The Ultimate Love Story : "the Love That Changed Us" Series

Many believers stop the story at forgiveness.

But salvation is not just pardon—it’s new life.

Jesus didn’t die simply to cancel your past.

He died to redefine your future.

Romans 8 moves us from rescue to renewal… Let me share with you Romans 8:1-11

Romans 8:1-11 Therefore, there is now no CONDEMNATION for those who are in Christ Jesus, 2 because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit who gives life has set you free from the law of sin and death. 3 For what the law was powerless to do because it was weakened by the flesh, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh to be a sin offering. And so he condemned sin in the flesh, 4 in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.

5 Those who live according to the flesh have their minds set on what the flesh desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. 6 The mind governed by the flesh is death, but the mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace. 7 The mind governed by the flesh is hostile to God; it does not submit to God’s law, nor can it do so.8 Those who are in the realm of the flesh cannot please God.

9 You, however, are not in the realm of the flesh but are in the realm of the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, they do not belong to Christ. 10 But if Christ is in you, then even though your body is subject to death because of sin, the Spirit gives life because of righteousness. 11 And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies because of his Spirit who lives in you.

Listen church,…

I. LOVE COMPLETELY REMOVES CONDEMNATION

Romans 8:1 doesn’t whisper—it declares: “There is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.”

That word NOW is loaded.

Not after you clean yourself up.

Not after you prove you’re serious.

Not after God “cools off.”

Now. Immediately. Fully. Completely.

Condemnation is Satan’s favorite leash. It doesn’t always drag people into obvious sin—it just keeps them stuck. Stuck in shame. Stuck replaying failure. Stuck believing God tolerates them but doesn’t delight in them. Condemnation tells you, “You’re forgiven, but you’re still disqualified.” Grace says, “You’re forgiven—and free.”

Condemnation paralyzes the soul. It convinces believers they should stay silent, sit down, and stay small. Grace does the opposite—it breaks chains and restores movement. Grace doesn’t deny the past; it just refuses to let the past be the warden.

Illustration: Prison Release

When a prison sentence is completed, the door open. Legally, the prisoner is free. But some inmates struggle to walk out because prison has trained them how to think, how to move, and how to live. The bars are gone, but the mindset remains.

That’s a picture of many believers. Jesus paid the full sentence. The door is wide open. But condemnation whispers, “You don’t belong out there.”

Paul says love doesn’t just unlock the door—it removes the accusation entirely. There is no courtroom left. No verdict pending. No appeal required. Love didn’t reduce your sentence—it ended the case.

And here’s the deal church:

If God says “no condemnation,” but we keep living condemned, we’re not being humble—we’re being unbelieving.

Grace isn’t permission to sin.

Grace is power to walk out free.

II. LOVE GIVES US A NEW HEART, NOT JUST NEW RULES

God never intended salvation to be behavior modification.

He didn’t come to hand us a better rulebook—He came to give us a better heart.

Through the prophet Ezekiel, God makes a promise that religion could never deliver:

Ezekiel 36:26 “I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh.”

A heart of stone is cold.

Unresponsive.

Hard to correction.

Unable to feel what God feels.

And here’s the problem:

You can surround a stone heart with rules all day long…

but rules can’t make a dead heartbeat.

That’s why the gospel goes deeper than “try harder” or “do better.”

God doesn’t polish the old heart.

He doesn’t duct-tape cracks.

He removes it entirely.

Then Paul doubles down in 2 Corinthians 5:17:

“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!”

Notice what he doesn’t say.