27/01/2026
Sunday Service Sermon
Ministering: Pastor Innocent Okuku
Sermon Title: Between Love and Like (Kingdom Perspective)
Anchor Text: John 3:16
Scriptural References
John 13:1, Leviticus 19:18, 1 John 2:7–11, 1 Chronicles 28:4, 1 Kings 1:15–25, Esther 2:1–10
The Concept of Love
“Love your neighbor as yourself” meaning:
As you do not desire evil for yourself, you must not desire evil for your neighbor.
~Love is a committed emotion.
~Love carries responsibility, not preference.
~God shows no favoritism in love. There is no discrimination based on age, color, size, tribe, or status.
~God is no respecter of persons in the distribution of love.
~When God commands us to love our neighbor, He is calling us to be as committed to their wellbeing as we are to our own.
~This command is not limited to Christians, it applies to everyone.
~Love confers commitment.
~Love gives universal access.
The Concept of Like
Definition of Like
“To be fond of.
To be in regular, interactive relationship.
To be preferred.”
~Like is discretionary, while love is a responsibility.
~In the Kingdom of God, we are all loved, but only a few are liked.
~To be born again is to encounter the love of God, not necessarily His preference.
~Likeness is cultivated, not automatic.
~The person you do not spend time with cannot like you.
~Likeness grows through proximity, consistency, and interaction.
~Like confers preference.
~Likeness grants access to deeper things.
Key Distinctions
Love confers Responsibility
Like confers Fondness
Love gives access to everyone
Like takes you into deeper levels
Access in the Kingdom goes beyond titles
God’s love brings you in.
Likeness determines how far you go.