Sharon Reformed Presbyterian Church · Sermon study sheet

Love One Another

Bryan Schneider · July 10, 2021

1 Thessalonians 5:14-15

sharonrpc.org/sermons/love-one-another

Summary

The duties of 1 Thessalonians 5:14-15 belong to the whole church, not only to pastors and elders.
Love warns disorderly believers with the aim of restoration rather than winning an argument.
Love comforts the fainthearted, supports the weak, and patiently remains beside people whose struggles do not end quickly.
Admonition and encouragement must operate together, with speech chosen to impart grace and burdens carried in community.
Because Christ loved and saved his enemies, believers reject retaliation and actively pursue the good of everyone.

Am I willing to restore a disorderly believer, or do I avoid hard conversations and call that love?
When I correct someone, is my goal to impart grace or to prove that I am right?
Who is fainthearted or weak and needs sustained encouragement rather than a quick solution?
Where am I keeping score and returning evil for evil in family, church, or work relationships?
How does Christ's patient love for me reshape the patience I extend to others?

Admonition: A loving warning intended to bring a disorderly brother or sister back into faithful Christian conduct.
Fainthearted: Those whose courage is diminished by grief, persecution, depression, or other heavy burdens.
Long-suffering: Patient love that refuses irritability and continues doing good when change is slow.
Non-retaliation: Refusing to answer injury with injury and instead seeking what is good for the offender and the wider community.