper is to take place.
Get it? Notice, oh this is rich. She got
in a hurry, and what did she do? She crossed her seed. She mingled it with
the serpent's seed; and when she did, What did she bring? She brought a child of death, a child, that she perverted every
child after that. And when the
28 A woman engaged
to a fine, young, clean man, and before they come together, what's she done? She is found pregnant by someone else.
Then her own seed which is betrothed,
her own body which is betrothed to her boyfriend, her engaged husband, is found
full of seed of another man. What a disgrace. That's exactly what Adam found.
That's what Christ has found. Couldn't
wait: that's what's the matter with the people today. They can't wait for the real Holy
Spirit to take the church in position. They've
got to (1) manufacture something, (2) work up something: (3) initial evidence, (4) speaking in tongues (Why?) to get more members in the church, all these kind of
tommyrot instead of waiting
upon the Lord for the real manifestation
of the resurrection of Christ making Himself known among the people. She can't wait.
\ 29 What did she do?
She went out and become impregnated with denominationalism. First was the
Assemblies of God; then come the Oneness, then come what more after that. Now,
the so-called bride is impregnated with all kinds of tommyrot, disgrace. The
women won't pay a bit more attention to what God's Word says than nothing in
the world, neither will the men, or even the preachers. Then call that a bride...What is it? She's impregnated. Christ's bride has become pregnant with the
world: dressing like the world, acting like the world, big churches,
fine... What... It shows what she is. She's
of the devil. That's what Satan done at the first place, was try to build a
big beautiful kingdom in the heaven and was kicked out for it, excommunicated
from heaven. That's what Christ's modern bride is; she's kicked out, because she's excommunicated from God,
because she is a whore and not a virgin. It's deep, but I hope you get it.
Now, that is quite a hard hitting reality coming from
this vindicated prophet, and what he is telling us we need to open our ears and
make sure this is not you he is speaking about.
He keeps coming back to one thought here, and that is
she could not wait. That’s it, she just could not wait. Adam’s bride could not
wait, Christ’s bride at this first coming just could not wait. So tonight I want to look at this thought on
waiting. And can we, are we able to wait for the right one, instead of marrying
ourselves to a counterfeit.
Now, waiting is a hard thing to do, in the natural as
well as in the spiritual. And people grow weary of waiting, If they do not see
something happening now, then they try to make thins happen themselves. That is
what Eve did, that is what Sarah did, that is what
But
God has given promises to those who by faith are willing to wait for them, and
to have patience and be willing to wait is a sign of maturity in the
individual.
In Psalms 145 : 15 we read, The eyes of all wait upon thee; and thou givest them
their meat in due season. We see that if we are willing to wait for the
promise, God will not forget us, but during the period we must wait, He still
gives us our spiritual food in due season. So we have plenty to do during this
time, and eating from His spiritual food in due season is just one thing to
keep us busy until he comes again to receive us up into glory.
David who was a
man after God’s own heart said in Psalms 130 : 5 I wait for the LORD, my soul doth wait, and in his
word do I hope.
And
again he said in Psalms 40 : 1 I waited patiently for the LORD; and he inclined
unto me, and heard my cry. Notice David said that
after he patiently waited, God heard his cry.
And should we expect anything different from a God who
is not a respecter of persons? Not according to Peter? He said, in II PETER 3:9 The Lord is not slack concerning his
promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not
willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.
So we see that God uses all of time, every bit of it to get that last one
in and child trained.
And so we are also commanded in James 5 : 7 To Be
patient therefore, brethren, unto the parousia of the Lord. Behold, the
husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience
for it, until he receive the early and latter rain.
So instead of needing to have everything now, as we
see this world in it’s instant potatoes, instant pudding, instant oil changes,
and drive thru food and drop off launderies, and on and on, it seems that
everything is geared to having things now, and people do not have the patience
to wait anymore. If you remember it wasn’t so long ago that 56k modems were the
norm, and we had to wait for a long time to download what we needed. I remember
when the search engine for the message took about 8 – 12 hours to load up on
your computer, but we with patience patiently awaited the installation because
we knew that we could not search the entire message, and not have to skim
through umpteen volumes of sermons to find the quote that we knew was in the
message somewhere.
Now, it takes only a few seconds and we can search the
entire data base of not only the Bible, but we have 1200 sermons of brother
Branham’s. 1200 of mine, and many of brother Vayles sermons. And it takes seconds,
not minutes, not hours, not days to search all of that. But where has that left
us?
Now,
I would like to share some Scripture with you concerning our patiently waiting
which we have been called upon to do.
2 Thessalonians 3 : 5 And the Lord direct your hearts into the love of
God, and into the patient waiting for Christ.
Galatians 5 : 5 For we through the Spirit wait for the hope of
righteousness by faith.
Romans 8 : 25 But if we hope for that we see not, then do we with
patience wait for it.
Romans 8 : 23 And not only they, but ourselves also, which have
the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves,
waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body.
Lamentations 3 : 26 It is good that a man should both hope and quietly
wait for the salvation of the LORD.
Lamentations 3 : 25 The LORD is good unto them that wait for him, to the
soul that seeketh him.
James 1 : 4 But let patience have her
perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing.
James 1 : 3 Knowing this, that the trying
of your faith worketh patience.
2 Timothy
3: 10 But thou hast fully known my
doctrine, manner of life, purpose, faith, longsuffering, charity, patience,
Hebrews 12: 1 Wherefore seeing we also are
compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every
weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience
the race that is set before us,
Hebrews 10 : 36 For ye have need of patience,
that, after ye have done the will of God, ye might receive the promise.
Hebrews 6 : 12 That ye be not slothful, but
followers of them who through faith and patience inherit the promises.
Romans 15 : 5 Now the God of patience and
consolation grant you to be likeminded one toward another according to Christ
Jesus:
Romans 15 : 4 For whatsoever things were
written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and
comfort of the scriptures might have hope.
Romans 8 : 25 But if we hope for that we see
not, then do we with patience wait for it.
Romans 5 : 4 And patience, experience; and
experience, hope:
Luke 21 : 19 In your patience possess ye
your souls.
Now that we see the significance of this waiting and
learning patience while doing so, the next thought then is what can we be doing
while we are waiting for all things to wind up in this hour. I want to look at
our patiently redeeming the time.
THYATIREAN
CHURCH AGE - CHURCH AGE BOOK CPT 6 224-1 "I know your
faith." Now he does not say here as He did to the church in Pergamos,
"you hold MY faith". He is not talking about His faith now, but He is
commending them for their faithfulness. And as He does He also mentions their
'patience.' Now faithfulness and
patience go together. In fact
patience is the outcome of faithfulness, for it says in James
1:3, "The trying of your faith worketh patience."
There is absolutely no other way in which to gain patience. It has to come by
the trial of our faith. Romans 5:3, "Tribulation
worketh patience." How highly God regards this
outworking of our patience is seen in James 1:4,
"But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be
perfect and entire lacking nothing." God's will for us is
Perfection. And that perfection is
patience--waiting on God and waiting for God. This is the process of character development. How highly God has
commended these saints of the Dark Ages. Patient as lambs led to the slaughter,
lovingly, faithfully they served God. That is all they wanted out of life, just
service to their Lord. How great was to be their reward.
Now, as we focus our thoughts tonight
on this waiting and the patience that we receive as a result, which patience
builds in us character, we should ask the question, “what should be happening
during this time, rather than just sitting back and watching and waiting itself”.
Jesus told us in Luke 10 a parable as a result of a conversation he had with a certain
Lawyer who wanted to justify Himself. So I thought it would be good to look at
this again in light of the examples brother Branham gave to us concerning the
bride who could not wait. Now, when one gets to feeling under the scope, and feels
they need to justify themselves, then we need to understand there is a war
going on within that person. For why
would you feel that you have need of to justify yourself unless you also feel
that you are being un-rightly accused of something you have not done.
LUKE 10:25 ¶ And, behold, a certain lawyer stood up, and
tempted him (this means that he was
testing Jesus understanding of the Scriptures), saying, Master, what shall I do to inherit
eternal life? 26 He (Jesus) said unto him, What is written in the law?
how readest thou? 27 And he answering said, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbour as thyself. 28 And he said unto him, Thou hast answered right: this
do, and thou shalt live.
Now
Jesus says, You answered right, now this you must also do
and thou shalt
live. In other words, it is not enough to know to do what is right
but you must also do it, and then you shalt live.
The
word live is translated from
the Greek word ZAO and it means “to be alive, or to live life and to enjoy life.” And the word neighbor, does not mean just the
person next door. It simply means others. Jesus is saying we must be willing to
live life by enjoying life and sharing it with others by loving God with all of
our strength, with all of our heart and with all of our energies, and then we
must also be willing to love our neighbor with the same love that we would have
for our own selves. And I find this is where the problem lies the most of those
who seem to be impatient. They get caught up in wanting the results now,
instead of watching the promise grow.
We
have a promise that if we hearken to the voice of the Lord our God, That’s
Deuteronomy 28, then we will be blessed so much that the blessings will come
upon us and overtake us. The problem is that we so many times just do not see
the blessings coming, but they are on their way, because God promised that they
would be.
Now,
notice in this parable after Jesus tells this man what it means to inherit
eternal life, he then tells him that it is a matter of doing. Not works for
works sake, but works because it is the nature of eternal life to be doing. Then
notice how the man in his own mind is trying to justify himself, because he
doesn’t really want to help his neighbor,
29 But he, willing
to justify himself, said unto Jesus, And who is my neighbour? Now,
as I see it, if you feel that you are in a situation that you have to justify
yourself, then you are in a situation where you are suspect of something. In
other words, when you feel you have to justify yourself is when you think
someone else is not thinking of you as you are thinking of yourself. That means
your thoughts and focus are on self instead of others, and that is what Jesus
was trying to get this lawyer to understand.
And that is why Jesus tells the following parable in verse 30 And Jesus
answering said, A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell
among thieves, which stripped him of his raiment, and wounded him, and
departed, leaving him half dead. 31 And by chance there came down a certain
priest that way, and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. 32 And
likewise a Levite, when he was at the place, came and looked on him, and passed
by on the other side. 33 But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where
he was: and when he saw him, he had compassion on him,
Now,
do not forget that the Jews and Samaritans had very little to do with one
another. Remember, the woman at the well? When Jesus asked her for a drink, she
said, JOHN 4:9 Then saith the woman
of
So
we see a scene laid out before us of a man from
I
find it amazing that even within this most Glorious Message, where God Himself
has come down to gather together His Elect. Where God Himself has given us
evidence of His Presence among us showing us Himself in that Pillar of Fire,
and He has given us a Cloud to designate His Presence to us as he did with
Israel, and still we have people who are still self centric, who actually avoid
other persons in this message, brothers and sisters who may be down and out and need their love
and helping hand.
Now,
I realize that there are a lot of con artists, or what we call in the mission
field, “gold diggers” out there. But
just because there are those kind of people, does not mean that we should have
no compassion on all people especially who have a legitimate need. After all,
Brother Branham said, “Eternal Life is Living for others”, and that is
exactly what Luke
10 is all about. The man wanted to know how to inherit Eternal Life,
and Jesus through this parable is trying to tell him.
Now,
from his sermon, THAT DAY ON CALVARY 60-0925 14-5 15-3 brother
Branham said, He was just one Man, the perfect
15-6
Someone said, "How can you stand and let anyone call you such bad
names?" You don't live for
yourself. You live for others that you might redeem that man. You become sons. And the trouble of it
is that the church has forgot they were
sons. You are sons. You're taking
Christ's place. You are sons; so don't live for yourself; live for others. "Well,
Brother Branham, I can live for this brother because he sure is a nice
man." That's not it. Live for that
man who hates you. Live for that person who'd kill you if they could.
That's what they done to Him. They killed Him, and He died that He might save
them. That's Eternal Life. When you’ve got that in your bosom, you're facing
heaven then. But you sacrifice your own things, give them up like the sheep
gives its wool. You look on towards
15-8
I hope this helps you to get in a place... That's what the Tabernacle,
that's what all people has got to do, is find out what you are and what's the
purpose. Church isn't going to church just to play music, sing songs. Church is
a place where correction... Judgment begins at the house of God. We must reckon ourselves dead and alive to
Christ. Then He made the way that we could sacrifice ourselves to His
service to follow Him. If we follow Him,
we lead the life that He led. That's wonderful. Jesus said, and spoke of
it. Let me just give you a few quotations on it. Listen close. Don't miss it.
16-1 Jesus said at that day He would separate
the people like the sheep and the goats, and He would say to the goats,
"Stand on the left side," and to the sheep, "Stand on the right
side." And He said to the goats, "Depart from Me, because I was
hungry and you didn't feed Me. I was in prison, and you did not visit Me. I was
naked, and you clothed Me not. I was thirsty, and you gave Me no drink. I was
sick, and you didn't visit Me. So depart from Me." And on the sheep, He
said, "I was hungry and you fed Me. I was naked and you give Me clothing.
I was sick and you ministered to Me." And
notice, don't fail to get this, church. Keep this in your heart forever. It was
so unconsciously done. The people don't do it for a line of duty. A man
that gives you something or other because he ought to do it, a man that feeds you because he ought to
do it, he's got a selfish idea. It should be your very life, your very
action.
16-2
It was so surprising to these sheep that they said, "Lord, when
were You hungry and we wouldn't feed You? When were You hungry, and we fed You?
When were You naked, and we give You clothes? When were You thirsty, and we
give You drink? When were You sick, and we ministered to You?" It was so
automatically, out of love, it's just their life lived in them. God, let the people see what
16-5
Now, I say, "When the Lord would--the Lord want me to do
that." It's not that. You're just
part of Him. His Spirit's in you, and you act the way He acted. Do get it.
"There is a way that seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof is the
way of death. Not all that saith Lord, Lord, shall enter in, but they that do the will of My Father,"
just from their hearts, just freely.
Now, that day at
17-2
Oh, you feel that blessed Spirit, that life, "Not me that
liveth," said Paul, "but Christ liveth in me." Just so
automatic... "Well, I tell you, Brother Branham. We are Christians here.
We help these people. We help them people." Oh, my, shame on you. That's
not Christianity. Christianity is just
automatically it's to be done. And you
just forget about, all about... Go
do it. Christ just completely
surrendered His Life to God. He
gave Hisself as a public Servant to the people. He gave His Life freely. He didn't have to do it. He didn't
begrudgingly do it. He didn't say, "Now, brother, you all ought to think a
whole lot of Me, because I come to die for you." He never said a word
about it. He died anyhow, because it was
God in Him. It's God in you. It's God in me that makes us look at others.
17-5
Sheep on one side. One of them will say, "Well,
Lord, I did this, and, Lord, I did that." He said, "Depart
from Me, you workers of iniquity, I never even knew you."
If the church can ever come to those fundamental facts, that it's not something
you try to do, you work yourself up to do; it's
something that's born in you.
17-8
Forgive me, my Pentecostal friends. I am Pentecostal, but my Pentecostal
friends has got to a spot to where there has to be a lot of fast music, beating
of some bands, or clapping hands, or tambourines to bring up a shout. That's
only emotions. They play the bands before they go to battle to get people in
the emotion of battle. I believe in music. I believe in clapping of hands, but
I believe in these things. That's exactly true. We ought to have that, but you
have left the great things undone...?... that
self-sacrificial Life that God lives in you, automatically doing that which is
right, because it's right: just going on, don't even think nothing about it,
just living it. Then watch... You see what's going on, you just, you're on
the highway. That's what
18-1 Now, now remember, you cannot be half
goat and half sheep. They won't mix. Now, there's a lot of people who say,
"Yes, you know what? We got a organization in our group.
We help the poor. We do this." That's all right, but you're tooting your own horn about it. You don't
do that. You do your alms in secret; Jesus said. Just automatically
something to you; it's no more than
going and getting a drink of water. You're thirsty. If the next man's thirsty,
you think about him too. The next man's need, you think about him the same as
your own need, and don't pay no attention to it, just live on. 18-3 Now, you can't be half sheep and half
goat. So if you say, "Well, our church has got an
organization. We give to the poor. We do this, and do that, and do the other."
If you had that without that other, the life of Christ in you, you're just
absolutely doing it in vain. Jesus... Paul said, I
Corinthians 13, "Though I give all my goods to
feed the poor, and have my body burned as a sacrifice, it profit me nothing."
Now, this is hard but it's truth. You got to come to that fact. Recognize what
And
so we see Jesus is telling us of this Good Samaritan, there was something in
this man that he was willing to help, even a Jew whom his race of people had
very little if anything to do with the Jews and visa versa. And so we follow this act of kindness of this
Samaritan that was filled with the Love of God in His heart. And we see by his
actions what was in his heart. 34 And
went to him, and bound up his wounds, pouring in oil and wine, and set him on
his own beast, and brought him to an inn, and took care of him. 35 And on the
morrow when he departed, he took out two pence, and gave them to the host, and
said unto him, Take care of him; and whatsoever thou spendest more, when I come
again, I will repay thee. 36 Which now of these three, thinkest thou, was
neighbour unto him that fell among the thieves? 37 And he said, He that shewed
mercy on him. Then said Jesus unto him, Go, and do thou likewise.
This
is our example. This is the way God wants us to live out our lives here on
earth.
PHILIPPIANS 2:1 ¶ If [there be] therefore any consolation in
Christ, if any comfort of love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any bowels
and mercies, 2 Fulfil ye my joy, that ye be likeminded, having the same love,
[being] of one accord, of one mind. 3
[Let] nothing [be done] through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of
mind let each esteem other better than themselves. 4 Look not every man on his own things, but
every man also on the things of others. 5 Let this mind be in you, which was
also in Christ Jesus: 6 Who, being in
the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: 7 But made
himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made
in the likeness of men: 8 And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled
himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.
I THESSALONIANS 1:2 ¶ We give thanks to God always for you all,
making mention of you in our prayers; 3 Remembering without ceasing your work of faith, and labour of love, and
patience of hope in our Lord Jesus
Christ, in the sight of God and our Father;
Now,
remember the word OF is an acronym which means belonging to or more
specifically, OUT FROM.
Therefore
we should read this verse as Remembering without ceasing your work out from your faith, and labour out from your love, and patience out from your hope in our Lord Jesus
Christ, in the sight of God and our Father. And
to be more exact, we should read it as thus, Remembering without ceasing your work produced and characterized by the faith
which is yours, and your labor which
is shaped and characterized by the Love you embrace, and evidently manifested
through the patience you possess due to the hope you have in our Lord Jesus
Christ, in the presence of God our Father.
So
you see how that your Faith shapes and molds the very nature of the expression
that comes forth from your being as an evident token that you have been made
alive, and your love expresses itself in self sacrificial acts of charity
towards others, with no regard to self, and this then brings upon you a peace
which is characterized by the patience you show forth which is an evident token
of your earnest expectation in our Lord Jesus Christ.
II THESSALONIANS 1:3 We
are bound to thank God always for you, brethren, as it is meet, because that
your faith groweth exceedingly, and the charity of every one of you all toward
each other aboundeth; 4 So that we ourselves glory in you in the churches of
God for your patience and faith in all your persecutions and tribulations that
ye endure: 5 ¶ [Which is] a manifest
token of the righteous judgment of God, that ye may be counted worthy of the
kingdom of God, for which ye also suffer: 6 Seeing [it is] a righteous thing with
God to recompense tribulation to them that trouble you; 7 And to you who are
troubled rest with us, when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with
his mighty angels, 8 In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not
God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ: 9 Who shall be
punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from
the glory of his power; 10 When he shall come to be glorified in his saints,
and to be admired in all them that believe (because our testimony among you was
believed ) in that day. 11 ¶ Wherefore
also we pray always for you, that our God would count you worthy of [this]
calling, and fulfil all the good pleasure of [his] goodness, and the work of
faith with power: 12 That the name of
our Lord Jesus Christ may be glorified in you, and ye in him, according to the
grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ.
And
our Faith works by Love. In other words, Love is the motivating force that
brings our faith into expression. It is love that takes a-hold of your faith
and moves it from a dormant passive Faith into a vibrant active faith. Because Faith is not about self, and neither
is Eternal Life living for self, but eternal Life is living for others. Its not
the works that avil anything, but the works which have been produced because of
Love.
GALATIANS 5:6
For in Jesus Christ neither circumcision availeth any thing, nor
uncircumcision; but faith which worketh by love.
Because
Faith is a revelation, and Hope is an earnest expectation and Love is the
outward expression of that Revelation. Paul said there remaineth, Faith, Hope
and Love, and the greatest of these is Love.
I CORINTHIANS 13:1 ¶ Though I speak with the tongues of men and
of angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling
cymbal. (Notice how Agape Love, God
Love is translated here as charity because God always expresses His Love
through Giving. For
God so Love the world he gave His only Begotten son, you see it?) 2 And though I have
the gift of prophecy, (O brother, can that guy preach. He’s a house
on fire when it comes to preaching…Yeah, and all that and some, but though he
can preach better than anyone you have ever heard, and though he) understands all the
mysteries, and has all the knowledge;
and though I have all faith, Paul says, so that
I could remove mountains, and yet have not charity, I am nothing. So
what good is your knowledge and your wisdom and your abilities to teach and
preach and pray for miracles if you don’t even love your brother who doesn’t
love you. 3 And
though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be
burned, and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing. 4 ¶
Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity
vaunteth not itself, (it doesn’t place itself above others), it is not puffed
up, 5 It does not behave itself unseemly, it seeks not it’s own, (it
is not self centered) is not easily provoked, and it thinks no evil; 6 It rejoices
not in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth; 7 Love Bears all things, Love
believes all things, Love hopes all things, Love endures all things. 8¶Love never fails: but whether there be prophecies,
they shall fail; whether there be tongues, they shall cease; whether there be
knowledge, it shall vanish away. 9 For we know in part, and we prophesy in
part. 10 But when that which is perfect is come, then that which is in part
shall be done away. 11 When I was a child, I spake as a child, I understood as
a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, I put away childish
things. 12 For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I
know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known. 13 And now abideth
faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity.
John
said to us in JOHN
13:34 A
new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you,
that ye also love one another. 35 By this shall all [men] know that ye are my
disciples, if ye have love one to another.
And
Jesus said in JOHN
15:10 If
ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my
Father's commandments, and abide in his love. 11These things have I spoken unto
you, that my joy might remain in you, and [that] your joy might be full. 12
This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you. 13 Greater
love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.
14 Ye are my friends, if ye do
whatsoever I command you. 15 Henceforth I call you not servants; for the
servant knoweth not what his lord doeth: but I have called you friends; for all
things that I have heard of my Father I have made known unto you. 16 Ye have
not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and
bring forth fruit, and [that] your fruit should remain: that whatsoever ye
shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you. 17 These things I
command you, that ye love one another. 18 ¶
If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me before [it hated] you.
19 If ye were of the world, the world would love
his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the
world, therefore the world hateth you. 20 Remember the word that I said unto
you, The servant is not greater than his lord. If they have persecuted me, they
will also persecute you; if they have kept my saying, they will keep yours
also.
In
closing we find Paul saying in ROMANS 13:8 Owe no man any thing, but to love one another: for he that
loveth another hath fulfilled the law. 9 For this, Thou shalt not commit
adultery, Thou shalt not kill, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false
witness, Thou shalt not covet; and if [there be] any other commandment, it is
briefly comprehended in this saying, namely, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as
thyself. 10 Love worketh no ill to his
neighbour: therefore love [is] the fulfilling of the law.
We
find Peter also saying in I PETER 1:22 Seeing ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth
through the Spirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren, [see that ye] love one
another with a pure heart fervently: 23
Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the
word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever.
I JOHN 4:7
¶ Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and every one
that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God. 8 He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God
is love. 9 In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God
sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him.
10 Herein is love, not that we loved God,
but that he loved us, and sent his Son [to be] the propitiation for our sins.
11 Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another. 12 No man hath seen God at any time. If we
love one another, God dwelleth in us, and his love is perfected in us. Let’s pray…