Brotherly Love
- Details
- Sunday Morning Service
- Isaiah Richards
- Copalis Community Church
- 11 October 2026
- 1 John 3:15-18
- 1 Corinthians 13:1-7
Good morning, brothers and sisters.
All right, I'm going to be in First John 3, 15 through 18.
First John 3, 15 through 18.
I'm going to read it and then. Sorry, I said verse 15. It's gonna be verse 16 through 18. I'm gonna read it and then we'll go to the Lord in prayer. By this we know love, because he laid down his life for us.
And we also ought to lay down our lives for the brethren's. Because whoever has this world's goods and sees his brother in need and shuts up his heart from him, how does the love of God abide in him? My little children, let us not love in word or in tongue, but in deed and in truth. Let's go to the Lord in prayer. Oh, Lord.
So I want to thank you for, Lord, for your word, Lord, for the opportunity that you've given us to read it, to apply it, Lord, and to grow, become more like you, Lord. I pray that while we look at these verses, Lord, that you would convict us, Lord, show us our need for you and cause us to run to you, Lord, your name I pray. Amen. All right.
Well, the reason for sharing on brotherly love, loving the brothers and sisters of Christ is lately I've been convicted of sin in my own life saying that. I love saying that loving in tongue and word, but I haven't been. I. I've fallen short. So when I bring this to you, I bring it to you because. Not because I'm trying to point anything out on anyone I know here besides myself.
I want God to do a work in me, and this is what I am studying right now. So.
Last week, when I believe it was last week and I was asked to share or signed up to share, This was something I've been. This is something that's been on my mind, loving the brothers and sisters and the body. And so I thought I'd bring it before you.
And then God has a way of really showing us that we do have that sin. He puts us in certain circumstances that really amplify or squeeze it out. I got asked to share and I got asked to babysit young siblings. So God did a good job of showing me where I need him a lot. So I guess I should first start by apologizing to my siblings for the unloving attitude I've had this weekend.
Speaking about situations, just something on the side while we're over in Bible study, two of the individuals, Hannah and Aurora, both prayed and they both thank God for the situation, the hard situations that God puts in our life. And seems like this world is more and more focused on escaping hard times, trying to make our life easier whenever possible. But I think there's something unique in the Christian walk where hard times are hard, but they're beautiful and they're not to be taken for granted. So I thank God for the hard times that he's led me to. So that's just something on the side.
All right, we'll start in verse 16.
By this we know love, because he laid down his life for us. By this we know love. So I just want to first look at what is love. Love is him laying down his life. But he did not just die like you and I.
He didn't just die. And that's how he showed love. I want to look at how he showed love through his death. A couple things I want to look at to help us understand true love. He came to the world.
He created, this earth that he created. In six days, he came to it. He left Jesus Christ, left the presence of the Father, and came down to this earth, and he walked on this earth.
And he was rejected continually by everyone that he had individually created.
He suffered tremendous pain leading up to his crucifixion.
He died arguably the most painful death that any man could die, and probably one of the most humiliating ways somebody could die, dying on the cross, naked.
And as I thought about that, I thought, wow, he would do all that for us. But that's not even the smallest amount compared to what he actually did for us. Well, he was on that cross.
He took on our sins.
The creator of you and I came to this world.
And took the wrath of God on himself.
The wrath that I deserved to take.
The wrath you deserved. The bear.
Christ took it all.
To the very last drop. It says, Romans 5. 8.
I'll start in six. It says, for when we were still without strength, in due time, Christ died for the ungodly. For scarcely would a righteous man die, yet perhaps for a good man, someone would even dare to die. But God and His own love toward us, that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. He came to this earth, And he bore our sin even before we had even chosen to come to him.
While we're still in sin. He paid for this. Paid for our sin.
First Peter 2:21. Sorry, I'm gonna be all over, so just bear with me. First Peter 2. Well, starting 22. Who committed no sin, nor is deceit found in his mouth. Who, when he was reviled, he did not revile in return.
When he suffered he did not threaten, but committed Himself to us who judged, committed Himself to him who judges righteously, who himself bore our sin and on his own body, bore our sin in his own body, on the tree that we, having died to sin, might live for righteousness.
Christ didn't only come and save us before we knew him, but he died for all our sin, past, present, and even the sins that we will commit in the future. He paid for.
Then. He even paid for the sins, the ones that will reject Him.
John for first John 1, 2, 2.
And he himself is the propitiation for our sin, not only ours, but for the whole world.
Christ hung on that tree and bore the sin sins for all of us, all our sins that we'll ever commit, and even the ones that will never accept his sacrifice. He still loved them and gave his life for them.
This is true love.
Even though this is just a very small glimpse of what Christ did for us, I don't think we could ever fully grasp or understand the fullness of his love. This should cause us to understand the basics.
Let's move on to the second verse. And we also ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.
He laid down our life for us to show us love. And it is asking us in the second verse, we are to do the same for the brothers, for your brothers and sisters. Here you are called to love them.
I was thinking about this a little bit and thinking about the opportunity we have, the love like Christ loves.
And I was thinking about opportunities I've had in my life to follow after people who knew of something, whether sports or a job.
Or some sort of education.
And it's an honor to follow in the footsteps of wise men and wise women. Here we have the opportunity to follow in the footsteps of Jesus Christ and to love. See, with love.
This is a beautiful, beautiful opportunity that we get to take part in, even though it might be hard.
We are not just offered this opportunity, though. If you follow Christ, you are commanded to walk in his footsteps and to love and.
Just. If we go to chapter four, verse 11, it says, Beloved, beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. Yes, it's an amazing opportunity, but it's not a choice we get to make.
If you have accepted Christ's love in your life, then you have no other option but to love others.
I just wanted to turn to First Corinthians 13. Many of you, probably all of us, know the scripture, but I just want to look at it while we're talking of love and we can look at the characteristics that we are commanded to follow Him. I'll just start in one and we'll go through seven.
Though I speak with the tongue of men and angels, but have not love, I have become the sound of brass or clanging cymbals. Though I have the gift of prophecy and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and though I have faith so that I can move mountains, but I have not love, I am nothing. And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, but have not loved, it profits me nothing.
Love suffers long and is kind. Love does not envy, love does not parade itself. Love is not puffed up, does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil, does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth, bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
I think if we took a second to look at Christ's walk while he walked this earth and gave his life for us, I think we could apply all these characteristics to Christ. And I believe these characteristics are what we are commanded to follow. In.
I mentioned that we are about to love one another. One thing I just want to mention is that is also not just when they love you, when it's easy, when you're in front of them and you're saying, I love you. That's not the only time we're called to love. We were called to love like Christ love, like how Christ loved when they met and talked about him behind his back.
He still loves them.
When they all left him, his disciples that night, he still loved each one of them.
When he went to the cross, he was put to death. He still loved them.
And better yet, while he died on the cross.
For your nice and he left him just there.
Not for a second did he hesitate or want to take back his love from anyone.
But he went all the way for every sin that was committed directly against him.
So we have the opportunity to love when we're talked about behind our back, when we are wronged, even to point of death, we are commanded there's still love.
Matthew 5:44 says, I'll start in 43. You have heard that it was said, you shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy. But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, That you may be sons of your Father in heaven, Even though at times it hurts when we are not treated Right.
It's difficult. It's very difficult. But the commandment remains the same.
Let's go to 17 and 18.
But whoever has this world's goods and sees his brother in need and shuts up his heart, him. How does the love of God abide in him? My little children, let us love in word. Oh, let us not love in word or in tongue. But in deed and in truth.
Our actions speak louder than our words. I think we've all heard that saying. We all come here on Sunday and we all claim that we love each other.
We all say, I love you to our brother's faces.
But what are our actions saying? If you look in your heart, What does your heart show you?
Are we speaking them? Speaking about our brothers and sisters in Christ behind their back?
This is what I've been convicted of.
I would claim to love my brothers here and walk away from them and go to another brother and speak of them behind their back.
Now I would claim to have the love of God in my heart.
If anyone says I love God and hates his brother, he is a liar. For he who does not love his brother whom he has seen, how can he love God who is not seen? And this commandment we have from him that he who loves God must love his brother also.
When your brothers and sisters are in need of help, do you shut up your heart? Do you become too busy that day?
I know I'm guilty of it.
When we are sinned against or hurt, do we refuse to forgive?
I'm guilty of that myself. I've held the grudge, unwilling to forgive even though I've been forgiven.
I would encourage all of us to take time and examine our hearts.
Because we're hypocrites if we can't claim God's love for ourselves. But yet we don't love our very brothers and sisters in Christ.
While I was studying this this past week, The song they Will Know We're Christians by Love came to my mind. I think Larry Berger used to sing it when he was leading worship here.
So I looked up the verse where I think that comes from.
It says, by this all will know that you are my disciples. If you love one another.
Yes, we are commanded to love one another. But when we choose not to, when we choose to walk outside of that love, to hold bitterness, to speak of the brothers and sisters, the world sees that other brothers and sisters see that.
So I would encourage you.
To examine yourself. And if you see any sin, if you're convicted today like I am, If you look in your life and you see that possibly you've been loving in word and in tongue, not so much in deed and in truth.
Let's run to Christ, the author of love, the one that laid the perfect example down for us to follow.
Let's run to him because we're going to continue to fall. We're going to continue to come short.
But the one that laid down his life for us and loved us, he is able to hold us up.
He went all the way and didn't. Didn't fail. So turn to Christ today.
And ask him for the strength, the love. Thank you.
No. Lord.
I come before you today, Lord, I'm guilty. Lord Isaiah, follow you, Lord.
And then I fail to love others. Lord. Lord, forgive me.
Lord, give me a heart. I love my brothers and sisters in Christ. In your name I pray. Amen.