0
Apple Sauce Kids

is a completely free, all volunteer (1-2 person) website that contains piles of free Christian materials for all ages, just copy, use and share. You can even put our materials on your website. Please pass them on for free. Generation after generation of volunteer sites like this one, create new materials and use new technologies to share God’s Word totally for free. We encourage you to do the same thing. We do not tract, pester, call, or communicate with you unless you contact us. You can contact us or donate the materials you have created at: askaplsauce@gmail.com

This lesson is 7 pages long
(Read all of 1 Cor. chapters 12-13 before starting)

1. AGAPE LOVE: the opposite of sin

      In a world of self-indulgence and greed, a Christian that lives the life of Love is a real contrast.

Where the Power to Love comes from:
     All of the gifts of the Spirit are supernaturally given to you by God. You cannot learn these gifts on your own. If you do not seek them, you will never find them. If you do not knock on God's door, looking for them, you will never obtain them (Matt. 7:7). While there are fakers, the real gifts only come from God. These gifts teach us all about learning to yield to God's will and this yielding to God's will, will lead you to the walk in love (I Cor. 12:28-1 Cor. 13:3). When you were young you learned to ride a tricycle, then you learned to ride a bicycle. Did you forget how to ride the tricycle? No. You just learned a better way. The Gifts of the Spirit teach you the basics of yielding to the will of the Spirit of God. They take you out of your comfort zone. They make you a better, more yielded, loving tool for God to use.

      Agape love is the Greek new testament words for Supernatural God anointed Love. Agape Love is the God filled anointing of Love that displays righteousness, compassion, power, and all of the Christ like characteristics that the world could never understand. In the King James Bible it is sometimes referred to as Charity. Agape is the perfected mature love that fills us with the inward peace and outward appearance of the resences of God. After all, isn't God the difference between believers and non believers (Matt. 22: 37-40, John 15: 1-17, 26-27 and John 14: 10-18)

Galatians 5:22-26
22But the fruit of the Spirit is (agape) love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faithfulness,
23Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.
24And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lust.
25If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.
26Let us not be desirous of vain glory, provoking one another, envying one another.

(Love is Longsuffering, gentleness, etc.; Romans 5: 5, 13: 8-10, 1 Cor. 8: 1-3)

     Loves' warfare with sin is continuous in a Christian life. The flesh constantly fighting against the Spirit and the Spirit against the flesh both vying for control of your life.

Galatians 6:8-18, 8For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting. 9And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not (don't quit). 10As we have there opportunity, let us do good unto all men, especially unto them who are of the household of faith. 16And as many as walk according to this rule, peace be on them, and mercy, and upon the Israel of God. (The Israel that follows God in truth and in Spirit.)
17From henceforth let no man trouble me for I bear in my body the marks of the Lord Jesus. 18brethren the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. Amen.

      Truer words could not have been written to describe the love walk we share with Christ. The love walk with Christ is born as a fruit of the Spirit, not of the flesh. These two realms or forces never mix, light never has fellowship with darkness nor does sin and deaths ever mix with life and the Spirit. Both cases are exact opposites. Have you noticed how many times the Word talks about operating in the Spirit and operating in Love in the same verse? Learning to operate in the Gifts of the Spirit are required to fully understand and fully operate in Agape Love.

1 Corinthians 12: 31, 31But earnestly desire the best gifts. And yet I show you a more excellent way.

1 Corinthians 13:1-3, 1Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I have become sounding brass or a clanging cymbal. 2And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. 3And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, but have not love, it profits me nothing.

Galatians 5: 14, 17
14This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh.
17For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that you cannot do the things that you would. (1 Corinthians 13:13)

     For "these are contrary" the one against the other. The Flesh attacking (lusteth against) the Spirit to stop it from doing the things it would or from manifesting itself in the fullest way possible. There are two ways to stop sinning, one is to fight the battle in your mind and try to control your flesh with your will, or you can make a determined decision to operate in love (Jesus Christ) by yielding to the Spirit.

Romans 6:, 17For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Note:
1. The fruit of the Spirit is the anointing of agape love. (Gal.5:22)
2. The fruit of agape love is life. (Gal. 6:8)
3. The fruit of the flesh is sin. (Gal. 6:8)
4. The fruit of sin is death. (Romans 6: 16)

     The flesh fights against the Spirit in order to bring on spiritual death. But your will, to serve God or not, makes the difference. If you want to serve God then you "will" not to yield to the lust (driving force or pressure of the flesh.)

Romans 6: , 16Know you not, that to whom you yield yourselves servant to obey, his servants you are to whom you obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness?

Agape love makes you aware of your righteousness, not of your sin, because it is an anointing from God.

(Mark 5: 16-21, 2 Tim. 2: 1-26)

      There are five major ways or types of attacks the devil will use on your mind (flesh) to get you to fall: affliction, persecution, cares of this world, deceitfulness of riches, and the lust of other things. Each of them leads to sin if you yield to them. You will not be successful unless you make a quality decision for Christ.

(Mark 4: 1-20; Luke 8: 1-15; Romans 12:21; 1 John 4:4; Isa. 54:14-15)

Mark 4:14-19
14The sower soweth the word.
15And these are they by the way side, where the word is sown; but when they have heard, Satan cometh immediately, and taketh away the word that was sown in their hearts.
16And these are they likewise which are sown on stony ground; who, when they have heard the word, immediately receive it with gladness;
17And have no root in themselves, and so endure but for a time: afterward, when affliction or persecution ariseth for the words's sake, immediately they are offended.(stumble)
18And these are they which are sown among thorns; such as hear the word,
19And the cares of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, and the lust of other things entering in choke the word, and it becometh unfruitful. (Romans 10:8-17)

     You will never walk this walk without first making a quality decision for Christ to actually walk the walk, not just talk the talk.

(Romans 12:21, 1 John 4: 4, Isa. 54: 14-15, Romans 10: 8-17)

   Satan may try these tricks on us, but God gave us a stronger weapon to defeat him with "Jesus", after all God is Love. When God gave his son for us, he gave us his love full and uncompromised -TOTAL LOVE.

1 Corinthians 13: 1-8 (paraphrased Amp. Bible)

Gods' anointing of Agape Love is:

     long suffering + patient + kindness + is not envious + is not jealous + is not vain or boastful + does not display itself haughtily + is not conceited or arrogant + is not inflated with pride + is not rude + does not act unbecomingly + does not insist on its own rights or its own way, for it is not self-seeking + it is not touchy or fretful or resentful + it takes no account of the evil done to it and pays no attention to a suffered wrong + it does not rejoice at injustice and unrighteousness, but rejoices when right and truth prevail + bears all things + believes the best of every person + its hopes are fadeless under all circumstances and it endures everything without weakening + it never fails.

     Agape love is all of these parts together at the same time - nothing missing. All of our actions can be tested against this definition. If anything we do fails even one part of the Love definition, we have sinned. We may be walking in something that looks like the God kind of love, but it's only a figure or a form of God's kind of love. Never the fullness of the kind of love God would have you to walk in, AGAPE LOVE. Agape love is love unfeigned (2 Cor. 6:6), love with out respect to person or place or time or condition, always the same, never changing, never the worldly kind of love.

2 Corinthians 6:14
14Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? And what communion hath lights with darkness?

     To love in darkness is halfhearted, partial, seeking gain in return for your love. It's worldly love.

2. God's interactive love

John 14:15-16, 23-24
15If you Agapao love me, keep my commandments.
16And I will pray the Father, and he will give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever;
23Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man loves me, he will keep my words: my Father will (Agapao)love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.
24He that (Agapao) loveth me not keepeth not my sayings: and the (anointed)word which you hear is not mine, but the Father's which sent me.

(Love teaches the basics of operating in the anointing of the Spirit)

     Agapao is the Greek word for the love of your heart, whatever condition it is in. In Christians, it's the Love that comes from a new recreated God filled heart and grows up and becomes agape love. When God operates in Agapao love He reaches out to us in a compassionate or social form of the word Agapao (Matt.7:7-11). Gods' Agapao love for us comes from the fact that Jesus has suffered in the flesh all of the things that we suffer today. He has truly been there and He does understand the torment and fleshly pressure that we go through. Believers operate Agapao love out of the abundance of their new recreated heart which acknowledges that baby Christian love still needs to grow and mature to become perfect. He still needs to renew his mind and bring his flesh under control. Walking in (agape)love is the result of fellowshipping or interacting with the Father, Son, and the Holy Ghost that abide (live) in you on a constant basis. This constant interaction with God and His Word are essential to walking a perfect walk with God. Sinners can also operating in Agapao Love out of the fullness of their hardened heart. That can be seen in Luke 6: 32, 45; 1 John 2:15-16, and Luke 11: 43.

     A double minded person is a person that bounces back and forth between Agapao love and the flesh, Spirit filled love and sin. Never establishing or committing themselves completely, to walk in God's love or any other part of God's word.

James 1:7-18
7For let not that man think that he shall receive anything of the Lord.
8A double-minded man is unstable in all his ways.
12Blessed is the man that endureth temptation: for when he is tried (and wins), he shall received the (victors)crown of Life, which the Lord hath promised to them that (Agapao)love him.
13Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man: (because that would be sin)
14But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away (1) of his own lust, and (2) enticed. (by the devil or others) The devil uses five kinds of attacks to entice you into sin: afflictions, persecution, cares of this world, the deceitfulness of riches, and the lust of other things. (Mark 4: 14-19)
15Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death.(Remember, agape love is the opposite of sin and only happens in your life when you yield completely to God and He lives through you.)
16Do not err, my beloved brethren.
17Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights (God), with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning. (He always operates in love.)
18Of his own will begat he us with the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures (sons and daughters).

James 2:1, 8-13
1My brethren, have not the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, with respect of persons.
8If you fulfill the royal law according to the scripture, You shalt (Agapao) love your neighbor as yourself, you do well:
9But if you have respect to persons, you commit sin, and are convinced of the law as transgressors.
10For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all.
11For he that said, do not commit adultery, said also, Do not kill. Now if you commit no adultery, Yet if you kill, you are become a transgressor of the law.
12So speak you, and so do, as they that shall be judged by the law of liberty.
13For he shall have judgment without mercy, that has shown no mercy; and mercy rejoiceth against judgment.

(Mercy is the opposite of judgment. Mercy is reserved for those who walk in love, and judgment for those who walk in sin.)

1 John 5:10-12
10He that believeth on the Son of God hath the witness in himself: he that believeth not God hath made him a liar; because he believeth not the record that God gave of his Son.
11And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son.
(full and complete)

12He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life.

(You can continue down to verse 20 then 1 John 5:16-18)

    This is the record that God gave of his Son, that Jesus came to give us life, and to give us life more abundant. Pray with me now and fill your life with Life.

     Father, I do believe that Jesus Christ died on the cross for my sins and that he was raised the third day. Lord, I pray that you would forgive me of my sins for I forgive all those that have sinned against me. Lord Jesus, please come into my heart and guide me, fill me with your Holy Spirit, give me the strength to withstand anything the Devil can throw at me, and mold me into what you would have me to be, I pray in Jesus name, Amen.

Congratulations you are now a new creature in Christ! Well done!

3. Love and Corruption

     Simon Peter is probably the best example of a troubled love walk in the New Testament. He had some of the most glaring successes and failures in the New Testament. He shows us the successes that come with walking in love, and the failures that come from the flesh.

John 15:7 7If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, you shall ask what you will, and it shall be done unto you.

("if" indicates uncertainty, do you live in Christ?)

John 16:1 1These things have I spoken unto you, that you should not be offended.

      Jesus warned us of the five kinds of attacks that we can expect so stand ready to defend yourself with the word. Remember we covered Mark 4: 16-20 earlier.

      Peter's successes covered a multitude of things in his life. Some of which are shown in Acts chapters 3-4-5. We see him heal the man that was lame from birth, teach salvation to the Jews, become imprisoned with John, and confront Ananias and Sapphira, giving glory to God at every corner, but He also had his problems. Regular people have problems also, but it's how you handle them that count. Do you handle them in love or in the corruption of the flesh? Peter tried both ways in the confronting of his problems and came back to love every time. Remember Love (Jesus) never fails. Love never failed for Jesus and it will never fail for you!

4. Love and Prayer

     Love is an essential ingredient for prayer. Love supplies the communication or Love line with God. The Love line activates your faith and gets things done while sin breaks this line of communication. Remember sin is the opposite of scriptural agape Love and has no fellowship with it. (1 John 3: 18-24; James 1: all; Romans 8: 11-17; Heb. 12: 2-17, and 2 Tim. 3: 1-17)

     Note: There is no connection or fellowship between the love walk and the sin walk. You are either operating in one or the other.(Isaiah 59: 1-2)

      The recreated spirit is a love filled and powered spirit. Your old spirit was a sin filled and dead spirit. You lose your old sinful spirit at salvation. Salvation is when you should start renewing your mind by feeding it the word of God. Your mind and your will are part of your soul. As you renew your mind by feeding it the word, you bring your self, your will in line with God. You change your will to God's will. As long as you WILL to operate in love, and yield to the spirit of God, you can have what you say. Operating in the flesh or sin disconnects your love communication line. Repentance reconnects you. The time you spend in sin is lost.

      God cannot act in your behalf while you operate in sin. Remember, God will never leave you, but you can leave him. It is all a matter of your WILL. (Also read 1 Cor. 3: 12-17.)

Jude:17-21
17But, beloved, remember ye the words which were spoken before of the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ;
18How that they told you there should be mockers in the last time, who should walk after their own ungodly lust.
19These be they who separate themselves, sensual, having not the Spirit.
      (God doesn't separate them. They do it themselves by operating in their will not Gods' will.)

20But ye, beloved, building up yourselves on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Ghost,
      (and you're the one that decides to take the time to pray in the Spirit.)
21(you) Keep yourselves in the (agape)love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life.
      (keeping yourself in the love of God is your decision. You're the one that decides that you're going to walk in love, not God.)

DEFINITIONS:
1. Mental assent is thinking that you are operating in love even when you're not.
      ( It's a form of self-righteousness.)
2. Condemnation is excessive or undue guilt directed at yourself or others.

      Mental assent and condemnation are a very powerful one two punch in the hands of Satan. First the Devil gets you to sin, then he pumps you up with feelings of self-righteousness, and gets you to pray great prayers, sometimes placing you and the public in jeopardy by the words that come out of your mouth. Then he hits you with extreme amounts of condemnation when your prayers don't come to pass. All the time it's really your fault not Gods that your prayers don't get answered. After all, you're the one that decided to operate in sin, but rejoice for our God is not a God of confusion and has made a way for you to know when you're correctly in a tune with him through the inward witness. The Holy Spirit of God, the comforter and teacher.

5. Love is knowing God loves you.

1 John 4:6-18 (also Colossians 3:14-16)
6We are of God: he that knoweth God heareth us; he that is not of God heareth not us. Hereby know we the spirit of truth, and the spirit of error. (Notice that it takes Spirit filled love.)
7Beloved, let us (Agapao) love one another: for (agape) love is of God; and every one that (Agapao) loveth is born of God, and knoweth God.
8He that (Agapao) loveth not knoweth not God; for God is (agape)love,
9In this was manifested the (agape)love of God toward us, because that God sent his; only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him.
10Here in is (agape)love, not that we (Agapao)loved God, but that he (Agapao)loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.

      (How can God Agapao Love us? Because He has suffered in the flesh all of the things that we suffered. He has been there. He does understand what we are going through and we should understand what other people are going through because we have been there and have suffered too.)

11Beloved, if God so (Agapao) loved us, we ought also to (Agapao)love one another.
12No man hath seen God at any time. If we (agape)love one another, God dwelleth in us, and his (Agapao) love is perfected (or matured) in us.
13Hereby know we that we dwell in him, and he in us, because (1) he hath given us of his Spirit.(This is how the Spirit tells us that we are saved)
14(2) And we have seen and do testify that the Father sent the Son to be the Savior of the world.
15Whosoever shall confess that Jesus is the Son of God, God dwelleth in him, and he in God,
16(3) And we have known and believed the (agape)love that God hath to us. God is (agape)love;(4) and he that dwelleth in (agape)love dwelleth in God, and God in him.
17(5) Herein is our (agape)love made perfect(or mature), that we may have boldness in the day of judgement: because as he is(now), so are we (to be now) in this world. (Victorious, with the enemy totally defeated, continually pulling the lost up out of the depths of sin and sorrow.)
18(6) There is no fear in (agape)love: but perfect (agape)love casteth out fear: because; fear hath torment. (God tempts no man) He that feareth is not made perfect in (the agape Love, anointed personality of God )love.


6. Faith works or is powered by this anointing of Agape Love

James 2:15-17
15If a brother or sister be naked, and destitute of daily food,
16And one of you say unto them, depart in peace, be ye warmed and filled; not withstanding ye give them not those things which are needfull to the body; what doth it profit?
17Even so faith, if it hath not works (of love), is dead, being alone. Faith without love is dead.

      Love reaches out in the form of compassion to meet the needs of others. The works that are done for works sake are dead, the faith that really works comes from love. (Gal. 5:4-6) Christ, our example, continually reached out to others in Love and healing.

Galatians 5:4-6
4Christ is become of no effect unto you, whosoever of you are justified by the law (works); ye are fallen from grace.
5For we through the Spirit wait for the hope of righteousness by faith.
6For in Jesus Christ neither circumcision (works) availeth anything, nor uncircumcision; but faith which worketh by love. (the word worketh means: energizer)

7. Love and Salvation

2 Peter 1:
1Simon Peter, a servant and an apostle of Jesus Christ, to them that have obtained like precious faith with us through the righteousness of God and our Savior Jesus Christ:

(This is the Agapao Love filled new Christian)

2Grace and peace be multiplied unto you through the knowledge of God, and of Jesus our Lord,
3According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue:
4Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises; that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature (His Love nature), having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust (a driving force or pressure).
5And besides this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge;
6And to knowledge self-control and to self-control endurance; and to endurance godliness;
7And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness (agape) Love.

(This is the mature Agape Love Christian)

8For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be idle nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.

(His divine nature is available to you now. You can walk in it as soon as you learn to yield to it.)

9But he that lacketh these things is blind, and cannot see afar off, and hath forgotten that he was cleansed from his old sins.

(operating in Agape Love makes you aware of your righteousness).

10So then the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and relationship with God sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall:

(if you don't you could fall)

11For so an entrance shall be given to you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Apple Sauce Kids

(English Only)

Notes from the author: This lesson "AGAPE LOVE: the opposite of sin" was written and distributed by: Apple Sauce Kids on the Internet at https://applesaucekids.com. or we can be E-mailed at askaplsauce@gmail.com


     Please feel free to use this lesson: copy, teach, translate into other languages, place on the Internet and electronic Bulletin Boards, and distribute for non profit personal ministry reasons, as often as you wish. Yes, you can copy this lesson and use it on your web site, but please leave these Notes from the author with the lesson. Freely you have received this lesson, and freely you should give it to someone else.    (written about 1977 and updated several times, May 29, 2014)