Seminary Talk - New Testament

[Seminary Talk - 11th May 1997]

Good morning brothers and sisters for my seminary talk today I have chosen the theme of Love. This occurs many times in the New Testament, and most frequently in the Gospel of John. For those of you who have been through the seminary program John 14:15 will probably sound familiar to you, it is a scripture mastery which reads,

“If ye love me keep my commandments.”

Love for God, is a good reason for keeping his commandments and one of those is to love one another. Some people may think that this commandment is easy, but it is not only God, Christ and our friends who we have to love as you can see in Matthew 5:43-48;

43 Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt alove thy bneighbour, and hate thine enemy.

44 But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you;

45 That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust.

46 For if ye alove them which love you, what reward have ye? do not even the publicans the same?

47 And if ye salute your brethren only, what do ye more than others? do not even the publicans so?

48 Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.

Although this can be very difficult to do, this is what we should all strive to do to become more christlike. As it said, it is eay to love someone who loves you, but to love those who hate and use you shows great love even the pure love of Christ.

In John 15:13 it says Christ had this great love for us, his friends, which is shown by the way he suffered and died for us. Christ is not the only one who has this great love for us all, but also God, which you can tell in John 3:16-17

16 For God so loved thecworld, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

17 For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.

We should never forget the great love Christ and Heavenly Father have for us and to return to that love we are only asked to keep the commandments, and if we do we will get a great gift which is revealed in John 14:21

21 He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him.

I would like to end my talk by reading 1 John 4:7-8 which really sums it all up;

7 Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God.

8 He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love.

And I say these things in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.