Feb. 14, 2025

Valentine’s Day: Flawed Love

Valentine’s Day: Flawed Love

A discussion about love from a theological perspective

Spreaker Apple Podcasts Spotify PocketCasts Amazon Music Overcast Audible Castro iHeartRadio Castbox Podchaser TuneIn Deezer Pandora RadioPublic Podcast Addict RSS Feed YouTube Fountain PlayerFM Goodpods Podverse Podyssey Breaker Podurama Audacy JioSaavn
Spreaker podcast player icon Spreaker Spreaker Apple Podcasts podcast player icon Apple Podcasts Apple Podcasts Spotify podcast player icon Spotify Spotify PocketCasts podcast player icon PocketCasts PocketCasts Amazon Music podcast player icon Amazon Music Amazon Music Overcast podcast player icon Overcast Overcast Audible podcast player icon Audible Audible Castro podcast player icon Castro Castro iHeartRadio podcast player icon iHeartRadio iHeartRadio Castbox podcast player icon Castbox Castbox Podchaser podcast player icon Podchaser Podchaser TuneIn podcast player icon TuneIn TuneIn Deezer podcast player icon Deezer Deezer Pandora podcast player icon Pandora Pandora RadioPublic podcast player icon RadioPublic RadioPublic Podcast Addict podcast player icon Podcast Addict Podcast Addict RSS Feed podcast player icon RSS Feed RSS Feed YouTube podcast player icon YouTube YouTube Fountain podcast player icon Fountain Fountain PlayerFM podcast player icon PlayerFM PlayerFM Goodpods podcast player icon Goodpods Goodpods Podverse podcast player icon Podverse Podverse Podyssey podcast player icon Podyssey Podyssey Breaker podcast player icon Breaker Breaker Podurama podcast player icon Podurama Podurama Audacy podcast player icon Audacy Audacy JioSaavn podcast player icon JioSaavn JioSaavn

A discussion about love from a theological perspective

WEBVTT

1
00:00:02.399 --> 00:00:06.160
Looking at our world from a theological perspective. This is

2
00:00:06.200 --> 00:00:13.359
the Theology Central podcast, making Theology Central. Good morning everyone.

3
00:00:13.679 --> 00:00:19.199
It is Friday, February the fourteenth, twenty twenty five. It

4
00:00:19.440 --> 00:00:23.120
is currently eleven twenty three am Central Time, and I

5
00:00:23.160 --> 00:00:26.239
am coming to you live from the Theology Central Studio

6
00:00:26.960 --> 00:00:31.440
located right here in Abilene, Texas. Now I have to

7
00:00:31.640 --> 00:00:36.600
stress I'm coming to you live from the Theology Central Studio.

8
00:00:37.719 --> 00:00:42.399
The name of this podcast is Theology Central because we

9
00:00:42.439 --> 00:00:46.399
are about to talk about something from a philological perspective

10
00:00:47.320 --> 00:00:50.240
and a lot of people are not going to like it.

11
00:00:50.320 --> 00:00:53.159
But we're going to talk about this from a theological perspective.

12
00:00:53.159 --> 00:00:55.479
We're going to talk about it from a perspective that

13
00:00:55.600 --> 00:01:01.200
I think conforms to reality, not to maybe our ideal,

14
00:01:01.640 --> 00:01:05.400
our romanticized idea of something. But we're going to talk

15
00:01:05.400 --> 00:01:11.079
about it from a brutally honest, realistic, and philological perspective.

16
00:01:11.599 --> 00:01:14.879
And I doubt it's going to make anyone happy, but

17
00:01:15.000 --> 00:01:21.480
we have to do it. Now. It's February the fourteenth,

18
00:01:21.519 --> 00:01:27.239
It's Valentine's Day, right. Love is in the air. Right.

19
00:01:27.439 --> 00:01:29.719
If you look on some of your music streaming services

20
00:01:29.799 --> 00:01:32.879
right now, they have all kinds of playlists dedicated to love,

21
00:01:33.359 --> 00:01:36.280
dedicated to romance. Now they also have a lot of

22
00:01:36.280 --> 00:01:41.159
playlists dedicated to heartbreak and loneliness and isolation and pain

23
00:01:41.480 --> 00:01:46.159
and discouragement, because well, Valentine's Day brings in lots of

24
00:01:46.319 --> 00:01:51.359
different emotions for lots of different people. But it's Valentine's Day,

25
00:01:51.359 --> 00:01:54.920
that day that we're supposed to celebrate love and romance

26
00:01:55.040 --> 00:02:00.400
and all of these types of things. And look, you,

27
00:02:00.519 --> 00:02:03.799
maybe I don't care if it's Valentine's Day. You may disregard,

28
00:02:03.879 --> 00:02:07.359
you may not care, but just consider this. In twenty

29
00:02:07.439 --> 00:02:12.680
twenty five, this year, are you ready for this Valentine's Day?

30
00:02:12.759 --> 00:02:20.319
Spending in the United States of America is going to

31
00:02:20.400 --> 00:02:30.400
reach a record of twenty seven point five billion dollars.

32
00:02:31.120 --> 00:02:35.879
Twenty seven point five billion dollars is going to be

33
00:02:36.000 --> 00:02:40.439
spent on this Valentine's Day. For February the fourteenth, twenty

34
00:02:40.520 --> 00:02:44.919
twenty five, The average consumer is planning to spend approximately

35
00:02:45.439 --> 00:02:50.560
one hundred and eighty eight dollars and eighty one cents.

36
00:02:51.639 --> 00:02:54.919
This marks an increase from twenty five point eight billion

37
00:02:55.000 --> 00:02:58.639
spent in twenty twenty four. The most popular expenditures will

38
00:02:58.639 --> 00:03:05.599
include jewelry and evening out, candy, flowers and greeting cards.

39
00:03:05.639 --> 00:03:10.159
And for many because this Valentine's Day falls on a Friday,

40
00:03:10.319 --> 00:03:13.639
so you have the weekend. Well it may be a

41
00:03:13.759 --> 00:03:18.080
romantic weekend away, so there's going to be lots of

42
00:03:18.240 --> 00:03:22.159
money spent. Now, most of this money spent on Valentine's

43
00:03:22.240 --> 00:03:27.719
Day is indeed, I think this is important. It is

44
00:03:27.800 --> 00:03:32.120
directed towards celebrating love. I think that I think we

45
00:03:32.159 --> 00:03:36.919
can agree with that. To celebrate romance or it's the

46
00:03:37.159 --> 00:03:44.759
pursuit of love and romance, people will buy gifts like jewelry, flowers, candy,

47
00:03:44.840 --> 00:03:48.560
and greeting cards to express love and affection to their partners,

48
00:03:48.800 --> 00:03:56.000
family and friends. Romantic dinners, romantic trips and other experiences

49
00:03:56.240 --> 00:04:00.400
also account for a significant portion of the spending that's

50
00:04:00.439 --> 00:04:07.639
celebrating relationships or even seeking new romantic connections. I watch

51
00:04:07.680 --> 00:04:14.840
it just twenty seven point five billion dollars to celebrate love,

52
00:04:14.919 --> 00:04:18.839
to experience it, to pursue it, to capture it, to

53
00:04:18.959 --> 00:04:23.120
re ignite it. It's all going to be happening. Well,

54
00:04:23.319 --> 00:04:26.120
it's it's already Valentine's Day, so it may have already started.

55
00:04:26.279 --> 00:04:29.399
It'll be definitely kicking into high gear this evening and

56
00:04:29.519 --> 00:04:34.160
throughout the weekend. It's Valentine's Day. And don't think the

57
00:04:34.319 --> 00:04:37.079
church is, you know somehow just like well, that's what

58
00:04:37.160 --> 00:04:39.920
the world does, and the church doesn't pay any attention

59
00:04:40.040 --> 00:04:46.519
to it. Oh No, even yesterday our daily bread a devotional.

60
00:04:46.839 --> 00:04:49.240
It comes in printed form, but there's also the podcast.

61
00:04:49.360 --> 00:04:51.879
It's about a five to ten minute a devotional. Well,

62
00:04:51.920 --> 00:04:55.439
they always dropped the next day's devotional the previous day,

63
00:04:55.439 --> 00:04:57.480
and so I saw the notification, hit play on it

64
00:04:57.519 --> 00:04:59.879
for you know, about two or three minutes. And guess

65
00:05:00.079 --> 00:05:03.199
what it was about. It was about love. If you

66
00:05:03.199 --> 00:05:05.279
look on the sermon's two point oh app and you

67
00:05:05.279 --> 00:05:08.439
look at the trending hashtags for today, guess what one

68
00:05:08.480 --> 00:05:12.040
of the trending hashtags is for today. It's on love.

69
00:05:12.480 --> 00:05:16.240
If you look on all the streaming services music services,

70
00:05:16.600 --> 00:05:19.959
love playlist are all over the place. I think serious

71
00:05:20.000 --> 00:05:23.279
exim even I just sent out a notification. Maybe it

72
00:05:23.319 --> 00:05:26.759
was earlier this morning about the Love Channel and different

73
00:05:26.800 --> 00:05:29.319
channels dedicated to love. If you look on some of

74
00:05:29.360 --> 00:05:33.800
the streaming services for movies and television shows, romantic comedies

75
00:05:33.800 --> 00:05:41.839
are being pushed to the forefront because it's all about love. Now.

76
00:05:41.920 --> 00:05:45.600
I think that when we start thinking about this, we

77
00:05:45.720 --> 00:05:49.360
have to think about this, you know, from a maybe

78
00:05:51.680 --> 00:05:55.759
maybe from slightly a different perspective. But I think we

79
00:05:55.800 --> 00:06:00.680
should do this. I think this is fair because I

80
00:06:00.680 --> 00:06:03.639
don't want to go immediately, because I'm going to approach

81
00:06:03.680 --> 00:06:05.720
this from a way that again a lot. I've already

82
00:06:05.879 --> 00:06:08.959
tried to make it clear from a philological perspective, from

83
00:06:09.000 --> 00:06:12.319
a brutally honest perspective, and I know that's going to

84
00:06:12.360 --> 00:06:15.000
sound it's going to sound very negative, but let's at

85
00:06:15.079 --> 00:06:22.319
least do this. If we think of human beings, we

86
00:06:22.439 --> 00:06:26.680
have this ideal of love, We have this concept of

87
00:06:26.720 --> 00:06:33.319
what it should be, and we have maybe feelings, maybe dreams,

88
00:06:34.199 --> 00:06:40.160
maybe fantasies of what it should be, what it could be,

89
00:06:40.439 --> 00:06:44.839
what we want it to be. Right, if you think

90
00:06:44.879 --> 00:06:49.199
of humanity's ideal of love, I think we can agree

91
00:06:49.199 --> 00:06:52.360
with this that when it comes to human beings for

92
00:06:52.399 --> 00:06:55.439
the most part. Now there's always exceptions, but I think

93
00:06:55.560 --> 00:06:58.920
in general humans, when we think of love, we think

94
00:06:58.920 --> 00:07:03.920
of emotional connection. Love is typically seen as this deep

95
00:07:04.199 --> 00:07:11.560
emotional bond that brings happiness, It brings comfort, it brings belonging. Right,

96
00:07:11.800 --> 00:07:15.639
there has to be this sense of strong emotional connection.

97
00:07:15.800 --> 00:07:18.199
I think that that's our ideal of what it should be,

98
00:07:18.399 --> 00:07:22.160
of what it is. I think we can agree that

99
00:07:22.360 --> 00:07:25.879
at least to some level. Right, Not only is there

100
00:07:26.000 --> 00:07:31.879
this ideal that our ideal, our our ideal understanding, our

101
00:07:32.079 --> 00:07:35.839
ideal concept of love involves an emotional connection. I think

102
00:07:35.839 --> 00:07:40.319
we can agree with them. Another part of our ideal,

103
00:07:41.279 --> 00:07:47.399
you know, concept of love, would be romantic fulfillment. Especially

104
00:07:47.439 --> 00:07:53.800
within popular culture, it betrays love is passionate, exhilarating, fulfilling,

105
00:07:54.319 --> 00:08:00.879
often centered on romance, attraction, and intimacy. I think we

106
00:08:00.879 --> 00:08:04.720
we can definitely agree with that. Now they're there, we

107
00:08:04.959 --> 00:08:06.879
can get into I mean, we could really try to

108
00:08:06.879 --> 00:08:09.079
break this all down, but I think there's no way

109
00:08:09.120 --> 00:08:12.160
to get around that. At least the ideal of love

110
00:08:12.319 --> 00:08:17.600
involves emotional connection and romantic fulfillment. I think number three

111
00:08:18.399 --> 00:08:27.560
mutual support for us as humans, ideal love includes loyalty, trust,

112
00:08:28.680 --> 00:08:35.399
unwavering support through life's challenges, the idea that hey, someone's

113
00:08:35.399 --> 00:08:37.519
gonna support me. They're gonna be there, they're gonna they're

114
00:08:37.519 --> 00:08:40.360
gonna they're gonna support what I'm doing, encouraging it being

115
00:08:40.399 --> 00:08:46.000
a part of it. I think those I think those

116
00:08:46.039 --> 00:08:48.080
three things, I think that's accurate. I don't think that's

117
00:08:48.080 --> 00:08:50.399
being I think that's trying to be fair. That are

118
00:08:50.519 --> 00:08:53.480
we have this ideal of love that involves emotional connection,

119
00:08:54.240 --> 00:08:57.480
romantic fulfillment, and mutual support. I think this is another part.

120
00:08:57.519 --> 00:09:00.200
I think we can agree with this. You can, you

121
00:09:00.200 --> 00:09:02.200
can tell me if you disagree, but I think we

122
00:09:02.240 --> 00:09:05.519
can mostly agree with this, that our ideal of love

123
00:09:05.639 --> 00:09:14.600
involves self lessness and sacrifice. Love is typically in our

124
00:09:14.639 --> 00:09:19.080
in our minds, seen as this self giving where we

125
00:09:19.159 --> 00:09:25.200
prioritize another's well being even at our own personal cost.

126
00:09:25.840 --> 00:09:30.360
Now that's the ideal. It's selfless, it's not selfish, it's selfless,

127
00:09:30.519 --> 00:09:34.320
and it's sacrifice. And you care more about the other

128
00:09:34.360 --> 00:09:37.559
person than you care about yourself. This is the ideal

129
00:09:37.879 --> 00:09:40.279
idea of love. This is what we This is what

130
00:09:40.440 --> 00:09:43.320
we want it to be. This maybe how it shows

131
00:09:43.440 --> 00:09:48.559
up and music and movies and poetry and and and

132
00:09:48.679 --> 00:09:51.960
novels and and this is the way we have this

133
00:09:52.120 --> 00:09:56.279
kind of almost a romanticized idea of what it should be.

134
00:09:56.440 --> 00:10:00.600
It involves emotional connection, it involves romantic fulfillment, It involves

135
00:10:00.720 --> 00:10:09.120
mutual support. It is selfless and sacrificial. Number five. I

136
00:10:09.159 --> 00:10:13.720
think our ideal concept of love also has this idea

137
00:10:13.720 --> 00:10:20.600
of unconditional acceptance. I think we often envision love as

138
00:10:20.639 --> 00:10:27.200
accepting and cherishing someone despot despite their flaws and failures.

139
00:10:27.919 --> 00:10:32.120
I think that that's fair right that our concept of love,

140
00:10:32.240 --> 00:10:35.679
our idea of love, is that we we envision that

141
00:10:35.799 --> 00:10:43.399
love accepts and cherishes someone despite flaws and failures. I

142
00:10:43.399 --> 00:10:47.879
think number six, we also are ideal concept of love.

143
00:10:48.679 --> 00:10:53.440
Would it would would would talk about security and stability. See,

144
00:10:53.559 --> 00:10:58.240
love is seen as a safe haven. It provides emotional

145
00:10:58.519 --> 00:11:02.879
and relational security that there's a security there, there's a

146
00:11:02.919 --> 00:11:06.559
stability there, there's a safety there. You can feel safe,

147
00:11:06.600 --> 00:11:10.840
and by feeling safe, you can feel free. That this

148
00:11:11.000 --> 00:11:14.559
is our what we want it to be. So our

149
00:11:14.960 --> 00:11:22.200
humanity's ideal of love is emotional connection, romantic fulfillment, mutual support,

150
00:11:23.480 --> 00:11:30.960
self lessness and being sacrificial, unconditional acceptance, some sense of

151
00:11:31.039 --> 00:11:40.559
security and stability. Number seven. Enduring commitment. Enduring commitment the

152
00:11:41.039 --> 00:11:46.759
ideal love. It lasts through well time, It goes through trials,

153
00:11:47.000 --> 00:11:50.240
it goes through challenges, it goes through changes, and it

154
00:11:50.320 --> 00:11:56.960
remains steadfast. It endures at lasts. It doesn't fluctuate, it

155
00:11:57.000 --> 00:12:01.519
doesn't fall apart, it doesn't it stays. It endures because

156
00:12:01.559 --> 00:12:06.000
it's love. Right. Love is different than like. Love is

157
00:12:06.080 --> 00:12:10.960
different than oh you're cool, or that's interesting, or that's

158
00:12:11.120 --> 00:12:16.120
fun or oh wow, that's exciting. It's something deeper. That's

159
00:12:16.120 --> 00:12:18.960
the way we understand it to be. We I mean,

160
00:12:19.159 --> 00:12:24.720
the love the word we know, at least to some level,

161
00:12:24.759 --> 00:12:27.360
we think that's got to be saved for something. Now,

162
00:12:27.360 --> 00:12:30.159
sometimes we use it in obviously for everything. I love

163
00:12:30.279 --> 00:12:33.240
this food, I love this I love this weather. But

164
00:12:33.600 --> 00:12:38.279
when it comes to people, typically we feel that it's

165
00:12:38.279 --> 00:12:40.759
got to be guarded a little bit because it means

166
00:12:40.759 --> 00:12:45.879
something deeper. It's this enduring commitment. How about it also

167
00:12:46.000 --> 00:12:50.440
involves personal growth and fulfillment. Love is often viewed as

168
00:12:50.480 --> 00:12:53.279
a source of personal development, bringing out the best in

169
00:12:53.320 --> 00:13:01.120
each other and providing purpose. So humanity's ideal love is

170
00:13:01.120 --> 00:13:13.879
emotional connection, romantic fulfillment, mutual support, selflessness and sacrificial unconditional acceptance,

171
00:13:15.639 --> 00:13:24.559
security and stability, enduring commitment, personal growth, and fulfillment. I

172
00:13:24.679 --> 00:13:28.360
think that that captures are ideal of love. And you

173
00:13:28.399 --> 00:13:31.960
can hear that ideal. I mean, just go I mean,

174
00:13:31.960 --> 00:13:34.480
if you have SERIOUSXM, go listen to the Love channel today,

175
00:13:34.639 --> 00:13:37.879
whatever music streaming service, go look up love playlist. You're

176
00:13:37.919 --> 00:13:42.480
gonna hear these ideals expressed over and over and over

177
00:13:42.600 --> 00:13:45.600
and over and just I mean, obviously the subject has

178
00:13:45.679 --> 00:13:48.480
captured popular music. If you go back just to nineteen

179
00:13:48.600 --> 00:13:52.279
fifty to twenty twenty five, you have hundreds and hundreds

180
00:13:52.320 --> 00:13:56.480
of thousands of songs written to describe one of those

181
00:13:56.559 --> 00:14:00.120
aspects of love. You have. Think of all the poetry

182
00:14:00.120 --> 00:14:02.679
that has been written love, love, love, love love. It's

183
00:14:02.799 --> 00:14:06.120
I mean billions of dollars spent to supposedly celebrate this

184
00:14:06.360 --> 00:14:10.399
ideal of love. See. I think Valentine's Day is more

185
00:14:10.440 --> 00:14:16.279
about celebrating the ideal than maybe the reality. So as

186
00:14:16.320 --> 00:14:23.480
we're sitting there listening, thinking, feeling, hoping, wanting this ideal,

187
00:14:23.919 --> 00:14:28.799
celebrating it, pursuing it, looking for it, searching it, cherishing it,

188
00:14:28.960 --> 00:14:32.279
treasuring it, protecting it, well, whatever we are in that

189
00:14:32.399 --> 00:14:41.519
whole concept, I think we need kind of a reality check. Now.

190
00:14:41.559 --> 00:14:51.000
Those ideals may reflect our highest aspiration, it may reflect

191
00:14:51.039 --> 00:14:55.840
our highest desire for this kind of love, but I

192
00:14:55.879 --> 00:15:03.080
would argue, real life, real life, turn off the hall

193
00:15:03.279 --> 00:15:05.960
turn off the television, turn off the movies, turn off

194
00:15:06.000 --> 00:15:10.159
the music, turn put down the novel, look at life.

195
00:15:10.840 --> 00:15:23.919
In reality, there's typically a grand Canyon chasm, this immense chasm,

196
00:15:24.000 --> 00:15:31.360
this gap between our ideal and the reality of what

197
00:15:31.480 --> 00:15:38.240
it is. And I think this is due to human beings, limitations,

198
00:15:38.320 --> 00:15:46.200
human beings self interest, and human beings in perfection. So

199
00:15:46.279 --> 00:15:50.799
I'm going to put forth my very very very very

200
00:15:50.919 --> 00:16:02.279
very very very very very non Valentine's Day hypotheses love. Now,

201
00:16:02.279 --> 00:16:05.039
you're not gonna hear this in church. You're not gonna

202
00:16:05.039 --> 00:16:07.480
hear this in chapel service. You're not gonna hear this

203
00:16:07.519 --> 00:16:10.559
in small group. You're not gonna hear this in Bible study.

204
00:16:11.000 --> 00:16:13.759
You're not gonna hear this in any other Christian podcast.

205
00:16:14.159 --> 00:16:17.399
Because I'm about to just say that entire ideal of

206
00:16:17.440 --> 00:16:25.639
love is completely fraudulent. It is fake. It is a mirage.

207
00:16:26.320 --> 00:16:30.759
It is a lie. It is you chase it, you

208
00:16:30.799 --> 00:16:34.360
think you oh, I found this oasis, and you jump

209
00:16:34.440 --> 00:16:39.000
and boom, it's nothing but well dirt. It's a mirage.

210
00:16:39.200 --> 00:16:44.120
It's not really there. It's fraudulent. It's fake. Now, I

211
00:16:44.559 --> 00:16:47.559
love that we have these aspirations. I love that our

212
00:16:48.039 --> 00:16:52.480
emotions and feelings can maybe even convince us of it there.

213
00:16:52.639 --> 00:16:56.519
But I think the reality is unless you unless you

214
00:16:56.559 --> 00:16:59.240
can enter into a new universe, unless you can enter

215
00:16:59.279 --> 00:17:03.399
into another world, unless there's a doorway there that you

216
00:17:03.399 --> 00:17:06.200
can open and walk through on the other side of

217
00:17:06.240 --> 00:17:10.319
the door. For most people, no, no, no, that doesn't exist.

218
00:17:10.480 --> 00:17:17.160
There's a reality. So here's my hypothesis on human love

219
00:17:17.799 --> 00:17:21.799
and self interest. Here's my core premise, here's my basic

220
00:17:21.839 --> 00:17:28.640
way of explaining it. I believe human love is inherently selfish.

221
00:17:29.079 --> 00:17:32.720
I believe human love is inherently driven by self interest,

222
00:17:32.920 --> 00:17:36.720
and that human love is driven by self preservation rather

223
00:17:36.759 --> 00:17:42.000
than self lessness. I believe human love is selfish. It

224
00:17:42.039 --> 00:17:45.480
is self self interest, focused on self interest. It is

225
00:17:45.559 --> 00:17:49.119
self It preserves self. It is not self less. It

226
00:17:49.319 --> 00:17:55.319
is selfish by definition. I think the essence of human

227
00:17:55.480 --> 00:17:58.960
love is self interest. I think that's what it is.

228
00:17:59.039 --> 00:18:01.599
It is about the ex of self. It is about

229
00:18:01.599 --> 00:18:06.440
what you can get. It's selfish, selfish, selfish, selfish, selfish, selfish, selfish,

230
00:18:06.480 --> 00:18:08.519
and that comes to our love for others, and that

231
00:18:08.599 --> 00:18:11.880
comes to our love for God. It is self centered,

232
00:18:12.079 --> 00:18:17.160
self focused, self pursuing what you truly you may say

233
00:18:17.200 --> 00:18:19.279
you love God, you may say you love someone else,

234
00:18:19.559 --> 00:18:24.559
you love your self. Now, I told you, I'm looking

235
00:18:24.599 --> 00:18:26.920
at this from a theological perspective. I know this is

236
00:18:27.039 --> 00:18:29.400
ruining Valentine's Day for some of you. I know someone

237
00:18:29.480 --> 00:18:32.319
from the other rooms like, turn that trash off. We

238
00:18:32.440 --> 00:18:35.400
have Valentine's Day. We're gonna celebrate love. Why are you

239
00:18:35.480 --> 00:18:39.200
listening to that? Idiot? And I can understand. It destroys

240
00:18:39.680 --> 00:18:44.359
the what we want it to be. Look, we can

241
00:18:44.440 --> 00:18:47.720
all want something, we can all pursue something, we can

242
00:18:47.759 --> 00:18:51.440
all dream of it, we can all think. But at

243
00:18:51.440 --> 00:18:53.240
some point from at least when we turn on a

244
00:18:53.279 --> 00:18:56.400
podcast called Theology Central, we have to go okay, okay,

245
00:18:56.839 --> 00:18:59.720
let's look at it from a philological and a I

246
00:18:59.799 --> 00:19:06.039
think reality based perspective. I think my core premise is

247
00:19:06.079 --> 00:19:08.799
that human love is inherently selfish. It is driven by

248
00:19:08.799 --> 00:19:13.640
self interest and self preservation, and it is selfish. It

249
00:19:13.720 --> 00:19:18.640
is not self less. That's my core promise. Let's consider

250
00:19:18.759 --> 00:19:22.839
human love for others. Love is motivated by what we

251
00:19:22.920 --> 00:19:31.839
can gain from others. You love because what you perceive

252
00:19:31.960 --> 00:19:35.039
you can obtain. You you love because of what you

253
00:19:35.240 --> 00:19:38.119
perceive you can gain. You love because of what you

254
00:19:38.160 --> 00:19:42.359
perceive that you can that you can get all right?

255
00:19:42.400 --> 00:19:46.839
That that that's I cannot stress this enough. Our love

256
00:19:47.480 --> 00:19:50.039
at its very core now I know you people are

257
00:19:50.079 --> 00:19:51.759
going to try to push back on this, but at

258
00:19:51.799 --> 00:19:56.599
its very core, at its very essence, we love others

259
00:19:56.599 --> 00:20:01.480
because we perceive what what, what it makes makes us feel,

260
00:20:01.920 --> 00:20:07.039
what we can obtain, what we can get. You don't

261
00:20:07.440 --> 00:20:13.319
love that if you perceive there is nothing in return. Right,

262
00:20:14.559 --> 00:20:18.240
You don't love unless you are feeling something and those

263
00:20:18.279 --> 00:20:21.119
feelings are. You don't love because you have negative feelings.

264
00:20:21.200 --> 00:20:23.920
You have love because positive feelings. You don't love because

265
00:20:23.960 --> 00:20:26.680
you're going to receive something negative in return. It's because

266
00:20:26.720 --> 00:20:29.759
you perceive you're going to get something positive in return.

267
00:20:33.240 --> 00:20:37.519
Love is motivated by what we can gain from others, like,

268
00:20:37.759 --> 00:20:51.000
for example, emotional fulfillment, security, pleasure, validation, companionship, social benefits.

269
00:20:52.319 --> 00:20:59.319
We love others because we gain emotional fulfillment, security, pleasure, validation, companionship,

270
00:20:59.440 --> 00:21:06.319
and social benefits. We can't deny that we love in

271
00:21:06.400 --> 00:21:09.279
order to get So do we really love them or

272
00:21:09.279 --> 00:21:11.960
do we love what we get from them? Meaning that

273
00:21:12.000 --> 00:21:16.279
we love ourselves. I'm loving you because of what you provide.

274
00:21:16.559 --> 00:21:32.599
For me? What do you provide for me? Emotional fulfillment, security, pleasure, validation, companionship, encouragement, partner,

275
00:21:33.920 --> 00:21:41.160
all those types of things. Even what appears to be

276
00:21:41.440 --> 00:21:47.400
selfless acts of love often have underlining motives related to

277
00:21:47.480 --> 00:21:53.920
personal satisfaction, avoidance of loneliness, or the desire well for

278
00:21:54.039 --> 00:22:03.519
something to receive something in return. Even our selfless acts

279
00:22:05.240 --> 00:22:14.920
have underlining motives related to personal satisfaction. You want to

280
00:22:15.000 --> 00:22:19.799
avoid being lonely, or the desire just to get something back.

281
00:22:20.039 --> 00:22:27.680
You're looking for something, You're looking for something, You're looking

282
00:22:28.039 --> 00:22:33.920
for something. Now, I really want you to think about this.

283
00:22:34.920 --> 00:22:37.680
I know this is not the typical Valentine's Day discussion,

284
00:22:38.079 --> 00:22:40.319
but I just want you to see at the core,

285
00:22:40.799 --> 00:22:45.559
I want you to see how motivated you are in

286
00:22:45.680 --> 00:22:52.480
everything you do by your own self interest. I want

287
00:22:52.480 --> 00:22:56.920
you to consider your interactions, your your actions and how,

288
00:22:57.160 --> 00:22:59.440
and I want you to get what do you get

289
00:23:01.160 --> 00:23:05.680
versus what the other gets? Time and time again, when

290
00:23:05.720 --> 00:23:07.240
we look at there's a typically a lot of times

291
00:23:07.279 --> 00:23:10.359
there's an imbalance. We're getting far more than we're giving.

292
00:23:12.480 --> 00:23:15.559
And trust me, we're very concerned about that and balance.

293
00:23:18.960 --> 00:23:22.119
So my core premise is that human love is inherently selfish,

294
00:23:22.200 --> 00:23:25.480
driven by self interest and self preservation rather than selflessness.

295
00:23:25.680 --> 00:23:29.519
That human love and human love for others is motivated

296
00:23:29.599 --> 00:23:34.000
by what we can gain emotional fulfillment, security, those tough things.

297
00:23:34.599 --> 00:23:38.960
Even our selfless acts of love have underlining motives of selfishness.

298
00:23:39.000 --> 00:23:41.839
How about our love for God? I think our love

299
00:23:41.880 --> 00:23:44.400
for God is tainted by self interest, rooted in the

300
00:23:44.440 --> 00:23:50.720
pursuit of eternal security, blessings, forgiveness, purpose, comfort, and community.

301
00:23:51.880 --> 00:23:54.480
Even when we love God, it's tainted by self interest.

302
00:23:54.599 --> 00:23:59.240
I love God because of what I get from it.

303
00:24:00.000 --> 00:24:03.079
Here's a here's a million dollar question. Here, here's a

304
00:24:03.240 --> 00:24:05.920
Here's here's I think the the key question when it

305
00:24:05.920 --> 00:24:07.640
comes to our love for God. Are you ready here

306
00:24:07.680 --> 00:24:10.000
here's the key question. I want you to really think

307
00:24:10.000 --> 00:24:18.160
about this. Would you, as an individual still love God

308
00:24:18.839 --> 00:24:24.359
if there was no promise of heaven, no promise of

309
00:24:24.400 --> 00:24:32.039
avoiding hell? Would you still love God? If there's no

310
00:24:32.119 --> 00:24:36.200
promise of heaven and no promise of avoiding hell, You're

311
00:24:36.319 --> 00:24:39.359
you're you're gonna love God, but you are still going

312
00:24:39.400 --> 00:24:47.759
to burn for eternity? Would you still love him? Now?

313
00:24:47.759 --> 00:24:50.599
We have a hard enough time loving God, just when

314
00:24:50.640 --> 00:24:53.000
things in our life don't go the way we want

315
00:24:53.079 --> 00:24:57.720
him to go. Right, It's easy to love God when

316
00:24:57.799 --> 00:25:01.680
you've got your spouse and you've got companionship, and you've

317
00:25:01.680 --> 00:25:05.200
got intimacy, and you've got your family, and you've got

318
00:25:05.240 --> 00:25:09.519
your home, and everything is wonderful, and you've got everything's great,

319
00:25:09.799 --> 00:25:13.559
and you've got companionship. You're not alone everything, you don't

320
00:25:13.599 --> 00:25:17.319
have any disease everything. Now wait, just now, that stuff

321
00:25:17.319 --> 00:25:22.440
start being stripped away, peace by peace, People get diseases,

322
00:25:22.519 --> 00:25:26.720
people start dying, people leave you. You find yourself alone.

323
00:25:26.960 --> 00:25:30.559
You have no intimacy, you have no you have no pleasure,

324
00:25:30.680 --> 00:25:34.119
you have no companionship, you have no partner, you have nothing.

325
00:25:34.319 --> 00:25:39.079
You're just alone. Now you may say, Hey, God, I

326
00:25:39.119 --> 00:25:40.799
don't know if I love you so much right now,

327
00:25:40.839 --> 00:25:44.240
because I don't really understand what you're doing. Why, Because

328
00:25:44.279 --> 00:25:48.480
our love is so much tied into what we receive.

329
00:25:51.920 --> 00:25:54.200
Would you come on, just be honest, would you love

330
00:25:54.279 --> 00:25:56.960
God if there was no promise of heaven and no

331
00:25:57.039 --> 00:26:01.559
promise of avoidance of hell. I think the implication then,

332
00:26:01.640 --> 00:26:03.799
is that much of our human devotion, much of our

333
00:26:03.839 --> 00:26:07.480
devotion to God, is driven by what is gained from

334
00:26:07.559 --> 00:26:13.480
the relationship rather than pure love for him. I will

335
00:26:13.519 --> 00:26:19.079
say no human has pure love for anyone else other

336
00:26:19.160 --> 00:26:23.240
than itself, and no human has any pure love for God.

337
00:26:25.000 --> 00:26:29.240
The only pure love that exists is our love for ourselves.

338
00:26:29.519 --> 00:26:33.400
We love ourselves now sometimes maybe because we can be

339
00:26:33.440 --> 00:26:35.200
caught up in some things, we may have some hate

340
00:26:35.319 --> 00:26:37.920
or loathe for ourselves. But even sometimes that hating and

341
00:26:37.960 --> 00:26:42.000
loathing ourselves, it's still wrapped up in self focused self interest.

342
00:26:42.079 --> 00:26:50.480
Me me, me, me, me me. So my hypothesis is,

343
00:26:50.480 --> 00:26:53.079
my core premise is that human love is inherently selfish,

344
00:26:53.200 --> 00:26:56.960
is driven by self interest and self preservation rather than

345
00:26:57.480 --> 00:27:01.359
rather than selflessness. It is selfish. Human love for others,

346
00:27:01.359 --> 00:27:03.799
I believe is motivated by what we can gain from others,

347
00:27:04.039 --> 00:27:08.960
like emotional fulfillment, security, pleasure, validation, companionship, partnership, encouragement, et cetera.

348
00:27:09.079 --> 00:27:10.960
So I could just I can keep adding to the

349
00:27:11.000 --> 00:27:14.960
list over and over and over. I believe our even

350
00:27:15.000 --> 00:27:18.440
our selfless acts of love or have underlying motives that

351
00:27:18.559 --> 00:27:24.240
reveal well, not selfless but selfish A human are human,

352
00:27:24.640 --> 00:27:27.599
uh are our human love for God? We stay it

353
00:27:27.680 --> 00:27:29.160
that way. The third so number one our court my

354
00:27:29.200 --> 00:27:31.319
core premise number two are human love for others. Number

355
00:27:31.319 --> 00:27:33.359
three are human love for God. I believe is again

356
00:27:33.400 --> 00:27:37.160
and tainted by self interest. Now, what is the theological

357
00:27:37.200 --> 00:27:41.559
foundation for my hypotheses? What is my theological foundation? Well,

358
00:27:41.599 --> 00:27:44.000
I believe that my view aligns with the doctrine of

359
00:27:44.039 --> 00:27:47.720
human depravity, because I believe this doctrine asserts that every

360
00:27:47.799 --> 00:27:54.000
aspect of human nature, including love, is corrupted by sin.

361
00:27:56.720 --> 00:28:00.440
I believe, I believe from a thiological perspect if you

362
00:28:00.480 --> 00:28:03.960
believe in human depravity, you have to agree with my hypothesis.

363
00:28:04.200 --> 00:28:07.240
I know it may ruin your Valentine's evening. I may

364
00:28:07.279 --> 00:28:10.160
know it may ruin the rom com you're gonna watch her,

365
00:28:10.400 --> 00:28:14.599
or your love playlists that you're listening to today, but

366
00:28:14.720 --> 00:28:22.200
I'm sorry. From a philological perspective, human depravity touches every

367
00:28:22.240 --> 00:28:27.279
aspect of us, which of course would include love. Our

368
00:28:27.400 --> 00:28:33.039
love is corrupted, Our love is sick, our love is flawed,

369
00:28:33.400 --> 00:28:43.160
our love is broken at its very essence. Even the

370
00:28:43.359 --> 00:28:49.119
highest forms of human love falls short of the Biblical standard.

371
00:28:49.160 --> 00:28:52.519
That's the key. Even the highest form of human love,

372
00:28:52.680 --> 00:28:55.880
even the highest and we love to find these examples

373
00:28:55.880 --> 00:28:57.880
of where humans are doing this, and humans are doing

374
00:28:57.880 --> 00:29:01.759
that ooh, that's example of love from a biblical standard.

375
00:29:02.039 --> 00:29:06.279
It falls short because and this makes the doctrine of

376
00:29:06.319 --> 00:29:11.480
imputed righteousness essential, because human love is insufficient and flawed.

377
00:29:11.720 --> 00:29:14.839
Our human love is flawed at its very essence. No

378
00:29:14.880 --> 00:29:19.160
matter what examples you put forth, No matter what examples

379
00:29:19.200 --> 00:29:24.720
you put forth, I'm sorry they are from a biblical standard.

380
00:29:24.880 --> 00:29:28.279
It is flawed because a biblical standard of love has

381
00:29:28.359 --> 00:29:31.119
to be pure, it has to be perfect. Ours is

382
00:29:31.279 --> 00:29:34.400
inherently flawed. To some love. We may not be able

383
00:29:34.440 --> 00:29:39.279
to perceive the corruption. We may not be able to

384
00:29:39.279 --> 00:29:43.160
see it, maybe we don't want to see it, but

385
00:29:43.279 --> 00:29:50.359
it's there. So my hypothesis is, my core premise, is

386
00:29:50.359 --> 00:29:52.759
that human love is inherently selfish. That human love for

387
00:29:52.799 --> 00:29:56.960
others selfish, it's motivated by what we can gain. Our

388
00:29:57.000 --> 00:30:00.599
love for God is corrupted and tainted. The philological foundation

389
00:30:00.720 --> 00:30:04.079
is human depravity. And I believe then we contrast this

390
00:30:04.160 --> 00:30:07.119
with God's love. God's love is the only perfect, selfish,

391
00:30:07.480 --> 00:30:12.359
selfless love as defined by scripture. Human love, by contrast,

392
00:30:12.519 --> 00:30:17.599
is often transactional, self serving, reinforcing the need for divine

393
00:30:17.640 --> 00:30:23.240
grace and christ imputed righteousness for salvation. God's love is

394
00:30:23.279 --> 00:30:29.200
the only pure love. Our love is transactional, Our love

395
00:30:29.279 --> 00:30:34.880
is self serving. And I think this reinforces the need

396
00:30:35.519 --> 00:30:39.920
for divine grace. This reinforces the need for Christ's imputed righteousness.

397
00:30:40.559 --> 00:30:49.480
Our love is flawed, our love is inherently broken. I

398
00:30:49.559 --> 00:30:53.839
think that my hypothesis. I think that this. I know

399
00:30:53.920 --> 00:30:57.160
it paints as sobering, but I think it's a realistic

400
00:30:57.200 --> 00:31:01.480
picture of human nature. I think my hypothesis highlights the

401
00:31:01.519 --> 00:31:04.680
gap between human love and divine love. I believe my

402
00:31:04.799 --> 00:31:16.319
hypothesis screams at the need for grace. And if I

403
00:31:16.319 --> 00:31:18.359
want to double down on this, and I'll double down

404
00:31:18.480 --> 00:31:20.720
just a little bit, I'll go through this quickly. When

405
00:31:20.759 --> 00:31:25.279
we just consider let's take human love again. Let's consider it.

406
00:31:25.440 --> 00:31:28.839
I think it's self seeking, self serving, it's selfish, it's

407
00:31:28.839 --> 00:31:33.319
not selfless. For example, when we love others, When we

408
00:31:33.359 --> 00:31:35.400
love others, I mention these briefly, but I want to

409
00:31:35.440 --> 00:31:37.880
just double down on this. When we love others, what

410
00:31:37.920 --> 00:31:40.920
are we doing. We're loving others to obtain something, all right,

411
00:31:40.960 --> 00:31:43.200
I mentioned this a minute ago. We love others to

412
00:31:43.240 --> 00:31:48.519
obtain emotional fulfillment, companionship, affection, a sense of being valid,

413
00:31:48.759 --> 00:31:51.519
it's the idea of being valued, the idea of being wanted.

414
00:31:52.400 --> 00:31:56.319
We are loving someone because we are trying to get

415
00:31:56.440 --> 00:32:00.079
emotional fulfillment. I love you. What do I get it?

416
00:32:00.160 --> 00:32:03.279
I get companionship, I get affection, I get a sense

417
00:32:03.319 --> 00:32:05.400
of being valued. I get a sense of being wanted.

418
00:32:05.640 --> 00:32:10.279
I get something. I get something. I gotta get something

419
00:32:10.359 --> 00:32:12.519
in this, right, I mean, come on, I mean, you

420
00:32:12.640 --> 00:32:15.559
go to any couple's counseling, any marriage counseling, You're going

421
00:32:15.640 --> 00:32:20.079
to hear almost almost guaranteed, someone is going to say,

422
00:32:20.200 --> 00:32:23.079
I feel like I'm giving and I'm not getting. There's

423
00:32:23.119 --> 00:32:26.400
gonna be some discussion about an end balance. I'm not

424
00:32:26.480 --> 00:32:29.240
getting this. I don't feel supported, I don't feel wanted.

425
00:32:29.279 --> 00:32:31.799
I don't feel desired, I don't feel encouraged, I don't

426
00:32:31.839 --> 00:32:34.680
feel I feel lonely, I feel isolated, I don't feel

427
00:32:34.680 --> 00:32:40.799
provided for because because we approach it from a very

428
00:32:40.920 --> 00:32:42.880
human perspective. And then the council where then talk to

429
00:32:42.880 --> 00:32:45.400
the other why are you not providing this? Why are

430
00:32:45.440 --> 00:32:47.559
you not providing them? And then everyone has to figure

431
00:32:47.559 --> 00:32:49.319
out what they're doing, and then they're gonna try harder,

432
00:32:49.359 --> 00:32:51.240
they're gonna do better. So I will provide for you,

433
00:32:51.279 --> 00:32:54.640
and I'll provide for you because we have to approach it.

434
00:32:54.759 --> 00:32:59.519
We approach you things from a very humanistic perspective. We

435
00:32:59.559 --> 00:33:03.119
love other because we're trying to obtain emotional fulfillment. We're

436
00:33:03.160 --> 00:33:07.359
trying to obtain a companionship. We're trying to obtain some

437
00:33:07.519 --> 00:33:12.119
sense of security and stability, financial support, protection, a sense

438
00:33:12.119 --> 00:33:16.960
of belonging in relationships. We are looking for security, We're

439
00:33:17.000 --> 00:33:20.519
looking for stability. Oh come on, no, I know are

440
00:33:20.559 --> 00:33:26.480
we allowed to say this? We love others because we're

441
00:33:26.480 --> 00:33:30.240
trying to obtain pleasure and satisfaction. Okay, come on now,

442
00:33:30.440 --> 00:33:36.440
don't sit there and look at me like that's not true.

443
00:33:36.680 --> 00:33:43.400
We love others because we're trying to obtain physical intimacy.

444
00:33:43.400 --> 00:33:49.119
Come on, you know that to be true. We're trying

445
00:33:49.160 --> 00:33:51.880
to We're trying not only to have this physical intimacy,

446
00:33:52.039 --> 00:33:56.119
We're trying to find an enjoyment of shared experience. We're

447
00:33:56.160 --> 00:33:59.160
trying to find the satisfaction of being. We're trying to

448
00:33:59.200 --> 00:34:08.400
obtain the satis section of being cared for. We love

449
00:34:08.480 --> 00:34:13.679
to obtain, We love to get. Let just think, would

450
00:34:13.719 --> 00:34:18.360
you continue to love if you are receiving no emotional fulfillment,

451
00:34:19.079 --> 00:34:24.800
no companionship, no affection, no sense of being valued, no

452
00:34:24.920 --> 00:34:28.519
sense of being wanted, no sense of being supported, no

453
00:34:28.639 --> 00:34:31.800
sense of being seen, no sense of being heard. I

454
00:34:31.840 --> 00:34:39.480
think you're gonna you're gonna be like what me, myself

455
00:34:39.760 --> 00:34:43.639
and I can do better than this because I'm getting

456
00:34:43.719 --> 00:34:47.719
nothing from this. What if you don't feel any sense

457
00:34:47.719 --> 00:34:52.519
of security, any sense of stability. What if you're receiving

458
00:34:52.639 --> 00:35:01.039
no pleasure, no satisfaction, no none, no enjoyment of shared experience,

459
00:35:01.119 --> 00:35:06.079
no satisfaction, none of that. Come on, Come on, what's

460
00:35:06.119 --> 00:35:09.440
going to happen? How about? Uh? Do we not love

461
00:35:09.559 --> 00:35:14.519
to obtain validation and affirmation? Don't we seek and love

462
00:35:14.599 --> 00:35:18.320
to boost our own self worth through being loved. We

463
00:35:18.360 --> 00:35:19.880
want to feel like we're loved. We want to feel

464
00:35:19.880 --> 00:35:22.480
like we are admired. We want to feel like we

465
00:35:22.519 --> 00:35:24.920
are appreciated. We want to feel like that we are

466
00:35:25.239 --> 00:35:28.320
that somehow in this relationship, I feel the best I feel.

467
00:35:28.480 --> 00:35:32.159
I feel that you get the sense of feeling almost superior,

468
00:35:32.280 --> 00:35:37.119
that it boosts you up, it builds you up. Well,

469
00:35:37.119 --> 00:35:39.239
if you don't feel any validation, if you don't feel

470
00:35:39.280 --> 00:35:42.039
any affirmation, if you don't feel like you feel like

471
00:35:42.559 --> 00:35:47.519
you're less than you're you're not you. Everything begins to

472
00:35:47.559 --> 00:35:55.920
fall apart from a human perspective. We we love in

473
00:35:56.039 --> 00:36:00.960
order to receive similar benefits. Right, We we love in

474
00:36:01.039 --> 00:36:03.840
order to get something back, Like we expect kindness, loyalty,

475
00:36:03.840 --> 00:36:06.400
and support and return for the love we get. We

476
00:36:06.440 --> 00:36:10.079
give love, and we expect that there is some repayment

477
00:36:10.360 --> 00:36:16.760
for that. Someone's going to have to do something similar.

478
00:36:16.840 --> 00:36:19.760
They're like, if I give this much, I expect to

479
00:36:19.800 --> 00:36:24.079
get this. Right. If I'm doing this, I should get

480
00:36:24.199 --> 00:36:30.119
something of similar level back, something somewhere with something close. Right,

481
00:36:30.199 --> 00:36:33.119
And that imbalance is what you almost always hear in

482
00:36:33.159 --> 00:36:38.079
marital counseling. Right. Why do we love because we are?

483
00:36:38.159 --> 00:36:41.000
Are we love others? Why? Because we're seeking to obtain

484
00:36:41.039 --> 00:36:45.199
an avoidance of loneliness. You love because you want to

485
00:36:45.199 --> 00:36:49.400
fill the void of isolation. You seek a relationship because

486
00:36:49.400 --> 00:36:53.599
you want to provide a connection. If you love, and

487
00:36:53.639 --> 00:36:56.159
all you get in return is isolation and loneliness. And

488
00:36:58.159 --> 00:37:02.039
come on now, right now, there's more here I could

489
00:37:02.079 --> 00:37:04.159
go through. I've got a list here of things. The

490
00:37:04.239 --> 00:37:09.440
point is we love others to obtain Now, guess what

491
00:37:10.159 --> 00:37:14.400
we love God to obtain? Why do We love God

492
00:37:15.239 --> 00:37:18.280
because we're trying to obtain We want eternal security, right,

493
00:37:19.599 --> 00:37:22.199
We want the promise of heaven. We want the avoidance

494
00:37:22.239 --> 00:37:26.159
of eternal punishment. Again, would you love God if I'm

495
00:37:26.199 --> 00:37:29.719
sorry you God? Basically, if God responded with you love me,

496
00:37:30.039 --> 00:37:32.320
you still are going to burn in health for eternity?

497
00:37:32.559 --> 00:37:37.079
Do you still love me? I don't know. We love

498
00:37:37.159 --> 00:37:42.079
in order to obtain blessing and provision. We may seek health, prosperity, protection,

499
00:37:42.440 --> 00:37:45.559
or answered prayers through our devotion. Are we doing it

500
00:37:45.639 --> 00:37:48.039
just because we love God and where we want or

501
00:37:48.199 --> 00:37:51.519
are we expecting some level of blessing, some level of protection,

502
00:37:51.840 --> 00:37:55.519
some level of provision. We love in order to obtain

503
00:37:55.559 --> 00:37:58.480
forgiveness and a peace of mind. We want to alleviate

504
00:37:58.519 --> 00:38:01.679
our guilt. We want to find comfort and being absolved

505
00:38:01.760 --> 00:38:04.719
from our sin. We love God because we want to

506
00:38:04.760 --> 00:38:07.400
obtain forgiveness. We want to feel a sense of peace.

507
00:38:08.320 --> 00:38:11.679
We love God because we're seeking to obtain purpose and meaning.

508
00:38:12.119 --> 00:38:15.440
We're deriving a sense of purpose, identity, and significance from

509
00:38:15.480 --> 00:38:20.639
a relationship with God. We love God to obtain because

510
00:38:20.719 --> 00:38:24.920
we want to have our fear reduced. We don't want

511
00:38:24.960 --> 00:38:27.280
any more fear of death, no more fear of suffering,

512
00:38:27.360 --> 00:38:29.960
no more fear of judgment. So we cling to love

513
00:38:30.000 --> 00:38:33.440
for God to alleviate these things, to avoid these things.

514
00:38:34.960 --> 00:38:37.320
I hate to say it, In many cases, people supposedly

515
00:38:37.320 --> 00:38:40.400
love God because it gives them a sense of moral superiority.

516
00:38:40.719 --> 00:38:44.159
We feel righteous, we feel morally superior due to our

517
00:38:44.199 --> 00:38:49.840
religious devotion or perceived spiritual maturity. We love God to

518
00:38:49.880 --> 00:38:59.719
obtain hope, to obtain comfort. I think that we could.

519
00:38:59.760 --> 00:39:03.559
I think that we can be honest here right, that

520
00:39:03.840 --> 00:39:08.719
our noblest expressions, your noblest expression of love for others

521
00:39:08.840 --> 00:39:12.239
and love for God is typically almost always rooted in

522
00:39:12.320 --> 00:39:17.800
self interest, whether consciously or subconsciously. It basically highlights the

523
00:39:17.920 --> 00:39:23.320
contrast between love, our love, human love, and God's perfect

524
00:39:23.360 --> 00:39:37.239
selfless love, emphasizing why grace is essential. Now here then

525
00:39:37.559 --> 00:39:41.960
my hypotheses here. I know it ruins Valentine's Day. I

526
00:39:41.960 --> 00:39:45.639
know it destroys all of your ideas of love. And

527
00:39:45.719 --> 00:39:48.719
I understand it. Right, I'm not saying that this is like, oh,

528
00:39:48.800 --> 00:39:52.000
I welcome this and this, I understand this is a struggle,

529
00:39:52.159 --> 00:39:57.199
But come on, just be honest. How selfish are you?

530
00:39:56.559 --> 00:39:59.920
You show up to get and you get what you

531
00:40:00.000 --> 00:40:02.320
we want, and then we go do what we want

532
00:40:02.320 --> 00:40:05.320
to do. It's about us us us us us us

533
00:40:05.440 --> 00:40:10.559
us us us. We like being in a situation where

534
00:40:10.559 --> 00:40:13.360
we're gonna get We like being in a situation where

535
00:40:13.360 --> 00:40:18.840
we have whatever we want. We know, we like that. Now,

536
00:40:18.880 --> 00:40:24.320
I believe this reality should have a profound hermeneutical impact

537
00:40:24.760 --> 00:40:27.039
on you as a Christian. This is really what I

538
00:40:27.079 --> 00:40:31.480
want to get to. I believe if we understand how

539
00:40:31.559 --> 00:40:36.079
flawed our love is, our love for God is flawed,

540
00:40:36.519 --> 00:40:41.079
our love for others is flawed. Right now, I'm gonna

541
00:40:41.079 --> 00:40:42.639
I'm gonna look here. I didn't even think about this,

542
00:40:42.679 --> 00:40:44.360
but I think this is the perfect time to do this.

543
00:40:49.519 --> 00:40:57.599
I believe it's in the book of Matthew. I believe

544
00:40:57.960 --> 00:41:05.039
here here it is all right here it is Matthew,

545
00:41:05.280 --> 00:41:11.880
Chapter twenty two, Matthew Chapter twenty two, Verse thirty four.

546
00:41:11.920 --> 00:41:14.119
But when the Pharisees heard that he had put the

547
00:41:14.159 --> 00:41:18.199
Sadducees to silence, they were gathered together. That one of them,

548
00:41:18.199 --> 00:41:21.440
which was a lawyer, asked him a question, tempting him

549
00:41:21.480 --> 00:41:25.199
and saying, Master, which is the great commandment in the law.

550
00:41:25.719 --> 00:41:27.760
Jesus said unto him, thou shall love the Lord that God,

551
00:41:27.760 --> 00:41:29.719
with all your heart, with all your soul, with all

552
00:41:29.760 --> 00:41:32.119
your mind. This is the first and great commandment. The

553
00:41:32.159 --> 00:41:35.360
second is like unto it, Thou shall love thy neighbor

554
00:41:35.400 --> 00:41:40.559
as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law

555
00:41:41.199 --> 00:41:44.840
and the prophets. All of the law, all of the

556
00:41:44.880 --> 00:41:50.039
prophets is basically summarized. It's everything can be reduced down

557
00:41:50.119 --> 00:41:55.599
to love God, love others. Love God, love others. Well

558
00:41:55.679 --> 00:42:00.159
if I, if my hypothesis is correct that are love

559
00:42:00.280 --> 00:42:04.559
is inherently flawed at its very core, then gets where

560
00:42:04.599 --> 00:42:07.480
this leaves you. You will never love God because your

561
00:42:07.519 --> 00:42:11.400
love is flawed, saved or unsaved. You will never love

562
00:42:11.480 --> 00:42:14.719
others because your love is inherently flawed. And when I

563
00:42:14.719 --> 00:42:16.719
say you will never love God or never love others,

564
00:42:16.840 --> 00:42:19.440
you're never going to love them with the perfect kind

565
00:42:19.480 --> 00:42:22.920
of love because your love is inherently flawed. You love

566
00:42:23.159 --> 00:42:26.199
your self, You love yourself more than God. You love

567
00:42:26.239 --> 00:42:29.480
yourself more than others, you love God. You love others

568
00:42:30.199 --> 00:42:33.519
for the benefit that you obtain for yourself. Now, the

569
00:42:33.559 --> 00:42:38.480
minute you realize that, then your entire hermeneutic changes, because

570
00:42:38.519 --> 00:42:41.239
now everywhere in the Bible where it talks about love

571
00:42:41.480 --> 00:42:44.239
tells you to love or expresses love. You know what

572
00:42:44.280 --> 00:42:47.519
you see there, You then see it is a law

573
00:42:47.960 --> 00:42:52.000
in which you cannot obtain. It is a law which

574
00:42:52.039 --> 00:42:55.079
you cannot keep. It is a law that no matter

575
00:42:55.119 --> 00:42:58.280
how hard you pursue, you will never come close to.

576
00:42:58.840 --> 00:43:02.000
So though all all everything the Bible has to say

577
00:43:02.000 --> 00:43:05.800
about love is there to simply condemn you and to

578
00:43:05.880 --> 00:43:08.920
reveal to you your inability, and then it can drive

579
00:43:09.039 --> 00:43:13.840
you only to what true love is. God is love.

580
00:43:14.119 --> 00:43:16.760
For God so loved the world that he gave his

581
00:43:16.880 --> 00:43:22.079
only begotten son, It is God. It is Christ. God

582
00:43:22.559 --> 00:43:27.199
loves Christ is God's love in action. And if you

583
00:43:27.239 --> 00:43:31.360
want to find love, it's in Christ. By pursuing Christ,

584
00:43:31.840 --> 00:43:35.199
by coming to Christ and faith, his perfect love is

585
00:43:35.239 --> 00:43:39.079
imputed to my account. So then I can say, in Christ,

586
00:43:39.159 --> 00:43:41.599
I love God with all my heart, mind, body, and soul.

587
00:43:41.639 --> 00:43:44.280
I love my neighbors myself. But in practice I never

588
00:43:44.360 --> 00:43:47.800
will do any of things because I will never accomplish it,

589
00:43:47.840 --> 00:43:57.960
because I am flawed inherently internally. And I believe this

590
00:43:58.000 --> 00:44:02.119
perspective offers a deep law and gospel centered approach to scripture.

591
00:44:02.360 --> 00:44:05.800
If human love is inherently self centered, then every command

592
00:44:05.920 --> 00:44:09.920
to love becomes a mirror reflecting our inability to meet

593
00:44:09.920 --> 00:44:13.079
God's standard. I believe this aligns with the idea that

594
00:44:13.159 --> 00:44:16.400
law exposes our sin. It shows us our need for

595
00:44:16.519 --> 00:44:20.519
Christ's perfect love and righteousness. I believe this changes your

596
00:44:21.079 --> 00:44:27.239
entire reading of scripture. You can go through everything. It's

597
00:44:27.360 --> 00:44:29.360
Valentine's Day. I don't know what you're doing, but you

598
00:44:29.480 --> 00:44:34.480
can use this weekend. Look up scripture after scripture on love, love, love, love, love, love, love,

599
00:44:34.559 --> 00:44:36.840
and when you see it, don't go. I'm gonna try.

600
00:44:37.000 --> 00:44:39.880
I'm gonna try. Go. I can't do this. I never

601
00:44:39.960 --> 00:44:44.119
will do this, but Christ did because God is love.

602
00:44:45.199 --> 00:44:49.000
Christ is God's love in action, and by my faith

603
00:44:49.039 --> 00:44:53.079
in him, his perfect love is imputed to my account.

604
00:44:53.280 --> 00:44:56.000
So then I can stand in perfect love, not because

605
00:44:56.039 --> 00:44:59.360
I do, but because it's been imputed to my account.

606
00:45:03.280 --> 00:45:07.000
So my hypothesis. My hypothesis then would suggest that human

607
00:45:07.039 --> 00:45:10.519
love is inherently selfish, and that the biblical commands to

608
00:45:10.599 --> 00:45:17.400
love function as law that reveal our shortcomings. They direct

609
00:45:17.480 --> 00:45:24.760
us to Christ's perfect love. So let's let's look, let's

610
00:45:24.800 --> 00:45:28.199
just maybe we can finish this in one in one episode.

611
00:45:28.239 --> 00:45:30.159
I was going to do this in multiple parts. But

612
00:45:30.239 --> 00:45:32.280
that's okay. This is a lot of important stuff. But

613
00:45:32.360 --> 00:45:36.000
let's just consider some different scriptures about love. Right, So

614
00:45:36.039 --> 00:45:40.519
let's consider the nature and supremacy of love. Now we

615
00:45:41.039 --> 00:45:44.119
know which chapter we're going to go to, right One

616
00:45:44.199 --> 00:45:47.880
Corinthians thirteen, and this the pinnacle. This is what everyone

617
00:45:49.480 --> 00:45:56.480
everyone talks about. I remember there was a wedding someone

618
00:45:56.559 --> 00:46:01.280
in my church. Well, I mean someone who used to

619
00:46:01.280 --> 00:46:05.000
be in my church, okay, but I remember reading First

620
00:46:05.039 --> 00:46:08.639
Corinthians thirteen at that wedding. Now I wish I would

621
00:46:08.639 --> 00:46:10.679
have went back and go, well, I'm going to read

622
00:46:10.719 --> 00:46:14.599
this today as these two people stand before all of

623
00:46:14.679 --> 00:46:17.199
us and God to get married, and I'm going to

624
00:46:17.239 --> 00:46:20.639
read First Corinthians thirteen. And here's what I want to demonstrate.

625
00:46:21.119 --> 00:46:24.440
You guys are never going to do this. This passage

626
00:46:24.480 --> 00:46:27.320
condemns you to the eighteenth level of hell because you

627
00:46:27.519 --> 00:46:31.119
will never accomplish this. So don't drive off thinking, oh,

628
00:46:31.199 --> 00:46:33.679
I'm going to love you like First Corinthians thirteen, because

629
00:46:33.679 --> 00:46:37.079
you're not. You're gonna fail. She's gonna fail, he's gonna fail.

630
00:46:37.239 --> 00:46:39.880
Everyone here is going to fail. We can't do this.

631
00:46:40.000 --> 00:46:43.199
First Corinthians thirteen is not for us to strive to do.

632
00:46:43.519 --> 00:46:45.760
It's to condemn us so that we know we can't,

633
00:46:45.880 --> 00:46:49.079
and then it drives us only two, the only one

634
00:46:49.159 --> 00:46:53.239
who can. But let's look at it. First Corinthians thirteen,

635
00:46:56.280 --> 00:46:59.559
The nature and supremacy of love. Well, First Corinthians thirteen,

636
00:46:59.559 --> 00:47:01.639
I think gives the nature of supremacy of love. Let's

637
00:47:01.679 --> 00:47:04.320
just consider, though I speak with the tongues of men

638
00:47:04.480 --> 00:47:07.599
and of angels and have not charity, I become as

639
00:47:07.639 --> 00:47:11.480
a sounding brass or a tinkling symbol. Well, ladies and gentlemen,

640
00:47:11.639 --> 00:47:14.360
you are a sounding brass. You are a tinkling symbol.

641
00:47:15.000 --> 00:47:17.360
And though I have the gifts of prophecy and understanding

642
00:47:17.400 --> 00:47:20.159
all mysteries and all knowledge, and though I have all

643
00:47:20.199 --> 00:47:22.719
faith so that can move mountains, and have not charity,

644
00:47:23.000 --> 00:47:26.480
I am nothing. You are nothing. We are nothing more

645
00:47:26.880 --> 00:47:32.519
than sounding brass and tinkling symbols. We make a lot

646
00:47:32.519 --> 00:47:35.199
of noise, we say a lot of things. We may

647
00:47:35.440 --> 00:47:37.800
do a lot of religious things. We may say a

648
00:47:37.800 --> 00:47:40.400
lot of religious things, we may accomplish a lot of

649
00:47:40.440 --> 00:47:44.599
religious actions. But ladies and gentlemen, we are nothing. We

650
00:47:44.679 --> 00:47:54.599
are noise making nothings because we don't have true love

651
00:47:57.559 --> 00:48:00.599
and then it goes on to say, then, and though

652
00:48:00.639 --> 00:48:02.599
I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and

653
00:48:02.639 --> 00:48:04.719
though I give my body to be burned and have

654
00:48:04.800 --> 00:48:07.760
not charity, it profited me nothing. Now, please note this

655
00:48:07.960 --> 00:48:10.800
indicates that you could bestow all your goods to feed

656
00:48:10.800 --> 00:48:13.199
the poor. You could give your body to be burned

657
00:48:13.480 --> 00:48:16.679
and yet not have charity. It's possible to do those

658
00:48:16.719 --> 00:48:19.360
things without love. And guess what, we never do those

659
00:48:19.400 --> 00:48:24.400
things with true love. Our love is always flawed. One

660
00:48:24.440 --> 00:48:27.159
Corinthians thirteen is that this chapter is often referred to

661
00:48:27.360 --> 00:48:30.960
as the Love Chapter. It supposedly provides a profound description

662
00:48:31.079 --> 00:48:35.000
of love's characteristics and its pre eminence over every other

663
00:48:35.199 --> 00:48:38.679
virtue and gift. For example, as we just read, if

664
00:48:38.719 --> 00:48:40.719
I speak with the tongues of men and of angels

665
00:48:40.719 --> 00:48:43.679
but have not love, I'm a noisy gong, or a

666
00:48:43.719 --> 00:48:48.000
clinging symbol, as one translation puts it. He goes on

667
00:48:48.079 --> 00:48:50.360
and we read things like love is patient and kind.

668
00:48:50.639 --> 00:48:53.440
Love does not envy or boast. It is not arrogant

669
00:48:53.599 --> 00:48:56.239
or rude. It does not insist on its own way.

670
00:48:56.440 --> 00:48:59.960
It's not irritable, it's not resentful. It does not rejoin

671
00:49:00.159 --> 00:49:03.639
said wrongdoing. But it rejoices with the truth we see.

672
00:49:03.840 --> 00:49:06.679
So now faith, hope, and love abide. But the three,

673
00:49:07.239 --> 00:49:11.519
these three, but the greatest of these is love. This

674
00:49:11.599 --> 00:49:15.000
passage emphasizes that without love, even the most impressive spiritual

675
00:49:15.039 --> 00:49:19.599
gifts are meaningless, highlighting love's essential and selfless nature. Love

676
00:49:19.719 --> 00:49:22.960
is the supreme thing, and we don't have the supreme

677
00:49:23.079 --> 00:49:27.519
thing because we don't have love, so we fall short.

678
00:49:27.760 --> 00:49:30.320
This passage is to say, this is what it is,

679
00:49:30.440 --> 00:49:33.039
and this is what we end up becoming nothing, just

680
00:49:33.079 --> 00:49:35.920
making noise because we don't have this kind of love.

681
00:49:36.039 --> 00:49:44.079
We are to see it as law, condemning us when

682
00:49:44.119 --> 00:49:47.199
we consider it. So the Bible in one Corinthians thirteen

683
00:49:47.280 --> 00:49:49.840
speaks of the nature and supremacy of love right, and

684
00:49:49.880 --> 00:49:52.679
we could go through all of all of those characteristics.

685
00:49:52.840 --> 00:49:56.960
Love suffereth long and is kind, love envieth, not love vaunted,

686
00:49:57.119 --> 00:49:59.639
not itself. It's basically when you start reading that, you

687
00:49:59.679 --> 00:50:03.159
sh start feeling like you're standing, you know, on the mountain,

688
00:50:03.280 --> 00:50:05.760
and God is giving his law and saying do this,

689
00:50:05.920 --> 00:50:08.039
do this, do this, and you're like, I can't, I can't,

690
00:50:08.159 --> 00:50:10.679
I can't, I can't, I can't, I can't, I can't

691
00:50:10.760 --> 00:50:19.639
because you'll never do any of those things perfectly. But

692
00:50:19.840 --> 00:50:22.760
if we go through scripture. If we go through scripture here,

693
00:50:22.920 --> 00:50:24.800
I got to go find all the scriptures I have Here.

694
00:50:26.119 --> 00:50:31.840
We also see that love is the fulfillment of the law.

695
00:50:32.400 --> 00:50:36.519
For example, Roman's thirteen eight, oh, no one anything except

696
00:50:36.559 --> 00:50:39.559
to love each other, for the one who loves another

697
00:50:39.920 --> 00:50:42.800
has fulfilled the law. See, if you can love someone else,

698
00:50:43.000 --> 00:50:45.119
you can fulfill the law. Well, do you believe you

699
00:50:45.159 --> 00:50:49.480
can fulfill the law? I don't believe you can fulfill

700
00:50:49.559 --> 00:50:51.960
the law, meaning you can never going to love anyone,

701
00:50:52.360 --> 00:50:56.360
and that the logical conclusion. I'm gonna go. I'm gonna

702
00:50:56.360 --> 00:50:59.000
look at this text from a different translation, go to

703
00:50:59.079 --> 00:51:05.159
Romans thirteen, Oh, no man anything but to love one another,

704
00:51:05.239 --> 00:51:07.840
for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law. Do

705
00:51:07.920 --> 00:51:10.519
you believe you can fulfill the law? Do you believe

706
00:51:10.519 --> 00:51:12.760
you can fulfill the law. If you can fulfill the law,

707
00:51:12.800 --> 00:51:15.119
then you don't need Christ and his fulfillment of the law.

708
00:51:15.320 --> 00:51:17.760
You can't fulfill the law Christ did. How did Christ

709
00:51:17.760 --> 00:51:22.519
fulfill the law? Because he loved perfectly and he obeyed

710
00:51:22.519 --> 00:51:25.840
it perfectly. Okay, we can go beyond just that. But

711
00:51:26.199 --> 00:51:28.480
I'm just saying we can't fail. I wish I could

712
00:51:28.480 --> 00:51:30.960
fulfill the law because I could love others, But my

713
00:51:31.079 --> 00:51:34.159
love for others is flawed. Therefore I never truly fulfill

714
00:51:34.239 --> 00:51:36.159
the law. The only way I can fulfill the law

715
00:51:36.280 --> 00:51:41.039
is in Christ Galatians five fourteen. For the whole law

716
00:51:41.119 --> 00:51:43.360
is fulfilled in one word, you shall love your neighbor

717
00:51:43.400 --> 00:51:46.559
as yourself Galatians five fourteen. Well, the whole law, the

718
00:51:46.599 --> 00:51:49.599
whole law is fulfilled and one word. I'm sorry. Then

719
00:51:49.639 --> 00:51:51.199
it's never going to be fulfilled, because I'm never going

720
00:51:51.280 --> 00:51:54.639
to love my neighbor as myself. These verses underscore that

721
00:51:54.719 --> 00:51:59.880
genuine love encapsulates the essence of God's commandments, positioning love

722
00:52:00.159 --> 00:52:03.440
as the ultimate fulfillment of the law. Love is the

723
00:52:03.519 --> 00:52:06.639
ultimate fulfillment of the law. I will ultimately never fulfill

724
00:52:06.679 --> 00:52:11.239
the law. Logically, that means I never truly love. That's

725
00:52:11.320 --> 00:52:22.119
my whole hypothesis, all right, So what about the source

726
00:52:22.159 --> 00:52:24.679
of love? Well, first John four seven, be love. Let

727
00:52:24.760 --> 00:52:27.519
us love one another, for love is from God. Whoever

728
00:52:27.599 --> 00:52:30.800
loves has been born of God and knows God. We

729
00:52:30.880 --> 00:52:34.320
love because He first loved us. This passage indicates that

730
00:52:34.800 --> 00:52:38.519
that love originates from God. And our capacity to love

731
00:52:38.719 --> 00:52:43.840
is a reflection of His love for us. Now, some

732
00:52:43.880 --> 00:52:45.960
people will say, well, if if we come to God,

733
00:52:46.000 --> 00:52:49.199
then we can love. We're not going to love perfectly.

734
00:52:49.480 --> 00:52:52.800
Whatever love you think you have, it still inherently flawed.

735
00:52:52.960 --> 00:52:55.480
It never will be perfect, it will never be right.

736
00:52:56.000 --> 00:53:04.320
That's why you unied Christ. We have the greatest commandments.

737
00:53:04.360 --> 00:53:05.920
You shall love the Lord that God with all your heart,

738
00:53:05.920 --> 00:53:07.400
with all your soul, with all your mind. We have

739
00:53:07.440 --> 00:53:09.880
Matthew twenty two thirty seven through thirty nine, which we've read.

740
00:53:10.400 --> 00:53:13.519
Jesus identifies the love for God and neighbor as the

741
00:53:13.559 --> 00:53:18.159
foundation of all divine instruction, emphasizing the paramount importance. We

742
00:53:18.239 --> 00:53:20.559
are told to love our enemies, and Matthew five p.

743
00:53:20.679 --> 00:53:25.360
Forty four. We are challenged to extend our love beyond

744
00:53:25.480 --> 00:53:31.440
just family, just friends, just you know, romance. We have

745
00:53:31.519 --> 00:53:38.679
to love even our very enemy. We are told that love.

746
00:53:38.760 --> 00:53:41.480
By this all people will know that you are my disciples.

747
00:53:41.519 --> 00:53:45.000
If you have love one for another, we have this

748
00:53:45.079 --> 00:53:47.559
idea of sacrificial love. Greater love has no one than this,

749
00:53:47.639 --> 00:53:51.039
that someone laid down his life for his friends. We

750
00:53:51.079 --> 00:53:54.719
have the idea that above all, keep loving one another. Earnestly,

751
00:53:54.840 --> 00:54:00.400
since love covers a multitude of sins, going through all

752
00:54:00.440 --> 00:54:02.000
the different things, I'm just going through a number of

753
00:54:02.039 --> 00:54:06.639
scriptures about love. So I think we can say scripture

754
00:54:07.039 --> 00:54:12.039
on a pretty consistent basis, would describe love as self less,

755
00:54:12.239 --> 00:54:16.760
It would describe love as being sacrificial, it would demonstrate

756
00:54:16.840 --> 00:54:23.519
love as being central to the Christian life. But this

757
00:54:23.679 --> 00:54:29.719
is a high standard. I think the Bible, including one

758
00:54:29.800 --> 00:54:34.000
Corinthians thirteen, highlights the ideal of love that believers are

759
00:54:34.039 --> 00:54:39.920
called to embody and guess what that call is law.

760
00:54:40.360 --> 00:54:43.840
It's telling us what it should be, what it looks like,

761
00:54:44.199 --> 00:54:46.480
so that we can then be confronted with what we

762
00:54:46.559 --> 00:54:49.320
do not possess, what we do not have, and what

763
00:54:49.360 --> 00:54:55.880
we do not give. So I believe my hypothesis then

764
00:54:56.000 --> 00:55:01.880
comes along and demonstrates that at law when it comes

765
00:55:01.920 --> 00:55:06.199
to law, reveals human inadequacy, driving individuals towards reliance on

766
00:55:06.239 --> 00:55:10.920
divine grace. The commands to love when viewed as law,

767
00:55:11.400 --> 00:55:17.920
they expose our self centered, self centered tendencies, are that

768
00:55:18.880 --> 00:55:21.000
at least state it this way. I believe when we

769
00:55:21.039 --> 00:55:24.079
see all the all the descriptions, all the discussion about

770
00:55:24.079 --> 00:55:30.320
love in the Bible, as law. Then it exposes our

771
00:55:30.519 --> 00:55:38.280
self centered tendencies towards towards selfishness. It's that it demonstrates

772
00:55:38.280 --> 00:55:40.719
how self centered we are, that our tendencies is to

773
00:55:41.079 --> 00:55:43.760
only love in order to get that. Everything about it

774
00:55:43.800 --> 00:55:49.440
is that that's we are self centered, and that ultimately

775
00:55:49.639 --> 00:55:53.960
this underscores the necessity of Christ's redemptive love. And I

776
00:55:54.039 --> 00:55:58.840
believe that my theological perspective then aligns perfectly with reality.

777
00:55:59.280 --> 00:56:02.880
If you observe, if you just watch humans, watch yourself,

778
00:56:03.719 --> 00:56:09.000
observation of human behavior, observation of your own motives, you

779
00:56:09.039 --> 00:56:12.719
know what it reveals over and over, over and over

780
00:56:12.760 --> 00:56:18.079
and over that your selfishness taints even your well intentioned

781
00:56:18.199 --> 00:56:25.360
acts of love. I believe reality supports my theory that

782
00:56:25.480 --> 00:56:28.920
humans struggle to achieve the selfless love described in scripture.

783
00:56:29.199 --> 00:56:34.719
And this emphasizes the need for transformation through Christ. Or

784
00:56:36.119 --> 00:56:38.480
that's how one source put it. I don't I don't

785
00:56:38.480 --> 00:56:43.280
even like that way of describing it. It emphasizes our

786
00:56:43.360 --> 00:56:49.440
need to be transformed positionally, it emphasizes my need for

787
00:56:49.519 --> 00:56:53.480
imputed righteousness because I'm never going to be transformed, transformed

788
00:56:53.480 --> 00:56:56.239
to love perfectly. If you think when you become a Christian.

789
00:56:56.280 --> 00:56:59.159
You now can love perfectly? Well, then Christian should love perfectly?

790
00:56:59.320 --> 00:57:01.119
How how how long have you been in the church?

791
00:57:02.960 --> 00:57:04.760
How long have you been around other Christians?

792
00:57:05.480 --> 00:57:05.639
Oh?

793
00:57:05.639 --> 00:57:10.360
Come on? Have you seen the selfishness that Christians will

794
00:57:10.400 --> 00:57:15.280
have in supposedly loving people. They'll stab you in the back,

795
00:57:15.760 --> 00:57:21.159
They'll lie, they'll deceive, they will be selfish. Come on,

796
00:57:21.440 --> 00:57:24.239
the church is filled with that. Everyone knows that. You

797
00:57:24.280 --> 00:57:33.119
know why, because we are inherently flawed. Now, I have

798
00:57:33.199 --> 00:57:34.880
a lot more here. I have a lot more here.

799
00:57:35.440 --> 00:57:37.360
All right. I was trying to skip around because I

800
00:57:37.360 --> 00:57:39.000
was going to try to finish this, but I literally

801
00:57:39.000 --> 00:57:42.639
have another probably four or five pages here because what

802
00:57:42.679 --> 00:57:44.679
I wanted to do was I wanted to break down

803
00:57:44.760 --> 00:57:48.239
First Corinthians thirteen, and I wanted to show how we

804
00:57:48.280 --> 00:57:51.360
perpetually fall short of First Corinthians thirteen. And then I

805
00:57:51.400 --> 00:57:54.400
want to show you First Corinthians thirteen and how it

806
00:57:54.559 --> 00:57:59.199
actually reflects God's attributes and Christ's actions when you read

807
00:57:59.239 --> 00:58:02.639
first we read First Corinthians thirteen. How is it always preached?

808
00:58:02.719 --> 00:58:04.840
All right, we're gonna talk about love. Guys. Are you

809
00:58:04.880 --> 00:58:07.239
doing this? Women? Are you doing this? Children? Are you

810
00:58:07.280 --> 00:58:09.639
doing this? You fall short? You fall short, you fall short,

811
00:58:09.679 --> 00:58:11.519
You fall short, you fall short. Now what we need

812
00:58:11.559 --> 00:58:13.840
to do today is come to the altar, confess it,

813
00:58:13.920 --> 00:58:16.320
and we all need to leave here trying to do

814
00:58:16.400 --> 00:58:19.000
it better. And I know because I've preached that same

815
00:58:19.079 --> 00:58:21.519
kind of sermon on First Corinthians thirteen. One of the

816
00:58:21.519 --> 00:58:24.119
sermons where I had the most people ever come to

817
00:58:24.199 --> 00:58:26.920
the altar was when I was younger, and I preached

818
00:58:26.920 --> 00:58:30.159
on First Corinthians thirteen and how the church doesn't actually

819
00:58:30.159 --> 00:58:32.920
demonstrate this kind of love. And while everybody was convicted,

820
00:58:33.119 --> 00:58:36.079
I was convicted. Everyone was crying. It was an emotional

821
00:58:36.159 --> 00:58:38.719
It wasn't a powerful service. And then everyone got up

822
00:58:38.800 --> 00:58:40.840
and you know what we did. We continue to do

823
00:58:40.880 --> 00:58:43.239
the same thing we always do. It didn't change a

824
00:58:43.280 --> 00:58:46.639
stinking thing, because you know why, we are inherently flawed.

825
00:58:46.800 --> 00:58:49.719
So guess what. I preached a law based message that

826
00:58:49.800 --> 00:58:52.159
convicted people. It got a lot of people coming to

827
00:58:52.239 --> 00:58:54.920
the altar. I felt like I'd preached really good. It

828
00:58:54.960 --> 00:58:57.800
was a great sermon. I feel Oh God moved im.

829
00:58:57.800 --> 00:58:59.840
Patted myself on the back. And you know what, I

830
00:59:00.079 --> 00:59:03.039
didn't change. They didn't change. No one changed, because guess

831
00:59:03.039 --> 00:59:05.960
why the point is I should have preached One Corinthians

832
00:59:05.960 --> 00:59:09.280
thirteen and said we all fall short. But First Corinthians

833
00:59:09.280 --> 00:59:12.440
thirteen describes the attributes of God, and it describes the

834
00:59:12.480 --> 00:59:14.760
actions of Christ. And if you see it that way,

835
00:59:14.960 --> 00:59:17.840
then you will say, I can't do it. Christ did this.

836
00:59:18.119 --> 00:59:20.920
Put my faith in him and his obedience to First

837
00:59:20.960 --> 00:59:23.840
Corinthians thirteen is imputed to my account. Then I can

838
00:59:23.840 --> 00:59:27.719
stand totally transformed in my position, knowing I will never

839
00:59:27.760 --> 00:59:37.079
be truly transformed in my practice until glorification. Right, So

840
00:59:37.159 --> 00:59:39.239
we can just go through First Corinthians thirteen. Just so

841
00:59:39.440 --> 00:59:41.320
I'm in Romans thirteen. So that's not going to help

842
00:59:41.400 --> 00:59:48.000
us very much. First Corinthians thirteen, and you can see

843
00:59:48.000 --> 00:59:56.760
this charity suffrith law, love suffereth long. Now, if we go,

844
00:59:57.039 --> 01:00:05.119
if we do this really quick, if I just I'm

845
01:00:05.119 --> 01:00:06.719
gonna break it down this way, I'm gonna break it

846
01:00:06.800 --> 01:00:09.199
down this way. I was, I'm just gonna go to

847
01:00:09.239 --> 01:00:11.800
my nose, I was gonna pull up, I was gonna

848
01:00:12.400 --> 01:00:14.039
I'm just gonna go through this quickly so that you

849
01:00:14.079 --> 01:00:17.880
get the basic idea. Right. So, if we look at

850
01:00:17.880 --> 01:00:20.599
First Corinthians thirteen one through three, we have the necessity

851
01:00:20.599 --> 01:00:23.559
of love without love, even the most impressive spiritual gifts

852
01:00:23.559 --> 01:00:26.320
and self sacrificial acts are meaningless, meaning that we can

853
01:00:26.360 --> 01:00:32.639
do a lot of those things without love. Love is essential. Eloquence, knowledge, faith, generosity,

854
01:00:32.679 --> 01:00:36.280
and martyrdom, all of those are all lose their value

855
01:00:36.280 --> 01:00:38.880
if not driven by love. Meaning we can actually do

856
01:00:38.960 --> 01:00:41.920
those things without love, but we need love. And then

857
01:00:41.960 --> 01:00:45.000
if we look at the attributes of love, we'll go patient.

858
01:00:45.679 --> 01:00:48.440
We'll just go Love is patient. Well, this means we

859
01:00:48.599 --> 01:00:52.079
endure wrong and we delay retaliation. Are we? How patient

860
01:00:52.079 --> 01:00:55.519
are we? How long does our patient last? How long

861
01:00:55.599 --> 01:01:00.800
does our patience last? Kind? We act with goodness and care.

862
01:01:01.159 --> 01:01:04.840
We're not envious. We do not resent other success or blessings,

863
01:01:05.599 --> 01:01:09.440
not boastful, arrogant. We have no pride or self centeredness.

864
01:01:09.840 --> 01:01:13.840
We're not rude. We respect others, not self seeking. We

865
01:01:13.880 --> 01:01:19.039
prioritize others' needs above our very own. We're not irritable.

866
01:01:19.199 --> 01:01:22.280
We're not resentful. We do not rejoice and wrong. We

867
01:01:22.800 --> 01:01:25.719
rejoice with the truth. We bear all things, We believe

868
01:01:25.760 --> 01:01:29.840
all things, We hope all things. Just go through all

869
01:01:29.840 --> 01:01:32.719
of those things? Do you do those perfectly? You fall

870
01:01:32.760 --> 01:01:36.159
short constantly, But you know who does these things? Perfectly God.

871
01:01:36.440 --> 01:01:39.400
You know who lived these things out perfectly Christ. So

872
01:01:39.480 --> 01:01:42.800
when First Corinthians thirteen, what you should see is not us,

873
01:01:43.760 --> 01:01:45.840
We should see Christ. And you know what, the Church

874
01:01:45.880 --> 01:01:48.800
of corinth they failed. And everything in First Corinthians thirteen,

875
01:01:50.519 --> 01:01:53.639
everything you read in First Corinthians, they fail in First

876
01:01:53.679 --> 01:02:03.800
Corinthians thirteen. So what was their hope? Christ? That changes

877
01:02:03.840 --> 01:02:06.519
the whole way we should interpret First Corinthians thirteen. So

878
01:02:06.639 --> 01:02:10.760
my hypothesis is human love is so inherently flawed, so

879
01:02:10.880 --> 01:02:15.880
inherently messed up. It's self seeking. We love to get. Therefore,

880
01:02:15.960 --> 01:02:18.880
everything in the Bible that speaks about love is law

881
01:02:19.159 --> 01:02:23.760
showing us our inability to do it, and that I

882
01:02:23.800 --> 01:02:26.840
can only love now. I think this is important when

883
01:02:26.840 --> 01:02:30.440
those scriptures talk about that that I love, that if

884
01:02:30.480 --> 01:02:32.840
I love God, then basically I get the ability to

885
01:02:32.880 --> 01:02:36.079
love or or I somehow we find these scriptures that

886
01:02:36.079 --> 01:02:40.119
seemed in and maybe infer that I can now love

887
01:02:40.320 --> 01:02:42.960
because God loved me. Let me make it very clear,

888
01:02:43.079 --> 01:02:48.679
I only love perfectly in my position in Christ, I

889
01:02:48.800 --> 01:02:55.159
love people perfectly, and Christ, I love my enemies perfectly,

890
01:02:56.159 --> 01:02:59.800
and practice I don't love others perfectly. I don't love

891
01:02:59.840 --> 01:03:12.599
my enemies perfectly, but in Christ, I do so. Valentine's Day,

892
01:03:14.280 --> 01:03:16.960
I hope you have a wonderful one. I hope you

893
01:03:17.079 --> 01:03:19.880
celebrate it. I hope it's full of passion. I hope

894
01:03:19.880 --> 01:03:23.000
it's full of romance. I hope it's wonderful. I hope

895
01:03:23.039 --> 01:03:27.119
it's great. I hope I hope you have a playlist today.

896
01:03:27.400 --> 01:03:30.559
I hope you're filled with all of those perfect feelings

897
01:03:30.599 --> 01:03:33.199
and it's amazing and it's great, and you just have

898
01:03:33.320 --> 01:03:39.599
the time of your life. But just know that it's

899
01:03:39.639 --> 01:03:45.599
a celebration of a flawed love. Now we can find

900
01:03:45.599 --> 01:03:49.000
a lot of satisfaction and fun and excitement and our

901
01:03:49.079 --> 01:03:53.639
flawed love. Not in any way denying that, but from

902
01:03:53.679 --> 01:03:58.719
a philological perspective, just know it's flawed. It's flawed, and

903
01:03:58.760 --> 01:04:02.159
you're going to feel that law in it more than

904
01:04:02.199 --> 01:04:06.719
you probably want to admit. But the only true source

905
01:04:06.880 --> 01:04:13.880
of a selfless, perfect love is God. And all of

906
01:04:13.920 --> 01:04:17.480
the scriptures that talk about love, they reveal our inability.

907
01:04:17.880 --> 01:04:22.239
They condemn us, and they drive us right to Christ.

908
01:04:23.320 --> 01:04:27.800
Write to Him and write to his perfect love. I

909
01:04:27.880 --> 01:04:30.480
wish human love could be perfect, but it is not.

910
01:04:32.320 --> 01:04:37.519
You know it, and I know it, and God knows it,

911
01:04:39.360 --> 01:04:42.880
but he sent his son. Why Because God has perfect love.

912
01:04:43.119 --> 01:04:46.480
He sent his son to die for us, not because

913
01:04:46.480 --> 01:04:49.280
of what we can do, because we can't, not because

914
01:04:49.280 --> 01:04:52.480
of what we should do, because we never will. It's

915
01:04:52.760 --> 01:04:56.000
because he did so out of grace and mercy and

916
01:04:56.159 --> 01:05:01.960
a selfless love. So when you read the Bible and

917
01:05:02.119 --> 01:05:06.400
you see anything about love, you can say, low, I

918
01:05:06.480 --> 01:05:11.880
know I should, but I don't. I can't, I never will.

919
01:05:12.360 --> 01:05:25.719
But Christ did.

920
01:05:26.440 --> 01:05:31.159
Now that's probably the worst Valentine's Day message ever preached.

921
01:05:34.239 --> 01:05:39.360
But come on now, just think today. Come on, just

922
01:05:39.400 --> 01:05:43.760
think today to really, I'll leave you a two questions.

923
01:05:44.239 --> 01:05:50.119
Would you love God? Come on, be honest. If God

924
01:05:50.199 --> 01:05:54.480
said no, heaven in eternity and hell, would you still

925
01:05:54.519 --> 01:05:58.079
love him? Number one? Number two, I want you to

926
01:05:58.119 --> 01:06:02.079
think about how much of your life, how much even

927
01:06:02.119 --> 01:06:10.039
of your perceived love is influenced it's impacted by self selfishness,

928
01:06:10.159 --> 01:06:13.519
not selflessness. How much is self centered? How much do

929
01:06:13.599 --> 01:06:16.920
you love in order to get? What if you've got nothing?

930
01:06:17.280 --> 01:06:24.320
What if you had nothing? What would you love? Now?

931
01:06:24.400 --> 01:06:27.880
That will put you in a very hopefully a convicted state, going, Man,

932
01:06:28.039 --> 01:06:29.960
I don't really love God. I don't really love others,

933
01:06:30.360 --> 01:06:34.800
but I sure do love myself and I'm right there

934
01:06:34.840 --> 01:06:46.480
with you. So go celebrate your flawed love, but it

935
01:06:46.599 --> 01:06:51.039
is flawed, and you can be honest. Hey, I'm looking

936
01:06:51.039 --> 01:06:55.639
forward to Valentine's Day because of what I'm going to get.

937
01:06:56.519 --> 01:06:58.159
And if you don't feel like you're going to get

938
01:06:58.719 --> 01:07:01.280
something equal in return, and it's all going to be

939
01:07:01.320 --> 01:07:05.079
about you giving, you typically become frustrated and bitter and

940
01:07:05.800 --> 01:07:12.400
bothered and not as excited. Right, It's kind of the

941
01:07:12.400 --> 01:07:14.760
way it works. Everybody's expecting a certain thing.

942
01:07:16.519 --> 01:07:18.800
All right, I'm going to stop right there.

943
01:07:19.599 --> 01:07:27.039
Thank you for listening. God bless