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The Lord’s Prayer
Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name.
Your kingdom come. Your will be done On earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our debts, As we forgive our debtors.
And do not lead us into temptation, But deliver us from the evil one.
For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.”
During May we are working our way through a series titled The Living Christ and Family Living, it is designed to strengthen and enrich family living.
Today we are talking about Increasing Love in the Family.
Prayer
Heavenly Father, we come today to thank You for all of Your blessings to us, but especially we thank You for family blessings.
Those of us who have Christian parents owe You a great debt of gratitude.
We thank You for their example and instruction.
We thank You for the love they gave us.
Today we come bringing tithes and offerings that we might express our love for You and our concern that others will come to know Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour.
Accept these gifts and bless them.
In Jesus name we pray.
Amen.
Text
1 Thessalonians 3:12-13 NKJV
12 And may the Lord make you increase and abound in love to one another and to all, just as we do to you,
13 so that He may establish your hearts blameless in holiness before our God and Father at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ with all His saints.
Scripture Reading
1 Thessalonians 3:1-13 NKJV
Concern for Their Faith
1 Therefore, when we could no longer endure it, we thought it good to be left in Athens alone,
2 and sent Timothy, our brother and minister of God, and our fellow laborer in the gospel of Christ, to establish you and encourage you concerning your faith,
3 that no one should be shaken by these afflictions; for you yourselves know that we are appointed to this.
4 For, in fact, we told you before when we were with you that we would suffer tribulation, just as it happened, and you know.
5 For this reason, when I could no longer endure it, I sent to know your faith, lest by some means the tempter had tempted you, and our labor might be in vain.
Encouraged by Timothy
6 But now that Timothy has come to us from you, and brought us good news of your faith and love, and that you always have good remembrance of us, greatly desiring to see us, as we also to see you—
7 therefore, brethren, in all our affliction and distress we were comforted concerning you by your faith.
8 For now we live, if you stand fast in the Lord.
9 For what thanks can we render to God for you, for all the joy with which we rejoice for your sake before our God,
10 night and day praying exceedingly that we may see your face and perfect what is lacking in your faith?
Prayer for the Church
11 Now may our God and Father Himself, and our Lord Jesus Christ, direct our way to you.
12 And may the Lord make you increase and abound in love to one another and to all, just as we do to you,
13 so that He may establish your hearts blameless in holiness before our God and Father at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ with all His saints.
Introduction
In Paul’s second letter to the Thessalonians, he rejoiced and commended them because of “the love of everyone of you for one another is increasing”.
It is the will of God that we grow in love for one another.
This should especially be true within the family circle.
At least three different kinds of love should be experienced in the family.
In many instances the precipitating cause for marriage is romantic love.
It is expected that young people will “fall in love” and get married.
Romantic love is love on the level of the instincts.
It is the chemical reaction of a male to a female, and vice versa.
Marriage based on this type of love often experiences great disappointment.
A second kind of love that is essential in the family is “respect love.”
This kind of love is brotherly love or philanthropic love.
It is love based on worth and integrity, character and reliability.
It is social love that exists between friends.
A husband and wife should sincerely like each other and be best friends.
The third kind of love that is essential for the well being of the family is “help” love.
This is the sacrificial love that God demonstrated in the gift of His Son Jesus Christ for us.
Happy is the home where husband and wife are romantically attracted to each other.
Happier is the home where the husband and wife also genuinely respect each other.
The happiest home is the home where every area of thought and activity is saturated with “help” love.
Each person needs more love.
Each person needs to love more.
Each family needs more love.
Each family needs to love more.
How can love grow and increase in the family?
- The love of God for each family member must be recognised and appreciated.
God so loved the world, that means husband, wife, son, daughter, brother, sister, parents, grandparents.
Each of us is the object of God’s supreme concern.
He loves us and wants to provide for us and protect us.
He wants each of us to experience His grate salvation.
Because God loves each member of our family, we need to love each of them because of their infinite worth in His sight.
2. We must love ourselves properly, positively, and permanently.
If you do not properly appreciate and respect yourself, it will be impossible for you to properly love and appreciate others.
When Jesus said, “you shall love your neighbour as yourself,” He was affirming that we should have a proper love for ourselves.
If you suffer from a sense of low self esteem, it follows that you will look upon others in a similar manner.
Each of us needs to accept and rejoice in the truth that God loves us, that god is concerned about us, that God has high hopes for us.
As we recognise this, it will help us also to respond to the truth that God loves the other members of our family.
3. We need to pit love into practice in our families.
I read a story of a pastor who was kind to a young lady in his congregation.
He encouraged her and affirmed her in some decisions that she was making.
Later in an art class at college, she made him a plaque that contained the letters, one above the other, T-A-L-K, with a little message printed next to them that said, “Try A Little Kindness.”
This was her way of saying thank you for the kindness that she had experienced as a result of her pastor’s ministry.
How long has it been since you tried a little kindness on your companion?
Your children?
Your parents?
Kindness is an expression of love that even deaf people can hear and blind people can see.
4. We can increase our love in our family by practicing forgiveness.
When you get a chance have a read of Ephesians 4:31-5:2.
It is inevitable that family members will bring pain to one another.
The only solution to this problem is the practice of forgiveness.
Forgiveness is a gift in which the injured one gives up the right to retaliate and is willing to restore a warm relationship.
Conclusion.
We can increase the practice of love in family living in many ways.
We should trust the Holy Spirit of God to pour out God’s love wishing our hearts.
Romans 5:5, Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us.
If we want to increase love within the family, we need to let the love of God for us become real and personal.
God loves you and wants to come into your heart today.
Let Him in.
Until next time
Stay in the Blessings
I really want to encourage you to be diligent with your Bible study time, because God has so much more for us than we can get from just going to church once or twice a week and hearing someone else talk about the Word.
When you spend time with God, your life will change in amazing ways, because God is a Redeemer.
Theres nothing thats too hard for Him, and He can make you whole, spirit, soul and body!
You’re important to God, and you’re important to us at www.refinerylife.org
When it comes to prayer, we believe that God wants to meet your needs and reveal His promises to you.
So whatever you’re concerned about and need prayer for we want to be here for you! Or even if you just want to say Hi, you can contact us
2022 IS A YEAR OF REPENTANCE AND BLESSINGS
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