Love Includes Sacrifice
1 Jn. 3:16-18
Introduction
Brotherly love is a mark of true conversion. Hating one’s brother makes one a murderer. It’s
inconceivable for a Christian to be a murderer but its possible that a true believer can do it. David to
satisfy his fleshy desires killed Uriah, the husband of Bathsheba. By our hate, though we did not
literally kill someone, in the eye of the Lord, spiritually, we are already a murderer. The sad reality is,
the Lord Jesus Christ will not fellowship with Christians who commit mental murder. Let’s continue
to see what love really is according the Apostle John.
I. Christ’s example (1 Jn. 3:16)
A. The Lord Jesus Christ, being God, as well as man, loves us so much that He laid
down his life, for us while we were still sinners. (Jn. 15:13, Rom. 5:8)
B. The characteristic of Christ’s love is sacrifice. Love was the motivation for His coming
to earth. He demonstrated His love in sacrificing Himself for us sinners condemned
to die and burn in hell.
C. Christ’s death on the cross for us, has become a standard of love that show what
Christianity really is. It is a love that freely gives and asks nothing in return.
D. Genuine love is clearly described in 1 Cor. 13:1-8.
E. My Thompson Chain Reference Bible gives another description of Christ’s love for
men as:
1. Unchangeable (Jn. 13:1)
2. Divine (Jn. 15:9)
3. Self-sacrificing (Jn. 15:13
4. Inseparable (Rom. 8:35)
5. Constraining (2 Cor. 5:14)
6. Sacrificial (Gal. 2:20)
7. Manifested by His death (1 Jn. 3:16)
F. John says we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren. Do we really have to die
for our brothers?
G. Christian love requires sacrifice and service to others. Christ’s love seeks the welfare
of others. This puts a moral obligation for all real and faithful Christians. Jesus did it
to save; we do it to serve.
H. For the sake of the brethren, we ought to serve as a “living sacrifice” in our daily
lives. (Rom. 12:1)
I. Christian love may involve “dying” for our brethren as some faithful missionaries and
Pastors have done, but it can also mean “living” so we can serve others.
J. Children of the devil will think only of themselves, while we children of God will
always think of others and even cares for others more than they care for ourselves.
K. Christian, are you willing now to sacrifice yourself and serve as the Lord Jesus Christ
did?
Illustration1: The Love of God
A certain medieval monk announced he would be preaching next Sunday evening on “The Love of
God.” As the shadows fell and the light ceased to come in through the cathedral windows, the
congregation gathered. In the darkness of the altar, the monk lighted a candle and carried it to the
crucifix. First of all, he illumined the crown of thorns, next, the two wounded hands, then the marks
of the spear wound. In the hush that fell, he blew out the candle and left the chancel. There was
nothing else to say. Source unknown
II. Self-Sacrifice (1 n. 3:17)
A. Love becomes a reality when we put it into action
B. Christian love is shown in sacrificial giving to other Christians.
C. We should help others sacrificially routinely by sharing or giving to others what we
have materially so that we can help them survive not only spiritually but also
physically.
D. Physical things will include foods, clothing, shelter, even services which may involve
bringing believers to church and back home, caring for the sick and the elderly and
other things as the need arises.
E. People don’t realize that “listening ears” can also be very helpful to persons who are
broken hearted. Some individuals just need somebody to listen to them.
F. Sharing our resources and time may involve inconvenience, hardship, and sometime
trouble but as we have learned, we have a moral duty and obligation to do it.
G. Those who deny or fail to help other brothers even when they are very capable to do
it show their selfishness and absence of the love of God in them. They miss the whole
point of Christ’s sacrifice. Their salvation and being a child of God is also doubtful.
H. The law of love according to the Word of God is very plain and clear. Bear ye one
another’s burdens, and so fulfil the law of Christ (Gal. 6:2).
Illustration 2: Real Love Forgets Self
William Gladstone, in announcing the death of Princess Alice to the House of Commons, told a
touching story. The little daughter of the Princess was seriously ill with diphtheria. The doctors told
the princess not to kiss her little daughter and endanger her life by breathing the child’s breath. Once
when the child was struggling to breathe, the mother, forgetting herself entirely, took the little one
into her arms to keep her from choking to death. Rasping and struggling for her life, the child said,
“Momma, kiss me!” Without thinking of herself the mother tenderly kissed her daughter. She got
diphtheria and some days thereafter she went to be forever with the Lord.
Real love forgets self. Real love knows no danger. Real love doesn’t count the cost. The Bible says,
“Many waters cannot quench love, neither can the floods drown it.” (Songs 8:7) Source unknown
Love is a costly thing.
God in His love for us (and for a lost world) “spared not His own Son” to tell the world of His love. Love
is costly, but we must tell the world at any cost. Such love is costly.
It costs parents and sons and daughters. It costs the missionary life itself. In his love for Christ the
missionary often must give up all to make the Savior known. If you will let your love for Christ, cost
you something, the great advance will be made together. Love is a Costly Thing by Dick Hillis
Illustration 3: Is It a Sacrifice?
People talk of the sacrifice I have made in spending so much of my life in Africa. Can that be called a
sacrifice which is simply acknowledging a great debt we owe to our God, which we can never repay?
Is that a sacrifice which brings its own reward in healthful activity, the consciousness of doing good,
peace of mind, and a bright hope of a glorious destiny? It is emphatically no sacrifice. Rather it is a
privilege. Anxiety, sickness, suffering, danger, foregoing the common conveniences of this life—these
may make us pause, and cause the spirit to waver, and the soul to sink; but let this only be for a
moment. All these are nothing compared with the glory which shall later be revealed in and through
us. I never made a sacrifice. Of this we ought not to talk, when we remember the great sacrifice which
He made who left His Father’s throne on high to give Himself for us. David Livingstone
III. Sincerity (1 Jn. 3:18)
A. As written by the Apostle John here, just talking is nothing.
B. He is comparing lip service in contrast to life service. John 3:16 is nothing without
Calvary.
C. Words versus works. Most Christian can give comforting words and encouragements.
D. But good words cannot fill an empty stomach, quench thirst, cloth a naked man, or
provide heat to and shelter to the homeless. Love is not just talk but no walk.
E. True love shows itself in service to others. Love for fellow Christians is always
produced by truth. Some Christians do not love in truth as noted in James 2:14-17.
F. True love costs something. It cost Jesus’ life to pay for our sins. So, to show our
genuine and sincere love we must meet the needs of others.
G. 1 Peter 1:22 mentions about “unfeigned love” which is sincere or without hypocrisy.
This love requires the filling of the Holy Spirit. (Gal. 5:22).
H. We serve others because we love to do it not because we are forced to do it.
I. What is really the thought on this lesson is to be a blessing to others. When you do
this, your burdens will also be lighter and you bring glory to the Lord Jesus Christ.
J. No only this, don’t forget that the Lord Jesus Christ will reward you for all the good
things you have done in His name
Illustration 4: A Kind Teacher
F. W. Farrar tells how, when Dwight L. Moody was an ignorant, ragged, shoeless boy in the streets of
Chicago, he found his way to a Sunday school by one of those unseen providences that men call
chance. He was shy and sensitive and very nervous lest the other boys would laugh at him because he
could not find the places in the Bible. The teacher observed his embarrassment, and with gentle, silent
tact saved him from his shame by finding the places for him. But for that little nameless act of love
and sympathy, a career of memorable beneficence might have been lost to the world.
(from Illustrations of Bible Truths)
IV. Conclusion:
Christ’s love for us is the standard and model which we should follow. When we show our
love to our fellow men by giving them a helping hand, we should not expect something in
return. Would you be a blessing to others? Why don’t you start now
