Fullness Of Love Through Action | Rooted In Love 4 | Joseph Davis

This message highlights that real love is shown through action, not just words. Drawing from First Epistle to the Corinthians chapter 13, it explains that faith, gifts, and good deeds mean nothing without genuine love. True love forgives quickly, refuses to live offended, seeks restoration, and puts others before itself—just as Jesus Christ demonstrated through His life and sacrifice. Believers are encouraged to live a lifestyle of love, allowing God to heal their hearts while extending that same love and grace to others.

Transcript

Opening Prayer And Series Context

SPEAKER_01 0:00

Take a moment and let's just pray. Father, we're so grateful for your word, Lord. We're grateful for each and every session that we've had as we've been getting to understand more about being rooted in love. Father, we just thank you for what you have in store for us tonight. Father, thank you that we have come with great expectation. Our eyes are open to see, our ears are open to listening, to hear, and our hearts are open, wide open to receive. And so, Father, thank you for this time here together tonight. Thank you for your word that's going to go forth. Lord, I just get out of the way and I say, Holy Spirit, have your way in this place tonight. In Jesus' name. Amen. Amen. All right. So, first of all, let me just talk quickly. As I mentioned a minute ago, uh we've we are completing our four-week series on being rooted in love, and tonight is the last night of that. Uh, and if you have not been with us, or if you've not joined this VIP live stream, or if you haven't been here in person, um, there's still an opportunity for you to receive or to to partake in. You can always go back to our YouTube channel or go to our Glorious Way Church website, um, and you can receive, you can receive information and access those those previous services. They've been really good services, have they not? Amen. Amen. I'm really excited about that. Uh last week, uh Pastor James and Claire Buntrock talked on the four kinds of love. Um, and and the week before that, um, Pastor Jay and Selena talked about maturing in love, and then the first week, of course, Pastor opened it up uh as well as Pastor Jay and Selena opened it up and just gave us some really practical um things and information that we could use in regards to our love walk. Now, why is that so important to walk in love? Why do we want to walk in love? Well, first of all, we have received here at Glorious Way Church that 2026 is the year of new things. And how many of you know that in order for new things to happen, sometimes old things have to change? Right? And so, one of the things that I believe that we're going to experience this year is we're going to see God do things in our lives, and not just in our lives individually, but I believe here in our lives corporately as a church body, we're going to see God do some things that we've not experienced before. And you know, I believe that in order for God to do some new things, he first wants to deal with some old things. All right? Now, we all love God and we all serve God and we're not bad people, and you know, but even the little things, sometimes God wants to just make some adjustments and some tweaks. And it's always good to have information, right? Amen. Amen. And so tonight, I want to talk to you a little bit about being uh about being rooted in love, which is the found the topic of our session, but I want to talk specifically about love and action. What does that mean? We've heard a lot about what love is and the definition of love and walking in mature love, but tonight I want to talk about love and action. And and I even, you know, I've been kind of walking around with this song in my head. Now, don't judge me, but you know, uh several years, years ago, a secular artist uh had a song that was very popular called What's Love Got to Do With It? Now don't be looking at me like you don't know what I'm talking about. But you know, as I began to reflect on what's love got to do with it, and the answer came back, everything. Everything. If we are going to receive all that God has for us this year and experience all that God wants to do for us this year, then we've got to make sure that we allow love to be prominent and to be at work in our lives. And so tonight I want to talk about love and uh talk about love and action. And if you will turn with me in your Bibles, and I'm gonna read from a different translation, but I want to uh take a look at the Apostle Paul's explanation or insight on love and look at it through the lens of someone that experienced it firsthand and point out some love action points. You know, if anybody had a revelation of the love of Christ and God's love, was the Apostle Paul. When you think about Paul's life and what he was and then what he became after he had an encounter with the love of Christ, wow, that's that's pretty significant. And so over in 1 Corinthians chapter 13, and I'm gonna read from the message first, because as I was studying and preparing, I read this and I thought, wow, this is so cool. And then we're gonna go back and look at it again through the um the living Bible, but we're going to look at, and there I'll point out some of the love actions. And so in 1 Corinthians chapter 13, starting at verse 1 in the message Bible, this is through the lens of the Apostle Paul and his revelation and insight of what love is and how love works, he says, if I speak with human eloquence and angelic ecstasy, but don't love, I'm nothing but creaking, but the creaking of a rusty gate. And so right out of the bat, Paul establishes just how significant love is, and without it, you're nothing. Then he goes on to say, if I speak God's word with power, revealing all his mysteries and making everything plain this day, and if I have faith that says to a mountain jump and it jumps, but I don't have love, I'm nothing. A few minutes ago I posed the question from that song, What's Love Got to Do with It? Here Paul answers the question, everything. Then he goes on to say, if I give everything I own to the poor and even go to the and even go to the stake to be burned as a martyr, but I don't love, I've gotten nowhere. Wow. I believe Paul had a revelation on what love was and what love is. And then he continues to say, So no matter what I say, what I believe, or what I do, I'm bankrupt. Now I wonder why he chose that word or why that word was used here in that translation, but that's a pretty powerful word when you think about the meaning of bankrupt. What bankrupt means you've lost everything. You're done. Without love, I'm bankrupt without love. And then he goes on to say love never gives up. Love cares more for others than self. Love doesn't want what it doesn't have, love doesn't strut. I like that. Love doesn't have a swelled head. Love doesn't force itself on others. Isn't always me first? Wow. You mean Christians have to understand that it's not about you? Does it fly off the handle? Now, surely no one in this room has ever flown off the handle. Now, come on, I'm gonna be up, let's be transparent. You know, how many of you had to pray through and just make sure you came close to rededicating just to get here tonight? Okay. She didn't fly off the handle, okay. Doesn't keep score of sins of others, doesn't reveal, doesn't revel when others grovel. Hmm, takes pleasure in the flowering of truth, puts up with anything. Wow. Puts up with anything. How many of you are willing to put up with anything? Come on now, we in church, tell the truth. Trust God always, always looks for the best, never looks back, but keeps on going. And then it ends with love never dies. Wow. That's pretty powerful. Now, let's go back and look at that. Again, looking at that through the lens of the Apostle Paul, but this time I'm going to read it through the living Bible translation. And so 1 Corinthians chapter 13, the Living Bible translation says, if I had the gift of being able to speak in other languages without learning them, and could speak in every language, there is in all of heaven and earth, but didn't love others. Again, he emphasizes, but if I didn't love others, I would only be making noise. Wow. If I did all of that but I didn't love others, I'd be just making noise. I would only be making noise. If I had the gift of prophecy and knew all about what is going on to have what is going to happen in the future, knew everything about everything, but didn't love others, what good would it do? Even if I had the gift of faith so that I could speak to a mountain and make it move, I would still be worth nothing at all without love. If I gave everything I have to the poor, and if I were burned alive for preaching the gospel but didn't love others, it would be of no value whatever. Wow. And so the first thing as we look at this, and we're gonna go through more of this, but the first thing I want to point out as love, I want to point out a love action item here, is this, and the first thing is just the heart of Paul. One of the action items of love is this is it recycles. Did you know that God recycles?

unknown 9:54

Amen.

Not Self-Centered: John 3:16 And Sacrifice

Living Unoffended And Quick To Forgive

SPEAKER_01 9:55

Love in action recycles. It takes what was maybe of no value, or maybe what was a bad thing and can be considered no value, what in man's eyes would be considered useless. Look at the Apostle Paul's life when he was sought and what he did. He was one who tormented and harassed, put Christians in jail until he had an encounter with the Lord. And now you see that same person that was has been recycled and now is. Amen. I'm thankful for God's patience. Every day I thank God for his patience with me. Amen. He's patient. Romans chapter 12, verse 12 says, rejoicing in hope, patient in tribulation. Well, when you're walking in love and you're living a lifestyle of love, life living a life, living in love, living a lifestyle of love, I can say that. Living a lifestyle of love is just that. It's a lifestyle. It's not something you do, it's who you are. It's a lifestyle. And so Romans 12, chapter 12, verse 12 says, rejoicing in hope, patient in tribulation. Now, when you are living a lifestyle of love, even when you're going through the rough spots, if you're living a life and living that and going through that in a lifestyle of love, guess what? It's not so rough, it's not so bad. Continuing steadfast in prayer. Verse 5. Never hardy yourself as your root. Again, he's talking about love. Love does not demand its own way. So here's another love action item. Love is not self-centered, it's not about you, it's not about me. Everything that Jesus did was for someone else. We see John 3.16. I didn't get, I didn't totally didn't understand that scripture until I became a parent myself. I read it all my life, but I really didn't get a revelation of what that really meant until I became a parent. And I remember the first time I held my daughter, and I was looking at this baby, so innocent, so cute, so sweet. And all of a sudden I thought for a minute, would you be willing or be able to sacrifice her for humanity and mankind? Now I gotta tell you, y'all are nice people. I'm keeping it real. Y'all are nice folks, but I don't know that I could do that. But John 3.16 says, For God so loved the world that he gave. And he didn't just give something, he gave heaven's most prized possession. And then it goes on to say that he gave his only begotten son, and that whosoever would believe in him would not perish but have everlasting life. And it goes on to say, for God did not send his son into the world to condemn the world, but through him, through that love of the Father, the world might be saved. And so we see that love is not self-centered. Love, as a matter of fact, Jesus said, I am the way, the truth, and the light. No man comes to the Father. So even Jesus' existence was not about him, but it was to point people to the Father. He said, if you've seen me, you've seen the Father. Love is not irritable or touchy, it does not hold grudges, and will hardly even notice when others are wrong. When others wrong you. A love action, love in action doesn't get easily offended. Every day in this life, we have opportunities to get offended. Anybody know what I'm talking about? But when you're walking in love, you don't get offended. When you're walking in love and you understand just as Paul did, here we go, this man had been been recycled. Paul in Galatians chapter 2 chapter 2, verse 10 20 says this, I've been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life which I now live in the flesh, I gotta live in this body. I live by faith. I live in love. I live by faith in the Son of God who loved me. There it is, love in action. Now he's re he's replicating, duplicating, emulating what he has seen, who loved me and gave himself for me. Now, how many of you know that if you're gonna if you're gonna walk in love and if you're gonna be like the father, how many have you ever been told your child is just like his daddy? Well, when you live a life of love, you're being just like your daddy.

unknown 15:41

Come on.

Truth Advocate: Temple Cleansing And Civic Duty

Loyal Love: Not My Will But Yours

Restoration Of Peter: Go Tell Peter

Feed My Sheep: Activation And Empowerment

Love, Harvest, And Adjusting Our Walk

SPEAKER_01 15:43

That's right. When you live a lifestyle of love, you are emulating the father. And so, love, when you walk in love, when you're living in love, love, and a love action items, you're a dead man walking. The things that used to bother you don't bother you anymore. The things that used to infuriate you don't infuriate you anymore. The things that used to get on your nerves. Come on now. Some of you get missed an opportunity to throw up both hands. Oh me. When you walk in love, it doesn't matter. Jesus on the cross, about to die. He could have easily said, Father, you see what they've done. After I'm gone, you get them. He could have said that. But that's not what he said. Why? Because the love in him, he understood the assignment. He understood the importance of love. And his love lasted all the way to the end. He didn't love up until he got to the cross. He loved even on the cross. He said, Father, forgive them. For they know not what they do. Now he could have said, now you see what they've done. You get them. Now, aren't you glad he didn't do that? Amen. Love doesn't get offended. Love forgives. Love and action forgives. Let me say that again. Love and action forgives. Why am I repeating that? Because sometimes it's hard to forgive. Anyone know what I'm talking about? It's hard to forgive sometimes. But here's what I've learned about forgiving. When you forgive, you're doing it not so much for that person, but for you. Because when you don't forgive, you are allowing that offense to live rent-free. Let me say that again. You're allowing that offense to live rent-free in your head and your heart. And if it stays there too long, it's going to be hard to get victim. And so love and action forgives. And it's quick to forgive. It doesn't meditate on it. Well, Lord, let me be mad for a minute. Let me meditate on the offense for a minute. No, it's quick to forgive. Verse 6 love is never glad about injustices, but rejoices whenever truth wins out. Now we, every account that we read in the Gospels, we see that Jesus absolutely was a truth advocate. Love and action is a truth advocate. Jesus stood for what was right. One of my favorite examples of him being a truth advocate is found in Matthew chapter 20 21, verses 12 and 13, where Jesus cleanses the temple. Now you all know the story. He goes in the temple and he sees them selling doves and all kinds of stuff. And what does he do? He begins a clean house. Why? Because he it wasn't just because of what they had done to a holy place, but it was what they were doing in the holy place. They were cheating. The merchants were cheating the people that were by. And that was a bigger offense than what they'd done to the holy place. And so love and action is always going to be a truth advocate. Love and action cannot sit by and be quiet when people say it's okay to kill babies. So let me take a minute and do a quick commercial break here. How many of you have voted? We got a we got a we got an election coming up. All right, that's good. How many of you have voted? Okay, raise your hand if you're on live stream and you voted. But if you haven't, understand that love and action fulfills their civic responsibilities. Love and action will not allow someone who is who lives alone who lives in a way that's contrary to what God, God's love is. God loves the unborn babies. But I was having a conversation with one, and I was explaining about tell me how you can say you love Jesus, but go in the voting booth and vote for someone who has said clearly that they don't. They support same-sex marriage, they support abortion, they're pro-choice. Well, I'm pro-choice too, but you make the choice before you have to make the decision. You make the choice then. So love in action is a truth advocate. Verse 7 if someone you love, if you love someone, you will be loyal to him no matter what that costs. Wow. Love in action says I'm gonna love you no matter what. Now I think about all the times that God loved me when I was unlovable. God so loved the world that He gave. That was I'm gonna love you no matter what. Christ died while we were yet sinners, He died for us. That's how I'm gonna love you, and I'm gonna do this no matter what. When Jesus was in the garden, he knew what was about to happen. He knew what was about to take place. And for a brief moment, he said, Father, if there's any other way we can we can get around this. But immediately he said, Not my will. But yours. Your will be done. Love and action says, not my will, but yours. Not my will, but his. And his will is that I love you even when you make it difficult for me to love you. How many of you got family members like that? We all got them. But does that mean we stop? Well, they're going to hell. Well, don't send them, pray for them. Amen. You're going straight to hell. No, tell them you don't have to go to hell. Amen. That doesn't mean you gotta agree. Listen, in my house, we have a policy. If you're gonna live a certain kind of way, don't expect us to support you. Don't expect that. I'm real clear where I stand. If loving God is wrong, I don't want to be right. Let me say that again. If loving God is wrong, I don't want to be right. I want to stay on the right place, on the right path, doing the right things. And so love and action is a truth advocate. Love and action forgives. And then love and action restores. Wow. Love and action restores. In Mark chapter 16, verse 7, after Jesus had risen from the dead and the angels sent word to go tell. And they name one person in specific, that if you know the front part of that story, you think, oh, really? He called him? Peter. When Jesus was talking with the disciples, and he said, Well, you're gonna betray me, and and he was pointing out what was about to happen. And then, of course, Peter said, Lord, not me, not me, not me, not me, not me. And Jesus said, Pete, Pete, Pete. Three times before the rooster curls, you're gonna deny me. Now again, love and action didn't say, You're dead to me. You betrayed me. But after he had risen and he'd gone ahead of them and he gave instructions to the angels, he said, and go tell Peter. Why? Because love and action restores. Peter was being set up for restoration. Peter was being set up for reconciliation. Peter was being set up for reenactment, reactivation. Restoration, reconciliation, reactivation. Peter was being set up. Go tell Peter. And then we see in John chapter 21, verses 15 through 17, Jesus is now face to face with Peter and he's having a conversation. And he could have said, Peter, I told you. I told you. But that's not what he said. Chapter 21 in the book of John, verses 15, he said, So when they had eaten breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, Simon, son of Jonah, do you love me more than these? Now, first of all, I can't believe Peter was there. But he was. Now, he could have allowed the condemnation of doing exactly what Jesus said he was going to do, keep him from there, but he was there. And so Jesus is having a conversation with him. He says, Do you love me more than these? Well, that's kind of an interesting question. Then he says to him, Peter said to him, Yes, Lord, you know I love you. I heart you. You know I do. We we tight. I love you. He said to him, okay, feed my lambs. He said to him again a second time, Simon, son of Jonah, do you love me? And he said, Yes, Lord, you know that I love you. We're talking about love and action. You know that I love you. And Jesus said to him, Tend my sheep. And he said to him a third time, Simon, son of Jonah, do you love me? Now Peter was getting a little ticked off. The word says grieved. He's getting a little grieved. And he said, Lord, look, I told you that we good, right? We're good, right? I love you. Do you love me? He said, Lord, you know all things. You know that I love you. Jesus said to him, feed my sheep. Love and action not only restores, reactivates, but it also empowers. Now, in man's eyes, Peter was Peter had an epic fail. His denial of Jesus was an epic fail. And in man's eyes, Peter shouldn't have been eligible for re-enlistment. But aren't you glad that love and action says you're eligible even when you fail? Even when you disappoint God and let him down. Even when you grieve him, you're still eligible once you get it right. He's faithful and just to forgive us. And not just set you on the side and say, okay, I'm gonna need you to take a seat and you're gonna have to sit the next 20 years of your life out. Peter, get up and get back in the game. Feed my sheep. Feed my sheep. Let's take care of business. I believe that in the year of 2026, we're gonna see God do some incredible things. And I believe that some of those incredible things are gonna be harvests like we've not ever seen. And I believe God's requiring us to make some adjustments. And I love walk. Lord, but I love you, okay? Then feed my sheep. Get your priority straight. Lord, I love you, then tend my sheep. Put those that are hurting, that are lost, that are dying before you. Today, as I was just sitting quietly listening, I heard, you know, I heard this as I was just sitting there just meditating and thinking, and I heard, you know what my heart beats for? Souls. What is your heartbeat for? If we're gonna love like our father loved and live like our father lived, requires us to live, which is living a lifestyle of love, then our love is gonna have to be towards the same things that He loves. If you love Him, feed His sheep. If you love Him, tend His flock. I believe we're in a season where it's an all-hands-on-deck season. And God's not just calling the pastor and the assistant and the associate pastors and the pastoral team, He's calling all of us. You two on live stream. He's calling us to get in the game, to get busy. But Lord, my whole my I got folks in my house that are messed up. Well, you know what? Get busy dealing with somebody else's family that's messed up and watch him fix yours.

unknown 31:36

Come on. Come on. Amen.

SPEAKER_01 31:39

Lord, I got unforgiveness in my own house. Well, get busy forgiving others and watch him bring about a heart of forgiveness in your house. But you don't know what they did to me. But did you hang on the cross?

unknown 31:54

Come on. Come on.

SPEAKER_01 31:56

That was love and action. And I believe if we'll do that, we're gonna see a harvest. Some of us have been praying for and believing for family members for years. I believe this is the year of new things. This is the year of new things. This is the year of order being brought to our families and into our homes. This is the year of order being brought. Did you know that your healing may be may be contingent upon making a slight adjustment in your love walk? Wow. Not a big thing, a small thing. Maybe it's a change of attitude towards somebody you work with. Or you work for, but you don't understand that boss of mine. He is just, he's the devil. But if we're gonna love like Jesus loved, we gotta love him. We gotta love her. Jacob loved his father-in-law, even though his father-in-law mistreated him, abused him, took advantage of him. He loved him. We gotta be like that. Love and action. Love is just that. When Jesus said to Peter, Peter, do you love me? Do you love me? Love and action always requires action. Requires action. Amen. Amen. And I'm gonna turn it over to Pastor at this time. And he's gonna come up and uh share with you what's on his heart.

Pastor’s Charge: Saving The Soul And Renewal

The Anointing For The Broke And Brokenhearted

Captives, Blindness, And Healing The Mind

SPEAKER_00 33:53

Well, I trust that you've had uh benefit from this series of rooted in love. It's uh I do I've been saying this for weeks now, but I just uh know that this time that we're in right now is a time of great opportunity, huge opportunity, bigger than we know. And I just want to get everybody bought in. Of course, your presence here tonight on a Wednesday night lets me know that you're taking it serious or you wouldn't be here. And uh those that are watching my live stream, it's just imperative that we all buy in. And of course, everything we get from God is based on our faith, and faith only works by love. So love is just we've got to get the rooted and grounded part. So let me just take a few moments because I do want to lay hands on you tonight and uh seal this up. But uh, wanted to make a couple of points here that uh going back to the beginning, uh week one, where I discussed with you about uh the souls. You know, our souls, many times in 40 years of ministry, I come across people whose souls are, you know, they're saved. You're you know, they're born again, no question about it. But God does that with our spirit, and that's when we become children of God. We're children of love. God is love, and so we're love. We're what God is. We are love. The love of God has been shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost. Excuse me. So uh since we have that love in us, we've got to we've got to believe that. We've got to know that. And uh, and and as I mentioned, what I've found is that many folks uh have holes in their soul. They've got places in their mind that hinder them from receiving everything that God's got for them. Because otherwise, why would your soul need to be saved? What I don't understand saving the soul. It just means that there's a place of transformation. Romans 12, too, be transformed by the renewing of your mind. And uh many people, you know, God doesn't just heal all the hurts of your bringing, uh your upbringing. A lot of times people are hurt uh in abusive situations, they have abusive parents, perhaps, or maybe they have an abuse in the family, or maybe they've got uh abuse later on in marriage, whatever it is. There are many reasons why people have these uh holes, I call it like Swiss cheese. And as long as that happens, they're not able to fully receive the love that God's got for them. Well, if you don't receive what God has for, if you don't see that He loves you unconditionally, then how can you love anybody else? You tend to be more colored by the fact that you've been mistreated and then you don't trust, you've got trust issues. And so tonight I wanted to uh make that point, you know, that you're you're in in James chapter one, what we uh have done here with this with these series of messages, the breakout groups I understand have been great. Uh but in James chapter one in verse 21 says that uh wherefore lay apart all filthiness and superfluity of naughtiness and receive with meekness the engrafted word which is able to save your souls. And then we also shared with you last time in Hebrews uh chapter uh 10, talking about the saving of the soul must be important. Why is it in the epistles? See, this is not what Jesus didn't talk about that. Jesus was sent to who? He was sent to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. Things that he said to them don't really all apply to us. And so, uh, but it says here in Hebrews 10, 39, uh, now the just shall live by faith, but if any man draw back, my soul shall have no pleasure in him. But we're not of them who draw back unto perdition, but of them that believe to the saving of the soul. So you get saved in an instant of time, the minute you believe and confess. But the saving of the soul is a process. You've just undergone, you know, this week, these weeks' uh weekly meetings in in the month of February, and so you've received with meekness the engrafted word. This word should be uh coming into your into your mind and down into your heart. And when it does, it's able to aid your soul. Your soul, the power of God, is able to heal the things that no counselor, that no shrink, that no amount of discussion can do. God can do it supernaturally, but he has to have the word in there for you to for it to happen. So as I was meditating on what just what I would say tonight and what I wanted to share with you, I want to share with you Luke chapter 4, 18. Jesus stood in his own hometown. He said, The Spirit of the Lord is upon me because he's anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor. Number one on the list. He has sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach uh the recovering of sight to the blind, uh, to set at liberty them that are bruised. And so he had a message to five groups of people: the broke, the brokenhearted, the bound, the blind, the bruised. And so when I got to meditating on the anointing, I mean, he was anointed, he went about anointed of God, he went about doing good and healing all who were pressed to the devil for God was with him. How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and power. And so that anointing is here tonight to kind of cap off what you've heard. But I got to I got to meditating on all these people, and and really three of the five, I think you could make a strong case that it has to do with their minds. It has to do with their minds. I mean, you know, people get saved. But then everything else, see, this is what Jesus was telling Peter. I mean, look, you need to feed my lambs. The lambs have got to get a start. I mean, you can overdo the lambs, and the lambs are starving to death. No, you've got to feed the lambs. The lambs need what? Milk. Got to give them some milk. You can't just preach this big high-level Bible school level revelation and miss the lambs. The lambs need, so that's why we have children church. That's why we've got church for the kids. But it's also when people, adults, get first saved. They can't take everything that we're saying. So we've got to find ways to bring the milk to them as well. But then you've got to feed my sheep, and then you've got to tend my sheep. See, all of that is a lot of work. And you're going to find out that people's minds, that's where people are hurting the worst. They've been hurt. So it says here in Luke 4.18, he said, you know, he's anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor. That is, the people that are, yeah, broke, destitute, also people with no influence, people that have been left behind, people that have been passed over. See, there's a lot of different ways about the broke. And what is it? Good news. You don't have to stay that way. God wants us to prosper. God wants us to have a good life. God wants us to have a happy life. And then he says, um, he sent me to preach the gospel before. He sent me to heal the brokenhearted. And when you look up brokenhearted, we think we know what it means. Well, one of the meanings is the word crushed. And I can't think of an easier time to crush somebody in their soul than when they're children. Children get crushed. Do they grow up after that? Yeah. Do they live a sort of semi-normal life? Yeah. But there's damage that's been done that that goes past you getting born again. You still have a soul that's been what? Crushed. That's what I'm talking about. When you can start to identify that through relationships, through knowing people. That's why it's so important to fellowship and know folks. And uh uh get to know people beyond just a surface level, then you can start to help uh bring healing to that. Then it says, you know, he's he's talking about the brokenhearted to preach deliverance. He pro preach, you know, preach is just to proclaim, is to let people know. Preach deliverance, freedom to the captives. Captives is prisoners of war. Captives are prisoners of war. I I look at I look at the news, I look at all the crazy people that are out there protesting, eyes, people that are dress, men dressed up like women. I see all the sin. But these people are captive.

unknown 43:53

That's right.

Mature Love, Self-Forgiveness, And Confidence

SPEAKER_00 43:56

They're captive. And there's only one. Remedy. You know, there's only one remedy, the gospel. You don't have to be, you don't have to be held captive. Somebody's got to tell them. Somebody's got to love them right where they are. Jesus loves them. He died for them. God loves them. He sent Jesus to die for them. So what are we going to do? Well, we got to love them too. We can't just go, ah, get out of here. You know, we got to do something to help heal that and to deliver them. And then it goes on and says, preach deliverance to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind. Well, even there, blind doesn't mean just blind with a physical blindness, but mental blindness. Some people just can't see what's wrong. They're hurt, but they don't know they are. And so the preaching of the gospel under the anointing can open people up to the love of God, and they can begin to get set free. They can begin to have a supernatural work that God does and all those he hurts that occurs. It's just greater than any amount of counseling, like I said, shrinks, all of that. I mean, there's a place for any kind of that, those types of things, I'm supposed, but this is the fastest way. The anointing is so fast, and that's what we need, don't we? And then the last one says recovering side of the blind and to set at liberty. Set at liberty them that are bruised. And again, that word bruised is a different Greek word than brokenhearted, but yet it means the same thing. It means crushed. So you start looking at these verses, it's really talking about hurting people. It's talking about hurting people and they need help. And uh, and so I, as I said before, I don't know all of you, I don't know where you came from, I don't know what your background is, but uh I'm believing tonight when hands are laid upon you that that supernatural anointing is gonna come upon you, and uh you're going to have a jump start in the saving of your soul. Have you arrived? No, you haven't arrived, but you're gonna come up to the next level. The level we need to walk through this door individually and collectively to this next thing that we have to have. We've got to get so mature in love. We've got to be rooted and grounded. We cannot doubt that God loves us. And we cannot doubt and we cannot not forgive ourselves. You got you can't forgive somebody else over here if you haven't forgiven yourself. If you don't love yourself, how can you love anybody? I mean, you know, love your neighbor as yourself. I mean, you must love yourself. See, some people have been so beat down and mentally hurt, crushed, they don't love themselves because they have a distorted picture of themselves. This word of God gives you an accurate picture of who you are in Christ. You're totally acceptable and lovable to him. Have you been perfect? No, but he loves you anyway. He'll never stop loving you. And when you've got that confidence, I go back to week one, you know, Warren Buffett. They asked Warren Buffett, this billionaire Wall Street magnate, what's the secret of your success? He said, you know, I'd have to say that it's my father loved me with unconditional love. And because he loved me and put that in me when I was a child, I have such boldness. I just don't care about failure. I doesn't, I'm not afraid of failure. If I fail, I'm just gonna pick up and keep doing something else. And that's what the man has done until he's a multi-billionaire. And and he credits, I don't know if he's a Christian, but I mean, I thought, man, that guy has got a revelation. Some of the people in church need to have that. But some of you didn't have that. Your earthly fathers did not love you that way. But your heavenly father does. He loves you unconditionally, and you've been set free to love yourself, and you've been set free to love the sinner, you've been set free to love your brothers and sisters. And love is not an emotion, it's not, it's not all that syrupy stuff, it's just simply a decision. It's one that you're gonna, you're gonna want the welfare of someone else more than even yourself. You're it's other people-oriented. You're really more uh you're you're you're focusing on what do they need? How can I help them? How can I be a blessing to them? That's when that's the real test when you're walking in love, is when you want everybody else's welfare, and you don't care when yours comes. And when somebody gets a breakthrough, you're the loudest to shout, even though your breakthrough hadn't come. See, that's when you're testing. You can test whether your love is working or not. Amen. Hallelujah. Praise God. So uh I'm excited about this year, and I'm excited about what has happened here uh on these Wednesday nights. And uh before we do that, I want to lead you in a confession. So just lift your hand right now, please, and make this confession. Say, Heavenly Father, I thank you that I'm being made perfect in love. Perfect love casts out all fear. I have love on the inside of me. I have power on the inside of me. I thank you, Lord, that my soul is being saved. I forgive myself. I look at myself and I say that I'm a love child of a loved God. I have total confidence, Father, in your love to me. I have total confidence in your love for me. I have total confidence in my ability to love others. That's why I forgive those who wrong me right now. I forgive those in my past life that were uh abusive toward me. What they did was wrong, but Lord, right now, tonight, before you, I release forgiveness to them in Jesus' name. I will not hold that against them any longer. And I'm free to receive from the anointing that will heal every hurt, that will undo every crushing that I've suffered. And I say that my soul is being saved tonight in Jesus' name. Amen. Praise God.