Sacrificial Love

Definitions: Surrendering ourselves for others; buying the devotion to God of some with the payment of one’s life or resources; not excluding evil people or those who do harm to us from our love; doing good to everyone with all we have.

Passion:
Luke 22:49-51; Luke 23:33-34
Jesus’ love wasn’t just for those who showed concern for him. He healed a man who was coming to arrest him. He asked forgiveness for those who were crucifying him and taking his clothing to gamble for it. He loved even those who despised him, who killed him. Jesus’ love reaches even those who we would expect he would hate. His love includes everyone.

Mark 10:45
Jesus didn’t come to earth just to show us a good way. He came to lay down his life for us. He intended to pay the ultimate sacrifice so that we could be right with God. He was going to surrender all he had in order to get us. He had nothing left, but he gave it all to buy us for God.

Jesus’ Teaching:
Luke 6:27-36
We are to be like Jesus in not being exclusive with our love. Just because someone does something evil to us, that doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t care for them or about them. We are to pray for everyone—even those who hate us. We are to help everyone in need—even those who mistreat us. God’s love is for everyone, not just those who like God, but even for those who hate him. We should be the same way.

Mark 12:41-44
Jesus used the widow to make a point. In our giving, it is not the amount we give that is important. It is how much we have sacrificed. If we sacrifice for God, for others, if we give up everything we have, then we are pleasing to God. Even if we give a huge amount, if we did not sacrifice it, then we gave a little thing in God’s sight, not worthy of his attention. Sacrifice is what God looks at.

John 15:12-13
Jesus wants us to love each other. He wants us to love in deed, not just in word. The way we show that love is by lowering ourselves so that our lives are sacrificed for others. We are to show the love of Jesus in our lives by giving our whole lives for the sake of others.

NT Teaching:
Colossians 1:24
Paul is making a remarkable statement here. He is fulfilling the death of Christ in his life—filling it out, and finishing the work Jesus began. How does he do this? By sacrificing himself for the church. He is giving of himself in order that the church might be living and growing and mature in Christ. He gave up of himself by suffering and by surrendering the life that he could have lived. He is not re-doing the death of Jesus—rather, he is living it out and allowing others to be redeemed because of his suffering, even as Jesus did.

Other passages: Romans 5:6-10; II Corinthians 1:6-7; 8:8-9; Galatians 2:20; Galatians 6:10; Ephesians 5:21-23; I Thessalonians 5:15; II Timothy 2:10.



Examples of People who showed sacrificial, inclusive love

The Twelve—They gave up their houses, families, professions and livelihoods to follow Jesus and eventually were killed for it.

Paul—He suffered beatings, stonings, shipwrecks, and many other persecutions in order to take the gospel to the Gentiles who did not know it.

Barnabas—He gave all of his land to be sold and then offered it to the church to be given to the poor.

Francis of Assisi—He gave up all that he had—his food, his clothes, including what anyone would give to him—to the needy.

Michael Sattler—He was arrested, had his tongue cut out and was torn apart with red hot tongs for teaching Jesus’ way of peace to those in Catholic provinces.

Dirk Willems—As an Anabaptist—one who taught that the church should not baptize infants, but only believers—Dirk was threatened for arrest. He saved the life of the one trying to capture him, even though he was then arrested, tried for heresy and killed.

Ignatius Loyola—He gave up his profession and lived on the street so he could focus on God and to teach the way of Jesus to everyone.

George Fox—He was imprisoned so that those who hated him could hear the word of God.

Hudson Taylor—Although always sick, he gave himself up to giving the gospel of Christ to those who had never heard it in China.

Jim and Elizabeth Elliot—Jim was killed so that an almost unknown people in South America can hear the gospel. His wife, Elizabeth returned to them and successfully gave the gospel of Jesus to those who killed her husband.