Dear Friends,
My Bible reading plan had me in Philippians 1 this morning where I read Paul’s prayer for the church in Philippi.
And it is my prayer that your love may abound more and more, with knowledge and all discernment, so that you may approve what is excellent, and so be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God. (Philippians 1:9–11)
The word “abound” caught my attention. What does it mean for love to abound?
The dictionary says that to abound means to be plentiful, to overflow, to have abundance. The word goes all the way back to the Latin abundare, which means to be covered up by a wave. Abounding and abundance go together. It means to have more than you need. More than enough.
Paul’s prayer for this church is that their love would overflow in abundance.
Paul’s prayer is that their agape would abound. That’s the Greek word he uses for love in his prayer. John Stott defines agape love as the sacrifice of self in the service of another. Alistair Begg says agape love is not “coziness, affection [or] predisposition on the basis of attraction.” It is a spiritual discipline.
This is what Paul is praying will be increasingly true about this church. He is praying that what is already true about these people – their sacrifice of self in the service of others – would abound more and more. He wants it to overflow. To wash over people in Philippi like a wave.
Paul wants this to be a church known for its self-sacrificing care and concern for the needs of others. He wants that kind of love to abound more and more, so that when people hear about the Christians in Philippi, the first thing they think is “oh yes, those are the kind, self-sacrificing, self-giving people who genuinely care for those in need.”
But notice that Paul has some qualifiers for this tidal wave of love for which he is praying. He wants their love to abound more and more “with knowledge and all discernment.” It’s a love, Paul says, that must be anchored in a deep understanding of who God is and what is true about Him. And it’s a love guided by wisdom. It’s a love that is discerning. A love that approves what is excellent (and by implication, a love that does not affirm or support those things that are foolish, sinful or evil).
In spite of what you may have heard in some modern worship music, the kind of love God commends is not a reckless love. It is an abundant, overflowing love. But it is a careful, wise, discerning kind of love. A genuine love, a love without hypocrisy, that, as Romans 12 says “abhors what is evil and holds fast to what is good” (Romans 12:9).
For love to abound in us and through us, as individuals and as a church, we have to be people who are filled up with love. Love can’t overflow from you until you are filled up with it. The only way for God’s love to flow out of you is for God’s love to first be poured into you.
The good news is, God’s love is endless. It never fails. There is never a time when you come to God and ask Him to fill you with His love when He says “sorry, We’re fresh out today. Come back tomorrow.”
His love abounds toward us. He demonstrated His love for us in that while we were still sinners, He sent His Son to die in our place (Romans 5:8). He lavishes His love on us (1 John 3:1, NIV). He loves us, He says, with an everlasting love (Jeremiah 31:3).
To abound is the opposite of being bound. When something is bound, it is contained, held back, kept in, tied down. It can’t get free. God’s love is the opposite. It’s a tsunami. It can’t be contained. It abounds.
May prayer for us as a church and for me as a Christian is that my love for others would abound more and more. That it would be guided by and anchored in a deeper, growing knowledge of the God whose love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit (Romans 5:5). And that my love for others would be guided by the kind of wisdom and discernment that knows how to approve what is good and reject what is evil.
This weekend, as we gather Friday night to reflect on the death of Jesus on the cross for us and His triumphant victory over death three days later, I’m praying God will fill our hearts with a fresh, deep understanding of His great love for us. And that as a result, our love would abound more and more.
Speaking of this weekend, here’s what we have happening:
For those of you who have never attended one of our Good Friday services, you can anticipate an hour-long time together where we sing, pray, read God’s word and freshly consider the implications of His crucifixion. It’s the perfect way to prepare your heart for the celebration of His resurrection on Sunday.
If you have elementary aged or younger children, be sure to bring them to church Saturday at 2:00 for our Resurrection Rally. They can hunt for Easter eggs, sing songs about the resurrection and hear a clear presentation of the gospel just for them.
Just a note about Sunday morning. We’ll have some men on hand on Sunday to help with what we expect to be a full parking lot. You might want to plan to arrive early or you may need to park along David O Dodd. We are adding an extra row of seating to accommodate everyone.
Here’s some exciting news! Congrats to Laura and Kendall White!
A Meal Train has been set up for the Whites. If you’d like to bring a meal or contribute a gift card, click here (https://www.mealtrain.com/trains/y8vdle) and sign up.
Men, next Tuesday night we’ll meet at church for our monthly First Tuesday gathering. This month, we’ll be examining God’s call for men to bear the weight of planning and providing for the needs of others.
We’ll eat dinner at 6:15 (Creamy Chicken Enchilada Soup). Or join us at 7:00 when our study starts.
Here’s an update for student and parents about the April Game Night.
The protective eyewear has been ordered. And we’re praying for clear skies on April 8. Eclipse Mania doesn’t officially begin until after Easter, but the excitement is building.
We ordered some extra eyewear for the event, so even if you didn’t sign up yet to attend, you can still join us out by our playground for hot dogs, chips, water and cookies as we gather to experience this event.
Click here (https://redeemerlr.churchcenter.com/registrations/events/2203103) to let us know you’re planning to be there!
Our Date Night Dinner is now just two weeks away!
Beef Tenderloin, potatoes and veggies.
An evening filled with fun date night activities.
And a message about best practices that help couples cultivate strong, healthy marriages.
Sound like a great date night? It will be!
Click here to register (https://redeemerlr.churchcenter.com/registrations/events/2221452). The cost is $40 per couple. And don’t forget, you can bring a couple with you as your guests, and if they aren’t currently members or regular attenders at Redeemer, the cost for them is half price! Only $20 per couple!
Ladies. Have you signed up yet for the upcoming weekend Stay-treat?
It will be a sweet time of fellowship, food, and feasting on God's Word, as we study and discuss Titus 2.
Dinner will be served. The cost to cover food and materials for the Stay-treat is $40. Register now by clicking here (https://redeemerlr.churchcenter.com/registrations/events/2218853).
I want you to know how encouraged I am by the response we’ve already had from some of you to our need to raise $15,000 (not $15) to begin the process of investigating our options for expanding our parking lot and to add activity and classroom space.
Please continue to pray for God’s guidance and for His provision for this project. Pray that we will act in wisdom and in faith. Pray that if and when we determine we should move forward, God will provide for the cost of the project.
Again, if you’d like to give toward our investigation effort, click here (https://redeemerlr.churchcenter.com/giving) to make an online gift. use the pull down menu to indicate you’d like your money to go to the building project. Or better yet, write a personal check and add the word “building” in the memo line.
Finally, here’s some fun news.
Jack Michael Malone’s robotics team at his school has been selected to go to the World Robotic Tournament in Dallas next month. This is a big deal. There are teams coming from all over the country and from other countries as well. Congrats to Jack Michael and the whole team!
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This Sunday will, of course, be all about the resurrection. But we’ll be looking beyond the resurrection of Jesus to two other resurrection days the Bible talks about; a present and a future resurrection day, both tied directly to the first resurrection day in history – the resurrection of Jesus.
See you in church.
Soli Deo Gloria!
Pastor Bob
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