Why One Sin Is Too Much

How Do You Measure Your Love for Jesus?

(John 14:23-24)

I. Introduction.
A. Orientation.
Weve recently seen in Psalm 119 many reasons
We should study Gods Law and apply it.
Most of these had to do with the positive blessings
Of protection against our enemies.

There are, of course, other reasons.

We saw two last week that were more negative
That should provide very strong motivation
Not to allow as much as one sin in our lives:
The first, that even one sin deserves eternal death.
And the second, that even one sin can destroy you forever.

The first was to remind you

That even though God has forgiven
Every single one of your sins
Through faith in Jesus Christ,
You should never allow that fact
To make you see sin as anything other than what it is:
A crime against God
That deserves eternal punishment

Which, but for Gods grace,

You would have suffered for committing it.

The second was to remind you

That if Jesus really has set you free from sin,
He has set you free from all sin
Not just some:
You will fight against every sin
Not just some
And you will try to do all He commands
Not just part of what He commands.

The Holy Spirit in you

Will move you to love everything thats good,
Causing you to fight against everything that isnt.
If that fight isnt going on in your life,
The Spirit isnt there.

Both of these provide very good reasons

Why even one sin is too much.
B. Preview.
But, of course, there are many positive reasons
Why we shouldnt allow even one sin.

Tonight, I would like for us to look at one

That should help us prepare to meet our Lord at His Table,

And thats what Jesus says
About how to measure our love for Him.
He says, If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him,
and We will come to him and make Our abode with him. He who does not love
Me does not keep My words; and the word which you hear is not Mine, but the
Father's who sent Me (John 14:23-24).

How can you measure your love for Jesus?

He says by your obedience.
The more you love Him, the more you will obey.
The less you love Him, the less youll obey.
Those who dont love Him, wont obey at all.

Tonight, I want us to look at:

1. How Jesus says you can measure your love for Him,
2. And then well spend a few minutes measuring it by His standard.
II. Sermon.
A. Jesus tells you how you can measure your love for Him.

1. How do you usually measure your love?

If you do it differently than Jesus tells you,
You need to rethink your method.

Do you measure yours

By the amount of time you spend in your devotions?
The more you read the Bible and pray

The more you love Him?

Do you gauge it
By how well you understand what the Bible teaches?
The more you know, the more you must love Him?

Do you evaluate it by how much you attend church?

How much you enjoy singing His praise
Or listening to His Word preached?

Or do you make your assessment

By how you feel
When you hear His name,
Or think about Him,
Or by how many tears you shed
When you hear about the cross?

If you love Jesus,

Of course youre going to do all these things.
You can hardly claim to love Him
If you dont read His Word;
If you dont spend time in prayer;
If you dont try to understand
Everything He tells you in His Word;
If you dont want to attend church,

Or to have fellowship with the saints,

Every time you have the opportunity;
Or if you dont feel any love in your heart towards Him,
Or if His cross has never elicited even one tear.

But are these thing things enough to prove you do love Him?
One look at the Pharisees
Should be enough to convince you that they arent.

They read and studied Gods Word,

Even memorizing large portions
Especially the scribes/lawyers.

They spent a great deal of time in prayer,

They attended synagogue worship.
They certainly claimed to love God.
But what was missing?

Two things:
First, they obeyed only some of the commandments
While conveniently leaving others out.
Jesus said to them, Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you
tithe mint and dill and cummin, and have neglected the weightier provisions
of the law: justice and mercy and faithfulness; but these are the things you
should have done without neglecting the others. You blind guides, who
strain out a gnat and swallow a camel! (Matt. 23:23-24).

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And second, even when they did obey,
They did it for themselves and not for God.
Again Jesus said, But they do all their deeds to be noticed by men; for they
broaden their phylacteries and lengthen the tassels of their garments. They
love the place of honor at banquets and the chief seats in the synagogues, and
respectful greetings in the market places, and being called Rabbi by men
(vv. 5-7).
And, You hypocrites, rightly did Isaiah prophesy of you: THIS PEOPLE
HONORS ME WITH THEIR LIPS, BUT THEIR HEART IS FAR AWAY
FROM ME. BUT IN VAIN DO THEY WORSHIP ME, TEACHING AS
DOCTRINES THE PRECEPTS OF MEN (Matt. 15:8-9).

These few acts of devotion arent enough.

2. How does Jesus tell you to measure your love?

He says, If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word (John 14:23).
He who has My commandments and keeps them is the one who loves Me (v.
21).
How many of His commandments will you keep?
All of them.
Why will you do this?
Because you love Him.

Why do you do the things I mentioned earlier?

Why do you read your Bibles?
Why do you pray?
Attend worship?
And spend time with other Christians?
Isnt it that your love for Jesus might grow stronger?

Isnt it that youll have a better understanding

Of how to express your love to Him in obedience?
Thats really why you should.

Obeying Jesus is where the rubber meets the road.

Thats one of the main reasons weve spent so much time
Looking at the commandments, trying to understand them.
It wasnt just so that we could know what they say.
It wasnt just that we might be able
To teach our children or others
What they mean in a Bible study.
It was so we would know better
How to love Jesus.
Jesus says, If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word (John 14:23).
He who does not love Me does not keep My words (v. 24).

B. With this in view, let me give you a test:

One that will measure your love
Using the standard Jesus says to use: His commandments.
And remember, this test isnt merely to determine whether
You understand the commandment,
Or agree with it,
But whether youre actually practicing it.

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First, well test your love for God more directly
Through the first four commandments:
Ask yourself these questions:

1. Is there anything or anyone you love more than God?

The amount of time you devote to this thing or person is a good indicator.
Do you spend most of your time with Him
Thinking about Him,
Trying to please Him,
In your everything you think,
In everything you say,
In every decision you make?
The Lord says, You shall have no other gods before Me (Ex. 20:3).

2. Do you enjoy worshiping God as He commands?

Do you enjoy singing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs (Eph. 5:19)?
Hearing His Word read and preached?
Praying?
Fellowshipping with His people?
When His people meet on His holy Day,
Do you meet with them?
If the Lord provides you with two opportunities to worship,
Do you want to meet with Him twice?
Do you come to and enjoy the midweek study and prayer time?

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The Lord says, You shall not make for yourself an idol, or any likeness of what
is in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the water under the earth.
You shall not worship them or serve them; for I, the LORD your God, am a
jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children, on the third
and the fourth generations of those who hate Me, but showing lovingkindness
to thousands, to those who love Me and keep My commandments (vv. 4-6).

3. When you promise the Lord youre going to do something,

Do you do it?
He says, You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain, for the
LORD will not leave him unpunished who takes His name in vain (v. 7).
How have you been doing with the vows you made when you became members?
(4) Do you acknowledge Jesus Christ as your sovereign Lord, and do you
promise that, in reliance on the grace of God, you will serve him with all that
is in you, forsake the world, resist the devil, put to death your sinful deeds
and desires, and lead a godly life?
(5) Do you promise to participate faithfully in this church's worship and service,
to submit in the Lord to its government, and to heed its discipline, even in
case you should be found delinquent in doctrine or life?

4. Do you spend the entire Sabbath Day with your Lord?

Do you keep the whole twenty four hours holy to Him?
By setting your work aside, resting and worshiping Him?
Do you enjoy that time with Him?
If you had your way, would every day be the Sabbath?
He says, Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor
and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath of the LORD your
God; in it you shall not do any work (vv. 8-10).

How are you doing so far?

Is your love for the Lord as strong as you thought it was?

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Could it use some improvement?

Now lets test your love for God indirectly,

And your love for your neighbor more directly.

5. Hows your relationship with your parents?

Do you love them?
Do you speak to others kindly and respectfully about them?
Are you trying to do what they have taught you from Gods Word?
The Lord says, Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be
prolonged in the land which the LORD your God gives you (v. 12).

6. Do you love your neighbor, even your enemies?

Is there anyone you hate?
Anyone you want to hurt?
Are you doing what you can to save your neighbors life
By reaching out to them with the Gospel?
He says, You shall not murder (v. 13).

7. Are you keeping yourself sexually pure?

Are you doing the very best you can
To keep impure and lustful thoughts out of your head,
As well as being careful not to inspire them in others?
He says, You shall not commit adultery (v. 14).

8. Are you careful not to take anything that doesnt belong to you?

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Are you giving your employers the very best work you can
In the hours you work for them?
Are you being careful not to download anything from the Internet
That you dont have the legal right to?
He says, You shall not steal (v. 15).

9. Do you speak only the truth about others,

And only in such a way that builds them up in the eyes of others,
Rather than tearing them down?
He says, You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor (v. 16).

10. And are you content with what the Lord has given you?
Are you happy when He gives good things to others
Even when theyre things you want for yourself, but dont have?
The Lord says, You shall not covet your neighbors house; you shall not covet
your neighbors wife or his male servant or his female servant or his ox or his
donkey or anything that belongs to your neighbor (v. 17).

Too often, we limit the way we show our love to Jesus

By simply telling Him we love Him,
Or by reading the Bible, praying, singing, etc.,
Rather than doing everything He wants us to do.
Remember what Samuel said to Saul
When he chose to show his regard to God
In the way he wanted, rather than as God wanted:

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Has the LORD as much delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as in obeying the
voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed than
the fat of rams (1 Sam. 15:22).

If youre going to show Jesus you love Him,

Do it in the way He tells you to,
Rather than in the way you choose:
Obey Him.
Here is another very good reason
You should not allow even one sin in your life.

How can you love Jesus

When you do the things you know He hates?
How can you do what He hates
When you consider all the love He has shown you
When you remember what the Table tells you?

Being God,
He chose to become one with you,
To obey His Fathers commands for you,
To suffer on the cross for your sins,
To die in your place,
To be buried for you,
And to be raised again for you.
To rule over you for your good,
Even sending His Spirit to change your heart

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To bring you savingly to Himself.

One day He is returning for you
So that you might be with Him forever.

Can you so easily sin in His face

Knowing how much He loves you?

His love for you

And your love for Him
Are two very good reasons
Why you should never allow even one sin in your life.

Do you allow sin in your life?

He loves you let it go.
If you love Him let it go.
He will give you the strength to overcome it,
If you will just look to Him to do it.

For those of you who dont know or love Him,

You cant let your sin go without His help.
Turn to Him.
Ask Him to change your heart.
Ask Him to turn you to Himself.
He is merciful and gracious
To all who will call on Him. Amen.

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