Do Not Love
by Raymond Sloan
July 25, 2021 · Cornerstone Apostolic Church (Chattanooga, TN)
Kind: sermon
Scripture: 2 Corinthians 4:7-12, 1 John 2:15-17, Colossians 3:2

Source: https://acts238.life/repository/sermons/raymond-sloan--do-not-love
Published by Acts 2:38 Life from the sermon transcript on that page.
Free to copy and share with attribution.

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we're going to the word of the lord and we all we all desire to belong to something don't we it's one of the one of the indeed one of the greatest needs as humans that we feel is we want to be attached to something right in our everyday living we we are seeking acceptance from others i mean that's why we dress the way we do that's why we do the things we do that's why we have the habits that we have and so forth is because we're trying to find our place i don't believe anybody in here enjoys being an outcast anybody love just just tell everybody looking at you and saying i don't like you go away even if they don't open their mouth but you know that's what they're thinking no nobody nobody likes now i will say i'll be the first to say i thoroughly enjoy quiet and solitude y'all know that about me i like the peace and quiet i do i can spend hours with quiet and and and when i'm driving and y'all know my wife she's she's excellent because she sleeps well i don't need the radio i don't need distract i just quiet just listen to nothing that is so nice the fact is is that all of us even though we we may enjoy the the solitude at times in the quiet there there's something about us that we want to belong to others we want to know about them we want to know about what they're going through maybe here's an interesting thought that i've had multiple times in my life and i still wonder about many times people who who work together every day anybody here have a job come on don't be embarrassed come on lift your hand huh how how long are you on that job eight nine ten eleven twelve hours twenty fifty whatever right and while you're on that job whether it's at a desk or on the line or in the vehicle whatever that is what are you talking about typically anyone work what else life situation right i mean you've got eight nine 10 11 hours right well here's my question i've often pondered what do you do the next day because you've already talked about everything on monday i mean there's not that much happening in your life so wait wait did didn't we hear this story yesterday no you had to jump something i got nothing now that's it i mean here here we are we we want to connect with others because when we connect with others whether we have something to say or not we want to be included right what we are trying to do on the job the past the children that were whatever happens to be in our lives we are trying to find a way to connect and to belong where we are nobody wants to be alone all the time that's why that there are ball games and there are get togethers and there are family times and reunions and there are sunday work day uh meetings and then there's work days and then there's car washes and then there's stuff going on all the time it's because as humans we desire the interaction look at your neighbor say i'm glad that i know you huh the fact of the matter is somehow we are trying to connect we are trying to attach ourselves and have value that we add to those that we are around now we all want to have value don't we how much value do you have some of you would say i'm worth a million dollars no seth that's not true i've said often about my kids i wouldn't i wouldn't take a million dollars for my children i wouldn't give a dime for another one like them but i wouldn't take a million for them you know what i'm saying why because they add to life they put into life and we want to support each other we want to help the needy we want to support the orphans for an example we want to give coats to the homeless we want to feed the poor and the those that are under privileged all because we're trying to find a way where we can get out of ourselves and connect with other people we want to add value to someone else we don't want to get to the end of life i've said many times and have no value we want to know that we made a difference this is again a very interesting point i'd like to bring out when you're talking to somebody people that you know why isn't it that when we're in conversation with other people why don't we say hey see that guy over there the one wearing blue jeans yeah he was in the third grade with john from our golf week or a golf outing last week yeah that guy right over there what does that mean to anyone standing there listening to that conversation hey you see that young lady over there with that red shirt on yeah she has a third grade teacher does that mean anything the stop signs have eight sides it's it's unattached it's not connected now if you knew that lady in the red shirt and you mentioned you had this big long story different story but otherwise off times in conversation my kids as i just randomly throw things out of the red truck come off the right of the sign coming above the wall and door didn't you see it i don't know what you just said why because it's not attached hang on to me hang on to me hang on to it it sounds disconnected the people think you've lost your mind because you don't attach what you're speaking about to anything as humans we realize that we need one another i wish you'd turn right now just turn to somebody that's close to you maybe they're across the room i know but maybe they need to hear you for this one tell them how much you appreciate them for who they are and what they add to your life would you do that right now come on tell somebody go ahead tell them how much that you are thankful that they are in your life and how much they add to you hey come on take advantage of it this might be the only opportunity in a safe space where you can say it not get smacked not be misunderstood we feel comfortable we feel engaged when we communicate those types of words and affirmation to those that we love and that we appreciate because it makes us feel better it makes us as humans to feel complete it solidifies our connection with those closest to us we got to feel loved we got to feel like they love us and that we love them now you're in the middle of the church house and so some of you just a moment ago felt a bit of guilt because you didn't want to be caught lying in church but the fact of the matter is the anybody who will love others connect with others your life will become full of them and those they're connected to and the ability to appreciate them for the differences and for the things going on in their lives will add to your lives listen to me carefully if sister stacy never receives another prayer request she would be so sad why she won't have anything to do and we all laugh because that's silly because everybody's got a need to pray about that means we're human that means some of y'all got issues that means we need each other there's a connection that will bind us together i know that if we were outside the church house things might be just a little bit different for an example for an example just a few moments ago i asked you to look at those closest to you and tell them how much you appreciate them how much they add value to your life and everybody was okay with that right here's the challenge for the week go to your job tomorrow and do the same thing to them everybody's gone come on tell that big old burly ugly guy on the line next to you man i love you you're you're a man love them arms huh what would they say you'd be thought of as foolish maybe come on i'm not i know so i mean i don't know no better because my brain works different maybe but there have been times on the job i love you whoa well you better back off man because five minutes earlier they were using language that was there or something like that when i said that you know what they did i'm i ain't talking to him no more and i'm like now i got solitude back how would your co-workers respond to your affirmation of them the fact is you might work with them but you may or may not be connected to them it's amazing to me that on the job hear me just for a moment any workplace that the guys around you would say hey i'm going down so-and-so tonight to get something to drink you want to go with me and they have no shame whatsoever inviting you to come and indulge with them turn it around hey buddy i'm going to church house tonight i want to invite you to come with me boom you just stepped over the line why because that place they don't have to connect they have to pay the tab this place you're going to connect because you get in here and a soul walks through any of these doors and says i don't feel a thing in here there's an anointing in an unction that moves in the church we need one another we need one another we need to have something that connects us to one another as christians we know that that connecting point is the name above every name jesus oh somebody say his name right now do you feel him in the house right now jesus i know that you're here it is because of him that we are connected one to another otherwise there might not be so many things that we would have in common you hear me but i can talk to a lot of you and i can say it 11 12 years old i was baptized in jesus name filled with the holy ghost at a junior high youth camp and some of y'all start spouting out yeah i did the same it was at an altar it was on tuesday night and you can begin to tell the story of how the lord touched you hear what i'm saying because of that there is something that happens in the body of christ listen to me carefully we are not an elite club of sophisticated snobbies that are better than anyone else no friend you and i have the ability as individuals to connect with the highest to the lowest come on you can sit down with any king on earth any president any doctor any lawyer and you can take them down to the homeless guy living under a bridge and you get the power of jesus working it is going to be the same between each one of them why because the lord god will tear down every boundary and every border as you begin to connect with him that's what happens to us as we celebrate the power because we are like-minded we are of like precious faith there is something that begins to happen not any of us are perfect we hurt and we cry we suffer and we struggle we fight the war every day come on hear me we understand what it's like to have thoughts and to be tried in a battle we understand that it is difficult at times just to raise your hands we understand that it is a challenge sometimes to unbutton our top button but suffice it to say if you'll ever fall in love with jesus things become different your vision becomes clear your purpose becomes established and you realize i'm connected to the best thing going on planet earth and that is the church of the living god i can walk into any church that's worship in the name of jesus and as i lift my hands and begin to declare the goodness of the lord something happens i hear this preacher you can go into any other church that's not truly worshiping the one true god and there's nothing why it is the name of jesus that we suffer it is because of the name of jesus that were pushed away but i stand here today i would much rather please a holy god than an earth of men who don't understand him listen to me carefully second corinthians a letter written to the church chapter number four verse number seven but we have this treasure in earthen vessels that the excellency of the power may be of god and not of us hear this we are troubled on every side not distressed we are perplexed but not in despair persecuted but not forsaken cast down but not destroyed always bearing about in the body the dying of the lord jesus that the life also of jesus might be made manifest in our body for we which live are always delivered unto death for jesus sake that the life also of jesus might be made manifest in our mortal flesh paul writing to the church at corinth he was identifying with the church people we make choices every day we make decisions in spite of where we are or what the conditions are in which we are located at that moment but the lord jesus christ is seen in us on us and through us that jesus can be glorified and magnified in all of life's situations there are going to be troubles for a child of god there's always going to be a struggle here this preacher but the struggle has no value if you can't get it faced on and go through it to the other side listen to me you'll never know the victory of the midnight dark night until the dawning of a new day to realize god came through for you his he was able to do it and he was able to come through for you i believe that as we as apostolics as people of god as those even just simply understand the name of jesus as we worship in this moment we know that we are blessed if you're blessed say i'm blessed come on shout it i'm blessed we then can bless others someone say i bless somebody else why because we are connected but we're all reminded that the future we have is in jesus christ it is in his power it is in his promise it is in what he does and what he has done in our lives listen to me as you lift your hands in praise as you sing songs and talk about the power that he has what you are doing is you are connecting with him as you connect with those around you as we connect with him we then begin to walk in his love we now have to face the reality of who he is he is love and he works in us and the good things that you may share with your neighbor or your co-worker or those around you and your family or in the church it can be seen the fingerprint of god working in you we have to be challenged at times do we not come on is there anyone here that's willing to just simply say i love you lord say it but what about when things don't look so good what about when darkness seems super dark and you feel like you're dragging because you can't get your feet under you would you still say i love you lord what about when the one sitting next to you who ought to know what you're going through and they don't are you still willing to say in spite of it i love you lord see in the good times it's easy when the prayer is answered it's easy when god comes through it's easier what about in the challenge something has to happen when you pray is there anything that is not worth taking to god in prayer no everything that goes on in our lives we can approach him everything that happens in our family on our job with our health with our finances with what we have and don't have we can approach him i will submit to you today that the trials and the pressures of life many times as a way of deterring us from god's purpose in us hear me that's why we must always remain in a position of prayer a comfort and a familiarity of contacting him when we were told by the old apostle to pray without ceasing ceasing is not a name of a person it is though in fact a condition of the mind and the heart i will pray i will talk to god i will i will i will there must reside upon your lips a purpose and a pretense of prayer lord i will speak to you in midnight day time whenever it is listen to me the fear of speaking the name of jesus better not ever overtake you no reluctancy to call on the name above every name but you maintain that connection between him and you you will always have the power and the authority and the anointing to be able to talk to your creator notice a letter written in our bible first john chapter 2 verse number 15 simply says this love not the world neither the things that are in the world if any man love the world the love of the father is not in him for all that is in the world hear it lust of the flesh lust of the eyes the pride of life is not of the father but is of the world the world passeth away the lust thereof but he that doeth the will of god abideth forever i stand at this podium today and i simply declare to you do not love the world do not allow the affections of your heart to change for the things of this world there is no time in this hour here this preacher for you to decide that it is safer to depend on the things on earth than the things of god because what you will find happening first listen to me as you will disconnect with those in the family because as you disconnect with them you are disconnecting from god love not the world listen to me i went to the jewish bible i tell you i have a stack of bibles like it's a joy on sundays and on thursday whenever for me to get off my chair in my office and go into my closet that's got my bookcase and uh this morning i said thank you lord for this trip and i took seven steps over to my bookcase and i pull off the shelf my jewish bible it's the translation and i laid it down and i went first john chapter 2 verse 16 because all the things of the world the desires of the old nature the desires of the eyes and the pretensions of life are not from the father but from the world the desires of the old nature the desire to revert back to what you gave up there's some of you sitting under the sound of my voice right now and for whatever reason you have allowed the enemy to plug your ears but i am pleading with you for this moment do not think for one moment that what you had to give up to be a part of the family of god is bigger than the family of god i have said multiple times and i'll say it again today i know what it's like to give up six figures in finances but i would rather as my precious dear wife said to me when we married i will live with you under a bridge as long as i'm with you now it's easier when you have money but that money can drive you crazy does anybody know anyone who won the multi-million dollar lottery me neither you know why because they can't connect with anyone they're afraid because of what they may be asked of i dare say that there's probably an enti i don't know probably the probably 95 of everyone in this room right now brother horton stand up please right now this young man could come to you with all humility and say i have a need can you help me and everybody in this room would do anything you could do to help him wouldn't you you know why because you connect now if he came to you 45 times experience would take over and your attitude would change thank you listen to me listen to me listen to me desires of old nature that old lifestyle that you had to give up so many times can pull you back to it because you don't know how to trust god for the next step forward then the desires of the eyes what you see man if i just had that or if i could get that or if i lived there if i drove that or if i wore this or if i had that job or whatever it is and that will begin to distract you from those that are around you but this is the one that came to me and i never realized this meaning until i began to dig deeper into the pretensions of life follow me for just a moment please the definition of pretension is simply this laying claim to do not allow the desires of your old nature the desires of your eyes and laying claim to the things of life keep you from going to heaven you better make up within your mind right now lord everything that you have allowed me to have here on earth what i live in what i drive what i wear how i look and what i do is because of you therefore when the time comes and that trumpet sounds and it's gonna sound i said it's gonna sound i'm telling you it's going to sound and at that moment you can have anything and everything that i'd have because it will mean nothing to me i will have every in everything in my heart and in my mind will be to say lord the trumpet sound and guess what my next steps gonna be on streets of glory therefore what i have given up on earth means nothing compared to that i'm talking to somebody today and i'm telling you colossians again paul wrote to the church there and he told them chapter 3 verse 2 set your affection on things above not on things on the earth set your affections on things above your life is but a vapor it is so short it is going to come and go but oh if you'll put your love and your affection on the things of god if you wake up in the morning and say this is the day the lord has made identify from the first breath it's from god it's from his hand it's because of him it's due him therefore every step i take today god is going to be of you i am setting on purpose my affections on the things above i don't care what this world listen it's going to do what it's going to do they're going to say what they want to say the government's going to have what they're going to have things are going to happen i realize we live on earth we have to stand for what we believe but you listen to this preacher you'll never win a battle by yourself but if the church will ever rise to the occasion and say i plead the blood of jesus over this congregation i plead the blood of jesus over my city i plead the blood of jesus over this nation i rebuke the hand of the enemy devil you're a liar you're a liar and the father of lies but righteousness will exalt a nation and they can overcome the hand of the evil one now i've come to declare to you today do not love the things of the world but let them go stand with me please life is so short but when you invest in heavenly things heaven lasts forever don't love this world do not love this world don't put your mind to the things past don't put your heart to the things and claim the things on earth now i realize as humans because we are so always bent on building a relationship and connecting i know that many times that is what gives us our worth our value i'm a doctor i'm a lawyer i'm a carpenter i'm a nerd whatever it is and that that gives us identity doesn't it and i don't know how you introduce yourself to others but many times folk will ask me so so what do you do where should i start it's always intriguing of course i'm in a very different position than many of most of you but when i say to them i'm a pastor and then i have a side job of taking care of my wife but i have my own business i you know they rarely said rare i mean almost never do they ask me about my business or my wife but they almost always say oh you're a pastor yeah oh sorry sorry i was cussing in front of you i said you weren't cussing in front of me what are you trying to say because i know who's here in here oh no yet it's so funny so it's such a joy to know god such a joy job i've been working the last few weeks the gc the contractor a mouth that is just so wicked if you will if you're watching i love you hang on walks into one of the courtrooms the other day and i mean it's just i'm working by myself quiet and he stops and looks up took off his hard hat he said i really do need to clean up my language don't i i said no you can't help it he said what do you mean i said all that is is what's inside is coming out and he said you're absolutely right absolutely right so the guy behind him thought he'd save the day we're gonna have to have a bible study ain't we i said you know what that's a good idea which version you're going to use there's versions i said well yeah well we'll use we'll use the the new king james version he said that's that's a good one just stay away from the rick james version some of y'all young folk don't have a clue about that he said well you think it'll change us bro you don't even know you don't even know brother lorenzo you get the word on your job what'll happen all this stuff will just start just cracking and breaking and all because they're building it on the sinking sand but you get the rock in there they'll begin to realize some don't come up against me listen to me you connect don't love the things of this world but you love jesus take him on your job allow them to see his hand working in your life share the word with them lift your hands to god pray over your food in front of them pray for if somebody says hey mom's got an issue come on guy told me a few weeks ago said i i gotta go out visit my mom she's sick i said what's her name he told me i said what's wrong with her and he told me and i said is it okay if i pray for he looked at me he said why sure i said then jesus you know lord this city's just standing there staring at me i don't know where it's i don't know how but god you can he will and i know that you can intervene in jesus name he said well thank you well a month and a half later i see him on this job first thing i see when i come walking in he's on the job i walk up and he's just got his mind on work and i said how's your mom he stops how'd you remember that i said because i prayed for her he said thank you for asking she's out of the hospital she's reading she's now this she's now that he said i think prayer works i said i know prayer works why would we be surprised to see renee when god comes through why would it shock us when the answer unfolds come on you connected with god you know god can make a way you know that he's the answer to everything in your life then you ought to praise him in the midnight at the church house out on the street on your child give the lord god praise don't love the world more than you love him pray with me right now jesus we love you and we call upon your name you are the only ones true living wise god right now i speak a word of faith into this place lord i ask that your anointing would destroy any yoke that has someone bound today let the glory of the lord god work in this house fill somebody with your glorious spirit let them speak with new tongues as the spirit gives utterances refill someone today that's grown cold in you god allow them to see that they need you more than the things of this world in jesus name somebody say in jesus name this altar is open right now if you need the lord god working in your life you get out of your chair and come come on you need the holy ghost you need a healing you need a renewing in the holy when's the last time you spoke in tongues when's the last time that god came in and breathed new life into you come on they're going to sing a song you come and pray this altar is open right now come on let the love of the things of this world let them go