How to Love Your Neighbor: Pt. 3 Brotherly Love
God calls us to bring comfort and clarity to situations and relationships that are chaotic and confusing.
Relationships can be risky but they can be rewarding.
Where there is no pollution, the heart is clean.
“Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life. Avoid all perverse talk; stay away from corrupt speech.”
Proverbs 4:23-24 NLT
Offense will always put you in a fence.
The walls of offense:
1.) False Expectations of people
2.) Skepticism
3.) Judgement
4.) Separation
““So why do you keep calling me ‘Lord, Lord!’ when you don’t do what I say? I will show you what it’s like when someone comes to me, listens to my teaching, and then follows it. It is like a person building a house who digs deep and lays the foundation on solid rock. When the floodwaters rise and break against that house, it stands firm because it is well built. But anyone who hears and doesn’t obey is like a person who builds a house right on the ground, without a foundation. When the floods sweep down against that house, it will collapse into a heap of ruins.””
Luke 6:46-49 NLT
“Jesus said to them, “Have you never read in the Scriptures: ‘The stone which the builders rejected Has become the chief cornerstone. This was the Lord’s doing, And it is marvelous in our eyes’?”
Matthew 21:42 NKJV
1.)Trust in our relationships
“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths.”
Proverbs 3:5-6 NKJV
We have to have trust in God before we can trust people.
Trust can take years to build and seconds to lose.
“Who can find a virtuous and capable wife? She is more precious than rubies. Her husband can trust her, and she will greatly enrich his life. She brings him good, not harm, all the days of her life.”
Proverbs 31:10-12 NLT
“Trusting a double-crosser when you’re in trouble is like biting down on an abscessed tooth.”
Proverbs 25:19 MSG
If they gossip to you, they also gossip about you.
2.) Respect in our relationships
“Love each other with genuine affection, and take delight in honoring each other. Never be lazy, but work hard and serve the Lord enthusiastically.”
Romans 12:10-11 NLT
“Give to everyone what you owe them: Pay your taxes and government fees to those who collect them, and give respect and honor to those who are in authority.”
Romans 13:7 NLT
3.) Communication in our relationships
“A gentle answer deflects anger, but harsh words make tempers flare.”
Proverbs 15:1 NLT
“Pleasant words are like a honeycomb, Sweetness to the soul and health to the bones.”
Proverbs 16:24 NKJV
