Week 3 - Love in Motion 02/15/2026

Devotional

Day 1: Love is a movement, not just a feeling.

True love is not a passive emotion but an active force that compels us into motion. It is the very essence of the church's identity, alive and dynamic. This love reflects the heart of Christ, who stepped into our brokenness to serve. It is meant to be a lifestyle, transforming our intentions into tangible acts of grace. Our faith is proven not by our words, but by the movement of our hands and feet. [53:51]

“Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth.” (1 John 3:18 NIV)

Reflection: Consider a recent moment when you felt compassion for someone. What was one practical, tangible step you could have taken to move that feeling into a loving action?

Day 2: Serving others is serving Christ Himself.

Jesus makes the radical claim that when we care for the vulnerable, we are directly serving Him. He identifies with the hungry, the thirsty, the stranger, and the imprisoned. Our acts of compassion are not merely social good; they are a reflection of Christ's incarnational love. This truth elevates every act of service into a sacred encounter with the divine. [01:04:59]

“The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’” (Matthew 25:40 NIV)

Reflection: Who are the "overlooked or ignored" people in your sphere of influence? How might seeing your next act of service for them as an act of service for Jesus change your motivation?

Day 3: Faith without tangible action is incomplete.

Genuine, living faith will always produce visible fruit. It moves beyond intellectual agreement into a life marked by compassionate obedience. A faith that does not result in feeding the hungry, clothing the needy, or visiting the imprisoned is questioned by scripture. Our works are the evidence of the transformative faith that resides within us. [01:28:17]

“In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.” (James 2:17 NIV)

Reflection: Where is there a gap between what you say you believe and the actions your life demonstrates? What is one area where God might be inviting you to make your faith more tangible this week?

Day 4: Compassion without action is merely emotion.

It is possible to feel deep concern yet never translate that feeling into meaningful help. Good intentions alone do not fulfill the call of Christ-like love. The story of the pastor and the freezing man illustrates that true love moves us from bringing coffee to ultimately opening doors and providing shelter. Love must be embodied to be authentic. [59:42]

“Suppose a brother or a sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to them, ‘Go in peace; keep warm and well fed,’ but does nothing about their physical needs, what good is it?” (James 2:15-16 NIV)

Reflection: Think of a need you are aware of in your community. What is one thing holding you back from moving from feeling compassion to taking action?

Day 5: Our everyday lives demonstrate our faith.

The final judgment Jesus describes is not based on a single moment but on the evidence of a transformed life. Our daily routines and choices reveal the authenticity of our connection to Christ. The kingdom of heaven belongs to those whose Monday-through-Saturday lives are marked by the tangible compassion of serving the least of these. [01:10:40]

“Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.” (Matthew 25:46 NIV)

Reflection: When you consider the pattern of your everyday life, what does it demonstrate about what you truly value? How does your routine need to shift to better reflect the upside-down values of God's kingdom?

Sermon Summary

Matthew 25 reframes love as an active, incarnational force rather than a mere feeling. Agape love must show up in flesh: compassion must move from heart to hands and feet. The passage highlights concrete acts—feeding the hungry, giving drink to the thirsty, welcoming strangers, clothing the needy, tending the sick, and visiting the imprisoned—as the visible evidence that Christ’s presence walks among humanity. Those acts do not earn salvation; they reveal transformed identity and mark genuine followers. The text presents a stark end-time scene where nations gather and the son of man separates people like a shepherd separates sheep from goats. The distinction hinges on compassion made tangible: the sheep inherit the kingdom because their mercy reflected Christ’s incarnational mission, while neglect becomes an indictment with eternal consequences.

James 2 sharpens the point: faith that remains inert proves lifeless. True faith produces lasting fruit—serving the overlooked, building bridges to the vulnerable, and standing for those without a voice. Kindness functions as the church’s witness; good works do not replace the gospel but display its reality to a watching world. Practical steps follow: replace passive sympathy with intentional service, join outreach, serve with family and small groups, and confront systemic evils such as human trafficking and care for the unborn. The church must cultivate a culture of kindness so that its credibility grows and compassion becomes habitual.

The call moves beyond warm feelings to concrete commitments. Compassion without action remains emotion; love with skin on transforms communities and reveals Christ. The closing summons listeners to examine daily choices—Monday through Saturday—and to transition from a posture of comfort and indifference to one of sacrificial service. The outcome determines both community witness and eternal destiny: embodied mercy aligns lives with kingdom values, and a life that refuses to serve risks standing separated when the King comes. The response asked is immediate: a willing heart turned toward action, visible faith that serves, and a church known not only for belief but for active, redeemed love.

Key Takeaways

1. Love must have skin on True divine love never remains theoretical; it demands incarnation in everyday acts. When compassion moves into concrete service—feeding, clothing, visiting—it mirrors Christ’s own movement into brokenness and validates spiritual identity. Making love tangible protects against sentimental Christianity that feels but never changes behavior. Intentional acts of mercy shape moral character and reveal allegiance to the kingdom. [68:44]
2. Serving others serves Christ Acts of care to the overlooked do not merely help people; they encounter the incarnate Lord himself. Seeing the vulnerable as proxies for Christ flips human value systems and makes ministry unavoidable rather than optional. Service becomes worship when it flows from recognition that the face of Jesus appears in need. That discovery reorders priorities and uproots self-centered comfort. [64:40]
3. Faith without deeds is dead A faith that produces no tangible compassion carries the marks of inactivity, not salvation. Genuine belief translates into visible fruit: feeding the hungry, defending the voiceless, and visiting the imprisoned testify to inner transformation. The presence of works does not substitute grace; it authenticates it. Living faith refuses to remain theoretical and moves the body into ministry. [89:10]
4. Kindness reveals upside-down kingdom values Kingdom ethics prize the last, the least, and the overlooked, exposing worldly measures of success as misplaced. Acts of mercy invert reputations and seating charts: humility and service become the markers of greatness. When the church lives this way, compassion opens doors that argument cannot and builds bridges that preaching alone will not construct. The culture of kindness becomes the church’s most persuasive apologetic. [74:09]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[07:57] - Announcements & church calendar
[15:06] - Corporate prayer and worship
[52:34] - Teaching introduction: Matthew 25
[53:19] - Love as movement: series recap
[58:05] - Story: compassion that acts
[60:45] - Agape: love as a lifestyle
[63:57] - Reading: Matthew 25:35–40
[64:40] - Serving others equals serving Christ
[76:03] - Judgment scene: sheep and goats
[89:10] - Faith evidenced by deeds (James 2)
[93:09] - Practical steps to serve
[108:55] - Response, altar call, and closing prayer

Bible Study Guide

Bible reading
Matthew 25:35–40 (NIV)
“For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me. Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’ The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’”

James 2:14–17 (NIV)
“What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save them? Suppose a brother or a sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to them, ‘Go in peace; keep warm and well fed,’ but does nothing about their physical needs, what good is it? In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.”

---

Observation questions

What six specific actions does Jesus highlight in Matthew 25:35–36 as evidence of serving Him?
How do the “righteous” respond in verse 37–39 when Jesus tells them they served Him?
According to James 2:15–16, what example is given of faith without action?
What strong conclusion does James draw about faith that lacks action in verse 17?

Interpretation questions

Why do you think the righteous were unaware they were serving Jesus when they served others ([01:04:24])?
How does Jesus’ identification with “the least of these” challenge worldly values of importance and status ([01:18:35])?
James asks if faith without deeds can save someone. How does this question confront a faith that is only intellectual or emotional ([01:29:10])?
The passage describes a final separation between sheep and goats based on action or inaction. Why is neglect treated so seriously in God’s kingdom ([01:23:15])?

Application questions

Love must have skin on it; it demands incarnation in everyday acts ([01:08:44]). What is one practical way you can “put skin on” your love this week for someone who is hungry, thirsty, or lonely?
Serving others is serving Christ Himself ([01:04:40]). Who in your life have you been overlooking that you can begin to see as a proxy for Jesus?
Faith that produces no tangible compassion carries the marks of inactivity, not salvation ([01:29:10]). What is one area where your faith has been passive that you need to turn into action?
Kindness opens doors that arguments cannot ([01:35:42]). Is there a relationship where you’ve been trying to argue or convince? How can you shift to serving and showing kindness instead?
The church’s credibility grows when compassion becomes its culture ([01:34:19]). How can you personally help make your small group or church known for active love, not just beliefs?
Every lack of compassion becomes an indictment ([01:26:44]). What need have you been aware of but have done nothing about? What is one step you can take this week to respond?
We are called to be a voice for the voiceless—the unborn, the trafficked, the imprisoned ([01:30:56]). What is one way you can educate yourself or get involved in advocating for those who cannot speak for themselves?

Sermon Clips

And Christ identifies himself with the least, the neglected, and the overlooked to reveal the upside down values of the kingdom. The can I say it again? His ways are not our ways. The upside down values of the kingdom. The values of this world and the values of the kingdom are counterintuitive against each other. They do not align with one another. [01:18:31] (31 seconds) #KingdomUpsideDown

faith is not proven by how loud we sing. It's not proven by how much we shout. It's not proven by how fast we run run the aisle. It's not proven by how many we can draw to have a fuzzy feeling in a gospel singing but by how deeply we serve the often overlooked and neglected. When Christ changes the heart, compassion becomes natural. Amen. [01:32:34] (25 seconds) #CompassionNotPerformance

Serve someone who feels invisible. And show up where love is needed most. Let kindness move from intention to incarnation. Because love in motion has skin on it. [01:52:55] (22 seconds) #LoveInMotion

Faith acts. Faith, it, this is an action word. It's a motion word. If faith is not something that causes us to sit on a pew. Faith is something that moves through us. Faith cometh by hearing and hearing by the word of god but faith moves us into action. [01:09:43] (24 seconds) #FaithInMotion

Kindness opens doors that arguments will not open. See, I can argue with you and alienate you and never get the chance but if I'm kind to you, when you're mean to me, it makes them go home and not sleep at night. [01:35:41] (19 seconds) #KindnessOpensDoors

We're too scared to house the homeless because they're going be dangerous. We're too scared to deal with those that come out of prison because you know, they got a track record. Guess what? You do too. Yeah. So do I. [01:25:00] (21 seconds) #DontFearTheMarginalized

Let's put that in the faith world. God expects us to digest what he's feeding us this morning. When we digest it, it should grow our faith and it should produce something out of our life. [00:57:41] (15 seconds) #DigestFaithToGrow

Ask a question about this sermon

Chatbot

What does Matthew 25 say about serving others?

How is biblical love shown through sacrificial action?

Why are kindness and deeds evidence of faith?

Week 3 - Love in Motion 02/15/2026

Devotional

Day 1: Love is a movement, not just a feeling.

Day 2: Serving others is serving Christ Himself.

Day 3: Faith without tangible action is incomplete.

Day 4: Compassion without action is merely emotion.

Day 5: Our everyday lives demonstrate our faith.

Sermon Summary

Key Takeaways

Youtube Chapters

Bible Study Guide

Sermon Clips

Chatbot

Week 3 - Love in Motion 02/15/2026

Share