Being authentic is one of the most sought after character traits of our age. Being real. Being genuine. Being sincere. Or on the other side of the coin, not being fake. Not being true. Being hypocritical. People can see right through us when we try and be something we aren’t. If we try and pass ourselves off as a surfer, the truth will come out once we paddle out into the waves. If we say we are a good cook, the truth will come out when we invite people over for dinner. If we say that we love people, the truth will come out when someone is in need. Romans 12:9 demands that our love be genuine, sincere, and not hypocritical.
This is the first step in loving people like God has loved us. We can’t fake it. We will be found out if we say we love, but never follow through with actually loving people. The standard of love is the love of God. The love of God shown to us. The love of God in sending Jesus to save us. The love of God in desiring to save His creation and reverse the curse of sin. This is our standard of loving others. This section of Romans challenges us to love like Jesus. And we can love like Jesus with the power of the gospel!
Come this week as we continue or mini-series on loving like God loves. May we grow closer to Jesus knowing His great love toward us. May we grow closer to one another as we practice a biblical love. May we grow closer to our neighbor as we seek how to empathetically love as Jesus has loved us.
“Let love be genuine…” Romans 12:9a
- Pastor Curt
Please take note of ways to gather for Sunday Service at The Rock:
1) We are meeting inside at Manhattan Beach Pre-School for our Sunday Service at 4:30 pm.
2) We will also be live on Facebook Live. CLICK HERE at 4:30 Sunday afternoon.
3) Finally we will provide a video link to the sermon on our website.
Theological Word of The Week:
love
When used of God, the doctrine that God eternally gives himself to others.
Wayne Grudem, Systematic Theology
Upcoming Events
Children's Ministry
Children can join Cameron every Sunday for Bible time during the service. They will go through the Bible story by story.
Sermon Topic - sept. 17
romans: The Gospel Changes perspectives
romans 12:9a
“real talk, real love”