Take A Look At What Love Does Series

SERMON BRIEF

Date Written: September 10, 2010

Date Preached: March 03, 2002, Edited and Repreached September 12, 2010

Church: OPBC (AM)

FOUNDATIONAL ELEMENTS

Series: Recognizing and Responding to the Living Word

Title: Take a Look at What Love Does

Text: John 3:16-22

16"For God so loved the world, that He gave his only Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through Him. 18 Whoever believes in Him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God. 19 And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil. 20 For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed. 21 But whoever does what is true comes to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that his works have been carried out in God."

ETS: Jesus was sharing with Nicodemus that God loves the world and He wanted Nicodemus to know and understand what LOVE could do for the world.

ESS: Jesus is today sharing with us that God loves the world and He wants us to know and understand what LOVE can do for this world.

Introduction:

When we look at Scripture, we find that there is ONE mantra repeated all throughout the Bible and it is that God is a giving God! Creation teaches us that God gave LIFE... The OT teaches us that God gave order in His Laws... The prophets teach us that God gave His people chance after chance when they would fail Him...

But when we look closely, although giving is at the very heart of the Bible, we can know that God giving of Himself is the key gift mentioned! In our passage this morning we read about that gift! "...for God so loved the world He GAVE..."

So this morning I want us to take a look at what God has GIVEN... that is His uncompromising LOVE! I want us to see just what the love of God does for those who chose to accept it! This morning I want us to look at 4 very specific actions of giving that reveal the love of God and what it means for His creation!

God's Love Brings God's Compassion: v.16

I see that the love of God brings compassion to the world. When I read all about what God has done for our world, I am awestruck with His love and compassion for this broken and sinful world.

It staggers the mind that at a tremendously unbelievable cost, God's love came to us...not out of a compulsion, but it freely it was given! God poured His love out on us by sending the One we know as Jesus of Nazareth.

The faithfulness of God's devotion for His creation is reflected in the life and person of Jesus. And this is where Christianity is different from ANY 'religion' in our world. Every religion in our world emphasizes about what sacrifice that humans can make for their god, to appease or justify themselves.

But not so with the Christian faith! The Christian faith is clear in its message that there is NOTHING that we, as humans, can do in exchange for our soul. We are all sinners, and all of our efforts fall FAR short of reaching God or appeasing the justice of God. Ephesians 2:8-9 reveal that we can do nothing... salvation is all about what God has done!

8 For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, 9 not a result of works, so that no one may boast.

Christianity is grounded on the reality that GOD has done it all... we can do nothing to reach God but God has done EVERYTHING to reach us! God has done all the 'giving' necessary; God Himself has provided the sacrifice needed.

Jesus is not man's best gift offered up to God, but He was and still is God's best gift offered down to humanity!

Jesus of Nazareth! God wrapped in flesh was willing to has become the sacrifice needed for the atonement for all humanity's sin! He made the choice to DIE on the Cross... FOR US... Jesus sacrificed Himself so that we could live! He held NOTHING back! God totally emptied His heart on Calvary, and ALL the love He had was poured out upon the world!

Preacher, this love you are talking about... I don't see it! I haven't experienced it! Who is this love for preacher? You surely can't mean its for me preacher because I am a really bad person, and I don't deserve His love! There is just NO way that God can love me. I have done FAR too many things for God to love me! There is NO way God's love is for me!