Do You Really Love Jesus? are to Jesus would you still be married?

o If you paid your bills like you pay your tithes would
Sermon shared by Kevin L. Jones you have food, a vehicle or a home?
o If you were as obedient to the secular law as you are
to Gods commands would you be free or behind bars?
Summary: Remaining our love for Jesus Christ
I want to consider these things for a little while and ask
Scripture: John 14:15 (add scripture) the question Do You Really Love Jesus? Understand
this: Jesus will not be persuaded by your words alone.
Sermon:
He can see directly into your heart. Jesus has
Do You Really Love Jesus?
prophesied that the disciples would be scattered, but
John 14:15
Peter professed (WITH HIS MOUTH) that he would never
leave Jesus - Mark 14:29 Peter said to him, Even if
I would like to begin with a question. Do You Love
everyone else deserts you, I never will.30 Jesus
Jesus??? I am not surprised that you would say yes.
replied, I tell you the truth, Peterthis very night,
But I want to go a bit farther and really examine this
before the rooster crows twice, you will deny three
subject:
times that you even know me.
You may fool your friends.
1. Does your life show that you love Jesus?
You may fool your family.
2. Do your actions prove your love for Jesus?
You may fool your spouse.
3. Are the choices that you make based on your love for
You may even fool yourself ..But, you cant fool
Jesus?
Jesus.
4. Would others testify of your love for Jesus?

HE KNOWS YOUR HEART!!! So again I ask, Do You

When at the funeral home I tend to listen to what is
Really Love Jesus? Lets look at:
being said about the deceased. Here are some of the
descriptions people will use about their loved ones:
I. The Evidence Of Your Love For Jesus - John 14:15 If
o Boy, He sure loved the Crimson Tide
ye love me, keep my commandments.
o His passion was fishing & hunting
o She sure loved to cook
Notice that Jesus begins this statement with IF Jesus
o He was dedicated to his career"
knew everybody that He was addressing didnt love him.
o He was a good man she was a good woman
One of His own disciples is preparing to betray him for
o Shopping was her life
30 pieces of silver.If you Really Do Love Jesus there
o He was a great friend
will be evidence! Jesus makes it very clear what the
o She sure loved her church
evidence of love for Him will be..OBEDIENCE!! Do you
live a life in complete obedience to Jesus Christ? Can a
When I die it is not my goal for people to say He was a
lost man see what it is to be Christian by watching your
good preacher or a loving Father Now those things are
daily life?
nice but ultimately I want people to say that ol boy
right there HE SURE LOVED JESUS!!! What about
There are too many pew warmers want to live life
you? When you are not around, do people say He/she
their way and too few CHRISTIANS! People who want to
sure loves the Lord? Better yet what does the Lord
do what they want to do, when they want to do it! They
have to say about your love for Him?I submit to you
are not one bit concerned with what God desires or
that the Word of God says that many of you dont love
commands. You cannot love God & embrace evil IT
Him at all!
WILL NEVER WORK!! - 1 John 2:3 and we can be sure
that we know him if we obey his commandments.4 If
Throughout His Word God confronts His people and
someone claims, I know God, but doesnt obey Gods
addresses their inconsistent actions toward Him. -
commandments, that person is a liar and is not living in
Malachi 1:6 The Lord saysA son honors his father,
the truth.5 But those who obey Gods word truly show
and a servant respects his master. If I am your father
how completely they love him. That is how we know we
and master, where are the honor and respect I deserve?
are living in Christ - Here, John reveals that if obedience
You have shown contempt for my name! But you ask,
is not in your heart you are not saved. This doesnt
How have we ever shown contempt for your name?7
mean that Christians will not fail but there will be
You have shown contempt by offering defiled sacrifices
OBEDIENCE in the heart of those who TRULY LOVE THE
on my altar. Then you ask, How have we defiled the
LORD! Anyone can say they love God, but the proof is in
sacrifices? You defile them by saying the altar of the
obeying God.
Lord deserves no respect.8 When you give blind animals
as sacrifices, isnt that wrong? And isnt it wrong to offer
So, if The Evidence of Our Love for Jesus is
animals that are crippled and diseased? Try giving gifts
Obedience, then we must examine our lives to see if we
like that to your governor, and see how pleased he is!
measure up. The 2nd thing I would like to consider
says The Lord of hosts
today is:

o If you were as devoted to your job as you are to Jesus

II. The Examination Of Your Love For Jesus - Matthew
would you still be employed?
22:35-40
o If you were as faithful to your wife/husband as you

Many times when a detective is looking for evidence of
someones guilt or proof of their innocence they will
administer a Polygraph. A Polygraph is an electrical
device that registers involuntary physical processes such
as pulse rate and perspiration and is used as a lie
detector. The investigator will hook the suspect up to a
machine and ask a series of questions. And the machine
will indicate whether the answer is truth or a lie. I want
you to hook up to the polygraph machine that is Gods
Word and see what it says about your love for Jesus
In Matthew 22 we read that after Jesus had silenced the
Sadducees, the Pharisees came to question Him again.
One of the experts in religious law asked Jesus a
question trying to trap Him. He said Teacher, which is
the most important commandment in the law? - Notice
Jesus reply - v37 Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love
the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy
soul, and with all thy mind. 38 This is the first and great
commandment. 39 and the second is like unto it, Thou
shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.
Jesus sums up the entire law in these verses notice
what He says in verse 40 On these two commandments
hang all the law and the prophetsIf you want to know if
You Really Love Jesus then you must measure your
life & actions against these verse: You say I Really
Love JesusJesus says if you love me, keep my
commandments Now that you are hooked up to the lie
detector of Gods Word, Lets begin The Examination
Of Your Love For Jesus
A. Do You Obey Commandment #1 - v37 Jesus said
unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy
heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. 38
This is the first and great commandment.
Many will proclaim that God is first and then place
everyone & everything else before Him. If we truly love
the Lord, He will have prominence in every area of our
life! The Great Commandment sums up the 10
Commandments. Lets look to the 1st four of the top
10 for a moment.
1. 'You shall have no other gods before Me.'
2. 'You shall not make for yourself a carved image--any
likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is
in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the
earth.'
3. 'You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in
vain.'
4. 'Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.'
If we Love the Lord with all of our heart, soul, mind
and strength we:
Will not have any other Gods
Will not create any idols
Will not take His name in vain
Will remember the Sabbath and keep it Holy
A major study by Lifeway Christian resources shows that
most young adults today don't pray, don't worship and
don't read the Bible .Thom Rainer states that If the
trends continue, "the Millennial generation will see
churches closing as quickly as GM dealerships,"
Lets dig a little deeper into the question of your love for
God:
1) You Say I Love God But Do You Talk To Him?
I say I love my wife (and I DO!) Because of that I
communicate with her. I talk to her regularly. If I said
that I loved her and just sat around the house and
never said anything she would might question if I
REALLY LOVED HER!I am sure if the only time I did talk
to her I was when I was complaining about what she
has done or not done she would question if I REALLY
LOVED HER! I am sure if the only time I talked to her
was when I was asking her to do something for me she
might question if I REALLY LOVED HER! Yet there are
many professing Christians that never talk to God.
There are many more professing Christians that only
talk to Him when they are complaining or when they
want something
Notice what Paul says:
Philippians 4:6 Be careful for nothing; but in every thing
by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your
requests be made known unto
God.......................................1 Thessalonians 5:18 In
every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in
Christ Jesus concerning you. - Sometimes we just need
to get alone with God and thank Him for who He is and
thank Him for what He has done.
Thank Him for His:
o Mercy
o Grace
o Love
o Salvation
Many of you cant pray because you are so consumed
with things that will not matter next week much less in
eternity! - A recent Lifeway survey showed that 65%
of professing Christians rarely or never pray with others,
and 38% almost never pray by themselves either.
But I Really Do Love Jesus! Jesus said
If you love me, Keep my commandments
2) You Say I Love God But Do You Allow Him To Speak
To You?
The same Lifeway study that I mentioned earlier showed
that 67% of professing Christians don't read the
Bible..........Another article states: Americans revere
the Bible but, by and large, they dont read it. And
because they dont read it, they have become a nation
of biblical illiterates.
http://www.sbts.edu/resources/magazines/love-for-a-
bible-not-read-a-call-for-biblical-literacy/
There are some who would argue over which translation
of the Bible to use and they wont even pick up a bible
and read it themselves!
The Bible is Gods Infallible, Inerrant Inspired Holy,
Word - The Psalmist said - Psalms 119:105 Thy word is
a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my
path...................While prayer is our way of speaking to
God, the Bible is Gods way of speaking to us! Too many
folks out there are having one way conversations!
Communication with God requires both prayer & study
of the Word!
You say I love my bible ...Do you really? Did you read
as many verses of the bible as you did news headlines
last week? Did you spend more time studying Gods
Word than you did scrolling the News Feed on Facebook
or seeing what was trending on Twitter? What used
more electricity this week, the lamp where you study or
the Television set?
I am a great admirer of President Ronald Reagan. I
loved his politics and his personality. I own a copy of his
memoirs and I am fascinated to get into his mind and
see what he was thinking during certain crucial events
during his presidency.
But it is even more amazing to open the living Word
and allow God to speak to me about:
o His work in creation
o His plan for mankind
o The sacrifice of His Son for my sins
o What He has in store for us when this life is over.
o What He wants His children to accomplish
o What He wants His children to avoid.
What a blessing and privilege it is to possess a copy of
Gods Word to man. - There are people all over this
country who will walk 10 miles one way just to hear
someone read the Word to them and you have it on
your phone and wont even read it!
But I love Jesus Jesus Said If you love me, keep my
commandments
3) You Say I Love God But Do You Come To His
House? - Hebrews 10:25 tells us (not to forsake) the
assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of
some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the
more, as ye see the day approaching.
In the LifeWay study I mentioned earlier, of those who
professed to be Christians, 65% do not attend worship
anywhere.
We have such an awesome privilege to come together
with likeminded believers and:
o Worship
o Pray
o Study
o And Fellowship - But so many take that privilege for
granted. Folks, there very well may come a day when
we no longer have that privilege.
As a pastor it is very frustrating to spend 8 or 9 hours
digging into the Word and preparing to share a message
to a group of people, having a God given burden to
reach someone and then the people that are supposedly
active members just dont come because there is
something better to do. - There are Sunday school
teachers who have given of their own time to study and
prepare to teach you and when you dont come it is
discouraging to them. - There are people willing and
prepared to teach your children in Childrens Church but
they dont have the opportunity because you woke up
and had an urge to do something else this Sunday.
Adrian Rogers said that every time you willingly choose
not to attend a worship service you are casting a vote to
close the doors. Tonight at 5:30 many of you will cast a
vote for us to stop having Sunday Night services. I love
the opportunity to be in Gods house. I love to hear the
Word preached. I love to sing songs praising my Savior.
I love to fellowship with other believers. I just dont
understand people who claim to have been saved who
just dont go to church. I actually have a harder time
figuring out those who just pop in from time to time!
But I love Jesus Jesus said If you love me keep my
commandments
4) You Say I Love God But Do You Give Him What Is
His? - Malachi 3:8 Will a man rob God? Yet ye have
robbed me. But ye say, Wherein have we robbed thee?
In tithes and offerings.
How can we rob God? We must consider the fact that all
that we have belongs to Him. God is gracious enough to
allow us to keep the majority of what we are blessed
with. He only asks for a small portion in return.God says
that they robbed him. - In tithes and offerings
Tithe {H} (maasrah - mah-as-raw') - a tenth;
Offering {H} (terumah - ter-oo-maw') a present (as
offered up), especially in sacrifice.
The problem with many peoples attitude toward giving
to God is to simply give him what is left. You are
wasting your time giving God what is left HE REFUSES
LEFTOVERS!! - If you can spend 200 dollars on things
you dont need on Saturday and only give God a 20
dollar bill on Sunday, then you might want to examine
your priorities! You say, but I cant afford to give
Friend, YOU CANT AFFORD NOT TO!
But I love Jesus Jesus said If you love me keep my
commandments
5) You Say I Love God But Do You Serve Him? -
Romans 12:4 Just as our bodies have many parts and
each part has a special function,5 so it is with Christs
body. We are many parts of one body, and we all belong
to each other.6 In his grace, God has given us different
gifts for doing certain things well. So if God has given
you the ability to prophesy, speak out with as much
faith as God has given you.7 If your gift is serving
others, serve them well. If you are a teacher, teach
well.8 If your gift is to encourage others, be
encouraging. If it is giving, give generously. If God has
given you leadership ability, take the responsibility
seriously. And if you have a gift for showing kindness to
others do it gladly.
Can you:
o Sing
o Preach
o Teach
o Play an instrument
o Be a leader
o Be an encourager
o Can you serve in any capacity
If you have the ability to do any of these things, it is
because God (through His grace) gave you that ability.
Why did He give you that ability? So that you can use it
to bring glory to His name!
In my workshop I have a work bench. It has a shelf and
on that shelf is a level, hand saw, skill saw, drill, sander,
hammer, screwdrivers and a flashlight. Recently the
only tool I have used is a table saw. That table saw has
kicked up saw dust all over that building and covered
every item on the work bench. None of those tools have
been used to accomplish anything in weeks. But that
table saw has helped me accomplish a great deal. -
There are too many people in the church today who are
just sitting on the bench collecting dust!
I dont get anything out of it
I offered to serve in the past but no one followed up
with me
I served for a while but I felt unappreciated
How about just being honest and saying I JUST DONT
WANT TO! - Do the same with not coming to church.
Stop offering pathetic excuses and just say some thing
was more important to me or I JUST DIDNT WANT TO
COME!
For those who think you are too busy to serve in the
church . FYI: Every Sunday you attend your local
church you are served by very busy people. Stop
whining and get involved!
But I love Jesus Jesus said If you love me keep my
commandments
We started off by asking the question Do You Really
Love Jesus? I cant answer that question for you, but
you can! You have been connected to the lie detector
that is Gods Word. Just as I mentioned in the case of
Simon Peter, Jesus will not be fooled with your words,
HE SEE YOUR HEART! Maybe He has revealed some
things to you today. Maybe He has revealed that you
are lost and need to be saved YOU CAN RIGHT NOW!
Maybe He has revealed to you that your love for Him is
not where it should be MAKE IT RIGHT TODAY!

Each one of those tools in my shop has a specific task You say, I LOVE JESUS! Jesus says If you love me,
that it was created to complete. - 1 Corinthians 12:12 keep my commandments
For as the body is one, and hath many members, and
all the members of that one body, being many, are one
body: so also is Christ.

If we are the body:

Why arent His arms reaching?
Why arent His hands healing?
Why arent His Words teaching?
Why arent His feet going?
If we are the body

I found a page on the internet that gave some of the

most common excuses for not serving in the church,
here are a few:

I am too busy with work

I am to busy with the kids commitments such as:

o Base ball
o Basket ball
o Cheerleading
o Foot ball
o Band
o Lacrosse
o Academics

I am too busy with a sick relative

I dont know what opportunities are available
I dont know what gift God has given me
I dont have the skills
I am burnt out and I need to be fed for a bit