His Divine Glory-Part 2: Brotherly Love
/Virtue
2. Knowledge
3. Self-control
4. Steadfastness
5. Godliness
The heart of man is a very special place. It’s the place where the thoughts of the soul’s mind and the feelings of the soul’s emotions mix together. The influencers are: the world, the flesh, the devil, or the Spirit of God. When we yield our will to these sources, we give permission for something to take our heart and that thing becomes the object of our affection.
For the believer, the heart belongs to Jesus. Peter wrote:
1 Peter 3:15 KJV
But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear:
The ESV says honor the Lord in your heart, but no, that’s not strong enough— sanctify the Lord in your heart! The heart belongs to Him. It’s His place, and He wants to speak to us this morning about our hearts and how we feel about others.
So the heart is the Lord’s place. It’s very special and it needs to be protected at all costs. If the heart is a house and regeneration of the Spirit is the renovation that allowed the Lord to move in, then the list that Peter instructed us to add are the furnishings, which will make our heart a comfortable place for the Lord to reside.
We have 2 left: brotherly kindness and Love
Brotherly Love
6. brotherly kindness/ affection- the love of the brethren, the Greek word…Philadelphia
Life is so busy and so hectic. We’re always running to the next place. There have been times in my Christian walk that I have felt anti-social, don’t want to be around people; worse, there have been times that I didn’t like church people. But according to the Book of Acts, Christianity has at its heart, the fellowship of the saints.
Acts 2:42
And they continued stedfastly in the apostles' doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers.
“But I don’t like people someone screams from the crowd!”
We have all been in that place, but it’s wrong. And anyone that thinks that fellowship with other Christians is always going to be smooth and not result in some conflict is delusional. It’s a family, have you never had conflict with your family? When Christianity is done properly, we don’t just look at others and their failures, we examine our own hearts to see what’s in there.
But that’s work, and I’m tired. Tell that to Jesus as He carries your death sentence up Calvary’s Hill.
A love for our brothers and sisters is a really big thing, as we will see from the scriptures.
And those are the two remaining furnishings brotherly love and God love
The Greek word for brotherly love or fondness is Philadelphia and is based off of two words philos and adelphos.
I mention the two different words that make up Philadelphia because the first word Phileo describes a love of great fondness and affection. One of the characteristics of Biblical Christianity is that there is care, concern, affection, LOVE for our brothers and sisters in Christ.
This Greek word Phileo makes a very familiar Bible story more interesting in the Greek than in English.
In the story that I’m referring to, Jesus has died on the cross and resurrected. During this same time frame Peter has fulfilled the prophecy of our Lord and has denied Him three times before the rooster crew. Now, he says, “I go fishing” Jesus is broiling fish on the beach and He cries out, “Do you have any fish?”
“No”
“Cast on the other side”
And the same thing happens that happened in the beginning. They have more fish than they can handle. He meets them in the end the same way He met them at the beginning. They were fishing for fish and He told them to follow Him and they would be fishers of men, and now, Peter’s failure has driven him to a place where he is running from the Lord and not fishing for men but has instead gone back to his previous life.
With the catch of fish, he realizes it’s Jesus. With his heart filled with joy, he rips off his outer garment and jumps into the sea and swims to shore. Once on shore, Jesus begins to speak as He is broiling the fish.
He asks Peter, “Simon Peter do you love me more than these?”
Whether He means the fish or the other disciples isn’t important. What’s important for this message are the words that are being used for love in this conversation, because these two words cover the last two things that the Lord through Peter is instructing us to supplement to our faith. These two words are Phileo and Agape.
We already defined Phileo. It’s defined by kindness, fondness and affection, and it’s where we build the word Philos- Adelphos, Philadelphia, brotherly love.
Agape- it is the God kind of love, a love that it is
sacrificial and recognizes the value of the object being loved.
1. So again, He asks Peter, “Simon Peter do you love (Agape) me more than these?”
“You know I phileo you Lord”
2. “Peter do you agape me?”
“You know I phileo you Lord!”
3. “Peter do you phileo me?”
“Do you really Peter? Do you really even phileo me? Do you care about me? Do you love me? Do you love me like a brother even? Because what I need you to do is to agape me. I need you to love me sacrificially and feed my sheep. I need you to understand the object of your love the way that I understand you as the object of my love—I laid my life down for you.”
7. Agape- a sacrificial love that recognizes the value of the object being loved.
The love of God is sacrificial. The love of God has attributed a value to the souls of humanity. The value He has attributed is the life and sacrifice of Jesus. “Peter do you agape me?”
The thought of these two words made me think of The prodigal son parable (Explain the story LK 15:16). It was already on my mind because I recently read it, but it’s a story of a Father’s love, but it’s also a story that contains two brothers; unfortunately, there is no Agape nor even any Phileo from one brother to the next.
And while I see that Father running as fast as his body can carry him to a lost son that was found, I also see in the distance, a brother, with his arms crossed and his brow furrowed and he is softly speaking to one of the servants as he gets the update on what is happening.
And then I’m reminded of the whole reason Jesus even told the story of the prodigal son…
Luke 15:1-2
1 Then drew near unto him all the publicans and sinners for to hear him. 2 And the Pharisees and scribes murmured, saying, This man receiveth sinners, and eateth with them.
I believe as we read the gospels and see the Pharisees who were filled with envy, jealousy and even hate compared to Jesus who is filled with sacrificial love, we have to search our hearts and make sure that we are allowing the Holy Spirit to form Jesus in us and not allowing the remnants of our old man to remain and grow in us.
They murmured
Murmur
There is discontent, there is a grudge, there are feelings of ill will and frustration wrapped up in a murmur, and it’s described as a secret displeasure that is not openly avowed.
That’s not good because that is allowing the feelings of displeasure towards the brother or sister to gain strength and power and fester and turn into something that it wasn’t originally.
Throughout my years, I have observed an interesting thing. Even as a young boy, I have seen this and remember it well. That even the suggestion of hate causes people to rise in defense and say, “I don’t hate anyone.”
And while we say, “We don’t hate!” I wonder if we recorded our murmuring sessions and played them back if we would feel the same way about what was in our hearts after we heard a play back of what came out of our mouths?
I can’t shake those words Jesus spoke a couple Wednesdays ago when He addressed the Pharisees:
Matthew 12:33-37
33 Either make the tree good, and his fruit good; or else make the tree corrupt, and his fruit corrupt: for the tree is known by his fruit. 34 O generation of vipers, how can ye, being evil, speak good things? for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh. 35 A good man out of the good treasure of the heart bringeth forth good things: and an evil man out of the evil treasure bringeth forth evil things. 36 But I say unto you, That every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment. 37 For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned.
And I think of love vs hate and Biblical encouragement vs murmuring, and I think about brotherly love, and even more… Agape love…a love that is sacrificial, a love that understands the value of the object being loved.
1. 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.
2. John 13:35
By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.
3. 1 John 4:20-21
20 If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen? 21 And this commandment have we from him, That he who loveth God love his brother also.
Detest-to hate; dislike extremely:
Do you phileo me Peter? I mean, I hear what you’re saying, but what you’re saying now is not the same as what you said then when you denied me 3 different times and even cursed once in reference to your denial towards me. What was that Peter, because I taught you and others that what proceeds out of the mouth reveals the abundance of the heart. I mean, I realized you were being pressured, but isn’t that always when the truth comes out? How you really feel is revealed when you speak in those times when your self is being pressured or threatened. Just like it was for Jesus, “Nevertheless, not my will but your will be done.”
Really digging into the heart—who is my neighbor—who is my brother? LK 10:29
4. Matthew 5:43-48
Love Your Enemies
43 “You have heard that it was said, You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ 44 But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 45 so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. 46 For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? 47 And if you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same? 48 You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.
5. 1 John 2:10
He that loveth his brother abideth in the light, and there is none occasion of stumbling in him.
For this is the message that ye heard from the beginning, that we should love one another.
6. 1 John 3:23-24
23 And this is his commandment, That we should believe on the name of his Son Jesus Christ, and love one another, as he gave us commandment.
24 And he that keepeth his commandments dwelleth in him, and he in him. And hereby we know that he abideth in us, by the Spirit which he hath given us.
7. 1 John 4:7-8
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.
8. 1 John 4:8-10
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.
**1 John 4:11
Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another.
9. 1 John 4:12
No man hath seen God at any time. If we love one another, God dwelleth in us, and his love is perfected in us.
10. 1 John 5:1-2
1 Whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ is born of God: and every one that loveth him that begat loveth him also that is begotten of him. 2 By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God, and keep his commandments.
In all these cases, a variant of the word agape is used to describe the love that God expects us to have towards our fellow brothers and sisters. It’s a love that recognizes the value of the object being love. This kind of love has to start with us recognizing how much the Lord loves them and we allow His love to motivate us, so that we can love them with His heart. That is the fruit of the Spirit:
Galatians 5:22
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith,
…LOVE, AGAPE LOVE!
2 Peter 1:8 For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 For whoever lacks these qualities is so nearsighted that he is blind, having forgotten that he was cleansed from his former sins. 10 Therefore, brothers, be all the more diligent to confirm your calling and election, for if you practice these qualities you will never fall. 11 For in this way there will be richly provided for you an entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
Confirm your calling/ make sure. The thought here is proof. It’s guarantee that you’ve been saved, the Holy Spirit lives in you. This is one of the receipts of the purchase that He is looking for.
You’re a new creation and the Holy Spirit lives in you and now it’s time to work with Him and let Him live through you, make sure that you are purposefully working with the Holy Spirit and seeing these things in your life.
Richly provided/ abundantly
the reward shall be furnished to us. Richly, indicating the fulness of future blessedness. Professor Salmond said that this is the reverse of 'saved, yet so as by fire' (I Cor. 3:15)."