023| THE PRACTICE OF LOVE: THE POWER FOR VICTORY| SUNDAY CELEBRATION SERVICE

Sermon Notes: The Practice of Love: The Power for Victory 

Rev. Dr. Ebenezer Okronipa

 

Main Scripture Focus: Galatians 5:6, Mark 11:23-25, 1 Peter 3:8-12, 1 Corinthians 13:4-8.

I. Love: The Engine of Faith

• The Activation of Power: Faith is not a standalone force; it is "activated, energized, and expressed" through love.

• The Cause of Stagnation: If your confessions of Scripture are not producing results, check your love walk. Bitterness and unforgiveness act as spiritual blockades to miracles.

• Maturity Over Gifting: The greatest measurement of spiritual growth is not the intensity of your tongues or the accuracy of a prophecy, but the depth of your love for others.

II. The Danger of Offense and the "Gates of Hell"

• The Trap of Offense: Satan often uses offense as leverage to fight against the church. When you decide to leave a church or stop serving because of an offense, you are falling into a demonic snare.

• A "Hospital" Mindset: The church is not a place for perfect people; it is a place for the "sick, weak, and offended" looking for healing. We must accommodate each other's frailties.

• Selfishness in Conflict: Most offenses in the body of Christ are rooted in self-centeredness—being more concerned with one's own feelings than the unity of the body.

III. Love as Divine Protection

• The Power of Forgiveness: Forgiveness is a spiritual decision, not an emotion. When you forgive, you close the doors that allow the enemy access to your life.

• The Consequences of Bitterness: Bitterness can cause physical sickness and spiritual blindness, leading a person to "not know where they are going".

• The "Eyes of the Lord": According to 1 Peter 3, long life, "good days," and divine protection are promised to those who keep their tongues from evil and seek peace.

IV. Practical Love in Action

The sermon outlines specific traits of Agape love that believers must practice:

• Suffering Long: Enduring difficult people with patience.

• Being Kind: actively seeking the welfare and happiness of others.

• Not Boasting or Being Proud: Operating without a sense of superiority or "puffing yourself up" over others.

• Keeping No Record of Wrongs: refusing to hold on to past hurts or using them against someone later.

• Protecting Others: Covering a brother or sister in private rather than exposing their weaknesses.

V. Conclusion: The Victorious Walk

• Everything Else May Fail: Prophecies, tongues, and specialized knowledge are temporary and may fail or cease, but love is eternal and never fails.

• The Final Goal: The believer's "great quest" should be to attain a state where they speak the truth in love and grow into the full stature of Christ.

Sermon Declaration:

“I refuse to live a powerless or disconnected life. I choose to make love my great quest. From today, I reposition my life so that my faith is energized by love, my prayers are answered, and I walk in the total victory of God.”