First Church Charlotte

June 28, 2020, | Pastor Nathan Elms It is impossible to understand Christianity without a deep, even theological understanding of love… God does not only give love; He is the source of love. As the Creator of all things (Genesis 1:1), He is the One who created love. It is because of His love that we are able to love. As 1 John 4:19 notes, "We love because he first loved us." Love is Heaven's why! As Christians, we have a dual role: 1.) To receive God’s love. 2.) Demonstrate that divine love We want to be used of God... but we don’t want to hurt too much... 1. If you love, you’ll hurt. But it’ll be worth it. 2. Pain isn’t spiritual dying. Pain is spiritual birthing. 3. Pain can be a portal to God’s power. The pearl inside has amazing beauty and holds great value– all because the oyster had great suffering.