Keep Yourself in the Love of God — Don Currin

Well, it's a great joy to be back again tonight, and so thankful for your coming, and the presence is greatly encouraging to not only myself, but also my dear wife. I mentioned something to you last night that is greatly perplexing, and I don't take it lightly.

In traveling in recent days, not only in your country, but also in the U .S., and then going to some other countries that we've been in before, it greatly troubles me to see the great falling away. As I mentioned, I reiterate again, I never in my wildest imagination would ever think of some of the people that would deny the faith at this hour.

I mean, a total renunciation of the faith of Jesus Christ. So troubling. Don't take it easily. Some along the way, they've lost their marriages. Some have just utterly seen their ministry decimated, and now they have no ministry.

And so it's a deeply oppressive thing. And so tonight we want to look at this subject, as you know, if you've been here the last two evenings, we've been talking about the reality, the experiential nature of the love of God.

And tonight will be no exception. We'll look at another text and another aspect of this love. And so if you would, I want you to take your Bibles with me, please, and turn once again that little epistle of Jude just prior to the book of Revelation, the book of Jude.

Apostasy and the Need to Persevere in Faith

Back last year in the fall, I was asked to do another heart cry conference for our Eastern European missionaries. So we have about 28 men and women in Romania, Moldova, and Ukraine, that we have two conferences a year.

And so I did the fall conference last year, and Serene, unlike times before, you know, he would give me assignments to speak on. He said, brother, I just really feel like you just need to share what God's put on your heart.

And because this matter of apostasy has been weighing so heavily upon my heart, this is what I chose to address. And so I did a six-part series from one verse of scripture. Really it was an overall exposition of 1 Timothy, as I drew all my thoughts from various scriptures surrounding this one verse.

In verse 16 of chapter 4, where you recall that Paul said to Timothy, take heed to yourself and to the teaching, and continue therein, persist in it. For in so doing, not only do you save yourself, but those who hear you.

And so in a very real sense, brethren, while we are saved by grace through faith alone in Christ alone, our assurance and ultimate glorification is contingent upon our perseverance in the faith. And the only reason we persevere is because we're kept by the power of God.

So Serene, it was pretty hard hitting. It was very searching and very engaging to our missionaries, and he was a bit troubled about it. And he said, brother Don, after we left the conference, why were you like this?

He said, it was a different dimension than what you normally share. You were very direct and very, at times, hard. And I gave him some stories, true stories of people that are very close to me that have fallen away from the faith, and he said, I understand now.

It's sad, friend, that even in our small congregation tonight, within five years, some of you will depart from the faith of Jesus Christ. So you need this message desperately, and there are people that you know that need this message because if they don't take heed to what God says, they will indeed depart from the faith.

So if you would, follow with me, as I'm just going to read a portion of this epistle, and I'd like to begin reading in verse 17. For many of us, it's a very familiar text, but I want to draw some things out of tonight that perhaps will be a refreshing edification to you.

Maybe you haven't thought about these things before, but verse 17, but you must remember, you must remember, beloved, their predictions of the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ. They said to you, in the last time there will be scoffers following their own ungodly passions.

It is these who cause divisions, they are worldly people, and behind it they are devoid of the Spirit. But you, beloved, building yourselves up in your most holy faith, and praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves, there it is again, in the love of God, just stop, listen.

That is profoundly experiential. You cannot say that this is exclusively relating to a theological understanding or concept. This is something that goes beyond that. Keep yourselves in the love of God, waiting for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ that leads to eternal life, and have mercy on those who doubt.

Save others by snatching them out of the fire, to others show mercy with fear, hating even the garment stained by the flesh. And I love this, what a glorious doxology. Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you blameless before the presence of His glory with great joy, to the only God our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion, and authority before all time, now and forever, Amen.

Let's pray together. Father, please help us. Please help us. Save us from ourselves. You're so glorious in your rescue missions, and how, Lord, you have arrested us and you've drawn us away from the cisterns of this world that can hold no water to point us to the true and living God.

And I would pray tonight, show us things that will so warm our heart and give us such a sense of reality of this supernatural experiential love, that God, we would be so fortified and so insulated and so motivated to cast off all of these snares of the enemy that would seek to draw our attention away from Christ and lead us down the road to perdition.

Oh God, we need you. Our loved ones need you. Help us to know that presumption is not assurance of salvation. So many are presuming on God because they prayed a prayer, or they're even in a reformed church, a solemnly biblical church, that this is going to be a guarantee that I'll be in heaven one day.

Oh God, tonight, encourage our hearts to give diligence, to make our calling and election sure, and to persevere in holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord. So please come and speak and glorify yourself, Father.

We pray in Jesus' name. Amen. Now the epistle of Jude is a timely word for a faithless age. It is especially, brothers and sisters, relevant for the dark hour in which we live. Like Hebrews, which, as we mentioned last night, is an epistle of warning, so is this brief word, this prophetic word from Jude.

It is an epistle of warning. You see, the letter serves as an appropriate wake-up call to those who are spiritually indifferent in our day. And although it's an alarming word, it's an unsettling word, it reminds us that in wrath, God remembers mercy, always, no matter how bleak the situation, no matter how despairing the condition of an individual, in wrath, God remembers mercy.

Think about it. Why? Because warnings in the Bible are tokens of mercy and overtures of love, because God's concern for the souls of men. This is glorious. You find Jude admonishes those of his day to remember the apostles' prophetic warnings.

If they keep not in mind these cautions, they will surely be led astray. That's why he says back in verse 17, they must remember. This is not negotiable, it's an imperative. Remember the evil nature of men.

You read on in verses 18 and 19, their lives, the lives that are characterized by ungodliness, sensuality, and dissension. He sketches the character of these people, and this is what he describes them as.

All of this because, think about it, they were devoid of the Spirit. Love the words of J .C. Ryle, Where there is no holy living, there is no holy ghost. It is on Jude's exhortation in verses 20 and 21 that we'll spend the bulk of our time tonight, as it centers on, once again, the experiential nature of God's love.

Keeping Ourselves in the Love of God

Look with me at Jude's directive in the words, Keep yourselves in the love of God. Not negotiable. Not optional. It's an injunction. As a matter of fact, the word or verb keep here is in the Aorist middle imperative.

That's important. It speaks, brothers and sisters, of maintaining a position, a posture. In other words, it's an urgent word meaning to remain steadfast. You must do it. We don't like this, but this is what we've called to do as Christians, and that is to fight in faith.

The nature of saving faith is that it fights. Piper's coming out of MacArthur's office there in California, and he said as he rushed in that day to meet with Dr. MacArthur, he said, I noticed out of the corner of my eye there was a statue, and all I could see was the hands were raised, the fists were clenched.

I didn't have time to read what was written. There was an inscription at the base of this statue. He said, I went into the office, but when I came out I had time to go over and look at this thing, and the pain was etched in this guy's countenance.

He said, I thought in my mind going into the office that basically it was a figurine depicting a sinner crying out before heaven, God be merciful to me, a sinner. But he said when I came out of the office and I looked at it, and I saw the pain etched in this man's face, his eyes tilted toward heaven, his fists were clenched.

Down at the base of the statue were the words, I will trust. And that's the Christian life. If you don't trust, you'll perish. Also, you find the verb is modified, which means strengthened by three participles.

Participles, by the way, are verbs that take on an adjective function. Therefore, what Jude is saying here is that by building, praying, and waiting, believers continue in Christ's love, and therefore, now listen, therefore they protect themselves against false teaching.

Note this, if you would. That the love of God in the text, you've already seen this, many of you, but I remind you, I stir up your mind in the way of remembrance, the love in the text is God's love for us.

Once again, as I've already said, it is something subjective or experiential. It is not something that is merely intellectually attained, but felt, felt. It's a pervasive sense. It's something, no doubt, that's supernatural.

You see, the nature, brothers and sisters, of this love speaks of a sphere or a place of blessing. And although His love never changes toward us, we may lose the sense of it. We may lose the sense of it.

What Jude is saying is, keep yourself in the place where God's love can affirm and bless you. I love the words of Matthew Henry here. You've got to love this. He says, quote, Take heed of throwing yourself out of the love of God for you.

Of its delightful, cheering, strengthening manifestations, keep yourself in the way of God, listen, if you would continue in His love. Now, what does he mean by that, keep yourself in the love of God?

You understand, don't you, in the New Testament, that real Christianity is not moralistic. It's not me making it happen. My responsibility is in faith. I subject myself to the agencies that God has laid down in His Word.

And as I do so, the Spirit of God uses those things to act upon me and conform me to the image of Christ. Such as grace. Such as the Holy Spirit. Such as the promises of God's Word. Such as the Word of God itself as a sure word of prophecy.

So as I keep myself subjected to these agencies, what Matthew Henry is saying, I keep myself in the way, and this is how I abide in God's love. A former pastor of mine in North Carolina told me one day, he said, you know, Brother Don, I'm convinced that the cloud of blessing, which you were talking about, the love of God, is still attainable, it's still accessible in this hour.

So God's love is like a rain coming. But the problem is, the reason we don't sense it, and we don't know anything of the reality of operating within it, is because we've stepped out from underneath the cloud.

We don't come to the prayer meetings. We neglect family worship. We conform to the world. We don't read the scripture. We don't internalize truth. Therefore, we've stepped out from underneath the cloud.

Therefore, we have no sense of the love of God, and we set ourselves up for spiritual declension. Unfortunately, many professing believers do not remain or keep themselves in this love. Now please listen carefully.

They neglect those means of grace that Jude tells us affirm the sense of it. They are edification, prayer, and eager anticipation. Sadly, their indifference and compromise, brethren, lead to this condition.

A condition, by the way, that Puritan Thomas Manton refers to as, how about this, a decaying sense of the love of God. I like that, the decaying sense of the love of God. When decay sets into a tooth, it's painful.

If it's left unattended, the tooth dies. Knowing the pain from not abiding in God's love is a good thing. But you can ill afford to neglect it. In Manton's commentary on Jude, he lists the effects of this decaying sense, followed by the evidence of its immediate loss.

And he says a few of the eroding effects, when this love begins to dissipate, is first of all, he said, in the life of this professor, the heart grows cold and careless. Cold and careless. In other words, complacency abounds.

Other things take precedence over the things that God has given us to preserve us from apostasy. There is a diminishing desire for God revealed by a weakening reverence. We're flippant about the things of God.

There's a greater contempt toward those things that matter most, those things that we, according to the Word of God, assess as sacred. There is a decreased caution to offend Him. And then Manton proceeds, it's interesting brethren, I'm going to go through this quickly, but he proceeds to warn the nominal believer by sharing a list of those things that indicate the immediate loss of this sense of God's love.

Things like, when this is happening in a professor, and they're moving down the road, drifting away from the Lord, God is forgotten. Duty is neglected. Sin is left unchecked, it is not mortified any longer.

There is indifference or no frequency for private communion with God. There's no sweet thoughts of God. No concern for glorifying God. No planning on how we can be most useful for our Savior. No longer do we mourn over our sin.

We're insensitive to offending God. There's no melting of the heart. One of my spiritual fathers in the ministry was a man by the name of Bill McLeod. Some of you may recognize the name because of the association with Ralph and Lou Cetera, the Cetera twins.

We were all a part of the Canadian Revival Fellowship, and Bill McLeod was a spiritual father to me. But I heard him say on two different occasions, our heart ought to be so tender and so impressionable, if a leaf were to fall on it, it would leave an impression.

But we're not concerned any longer. Man goes on to say there's no care to avoid all occasions of grieving God. How about this one? There's an absence of watchfulness. We don't watch against temptation.

We don't watch against the ploys of the enemy. We're oblivious to those things. Roy Hessian, who wrote the book, The Calvary Road, and We Would See Jesus. He said when he had those five dear black brothers come in from Uganda, where the revival was happening, to testify at his conference on revival in England.

He said, I picked them up at the airport. I transported them to the conference, but in route, I stopped by my office to speak to my secretary. They came into the office. I introduced them to my secretary.

I took care of some business with her, and then we got in the car and went over to the conference. And Roy Hessian says, every morning I would share a devotional in the conference from the book of Hebrews, just unveiling the beauties of Christ, our high priest.

And he said, I didn't realize until after the third morning that these black brothers that were sitting behind me on the platform were weeping their eyes out. I was academic. But they were seeing something in my message that I wasn't seeing.

They were seeing Jesus in my message. And they were weeping profusely. They shared their testimony in the conference. And he said, I was so stressed. And I was so disconnected from the Lord in those days.

Here I am hosting a revival conference. And if there was anybody in the revival, it was me. And these precious brothers came over to me and formed a circle around me and said, Brother Hessian, can we have a word with you?

And he said, certainly. Is there a problem? And he said, one guy spoke up and said, well, we don't think there's a problem, brother, but we sense that there's something not right in your spirit. There's something that you need to attend to, that you need to repent of.

And Roy Hessian says, I immediately recalled and defended myself. Well, where in do I need to repent? Much like those in Malachi, where in do I need to repent? And one of these precious brothers looked at him and said, Brother, we don't know exactly, but the other day, when you picked us up at the airport and took us by your office, you went in, introduced us to your secretary, and then we watched you.

By the way you talked to your secretary, we couldn't tell if she was your secretary or your wife. We suggest that you begin there. No longer watchful. If there's one word that characterizes the church of Jesus Christ these days, it's the word indiscretion.

Some of us men at church, you can talk so lovingly to another man's wife, and you talk to your wife like a dog. You might begin there. There's a neglect of keeping the heart, Matten says. You're indifferent to temptation and carnal thoughts.

The work of God is a dull routinism. How about this one? There's a neglect of the bridling of the tongue. A friend of mine down south, he's an evangelist. He's a striper bass fisherman. He's got his own boat.

Doesn't get to go fishing very often, but one day I was passing through, he had the time off, he took me out striper bass fishing. Like normally when I go fishing, they ain't biting, and that day was no exception.

So it was very conducive for fellowship, and we're talking there in the boat, and he said, what do you think about preacher so-and-so? And at that time, being the cynical, critical person that I tended to be, I shared with him my quote-unquote concerns about this preacher.

And he pitched in, and he added his criticism, and finally I looked at him and I said, well, brother, I won't say anymore. I'll just say this, that one of these days that man's going to have to give an account of himself to God.

And when I said that, he looked at me and he said, and you and I are going to have to give an account for everything that we just said about him. Conversations, Mr. Matlin says, with others are idle. At times they're corrupt and profane.

We're more prone to anger and envy. Public worship is performed and ritualistic, not heartfelt. Sin is confessed without any remorse and a sense of wrong done to God. We mouth prayers for spiritual help without any expectation.

We intercede for others without any sympathy or compassion for their soul. When things is given, we give thanks without any esteem of the benefits. What am I saying here tonight? We move quickly. Where there is a felt sense of God's love, brothers and sisters, we will have an intuitive sense of the Father's love.

I know that from experience. This is what I believe that Frances Hambergale meant in her song, Take My Life and Let It Be. I love this lyric. She said, take my hands and let them move at the impulse of thy, there it is, love.

Is that possible for you and I to have a sense of God's love in our life where we respond in a positive, faith-filled way to what God wants? This is the kind of love that he's talking about. So the sense of the love of God here is a preservative against apostasy.

But it has been terribly overlooked in our day. Sadly, there's not a few, brothers and sisters, who are drifting into the waters. Remember last night we used the word perdition and irrecoverable fates?

Defining Apostasy and Its Warning Signs

But someone might ask, what is apostasy? Let me define it very quickly. Apostasy can be defined as a falling away from the faith. A falling backward. An abandoning of the truth. A departure from the faith of Jesus Christ.

You see, an apostate is one who profess faith in Christ, but in time, drifts into a state of ungodliness. This may or may not lead to an open renunciation of the faith. As I mentioned last night, I'll say again.

There are apostates performing in the pulpit. They have a very successful ministry in the eyes of men. But like Ravi Zacharias, they live a hypocritical lifestyle behind the scenes. Pornography. Day in, day out.

But they can suck it up for the sake of their reputation. An apostate is one who has an intellectual understanding of the gospel. Having professed faith in Jesus, he or she evidences a change for a season, which could last for many years or even a lifetime.

But after a season of faithfulness to God, they begin to neglect Scripture and the way of holiness. Their indifference leads to increased ungodliness, and he or she may continue to attend church, but they take on the role of a hypocrite.

Listen to these words, pregnant with conviction, brethren, by Charles Spurgeon. The making of a devil was an angel. The making of a son of perdition was an apostle. The making of an apostate is a professing Christian.

And I want to tell you what I told our staff at HeartCrowd the other morning, and I say it with great compassion. Don't think it can't happen to you. If you neglect the means of grace and don't keep yourself in the love of God, you're doomed for destruction.

You see, although the word apostate is not found in most Bible translations, the Scripture is full of warnings against it. As a matter of fact, I also said this last night, I reiterate, entire books such as Hebrews, 2 Peter, and here in the book of Jude, the entire theme is devoted as a warning against apostasy.

Let me give you an illustration. It's a tragic story. Many years ago, there was a young boy who grew up in what seemed to be a stable home. He was taught the importance of having high morals and Christian character.

Professing Jesus Christ as Savior as a teenager, he began living for Him. He wrote Christian literature that possessed a wealth of biblical substance and inspiration. In his first written work, entitled The Union of the Faithful with Christ, we read these beautiful words, quote, Through love of Christ, we turn our hearts at the same time toward our brethren who are inwardly bound to us and for whom He gave Himself as sacrifice.

In another part of this work, the same young man wrote, Union with Christ could give an inner elevation, comfort in sorrow, calm trust, and a heart susceptible to human love. To everything noble and great, not for the sake of ambition and glory, but only for the sake of Christ.

He later writes a thesis entitled Considerations of a Young Man on Choosing a Career. He says, quote,. Religion itself teaches us that the ideal, referring to a person, toward which all strive, sacrificed himself for humanity.

And who shall dare contradict such claims? If we have chosen the position in which we can accomplish the most for Him, then we can never be crushed by burdens because they are only sacrifices made for the sake of all.

Listen now. When this young man finished high school, the following was written on his graduation certificate under the heading Religious Knowledge. The faculty said his knowledge of the Christian faith and morals is fairly clear and well grounded.

He knows also to some extent the history of the Christian church. Great promise. His life. But I want you to listen to what happened. Not long after, mysteriously, the young man began to change. His writings took on an evil slant.

He wrote a thesis where he speaks of people as human trash and uses the word destroy six times. This earned him the nickname Destroyer. He went on to write that no man visits me, and I like this, because present mankind may, and then he uses an obscenity.

He said they are a bunch of rascals. Not long after this, he becomes profoundly and passionately anti-religious. The young man writes in a poem, quote,. In another of his poems, entitled The Pale Maiden, he writes,.

One of his biographers said that there is strong evidence that indicates that he was becoming involved in the occult. Sadly, his changed loyalties resulted in spiritual and moral tragedy. He became a heavy drinker.

Lust and immorality characterized his life. He lived most of his adult life as a pauper. Three of his children died of malnutrition. Two daughters and one son-in-law committed suicide. His wife abandoned him twice, and after she died, he would not attend her funeral.

He led a strong campaign against capitalism. He ultimately authored the Communist Manifesto. His name, Karl Marx. Apostate. Apostate. He said, Preacher, this frightens me, what you're telling me about this subject tonight.

Once again, friend, I find themes of this nature are good awakening agents to awaken us. But what will really drive us, God's impetus, His best impetus in us being motivated to live our life for His joy and for His glory, is finding our great affection in the beauties of Jesus Christ.

The Gospel. So think about this for a moment. Why are the implications that come from these things that Jude has laid down in the way of discipline so important? And what all do they entail? Well, now I'll begin to wind down.

Building Faith Through the Means of Grace

The discipline of building yourself up in this most holy faith means to subject yourself to those biblical agents that nurture faith. I'm convinced of it. This is very simple, friend. You don't have to go to seminary to understand this.

Faith is a victory that overcomes the world. You must subject your life to these agents such as the word of God and prayer and meditation and grace in order to be acted upon. And the result is you function and you live your life with a pervasive sense that you're abiding in the love of God.

Think about it. Like the local church, never minimize the importance of faithful interaction with God's people. And I'm not talking about just coming on Sunday or coming to the prayer meeting. I'm talking about hanging around with the redeemed throughout the week.

You need each other. You see, to be strengthened in the love of God calls for body life. The exchange of love, encouragement, prayers and ministry in the word within the local church serve to strengthen faith and to tear apostasy.

All serve, all these things serve as guardrails to preserve your soul. Don't take the word of God for granted. Please listen. Ian Murray made this statement. You don't have to deny the scriptures for apostasy to begin.

All that needs to begin is when the scriptures take second place. So you're regulated. Well, I'll read the Bible, you know, when I feel like it. Can I tell you, there are times in my life, even as a minister of the gospel, as much as I do love the word of God, there are times that I don't feel like reading the Bible.

But I stay the course every day. I choose to do my systematic Bible reading and my meditation. And without exception, when I do that, as I go through the motions, the emotions come. What am I saying when I say I still choose to read the Bible, even though I don't feel anything?

We're talking about faith again. I choose to obey God regardless of how I feel. So quickly, here are the three admonitions that Jude gives us to abide in the love of God. First of all, he says you're to build yourself up in this most holy faith.

And it's by subjecting yourself to these agents of grace that God has given to preserve the soul. Secondly, is pray in the Holy Spirit. Listen, friend, I don't know what church you've come from tonight, but this is not a foundation that advocates praying in tongues.

It has nothing to do with praying in tongues whatsoever. Praying in the Holy Spirit speaks of praying according to God's purposes and promises. You see, the spirit exerts his influence upon us by directing and reminding us of those noble pursuits of holiness we should pray for.

So what does this call for? Word centered praying. Word centered praying. I bring the promises of God into focus. I bring the person, the attributes of my father into focus. These things give me greater incentive to pray and to believe God.

Not to mention, listen, they breed faith because faith comes by hearing and hearing by these very promises. And then furthermore, the third thing he says is the discipline of waiting for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Don't miss this. Now listen carefully. This waiting speaks of aggression. It's not a passive waiting where I'm just sitting back waiting for something to happen. Waiting for Jesus to return. No, friend, it denotes an expectation.

Other translations use the word here, look, which speaks of an earnest expectation. But the implications of this do not exclusively entail an anticipation of the Lord's coming. They also entail a pursuit of the merciful overtures of God's help in all things.

And I'll be honest with you, one of the greatest things that has helped me spiritually and sustained me supernaturally in these days is I see God in everything. Everything. Providence rules. No matter what you're going through right now, whether it's the pinnacle of joy or the depths of despair or some affliction in your life, God has ordained everything.

He's not the author of temptation. He's not the author of sin. But I'm telling you, friends, circumstantially, everything is appointed. As Tozer says, we walk in a pointed way. Watch God at work. These three directives afford a sense of God's love that enables the believer to endure temptations to eternal life.

John’s Consciousness of Christ’s Love

Now, here's something that I find very interesting. I touched on last night. You find in the life of the Apostle John that he refers to himself as the disciple whom Jesus loved. Five times at the end of his gospel, the gospel of John, he speaks of himself as the gospel whom Jesus loved.

Think about this. When John records this of himself, he is not implying once again that the Lord had favorites. His love extends to all his elect. As you see in such passages as, listen, John 5, 11, Jesus loved Mary and Martha and Lazarus.

It wasn't just John. And John 13, verse 1, that says, having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end. He loved many people. John 15, 9, Jesus said, as a father has loved me, so have I loved you.

All of his disciples. It wasn't just John. Although he felt that way. But I've often wondered why John says that he was a disciple that Jesus loved. I love to read. I've been helped immensely by spiritually gifted men and women.

How they cast light upon these texts. And let me just draw in passing from John Piper. Piper says. In the way of insight here. What did John mean when he says the disciple whom Jesus loved? Listen, quote.

Perhaps this is John's way of saying my most important identity is not my name, but my being loved by Jesus. The son of God. He is not trying to rob anybody else of this privilege, Piper says. He is simply exalting in it.

I'm loved, John says. I'm loved. I'm loved. That's who I am. I'm loved by Jesus. And the knowledge and the reality of that consciousness. Preserved and perpetuated his life and his ministry. And it will yours.

It will yours. It is mine. So this opens up a whole different dimension of sensitivity to the Savior's love. All right, now I close. Listen. Because John possesses this conscious sense of Christ's love.

It makes one wonder if this is the reason that he says things about his walk with God that no one else in the New Testament says. Now, are you interested? David Miller, you know, he's a quadriplegian.

He sits back in his wheelchair. He's got a little motion with some fingers to operate his wheelchair. And his eyes roll from one side to the other. But he's a walking Bible. And sometimes he'll make a point.

And then he'll press upon the congregation the need to respond to what God says. And then he'll say this. Are you interested? That's what I ask you tonight. Are you interested in walking in the love of God, abiding in this love?

I'll give you four things from the epistle, 1 John. Four things here. Don't miss it. All speak of this love, this abiding sense of God's love. First of all, you know the preserving effect of the love of God by obeying Christ's commandments.

By obeying Christ's commandments. Listen to what he says in 1 John 2 and verse 5. But whosoever keeps his word in him, listen, is truly the love of God perfected. It means completed or brought to maturity.

By this we may know that we are in him. It gives assurance of salvation. I'm assured that I'm in him. Because by keeping his commandments, I abide in his love. But we're living in an age of anarchy. Look at our governments in our countries.

Look at the people with no respect toward God delegated authority. And even in the church today, people have such a disdain, such a contempt for the commandments of God. Listen friend, grace drives us, but you can't negate your responsibility to obey his commandments.