Today I would like you to turn with me
• To the 16th verse in the 3rd chapter in the book of John.
• (Elab) on 1st time you heard it
Now this is the Gospel in a nutshell. It’s a miniature bible.
• Everything that we need to know about redemption and salvation is in this one verse.
• It contains 29 wonderful words that most of us have heard at one time or another in our lives.
“For God loved the world so much that he gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.
Many people have asked me
• If God so loves the world why does he allow so much suffering in it?
• War disease poverty hate loneliness boredom emptiness psychological problems unemployment violence tension all of these things and more.
• Why doesn’t God just come and stop it
• If there is a God why doesn’t he just end it
• These are the questions that people are asking
Some people say they can’t take it any longer
• The pressure of life gets to be to much
• And they feel there is no place to turn
• So they pick the only answer that they feel they have and they take their own life
Some people think that God has abandoned us
• But God hasn’t abandoned us
• The truth of the matter is that we have abandoned Him
• (Examples) Prayer in school, in congress ect
This verse starts with the words “For God”
• First of all we have to believe that there is a God
• I cant stand here and prove to you that there’s a God
• I cant take you to a laboratory and conduct an experiment and prove He exists
• But the bible does teaches us about Him
• It teaches us that He is the Creator-
• In the beginning He created the Heavens and the Earth
All those stars that you see at night God created them
• He doesn’t have a body like we do
• And because He doesn’t – this allows Him to bee in all places at all times.
• If He had a body like we do He couldn’t do that
• He can be in Russia He can be in China He can be in America He can be in Latin America He can be in Africa
• He can and is everywhere at the same time
• God is a spirit and we must worship Him in spirit and in truth
God is also unchanging
Whatever is good and perfect comes down to us from God our Father, who created all the lights in the heavens. He never changes or casts a shifting shadow.Jas 1:17
• The bible also teaches us that God is absolutely holy
And Because of this He can’t look upon sin
• The bible also teaches us that He’s a God of judgment
• God will judge us for everything we do, including every secret thing, whether good or bad. Ecc 12:14
• Think about it, everything thing that you have ever done that you think nobody saw
• Everything you thought you got away with
• God saw it
• God saw it all,
• Everything you did – everything you thought – everything you thought nobody knew about
• All these things are someday going to be exposed
• And we are going to be judged for them
• God has set aside a day when He will judge everyone in the world
• And everyone of us will be there
But God is also Love
My mother loved me
My wife loves me
My children love me
But Nothing compares to the love of God
• God loves each one of us so much
• That they had to invent a whole new word for it in the Greek language
• God is a God of love
• He loves you and if that’s the only thing that you take away from today message
• I want you to understand it completely
• God loves you
Not only does He loves you – But He’s interested in you –
• He loves you so much that He has even numbered the hairs on your head
• He knows all about you
• He knows the good -- He knows the bad
• And He loves you no matter how many sins you have committed
• Regardless of what you’ve done
And even though you may think that because of what you have done
• He cant love you He does
• And He can change you
• He can change you and it can start right now
• But you have to be willing to let Him.
As I said, God is a God of judgment
• And it is true that one day He will exposes everything we have ever done
• And will judge each one of us
• But God is also a God of love
• And Nothing compares to the love of God
“I have loved you, my people, with an everlasting love.With unfailing love I have drawn you to myself. Jer 31:3
Have you ever wondered why you are here?
• It’s a little more complicated than your parents chose to have children
• You’re here Because God created us
• We’re here because He wanted other creatures in the universe that could choose to love Him in return
• Because of this He created man and put him in the perfect enviorment
• The Garden of Eden
• And then He gave us a choice
• He said you can do whatever you want
• You can eat whatever you want ---- except for one thing.
• You cant eat from the one tree
God was testing man
• God told Adam and Eve if you eat from that tree
• you will break my law and you will suffer and you will die
• And guess what --- we failed the test
Man broke God’s law
• God gave him freewill to choose
• And man chose to rebel against God
• The bible tells us in the wages for sin is death (Ro 6:23)
• It tells us that sin is breaking the law
The question you may ask is what law
• The law of conscience
• Have you ever gone against what your conscience told you?
• Then you have committed a sin
• Have you ever broken one of the 10 commandments
• Then your a sinner
• Have you ever failed to keep the requirements of the Sermon on the Mount?
• Then you’re a sinner
We all fall short of what God requires
• And Sin separates us from God
• Sin comes between us and peace
• Sin comes between us and happiness
• Sin comes between us and joy
• And Sin comes between us and the assurance that if we died that were not going to heaven
Wise King Solomon once said that there isn’t a man that has never sinned
• We are all alienated from God
• We are all separated from God but in spite of that He still loves us
And yes, there is a hell
• There is a hell in this life and there is a hell in the life to come
• Hell is literally being separated from God
Living inside everyone of us is our soul
• This is the part of us that lives forever
• This is the part of us that can have fellowship with God
• Everyone of us here today has broken God’s law
• And because of that we are spiritually dead
• People that go to hell aren’t going to be out there with thousands of people having a good time as many people – movies – and songs describe hell
• Those that go to hell are going to be all alone
God saw all this confusion and us stumbling in the darkness
• And He decided to do something about it
• And that something was
• God became a man
• And that man was Jesus
• He came for one purpose – to save you and me and the world – He came to die
He was the only man that has ever been born for the purpose of dying
• He took our sins with Him when they hung Him on the cross
• He took our sins when He shed His blood –
• He took our sins at that terrible moment when He was hanging there
• And He said my God my God why have you forsaken me
At that terrible moment
• He was telling us that He had taken our sins
For God made Christ, who never sinned, to be the offering for our sin, so that we could be made right with God through Christ. 2Co 5:21
• He was made to be sin for us
• He became guilty of our adultery
• He became guilty of all the jealousy – the envy – the fighting – the killing –
• And the murders that we read about every day in the newspaper
Think about it He took all our sins
• So what do we have to do
• We have to repent of our sins
• All through the OT the prophets taught to repent
• The first sermon Jesus ever preached was repent
• All through the NT they wrote repent
But what does it mean?
• It means that you confess to God
• It means I have sinned against you Lord, and I admit it
• It means that you will turn away from your sins
• That you are willing to let God have His way in your life
• And that your ready to follow Him and To serve Him from now on
• That’s what repentance is
There is not a person in the world that can say they’re perfect
• We all fall short – and we all have to say that I am a sinner
• I’m separated from God - I’m lost – and I need to find my way home
• It’s not an option it’s a command
• In Acts 17 the Apostle said God commands all men everywhere to repent
The reason that We have all gathered here today is because of faith
• The only way that we are saved is by faith in Christ
• And through that faith we receive the Grace of God
• Grace means we get something we don’t deserve – something we haven’t earned it
Some of us may think that this is just too simple
• But the facts are if you are willing to repent of your sins –
• that you receive Christ as your savior –
• and say that you want to serve and follow Him
Then you are already saved
There may be some here today that may need to rededicate themselves
• They may be thinking
• Lord I want to come back to you --I’ve wandered away from You
• I’ve gotten confused and lost --I want Christ to be first in my life again
• I want Him to forgive my sins-- and I want to follow him from now on
And maybe there are some here that are ready to take that step of faith
If this is the case wont, you please pray this prayer aloud after me
Oh God- I am a sinner.
I’m sorry for my sins. --I’m willing to turn from my sins.
I accept Christ as my Savior.---I confess Him as Lord from this moment on.
I want to follow Him and serve Him in the fellowship of His Church,
in Christ’s name I pray Amen.
