Who Gives A Rip? We Do, That's Who!

W’gong

Wed pm

13/08/97

“Who gives a rip? We do, that’s who!”

Intro: THE GREATEST NEED men / women have in the world today – is to be loved.

God saw it & responded to that need by sending his only Son.

As T.B.S. (Rom 5:8 NKJV) "But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us."

It was the greatest need & it remains the greatest need to this very day.

THE GREATEST PROBLEM in the world is that men / women are basically self centred.

We live in a time when people have a consummate love for themselves!!!

As Paul says …… men will be lovers of themselves, ……. Unloving…..

And so we see here a conflict of man’s two greatest interests.

On one hand ……. A need to be loved …… on the other hand …….. consumed w/ self love!

And I might add that this problem is as great w/I the church world as it is w/o.

I have a favourite saying ……. WHO GIVES A RIP?

This is the same question people both in the church & in the world are asking ……. WHO GIVES A RIP?

So t/n I want to preach a sermon called ….. ‘Who gives a rip? We do, that’s who!’

Text: (Mat 22:37-39 NKJV) "Jesus said to him, " 'You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.' {38} "This is the first and great commandment. {39} "And the second is like it: 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.'"

(John 13:34-35 NKJV) ""A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another. {35} "By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.""

# 1. The mandate to love.

A. God’s heart beats for the souls of men.

*** Talking to Greg Mitchell at conference coffee break one time in Perth. In conversation …… the nation of India came up. None of the Indian people I had ever known were very nice …… my response – let ‘em burn! They could nuke India for all I care!

But God has an incredible sense of justice & an incredible sense of humour ……. b/c He took me to The Fiji Islands where about 50% of the population is Indian & where I pastor a church which is about 50% Indian people. I now live & work as a missionary amongst the Indians & we love them very much!

THIS WAS GOD’S WAY OF SHOWING ME THAT HE GIVES A RIP ABOUT THESE PEOPLE!

1. God gives us here a mandate to love.

a.) A mandate is a command / order ….. something we don’t have any choice in & here Jesus is ordering us to love!

b.) Our immediate response is ……. You can’t force / order people to love!

c.) But God came down in the flesh & showed us how to love people.

2. Our difficulty lies in the fact that we really fail to u/s what love really is.

a.) Love runs far deeper than a feeling …… love is an action!

*** Newspaper columnist Dr George Crane tells the story of a woman who came into his office full of hatred & bitterness towards her husband. She said, I don’t want to just get rid of him, I want to get even! B/4 I divorce him I want to hurt him as much as he has hurt me.

Dr Crane suggested an ingenious plan. Go home & act as though you really love your husband. Tell him how much you love him & how much he means to you. Praise every decent trait he has & go out of your way to be as kind, considerate & as generous as possible. Spare no efforts to please him so that you can make him believe that you really love him. After you’ve convinced him of your undying love & that you can’t live w/o him, drop the bomb. Tell him that you’re getting a divorce; that will really hurt him!

W/ revenge filled eyes she smiled a wide smile & said ….. beautiful, that’s just beautiful! Will he ever be surprised! And so she did it w/ enthusiasm …… acting ‘as if’ for two months she showed kindness, listening, giving, reinforcing & sharing.

When she didn’t return to Dr Crane’s office …… crane called her up. Are you ready to go ahead w/ the divorce yet? Divorce she exclaimed ……… never! I have discovered that I really do love him after all!

HER ACTIONS HAD CHANGED HER FEELINGS …. MOTION HAD RESULTED IN EMOTION!

b.) Our ability to love is established not so much by feelings as it is by our actions.