Sermons found for the topic Love

Sense and Nonsense About God's Love - 1 John 4:8

I'd like to begin my message with a simple observation. No attribute of God is so widely believed as the love of God. This observation is quite easily testable. Take a microphone to the streets of Chicago and ask them More

The Greatest of These - I Corinthians 13:1-3

"Love is the medicine for the sickness of the world." So said noted psychiatrist Dr. Karl Meninger. He summarized his therapeutic approach this way: "Love cures. It cures those who give it and it cures those who recei More

Why Love Has a Bad Memory - I Corinthians 13:4-6

A Peanuts cartoon shows Lucy standing with her arms folded and a stern expression on her face. Charlie Brown pleads, "Lucy, you must be more loving. This world really needs love. You have to let yourself love to make More

Grow Up! - 1 Corinthians 13:7

Have you ever wondered what life would be like if you weren't married? If somehow you were suddenly single again? No matter how happy your marriage is, every honest person would have to answer yes to those questions More

The Agape Factor: 12 Ways to Love - Romans 12:9-16

There is an amazing scene at the end of the 1996 movie Marvin's Room. Bessie, played by Diane Keaton, has cared for her ill father and her aunt for 20 years. After learning that she has leukemia, she receives a visit More

Love Never Gives Up - I Corinthians 13:7

The New International Version tells us that love "always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres." The Contemporary English Version says that love "is always supportive, loyal, hopeful, and trusting." More

Forever and Ever, Amen! - Matthew 19:6

Let's begin with a little quiz. What well-known television actor said the following? "To me the greatest Latin lover in the world was may Dad, who married my mother and was faithful to her until the day he died 55 y More

God’s Medicine for a Sick World - Romans 13:8-10

Love is the medicine for a sick and fallen world. We need to see love and feel love and experience it in our lives. And we need to know how to pass it along to others. This is the fulfillment of all that God asks of us. More

Behind Closed Doors - Hebrews 13:4

There are times when a writer knows beyond a shadow of a doubt that he doesn't have to worry about getting the reader's attention. Certain subjects require no gimmicks, tricks or elaborate introductions. Some subje More

Nothing Shall Offend Them: A Message for Unhappy, Irritated, and Bent-Out-of-Shape Christians - Psalm 119:165

For our final message in this short series from Psalm 119, I want to look at a verse I first learned in Mrs. Sandberg's British Literature class 30 years ago. As she began class one day, she read a verse of Scripture More

The Final Step: Blessing Your Enemies - Luke 6:27-36

"But I say to you who hear, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you. To one who strikes you on the cheek, offer the other also, and from one who takes More

Don't Settle for Second-Best - Philippians 1:9-11

In this message I want to give you some very practical advice that could energize your prayer life. As we begin moving in that direction, here are three opening observations to think about:1. Prayer is both the easies More

Love One Another Deeply - I Peter 1:22-25

I have three things on my mind that I want to talk to you about. These are really three different things, and apparently unconnected, but perhaps by the end of the message, you will see there is a common thread runnin More

Living in the Fear of God - I Peter 1:17-21

After a six-week break, we are returning to our study of I Peter. I want to begin by reminding you that Peter wrote this letter to believers scattered across ancient Asia Minor (modern-day Turkey). Widely separated an More

Your Reputation Matters - 1 Thessalonians 4:9-12

"Now about brotherly love we do not need to write to you, for you yourselves have been taught by God to love each other. And in fact, you do love all the brothers throughout Macedonia. Yet we urge you, brothers, to d More

Curing the Itch Mites

Ray: How many of you know what itch mites are? We had never heard of them until two months ago. Marlene: We learned all about itch mites when we hosted a wedding reception in Chicago for Mark and Vanessa who had gotte More

Risky Business: The Other Side of Christian Freedom - Galatians 5:13-15

"It is for freedom that Christ has set us free" (Galatians 5:1a). What exactly is this Christian freedom that Paul talks so much about in Galatians? In order to help us understand the answer, I'd like to borrow a defi More

Why You Need Your Enemies and Your Enemies Need You—Part Two - Jeremiah 29:7

Our enemies are a gift from God. If we didn’t need them He wouldn’t send them. God has a beneficial purpose in sending enemies our way - to make us more like Christ. Therefore, the person we might consider an enemy is, in reality, our best friend. More

Beyond Your Dreams - Ephesians 3:14-21

Pray boldly for spiritual strength, teaches Paul. God is faithful and we can trust Him. He is more than able to do even more than we ask.. Through prayer, we are filled with the Holy Spirit and grow spiritually, understanding the height, breadth, length and depth of Christ’s love for us. More

Angry Man Alert

In this message, Ray Pritchard talks about the five character qualities that relate to a man and his anger. When our power is not under God’s control, we hurt ourselves and those closest to us. We need God’s help so that we might become like Jesus who was both gentle and strong, a true “gentle man.” More

Lucky to Love - I Thessalonians 3:10-13

"Prayer is not everything but everything is by prayer." So said Ray Ortlund. All Christians would agree with that statement. No matter what our background, instinctively we know that prayer is central to the Christian More

The Day Before the End of the World - I Peter 4:7-11

"The end of all things is near. Therefore be clear minded and self-controlled so that you can pray. Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins. Offer hospitality to one another wit More

Why You Need Your Enemies and Your Enemies Need You—Part One - Jeremiah 29:7

Our sovereign God allows enemies to enter our lives for our ultimate good. They are often people we are close to; family, people at work, or even in our church. God’s message to us is to love, bless, and pray for them. In doing this, He will bless us. We cannot be set free until we set them free to be blessed by the Lord. More

No Separation - Romans 8:38-39

All summer long we've been climbing. We've been talking about what it would finally be like when we reached the top of the mountain. Now at last we're there, at the peak, the summit of the mighty mountain of God's g More

How to Kill a New Christian - Part 2 - Romans 14:1-12

Christians have always disagreed - a lot! And it’s not a bad thing. But there is always a danger that our own personal preferences will grow so important that we no longer accept our brothers and sisters in the Lord who disagree with us. The great unifying factor for the people of God is the Lord Jesus Christ. He has broken down the wall that separated us from God and from one another. In Him we are joined together in the body of Christ. If we truly believe in Him, we can let Him deal with those who disagree with us. In the meantime, don’t forget to treat those who disagree as brothers and sisters in the Lord. More

How Are You Fixed For Friends? - John 3:33-34

The most popular TV show in America is set in a bar in Boston. The name of the TV series is the same as the name of the bar—Cheers. It has been the most popular TV show for the last several years and has been More

How to Kill a New Christian - Part 1 - Romans 14:1-12

Part 1. There are many ways to kill the faith of a new Christian, but the easiest way - and the quickest - is through criticism and a lack of acceptance. We all have a tendency to criticize people who don’t do or say things the way we think they ought to be said or done. Terrible things can happen when we are too quick to offer personal judgments on believers who don’t meet our personal standards. How can we overcome the impulse to criticize our brothers and sisters in Christ? More

We Shall Be Like Him: The Purifying Hope of Christ's Return - I John 3:1-3

Shortly before his recent death, ex-Beatle George Harrison was asked about his spiritual journey. The question was apt since it was Harrison who introduced the Beatles to Eastern religion in the 60s and (after the gro More

"How Sweet Are Your Words": Learning to Love the Word of God - Psalm 119:97-104

This year at Calvary we are attempting to read through the entire Bible together. For those who are on the "Bible Bus," today we are reading Genesis 25-26 and Matthew 13. That means we are reading about Isaac and Ishm More

Christ-Like Love in a World of Hate - Luke 15:1-7

This is the final message in the God Speaks Today series. As I look back on all that has happened, I am amazed at what God has done. In ways we could not have imagined, God opened doors for us to speak to millions of More

Letter From a Friend - Romans 15

To understand forgiveness, consider Jesus on the cross. In his dying moments He uttered words that still ring across the centuries: “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.” Even as he said those words, the crowd laughed, mocked, cheered, jeered. They taunted him. When he died, the people who put him to death were quite pleased with themselves. No one seemed very sorry. No one said, “I was wrong. This is a mistake.” And yet he said, “Father, forgive them, for they don’t know what they are doing.” That is precisely what we must say if we are going to follow Jesus. More

Out of Egypt

Sometimes you're reading along when suddenly a phrase pops out and you say, "Whoa! Where did that come from?" That happened to me this week as I was reading the Biblical Illustrator in preparation for this message. I More

How to Pray for Anyone About Anything - Philippians 1:9-11

How would you rate your own prayer life? If you had to give yourself a grade, would it be A … B … C … D … or F? Or as someone suggested, how about the word "Incomplete"? Before you decide on an More

That's Incredible! - Romans 5:6-11

Certain passages of Scripture stand out in God's Word as mountain peaks. By virtue of their theme, their content, their exalted message, certain passages seem to rise above the ordinary landscape of the Bible. Psalm 2 More

What Happened to All Your Joy?A Lesson in Spiritual Pediatrics

I want to begin this sermon not with a comment on the text but with a personal update. I've been on the road a lot lately, most of the time preaching in various conferences. My travels have taken me to New York in May More

Remarried—and Happy at Last! - Romans 7:1-6

This question is for those who are married: When was the last time you sat down with your husband or wife and told the story of how you met and fell in love? How long has it been since you remembered your first kiss? More

What Was That I Never Heard You Say? - James 1:19

Perhaps you've heard the story of the woman who went to see a lawyer about getting a divorce. The lawyer decided it would be helpful if he could get a little background so he asked the woman if she had grounds for a More

Is There a Servant in the House? - Ephesians 5:22, 6:4

We live in strange and troubling days. I wonder if a week ago any of us had ever heard of Tonya Harding. Now, we’re all watching this tawdry thing unfold before our eyes wondering how this could have happened. O More

Balancing Truth and Love - 2 John

“Affiliation with the enemies of the Cross spells a lie to all claims to believe the truth."Robert Lightner This little letter contains one of the strongest warnings in the New Testament. If a false teacher More

The Second Law: God Doesn't Need Us But We Desperately Need Him

Last Sunday we started a new sermon series called The Seven Laws of the Spiritual Life. In this series we are discovering the basic principles of the Christian life that meet us where we are and take us all the way to More

"Should I Not be Concerned about that Great City?" Why We are Staying in Oak Park - Jonah 4:11

It was an exciting time to be alive.The year was 1915, and change was in the air. So many things were happening all at once. Armies marched across Europe, meeting in the deadly combat of World War I. America was about More

The Value of a Broken Heart - Romans 9:1-5

This week we are beginning a new series called "Understanding God's Plan" from Romans 9-11. This is one of the most overlooked passages in the New Testament. It is certainly the most overlooked section in the book of More

Loving the Unseen Christ - I Peter 1:8-9

"Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are receiving the goal of your faith, the salvatio More

Three Arrows at Sunrise - I Samuel 18-23

In our study of the early years of David as he journeyed from the sheep pens to the throne, we have come to the story of his friendship with Jonathan. This is perhaps the most famous friendship in the Bible and it is More

Homemade Gods: A Warning Against Modern-Day Baal Worship - Acts 17:29

"Idols? You must be kidding.""That's what they have in Africa, right?""Me? An idol-worshiper? What do you take me for? A pagan?""The only thing I worship is my brand-new car."What is an idol anyway? The dictionary off More

The Comeback Kid: Christ Speaks to the Problem of Personal Failure - John 21

Have you ever done something or said something that disappointed someone you loved? I suppose all of us, if we were honest, would have to answer "yes" to that question. Perhaps we promised to be somewhere, but when th More

How to Inherit a Blessing - I Peter 3:8-12

"Finally, all of you, live in harmony with one another; be sympathetic, love as brothers, be compassionate and humble. Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult, but with blessing, because to this you were cal More

Will We See Our Loved Ones Again? - 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18

My subject is one that we don't often talk about. In the nearly 30 years I have served in pastoral ministry, I have had very few conversations on this topic. The reasons are not hard to understand.Death in the best of More

Inside the Wedding Ring - Romans 15:5-7

I was twenty-five years old and fresh out of seminary when I became the pastor of a small church in Downey, California. I stayed there almost five years and then moved to Garland, Texas to pastor another church for fi More

Faithful to the Defeated - Lamentations 3:22-23

The year was 1866, and in a log cabin in the little town of Franklin, Kentucky, Thomas Obadiah Chisholm was born. Although he never went to high school or college, he became an elementary school teacher at age 16. Fiv More