Mat 5:48; Love’s Ultimate Motivation – the Glory of God’s Holiness.

Class Outline:

Thursday July 18, 2024

 

Idea:

The love of God expressed in you is not for the reason of turning your enemy into a friend, nor even for the salvation of others, but for the glory of God.

 

Jesus deals with the love of friends and other compatible people. By this He clearly reveals that we are something different. We are not to be like the people of the world.

 

MAT 5:46-47

 

Loving those who love you is an extended love of self. There is nothing wrong with this in its right place. It is the love of friendship, romance, and compatibility that is rewarding.

 

Vs. 47 He asks, “what more [are] you doing?” The word for more can mean surpassing or exceptional.

 

The point is that we are to be more than the people of the world. We are to love, being complete as our Father.

 

The Christian is exceptional and unusual by virtue of the work of Christ. 2Co 3:18; 2CO 4:7; 2CO 4:5; 2CO 4:16-17.

 

So, we are told to love like Christ (JOH 13:34).

 

MAT 5:43-45

 

We are not called to like them.

 

One manifestation of love for enemies will be in prayer; praying for an enemy and loving him will prove mutually reinforcing.

       

“Jesus seems to have prayed for his tormentors actually while the iron spikes were being driven through his hands and feet: indeed the imperfect tense suggests that He kept praying, kept repeating His entreaty, “Father forgive them, for they know not what they do” (LUK 23:34). If the cruel torture of crucifixion could not silence our Lord’s prayer for His enemies, what pain, what pride, prejudice or sloth could justify the silencing of ours?” [John Stott]

 

The love of God expressed in you is not for the reason of turning your enemy into a friend, nor even for the salvation of others, but for the glory of God.

 

In MAT 5:17-47 the true direction of the law has always pointed towards the perfect holiness of God (MAT 5:48).

 

LEV 19:2

“'You shall be holy, for I the Lord your God am holy.”

is then:

MAT 5:48

"Therefore you are to be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.”

 

If it is true that the whole law points to the holiness of the Lord then the reason for obedience can only be that it glorifies holiness; it glorifies God.

 

MAT 5:16

“Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.”

 

JOH 12:27-32

 

(vs. 27) This is not easy for Jesus to do. Many want to shy away from Jesus’ repulsion or shrinking away from the bitterness of death.

PSA 41:7

 

Glorify Your name. “I have glorified it” - probably the ministry of Jesus. “I will glorify it again” - likely Jesus’ hour (passion week to resurrection).

 

The work of Christ, while it saves believers, is the glorification of the Father and the Father’s glorification of the Son.

 

When we love others, even enemies, we have to have in our hearts the glorification of the holiness of God who in His love gave His Son and the Son obeyed His Father.

 

JOH 17:1-5

 

Glorify = to praise, honor, extol. In obedience, we are honoring the holiness of the Lord.

 

When the Lord gave His life on the cross He was honoring the holiness of God.

 

Honoring or glorifying the holiness of God sheds light on the appropriateness of obedience.

 

That is the love we are to have. I think all of us are convicted here. Still, how exciting that Jesus Himself calls us to do so.

 

LUK 9:23-24

And He was saying to them all, "If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow Me.  24 "For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake, he is the one who will save it.

 

Picking up our cross is a striking image of the death of self. Not our identity, but our pride, desire for self-promotion, self-worship. Picking up your cross is denying yourself daily of all worldly and fleshly ways, but that in the face of glorifying the holiness of God.

 

Self melts away before the will of a perfectly holy God.

Then self cannot take into account a wrong suffered.

 

Who of us are not condemned to some extent? Confess and reach ahead. It is okay to be convicted.