00:00:00.000 - 00:00:35.840

[ Silence ] [ Music ] ♪ Magnify the Lord ♪ ♪ Magnify His holiness ♪

00:00:35.840 - 00:01:09.800

♪ For He is great ♪ ♪ And His mercy endures forever ♪ ♪ He is great ♪ ♪ And His mercy endures forever ♪

00:01:09.800 - 00:01:41.760

♪ He is great ♪ ♪ Under His mercy endureth ♪ ♪ Forever and ever ♪ - Yes, Lord.

00:01:41.760 - 00:02:04.160

♪ Take me for Him ♪ ♪ Take me for Him ♪ Magnify his holy name forever and ever, forever and evermore. Magnify him.

00:02:04.160 - 00:02:33.620

Magnify him. ♪ Magnify His holy name ♪ ♪ Forever and ever and ever ♪ ♪ Oh, how wonderful ♪

00:02:33.620 - 00:03:02.480

♪ How wondrous is His name ♪ ♪ Heaven and earth ♪ ♪ Thy greatness proclaim ♪ ♪ Every knee should bow ♪

00:03:03.480 - 00:03:32.260

♪ And every tongue confess ♪ ♪ That Christ is Lord of all ♪ ♪ Every knee ♪ ♪ Shall bow ♪

00:03:32.320 - 00:04:05.980

♪ On every tongue and face ♪ ♪ That Christ is Lord of all ♪ ♪ Christ is Lord of all ♪ ♪ Magnify him ♪

00:04:05.980 - 00:04:21.900

♪ Magnify him ♪ ♪ Magnify his holy name ♪ ♪ Forever and ever ♪ ♪ Forever and evermore ♪

00:04:21.900 - 00:04:35.060

♪ Magnify Him ♪ ♪ Magnify Him ♪ ♪ Magnify His holy name ♪ ♪ Forever and ever ♪

00:04:35.060 - 00:04:58.620

♪ Forever ♪ ♪ Forever and ever magnify His holy name ♪ ♪ And ever magnify His holy name ♪ ♪ Magnify His holy name ♪

00:04:58.620 - 00:05:32.560

(audience applauding) Amen. Amen. I love you for tender hearts.

00:05:36.720 - 00:06:20.920

that love beareth all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. I remember my first grade teacher, Miss Jolly. I remember her so well after 70 years. I had a crush on Miss Jolly, my first grade teacher.

00:06:20.920 - 00:06:42.720

I remember, and I think that many of you do too, how we wrote love notes. And some of us considered ourselves great poets. And we wrote such poems as, "I Love You Once,"

00:06:42.720 - 00:07:07.300

"I Love You Twice," "I Love You More Than a Cat Loves Mice." [LAUGHTER] And then another, "As long as the tree grows around the stump, I love you, sugar lump." [laughter]

00:07:07.300 - 00:07:26.800

And ever so often, the teacher would intercept some of the mail. Yes. It had returned on, or it had YKW. We knew what that meant, you know who, from you know who.

00:07:26.800 - 00:07:51.800

And when she would intercept one of these love notes, she would have it read to the class, and we were all somewhat embarrassed. But love is the greatest thing in the world. Henry Drummond says love is the greatest thing.

00:07:51.800 - 00:08:40.800

And this love hymn that Paul writes to the church in Corinth lifts up love as the greatest of all virtues, love. The greatest thing you'll ever learn is to love and be loved in return. But what does it really mean to have tough love? Tough love for tender hearts.

00:08:40.800 - 00:09:25.440

Church in Corinth was torn with strife, separation, division, plagued the church. And after discussing many issues about which he had been informed, Paul comes to the close of the last chapter in his first letter. had boasted of gifts and he talks about those gifts but he says, "Behold I show you a more

00:09:25.440 - 00:09:51.520

excellent way and that more excellent way is love. Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels and have not love, it profiteth me nothing. Love, love, love.

00:09:51.520 - 00:10:20.640

When our first child was born, one of the things that I'd heard a great deal about was how the child would keep you up at night. Well, most of the time those responsibilities rest upon the mother. And when the child would cry, sometimes I'd say, "Well, the child is crying."

00:10:20.640 - 00:10:54.080

She'd say, "Well, no, there's no reason not to answer that cry." So we agreed that the child would only have an answer to cry when the mother decided. So the first child had to get adjusted to crying herself to sleep, particularly when the cry was not a distressful cry.

00:10:54.080 - 00:11:31.080

When it was a distressful cry, the mother always recognized and get up immediately to see what was wrong. So to cry, to be sensitive to that cry, and to let the child continue to cry, is a kind of tough love. Because you want the child, at least our philosophy was, to learn early in life that you don't get things your way all the time. When you're really in distress, we're there.

00:11:31.080 - 00:12:10.400

And parents have to learn this. Children have to learn this. Over and over again we hear of cases where parents are told not to respond to their child's requests in the way that they want them answered. And it has to be tough love sometimes that turns the addict, the drug addict around.

00:12:10.400 - 00:12:38.040

Tough love. The person who's an habitual criminal who goes to jail time and time again, you have to get to the point of not answering some of those requests. And sometimes that's tough, but it's tough love that must be administered to tender

00:12:38.040 - 00:13:13.560

hearts in order for that love to be redemptive. So Paul is talking about tough love, love that's tough that will not let go, love that And the way it gets difficult and hard, love, it keeps on loving. So we've talked a great deal about love from time to time.

00:13:13.560 - 00:14:04.360

And in this particular chapter, most speakers are tempted to discuss the various types of love based on the Greek eros, agape, starge, and philos, all Greek words defining a certain type of love. We know what Eros is, that erotic kind of love, that romantic kind of love, kind of love that we classify according to deodorants and lovemaking and the like. That's

00:14:04.360 - 00:14:44.880

Eros. And after a certain period of time, Eros fades. Then there is Philos, which has to do with the word Philadelphia, brotherly love. We understand that we're in the same lodge, we're in the same fraternity or sorority, we understand that kind of love. Storge family love, yes, we understand that. This is my blood. No matter what they do,

00:14:44.880 - 00:15:14.580

this is my blood. That's Storge. But all of these loves that we have are not sufficient to measure up to agape, God's love, God's love, agape. And this is the kind of love Paul is talking about, agape love, God-led love, love like God's love.

00:15:14.580 - 00:15:30.800

That's the kind of love Paul lives. Though I speak with tongues of men and of angels, no matter what gifts I have, No matter how many degrees I possess, if I have not agape,

00:15:30.800 - 00:15:50.400

it profiteth me nothing. So if you don't remember anything else about this sermon, remember what it means to have love like God's love. And I'll put it in different terms,

00:15:50.400 - 00:16:01.480

and that is unconditional love. Unconditional love. Will you repeat that after me? Unconditional love.

00:16:01.480 - 00:16:14.960

All of us talk about how we love one another, but is it unconditional? Which means that there is nothing, nothing in all the world

00:16:14.960 - 00:16:39.520

that will stop you from loving. Unconditional love. Now most of us have love on certain conditions. I love you a bushel and a peg, I love you a bushel and a peg and a hug around the neck.

00:16:39.520 - 00:17:15.200

Take away the bushel, take away the peg, take away the hug around the neck, then I don't love you. That's the kind of love most of us have, but unconditional, unconditional. I preached a sermon some time ago on Hosea and Goma, where Goma became a prostitute, children outside the marriage and then finally ended up in a house of

00:17:15.200 - 00:17:49.480

prostitution and God spoke to Hosea and said, "Go get her and bring her back home." And Hosea obeyed. Now a whole lot of us, most of us, if not all of us, would have argued with God, but that's what Hosea did. That's unconditional. When I preach that sermon one brother said to me, "Rev. I'll never be that weak." What I really think

00:17:49.480 - 00:18:16.440

he should have said is, "Rev. I'll never be that strong." Strong. Strong. So, Agape, Eros, Philos, Tergi, all different kinds of love. I've given you a brief summary of what they're like. And we sang earlier in this service, love divine,

00:18:16.440 - 00:18:29.400

all love's excelling. Listen to that again. Love divine, all love's excelling. So agape excels all that is.

00:18:29.400 - 00:18:49.920

If you don't have agape, you've missed it. God's love, unconditional. She had a child out of wedlock, but I love her. I still love her.

00:18:49.920 - 00:19:10.360

She became a prostitute in the course of the marriage, but I still love her. Unconditional. And after listening to this and thinking about it, maybe we better go back and look again

00:19:10.360 - 00:19:42.160

at the kind of love we have that Paul is suggesting. He's not suggesting this to those at the pool hall. really speaking to the church and saying to them that this is what is needed there in Corinth and what you really need is love, unconditional love to embrace all of the congregation,

00:19:42.160 - 00:20:14.160

to love, love divine, all loves excelling, joy of heaven to earth come down. In other words, this love that is in heaven, the joy of heaven, let it come down to earth and be with us. And that's really what Jesus does.

00:20:14.160 - 00:20:30.440

He comes down and walks among us and shows that love, that unconditional love. Oh, there is his stepfather who really was not too hot on the marriage for the time being,

00:20:30.440 - 00:20:47.900

but he grew up in that home and was obedient to him. There were the parents and the children, the mother and the rest of the children, they all came together and went to Caponium

00:20:47.900 - 00:20:57.040

to bring him back home. Our brother is getting beside himself, my son's beside himself. Come on, son, go home with us.

00:20:57.040 - 00:21:10.940

They misunderstood. But Jesus embraced them. You don't find a word of condemnation when all this occurs. less unconditional love.

00:21:10.940 - 00:21:36.620

You would have thought that the scribes and the Pharisees would have embraced him and like to have sponsored him in their religious society, but they didn't. They did everything they could to hinder his work, and yet Jesus embraced him with agape Divine love, love divine, all love's excelling.

00:21:36.620 - 00:21:59.280

Well, he was misunderstood. He was falsely accused. And finally he was led outside the city walls and crucified.

00:22:01.480 - 00:22:22.720

And those who crucified him, while they were crucifying him, he says, "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do." Brothers and sisters, that's unconditional love. Unconditional, unconditional.

00:22:22.720 - 00:23:04.580

So I know most of us got our reservations on the kind of love we think we need to make it in. But Jesus demonstrates it, the Bible illustrates it, unconditional love. Well, see him on the cross, then putting nails through his hands, a wound in his side, but he prays for his persecutors, unconditional love, so much so that he cries out to the Father, "Father,

00:23:04.580 - 00:23:40.060

why hast thou forsaken me? My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" God himself turns his face away from his son as he dies on the cross. And yet, Jesus embraces the father and in his last words he says, "Into thy hands I

00:23:40.060 - 00:24:00.340

commend my spirit." No matter what God does, even to his own son or permits, that's unconditional. If you want to know what unconditional love is, look at Jesus. That's the one we say we want to imitate.

00:24:00.340 - 00:24:23.100

We want to be like Christ. That's unconditional love. The wonderful thing is Jesus comes among us to make us more like God so that we can embrace whatever life may bring.

00:24:23.100 - 00:24:55.820

And we don't know what that may be, whatever life may bring. We embrace it. We come now to the hymn of invitation for those who would embrace Jesus Christ and seek to have him mold you and make you according to his will and way as one who demonstrates

00:24:55.820 - 00:25:24.460

that unconditional love and seeks to grow in the likeness of the Master. Love lifted me. That's why we're all here as worshippers of God who reveals himself to Jesus Christ. lifts us from the valleys of this life, the valleys of doubt, confusion,

00:25:24.460 - 00:25:52.420

misunderstanding. So as we sing we invite you to come and accept Jesus Christ as daughter of your life. Door of the church is open, you may come by letter, by Christian experience, or on profession of faith. We ask you to come while we sing.

00:25:52.420 - 00:26:23.420

Come. I was sinking deep in sin, far from the peaceful shore. Very deeply stained within, sinking to rise no more. But the master of the sea heard my despairing cry.

00:26:23.420 - 00:26:48.420

From the water lifted me, now safe am I. Love within me, love within me, May God lead us to Him. Love within me, love within me,

00:26:48.420 - 00:27:10.540

Love within me, may God lead us to Him. ♪ Love within me ♪ ♪ All my life to Him I give ♪ ♪ Ever to Him I cling ♪

00:27:10.540 - 00:27:24.180

♪ In His presence, presence be ♪ ♪ Ever He plays his theme ♪ ♪ Love so mighty and so true ♪ ♪ Bears my soul to song ♪

00:27:24.180 - 00:27:46.440

♪ Praise for love and service to the hills below ♪ ♪ Love with the hills, love with the hills ♪ ♪ Can't nothing else do I ♪ ♪ Love with the hills, love with the hills ♪

00:27:46.440 - 00:28:03.660

♪ Love with the hills, can't nothing else do I ♪ ♪ And in us will have love ♪ ♪ To give ♪ ♪ Me ♪

00:28:03.660 - 00:28:17.300

♪ Souls in danger look up above ♪ ♪ Jesus will be his slave ♪ ♪ He will lift you by his love ♪ ♪ Out of the angry waves ♪

00:28:17.300 - 00:28:30.700

♪ He's the master of the sea ♪ ♪ 'Cause this little thing ♪ ♪ He must be who wants to be ♪ ♪ He's made to be ♪

00:28:30.700 - 00:28:44.100

♪ Love him and be ♪ ♪ Love him and be ♪ ♪ When a man has to go ♪ ♪ Love him and be ♪

00:28:44.100 - 00:28:58.460

♪ Love him and be ♪ ♪ Love him to me ♪ ♪ And as he has to go ♪ ♪ Love him ♪

00:28:58.460 - 00:29:13.220

♪ To me ♪ (dramatic music) [BLANK_AUDIO]