Does God Love You?

To share the message with others of the grace of God, the love of Jesus Christ, and of their desperate need of a savior. It is mainly just bible verses because faith cometh by hearing and hearing by the word of God. So I don't have a lot of personal commentary on the track. We will add some of that today in the form of sermon. But but again, the verse at the top, John three sixteen.

For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son that whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting life. That is what God wants for you. Let's go to the Lord in prayer and then we will come back to this. Dear heavenly father, thank you Lord for your word today. Thank you for the privilege of looking into it that we might learn more about you, more about your love for us, and your sacrifice for us and our desperate need and we pray Lord if there's one here today that is yet to receive Christ as savior that today would be their day of salvation.

We pray that you would give us understanding. We pray that your spirit would move in our hearts and would burden us also to take the word of God to others that they might know you too. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. Amen.

So, the question at the top of the page, does God love you? Does God love you? And the answer to that is yes. God loves you. How do you know God loves you?

He says so and He did so. He said so and he did so. He showed it, demonstrated it, but God commendeth his love toward us and that while we were yet sinners, Christ died. He proved his love, Romans five eight, because he sent his son to die on the cross for your sins and mine. Yes, God does love us.

If you follow along, well, up here on the screen. Let's look up here on the screen because I don't have this verse on the track. But but this verse is important here too. Look, if you would, up on the screen, second Peter three nine. The Lord is not slack concerning his promise as some men count slackness.

What does that mean? That means this. God always keeps his what? Promises. Now, somebody else might promise you something and not keep it.

We do that sometimes. That is a failing of us, but Jesus never fails. God never fails. God's never made a promise that he didn't keep. But as long suffering does were not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.

Repentance meaning their salvation. Christ hasn't returned yet. God made a promise. Christ is gonna return. God Jesus made a promise, I'll come and receive you onto myself.

Those things have not happened yet. Why? Been two thousand years. Some people will say, well, it's been two thousand years. God's not keeping his promise.

God is. Why is he waiting so long? I mean, the world around us is wicked, is it not? As it was in the days of Noah, so shall it be in the coming of the son of man. Yeah.

Looks like we're we're we're headed in that direction pretty quick. Looks like we're really almost there, aren't we? We live in a very wicked messed up world because the prince of the power of the air is blinding and deceiving the hearts of men. But God is still waiting, waiting. Why?

Well, Peter tells us, not willing that any should, what, Perish and be cast out of his sight into the lake of fire forever. God isn't willing. God doesn't want that to happen. He's not willing that any should perish, but that, what? All should come to repentance or salvation.

God doesn't desire for any of his created children made in his image. Should have to face an eternity separated from him in a place of suffering. That is not God's desire for anyone here in this room. That isn't God's desire for anyone alive on this planet or anyone that has ever lived on this planet. God didn't create you for that purpose.

God created you to spend eternity with who? With him. And he isn't desirous that anybody should spend eternity in hell, but God being part of being created in the image of God is being created with a will of our own to choose to receive him or to reject him, to follow him or not follow him, to obey him or not to obey him, to believe in him or not to believe in him. And if we choose the disobedient path of rejection and we don't receive him by faith, then we will be separated from him. But God doesn't want that, but God didn't want robots either who simply did what they were programmed to do.

God wanted people made in his image who could choose whether to follow him or not. That's who we are. But God doesn't want you to perish. God wants you to be what? Saved.

Why? Because you are precious to him. He loves you. He loves you. John 14 on your track.

Let not your heart be troubled, Jesus told his disciples. You believe in God, believe also in me. I go to prepare a place for you and if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you unto myself that where I am, there ye may be also. Jesus told his disciples, I I have to leave you, but understand, don't be troubled. I'm leaving you to go back to do what?

To prepare a place for you. Just the disciples? No. Not just the disciples. God wants that for all of you.

There is a condition here. Ye believe in God, believe also in me. There is a condition here. Believe. John three sixteen.

Believe. Jesus did go back to prepare a place for for us who believe. Why is it? Why is it that not everybody is going to go there? What is it that stands in our way of a relationship with God and our home in heaven?

What is it? Sin. Sin. There is something keeping us from enjoying that relationship, the blessings and the eternal reward that God has for those whom he created. And that problem is sin.

See, if you go down, you look you look through it says he wants you in heaven. He wants to forgive your sins. He wants to make you his child. He wants to give you eternal life. He wants you to have life have a life of joy and fulfillment.

I am come that they might have life. They might have it more abundantly, but that's that there's that all important word. But you and I are what? We're sinners. Romans three twenty three on your track.

For all have sinned, missed the mark, and come short of the glory of God. The the word hamartia that's translated sin there means to miss the mark. There's actually a few words in Greek and Hebrew for sin. They all mean transgressing God's law or being disobedient to our Lord. This particular word means specifically to miss the mark.

If you imagine there's a dartboard on that back wall back there and there's a little spot about this big that's the bull's eye, and I have a 100 darts up here, and I throw them, and I throw them, and I some of them land in the carpet, some of them you might wanna scatter because I'm not, you know, you might be the people in the back there, you might be in trouble if I'm trying to throw darts. I'm not a very good shot. Maybe a couple of them actually hit the dartboard. What's the likelihood that any of them is gonna hit this spot from here? Not not too likely.

So what if the only reward is hitting the bull's eye? That's it. If you hit the bull's eye, you get the reward. You know, being close only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades. Yeah.

Okay. Then it wouldn't matter whether your dart landed here or whether it landed back there or whether it landed this far or this far from the bullseye, it still didn't hit the what? You don't get the reward. Why? You didn't hit the what?

You didn't hit the bullseye. Here's the here's the this is what that verse means. None of us hit the bull's eye. None of us hit the bull's eye. When it comes to the righteousness of God, as demonstrated in the life of who?

Jesus Christ, his son. All of us fall short. Every last one of us. Some of us may get closer than others but that doesn't matter. We all miss the what?

We all miss the target. We all miss the mark. The only one who hit it was Jesus. The rest of us, we don't hit it. Why tainted with sin?

How did that happen? Adam and Eve in the garden disobeyed God. I am their child, and I'm just like them, a sinner who misses the mark. For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. In first Corinthians six, if you wanna turn there.

I don't have I have well, I have first Corinthians six nine. You can just look on that if you want, but I'm gonna turn because I'm gonna read a few more verses in first Corinthians six. But first Corinthians six nine says this, know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God. What does it mean by unrighteous? It means sinners.

Who's sinners? How many of us? All of us. Because we all missed the mark. We're all tainted by sin.

Know ye not that the unrighteous sinners shall not inherit the kingdom of God that is heaven? He goes on to say in first Corinthians six nine, be not deceived, neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners shall inherit the kingdom of God and such were some of you, but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the spirit of our God. We're gonna get to the last part of that, the good part, which I got the amen. But ye were, some of these, in Jesus Christ were redeemed. We've been fought back by the blood of Christ.

But hold on to that thought for a moment. Sinners shall not inherit the what? The kingdom of God. That's us. We can't do it.

We might can do some good things. You just can't erase who you are or what sin you've committed. That's not possible. He gives a list here of some things. It isn't an exclusive list of things, but just for an idea.

You might look back at Romans 10 if you think, hey, I mean, Exodus chapter 20. Look at Exodus chapter 20. What's in Exodus 20? The 10 Commandments. So you think, well, I'm not a sinner.

I'm okay. Okay. Thou shalt have no other gods before me. Nothing equal with who? God.

Thou shalt not make in thyself graven images. Thou shalt not bow down to them. Okay. Maybe I'm okay on that regard. Maybe not.

Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in what? Right. Thou shall not use your God's name in a frivolous way or to try to convince somebody that you're being sincere when you're not. You shall not use his name as a curse word. Honor thy father and mother.

You ever dishonored your father and mother? Ever disrespected them? Thou shalt not steal. Ever stole a penny, a pencil, a test score, an answer? Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor.

That means don't lie, abound or to anybody. Ever done that? Thou shalt not covet what other people have. How about that one? Have you failed in any of those areas?

Why? Why? Because we're what? Sinners and sinners sin. And that's what we do.

For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. It says in James two ten, for whosoever shall keep the whole law and yet inflicted in one point, is guilty of all. To say, well, I've done pretty good. Pretty good doesn't what? Pretty good doesn't cut it.

If you've if you've broken one law, then, well, you just revealed what you are, and you are a sinner in need of a savior. And the wages of sin is death. In spiritual terms, that means separation from God. Revelation twenty one eight, it's on your track here. Under, but you and I are sinners, but the fearful and unbelieving, the abominable and murderers and all what?

Liars. Okay? I dare say that's one of the things that we commit most, and it's on the list. Okay? Shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.

In Revelation 20, it tells us that the dead will be brought before God, the books will be opened, they'll be judged according to their works, and they'll be cast into the lake of fire. Because they'll be found to be what? Guilty. And if any any one of us in this room were judged based upon the works we did, we would all be found what? Guilty.

But it says the last verse in Revelation 20, whosoever's name was not found written in the book of life was cast in the lake of fire. And in this case, the opposite is true. If your name is not found written in the book of life, you'll be cast in the lake of fire, judged based upon your own works which condemn you. But if your name, therefore, is found written in the book of life, then you won't be what? Cast in the lake of fire.

So how do I get my name written there? We'll get to that. We'll get to that. We have a problem indeed. There's some things in scripture which may be a bit difficult to understand.

We looked at one of those in Sunday school this morning. But the Bible is clear, God is clear, and his message about his judgment is clear. This is not one of them. We're sinners. Sin condemns us.

The wages of sin is death. The gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. We'll get there. But we cannot change the rules, the terms cannot be altered, and the decree of the king of kings is final. Doesn't matter what you want or what you want to believe.

I'm not your judge. I don't wanna be your judge. Praise God. I am not the judge. But I know the judge and I know what the judge has said.

And the judge has said, if your name is not found written in the book of life and you're judged upon the things written in the books, you will be cast into the what? Like fire. Now people don't want to hear that. I understand that. I understand that.

But this isn't something that some preacher or teacher is making up. This is the declared word of who? Word of God. And he says it over and over again. He's clear.

Every book of the New Testament. But as we pointed out, what we and ourselves cannot fix, God can. And as we pointed out, God does love us and does not want us to be cast in the lake of fire. He wants us to spend eternity where? In heaven with him, the place that he went to prepare for us.

I wrote here at the bottom of the track in gray, if you have it, it says, hopelessness, anxiety, emptiness, addiction, oppression, confusion, and despair are all symptoms of a bigger problem, sin. What does most of the world wanna fix? They wanna fix hopelessness, anxiety, emptiness, addiction, oppression, confusion, and despair. They work really hard at those things. They need to be dealing with the part in red there.

What is it? Sin. Those things are a result of sin, your sin and sins of others. It only can be fixed in your regard if you deal with your what? If you'll deal with your sin.

Only way. God wants to cure all those things, but you have to be willing to deal with your sin and your eternity. For we are all sinners in bondage to the lust of their sinful nature, unable to change what we are in this life and rid ourselves of the guilt and penalty of sin. You can't do it on your own, but God can. God can.

Change you, save you, forgive you, and give you what? Everlasting life. It starts here but doesn't end here. It ends there. Never ends.

What God wants to give you is gonna last how long? Forever. John fourteen six, Jesus said unto them, I am the way, the truth, and the life. No man comes to the father but by me. You want to be reunited with the God who made you?

You want to get victory over some of the things on this list, whatever it is that's that's got you want to have eternal life? You want go to the place he's prepared for you? Jesus is the way. Religion is not the way. Sitting in a pew, not the way.

I can dunk you in the waters of this baptismal up here a thousand times, not the way. You'd just be a so threat that you wouldn't be any more saved just by dunking you in water. You can cut your neighbor's grass every week. You can be the most honest person that's ever walked the face of the earth apart from Christ. Do all those things.

You cannot save yourself. There's only one way, and it's not Muhammad or Buddha or Confucius or me. It's who? It's Jesus. Jesus is the only way.

Neither is there salvation any other for there is none other name under heaven given among men whereby we must be saved. So there is a way for us, sinners, to escape that awful judgment. There is a way for us to get our names written in the what? In the book of life. There's a way for our sins to be forgiven.

That way is Jesus. And that way is through faith. Believe, believe, believe, believe, believe. For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son that whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting life. What did Jesus do for you?

Why does it mean to believe in him? Well, Peter was asked that question. He said, I believe that you are the Christ, the son of the living God. Believe what the first part of that verse is. For God so loved the world, he gave his what?

Only begotten son believed that that Jesus is God in human flesh. Equal with the father who came, lived the perfect life that pleased the father, and then died in your stead. That's what he did. He proved his love. He died for who?

Sinners. But God commendeth his love toward us and that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. That's that's on the back near the top. You'll see Romans five eight. The God commended his love, demonstrated, proved his love toward us, and that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

The verse that's just above it there on the back, okay, it's first Peter three eighteen. If you would follow along with me, it says, for Christ also hath once suffered for sins. Whose sins? Ours, not his. The just for the unjust.

The just is Christ. The unjust is me. The innocent for the guilty. That he might bring us to who? God.

K. Back to John fourteen six. Jesus said, I am the way, the truth, and life. No man comes to the father but by me. We're separated from God by our sin.

The only way to bridge the gap is through who? Jesus. He came, he suffered, he died, that he might bring us back together to God. That he might bring us to God being put to death in the what? Flesh.

He suffered in the flesh. He died in the flesh. For those who are in the flesh, that's who? That's us. He had to become one of us to die for us.

There's one mediator between God and man, the man Christ Jesus, who's both God and man. God and human flesh. He came, he took on flesh so that he could become one of us that he might die for us. Why'd he do that? To reunite us with our father in heaven, to bridge the gap.

But put to death in the flesh, but quickened which made made alive again in the spirit. The Pharisees and others came to Jesus, the latter part of his ministry and says, show us one more sign. We need another sign. He said, I've showed you sign after sign after sign after sign. I raised the dead.

I I calmed the sea. I fed 5,000 plus with five loaves and two fish. I healed the lepers. I healed the blind. I cast out the demons.

I've showed you signs. I'm not gonna give you one any more signs other than the sign of Jonah. As Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly in the belly of a whale, so shall the son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. Jesus told his disciples, I'm going to go to Jerusalem. I'm going to be killed.

I'm going to rise again on the what? Third day. Jesus said, you tear down this temple and I'll rebuild it in three days. He wasn't talking about the structure that sits on top of the Temple Mount. He was talking about who?

Himself. He is a risen savior. He proved it because he rose again from the what? The dead. And a dead savior can save you, but a living one can.

A living one can. And Jesus Christ suffered for our sins on the cross. It says in Isaiah fifty three five and six, but he was wounded for our transgressions. He was bruised for our iniquities. The chastisement of our peace was upon him, and with his stripes, we are healed.

All we like sheep have gone astray. We have turned everyone to his own way, and the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all. The iniquity of us all. So all of our iniquity was put on who? Jesus.

And he suffered for it on the cross. He died for it on the cross. But then having paid the price, he rose victorious three days later to offer salvation, forgiveness to all who will come to him in faith. His death and subsequent resurrection from the dead does not settle it for you until you, what? Believe.

Believe in the risen son of God and choose to receive his offer of salvation and him as your Lord. So on the back, you'll see one, two, and three. Number one, believe that Jesus Christ, God's only son, came to die for sinners and rose again to save all who come to him in faith. You can't be saved unless you what? Believe.

And that's something that nobody else can do for you. You must choose to believe by God's grace on your own. I can't make that choice for you. I've witnessed to many people, some who received Christ as savior by faith and many who did not because I can't make that choice for them. You have to believe.

It takes faith. You can't see God. You see his word. You can see the results in the lives of others. You can listen to his spirit and the conviction inside your heart.

You have to receive it by faith, but you must believe. That's what that's what Paul told to the Philippian jailer that wanted to be saved in Acts sixteen thirty one. That's the last verse on that paragraph under one. Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be what? Saved.

You must believe. Jesus came from heaven, died on a cross for your sins as payment for your sins, then rose again from the dead and offers you eternal life. You must believe. You must repent. Repent.

What does repent mean? It means to have a change of heart. Must have a change of heart concerning sin and who? In Jesus Christ. Matthew nine thirteen, for I am not come to call the self to call the righteous or self righteous, but sinners to what?

Repentance. Second Peter three nine, the Lord is not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. What does that mean? That means to have a change of heart concerning your sin in Jesus Christ. He came to call who to repentance?

Sinners. What was the problem with the people he was talking to at the time? It wasn't that they weren't sinners, it was that they were unwilling to acknowledge that they were what? Sinners. And you're not gonna come to Christ and embrace him by faith as savior until you are willing to acknowledge that you are a sinner going the wrong direction and you wanna turn to Christ and have eternal life.

I think, let's see, did I bring it? I thought I threw it in here. No. It's not in there. I was bringing a coin this morning.

A coin has what? Two sides. On one side, it's heads and the other side, tails or whatever is on the coin. Salvation's like a coin. It has two sides.

Faith on one side, repentance on what? The other. They're they're all part of the same thing. To have faith is to repent, and to repent is to have what? Faith.

You can't have faith without repentance, and you can't have repentance without faith. K? You must believe in order to have a change of heart. You must have a change of heart in order to believe. Believe, repent, and call on Jesus Christ to save you from your sin.

Luke number three, Matthew ten nine and thirteen, that if thou shalt confess with thy mouth, the Lord Jesus shall believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. Whose words are those? The words that's God's word. What does God say?

If you'll confess that Jesus Christ is the Lord, that he is Lord of all, that he's your Lord. He's not just a prophet, not just a good teacher, not just a a man who fought for a cause, not just a good fellow. He is Lord, Lord of all. Your Lord, to whom you will give an account at that judgment if you don't deal with him now. He is Lord.

That if you will confess, acknowledge that Jesus is Lord, shall believe in your heart that God hath raised him from the dead. What is that? That means that God accepted his what? Sacrifice on the cross for you. The proof's in the pudding.

He rose again from the dead to prove that His sacrifice was sufficient to pay the price for your sin and mine. That if thou shalt confess with my mouth the Lord Jesus shall believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. Does it say if you go to church often enough, if you come to take communion often enough, if you get baptized often enough, if you are good enough to your neighbor, if you watch your diet, if you give enough money to people, doesn't say any of those things. It says this, if you will confess Jesus Christ as your Lord, believe in your heart, the son of God came and died for you on the cross to pay the price for your sins and is risen again and waiting in heaven to receive you. If you will believe that, you shall be what?

Say, For whosoever shall call in faith on the upon the name of the Lord Jesus, they shall be saved. I did that when I was nine years old. Now, I didn't understand as much as I do now. I understood I was a sinner and if I died, I was going to a place called hell or the Lake Of Fire. But God didn't want me to go there and he sent his son to die for me and if I would receive him as Lord, he'd save me.

And he did. Still not perfect by any stretch. I have a perfect savior. He keeps all his promises. He's invited me into his family, into his home.

He's given me eternal life and the forgiveness of my sins, and I have a home in heaven. How about you? When did you put your faith and trust in it? Well, I've always been a Christian. Yeah.

I've always gone to church. I've always believed in God. You're missing the point. Jesus said to Nicodemus, did Nicodemus believe in God? Yeah.

John three, Nicodemus was a teacher of the Bible. And Jesus said to Nicodemus, except a man be born again, he shall not see the what? The kingdom of God. So it wasn't enough for Nicodemus that he went to synagogue or church. It wasn't enough that he knew so much of the Bible.

It wasn't enough that he taught others. He had to be born again by the spirit through faith in Jesus Christ, the son. It's that passage from which we get John three sixteen. Jesus went on to explain to Nicodemus what I mean by being born again is that you must believe in Jesus Christ, the son of God who came from heaven to die on the cross for your sins. When did you do that?

Pastor, I don't remember the date. That's okay. God does. If you remember doing it, God knows the date. I don't know the date.

Nobody wrote it down for me and I didn't write it down. I was nine years old. That's all I know. But you know something? I remember doing it and I'll never forget the day that I trusted Jesus as my savior.

How about you? Ephesians two eight and nine, on your track there said, for by grace are you saved through faith and that not of yourselves. It is the gift of God, not of works, lest any man should boast. By God's grace, he's offering you a gift if you will receive it. But you have to believe it.

You have to believe he's offering it to you. You have to believe it's real. You have to trust him. When I'm talking to kids, I'll often get my wallet out now. I'll pull out a bill, and the only one I've got in here is a $100 bill.

So I'm not gonna give it away this morning. Sorry. But I usually get out a one or maybe a five, And I pick one out and I randomly and I say, hey, come up here and they'll come up here and I'll hand them the bill and they'll they'll take it gladly. What did you have to do to get that? Just receive it.

Now, they might come up and say, you know, well, I don't believe. I'm going to reach out and you're not going to give it to me. You're just going to hold on to it and they won't do it. Maybe they'll look at it and say, I don't think that's real. That's counterfeit.

If I try to give this $100 away this morning, you might think that. And sadly, there's many people that hear the message and they say, well, I don't need the $100. I don't need it. I don't need salvation. I'm okay.

They don't receive it. There's others that say, well, I don't trust God. I don't think he's gonna give it to me. Others say, well, I think there's gotta be more to it. I just don't believe that that that's it.

But it is. Say, but it's so simple. Simple, yes. Easy, no. You have to put your faith in a god you cannot see and that God had to send his son to suffer and die on the cross for you.

Not easy. Simple. Not easy for Jesus. And us proud human beings, not easy for us. But God loves you.

He sent his son to die for you. Jesus is the way. If you'll trust him, he will what? Thou shalt be what? Saved.

Thou shalt be saved. I wrote on the track there on the back, believe, put all your confidence in the Lord Jesus to save you today and tell him about it in prayer. He will save you, keep you, forgive you, and give you the gift of everlasting life. John ten twenty eight, I give unto them eternal life and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. God says, I give to them what?

Eternal life that come to me in faith and they'll never perish. Is that you? Are you unsure? Do you remember when you did that? Are you trusting in being a Baptist or a Methodist or a Presbyterian or an Episcopal or whatever blank you want to fill in?

Are you trusting in the fact that somebody dunked you in water when you were three or sprinkled water on your head? Are you trusting in the fact that you go to church from time to time or your name's on a church roll? Are you trusting that you're better than the guy in jail that killed somebody? Are you trusting Jesus? Let's pray.

Dear heavenly father, thank you, Lord, for this day, opportunity to look into your word this morning. I pray, Lord, if there's one here today that's unsure, I pray that they'll trust you today. In Jesus' name I pray. If you keep your head bowed and your eyes