For the Love of God - Part A

Romans five verse five the love of God has been poured out into our hearts by the Holy Spirit. Romans five verse eight God demonstrates his own love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for this is biology 101.

This is the basic stuff. God loves John put it this way. First John 484 God is love.

In other words that's part of the very core of his character. The Bible tells us that God is love is love for us is demonstrated throughout the pages of Scripture today on connect with Skip Heitzig Skip explores the incredible depth and height of God's wonderful love first to share about an exciting resource that will help you play with more passion, purpose and expectation for God to move ready to radically upgrade your prayer life still stuck in blessed me mode, you have come to the right place you are ready for dangerous prayers really start playing three new players and I will warn you. These are not easy. Prayers does not say prayers is not benign prayer, recalling the dangerous prayers, but there dangerous in a good way and that is just my opinion. Most people I know in this part of the world most people's prayers are way to say that Craig Rochelle from his book dangerous prayers. And this is our summer resource offer. If you are ready to get out of your comfort self-knowledge. It was a little arm you with some prayers that are not safe to pray no going into them when you pray this prayer to really ask God to do something that will often take you out of your comfort zone.

Unlock your potential with Craig Rochelle's book dangerous prayers as our gift to you when you give $35 or more today to help keep this ministry on the air. Request your copy when you get online securely connectwithskip.com/offer or you can call 800-922-1888 another clip from Craig's book dangerous prayers. Talk about a very dangerous prayer God gone dangerous prayer to ask God to break with the last thing any of us. What other side of brokenness is a real intimacy with God and a dependence on him.

Cannot get to any other way. Brokenness will have enough encouraging books yet one that will grab you by the throat and get her attention.

Replace send me another one. Instead of saying God will do what I want to do this I got a blank contract basically whatever whenever and however available to you whatever you want to do.

My life is your son connectwithskip.com/offer or you can call me hundred 9218 Romans chapter guided tour study with skip-when I was in high school. I remember getting the track given to me by someone I think will have a copy of track Bobby most famous tracks ever call the four spiritual laws. Anybody remember that track so I was not a believer at the time, person, hands me the literature and gives me the first law which says God loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life. I remember hearing those words, God loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life. I had a problem with that statement had two problems with that statement at the time. Number one I did know if God was real. Number two if he was real. Why would you love me what what what makes him want to love me. I didn't quite understand that concept. I guess a little bit like David in Psalm eight when he said, what is man that you are mindful of him, but since then I have come to realize that there is indeed a God relieving your pastor believes in God and that he does love me and that his plan for me is indeed very very wonderful although a wonderful plan does not mean a trouble free plan.

It does not mean that it's painless or comfortable, or that it's a life of ease.

But it is wonderful as God defines and knows what wonderful is to a nonbeliever.

The idea that God loves them. It's not an easy concept for anyone but understand that for an unbeliever. They don't quite understand that God loves them because God is in on their radar screen, let alone the love of God for them personally. I want to read to you, something I found on the Internet from a person who said one time I was at the supermarket very depressed, but I don't think I was visibly sad and this woman came up to me and said can I tell you something Jesus loves you. I mentioned this example because I wasn't even there a church last night I was having problems and I went out for a walk in the same thing happened except I was never a church so there is at least a reasonable explanation and then this person says is this just a normal thing? Why read that and people responding, but I read that and I thought I think I'll try to get that person the tension. If you have two people in two entirely different situations who did know each other, walk up and say Jesus loves you, Jesus loves. I think that person needs to know that Jesus does love you all of you, no matter who you are. I even saw a church sign that read hey hipster Jesus love you before you are cool, we come to the last paragraph of Romans chapter 8 beginning in verse 35 and this final child paragraph of chapter 8 is crescendo of all that he has spoken about and it's a crescendo of God's love. Look at it together. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword, as it is written, for your sake we are killed all day long we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor hide nor depth, nor any other created things shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. What an incredible paragraph, but there's a flotilla as a floater this paragraph and that's what I want you to get Paul states the truth that we all know, or at least we all say that we know, but that truth is threatened by circumstances and when those circumstances happen to us. They make us doubt that truth that we say we know so we need a vantage point to rise in our victory above those circumstances and come to a settled conviction of heart about that truth that this paragraph in a nutshell. Now if you look at the outline that I provided for you in the worship folder you see how how I put it. We have a principle we face a peril we need a perspective we should be persuaded.

Think of this sermon, like a ladder and each of these points is a rung on the ladder and I'm to take you. Paul is step-by-step to experience God's love. So let's begin with the first we have a principal knowledge or notice that in these four verses three times Paul mentions God's love. That's his emphasis God's love. Look at verse 35 who shall separate us from the love of Christ.

Verse 37 yet in all these things where more than conquerors through him who loved us. Verse 39 nor depth or height depth. Any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. Love love love God loves you.

That's a prominent theme in the book of Romans.

It's a prominent theme in the life of Paul. This is the background screen on Paul's computer. This is the default mode for Paul the apostle Romans five verse five the love of God has been poured out into our hearts by the Holy Spirit. Romans five verse eight God demonstrates his own love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. This is theology 101. This is the basic stuff God loves you John put it this way. First John 484 God is love. In other words that's part of the very core of his character some years back when a prominent theologian was visiting a seminary. He was very renowned in his thinking and for his writing. Seminary students were gathered around and they said Dr. so-and-so, all the things you have ever thought about what is the most profound or greatest plot you have ever had thought about in a minute lifted up his head and smiled and said, Jesus loves me this I know for the Bible tells me so that's as profound as you can possibly get.

God loves you. It's a theme of not just Romans is the theme of all of Scripture that God is a deep love for the people that he created. Did you know that DL Moody decided to he was so intrigued by this he decided to trace every single reference in the Bible of the love of God and make a note of it. Now this was in the day before computer programs or iPhones or iPads we had to do by hand with the concordance.

So we traced every single reference to the love of God in the Scripture, and afterward he said there is no truth in the whole Bible that ought to affect us as much as the love of God. The apostle John would agree with him. He put it this way.

First John chapter 3 behold what manner of love the father has bestowed on us, or lavished on us. I've always loved the word behold such a Bible work right. Behold, nobody talks like that anymore. Behold my car you don't do that so whenever I read behold, I kinda translated. Check it out. Look at this.

Consider this look at the kind of love that God has for us in Jeremiah 31 God even said Israel I have loved you with an everlasting love by the way, that is why they are called the chosen people. In Deuteronomy 7 God said I didn't choose you because your greater than anybody else or more number than anybody else, but because I have sent my love on you. I've just made a sovereign choice to place my love on you. Reminds me of a T-shirt.

I saw one time that said Jesus loves you, but I'm his favorite each one of you could wear that teacher God's love is amazing. I know we sing amazing Grace, we could equally sing amazing love and the reason God's love is amazing, because you hear that God loves you. It kinda goes in one ear and out the other because we don't understand that God's law has to be balanced with other attributes of his peers. What makes his love so amazing God's love is so amazing because God is holy because God is holy God is unapproachable. I think back to Mount Sinai when the children of Israel were camped at that mount.

And God tells Moses to tell the children of Israel do not come near the mountain last they die.

Don't come near.

Don't touch it. They were seeing the light now hearing the lightning, seeing them, seeing the lightning hearing the thunder on top of Mount Sinai and they start coming closer. Gossip don't come closer or you'll die and so they were happy. This is an Moses up and hear from God and tell us what God wants. Think of Moses who wanted to see the glory of God. When Moses said show me your glory and God said no I can't show you my full glory be a crispy critter. Your burnout manual die. Think of the vision of God in Isaiah chapter 6 when he sees the Lord high and lifted up, and the angelic beings they holy, holy, holy is the Lord and Isaiah didn't go awesome.

He said whoa is me. Wow was you always me so in his holiness, God is unapproachable, but in his love. God approaches us once again in his holiness, God is unapproachable, but in his love.

God approaches us question. How does God approaches answers found verse 39 nor height nor depth, or any other created thing, shall be able to separate us here is from the love of God which is in what Christ Jesus our Lord. When Jesus came into the world. He said if you have seen me, you have seen the father. Jesus showed up. God incarnate, as if to say, now you can see the love of God, up close and personal. Jesus whole life was a life of love, we don't have time to chase down many examples, but here's to the conversation with the rich young ruler, quick question.

What must I do to inherit eternal life owner earn heaven and before Jesus gave them the answer. The Bible says Jesus looked at him and loved him always enjoy that verse. He looked at him and loved him. Another was at the tomb of Lazarus, his buddy who died, Jesus is standing in front of the tomb and he's crying now. Why is Jesus crying while he missed them.

You might say no.

He knows he can arise and raise him from the dead and like 60 seconds, but is weeping and the people notice that they said look at how he loved him. Look at how he loved Jesus never met anyone he didn't love. He loved Peter he loved John and he loved you this. He loved the worst of sinners and he loved the best of saints. Any laws everyone in between whether your hipster and cool or uncool because God knows the truth Billy Graham when he was alive he would them you would say two things that his events a lot. He would say the Bible says he always said that but he often said God loves you and you say it so much. Somebody asked document what you always say God loves you. He said this if you knew if you really knew that God loves you it would transform your life. I believe that knowing that God loves us, should cause great relief, joy, humility that God's plan includes me, because if his love for me is eternal and it is he said I love you with an everlasting love that means he loved you before he put anything else here before he started or created anything, it means is love is prehistoric pre-fall of man.

Prenatal before you were born. It can't be taken away and it can never end. That's eternal love. That's everlasting up so that's the principle we have God loves us, but that principle has a problem. That principle gets challenged by the experiences of life. Continue to read, who shall separate us or what shall separate us from the love of God could be translated either way. Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword, not those are pretty raunchy things by those are seven experiences seven painful experiences and when they happen or if they ever happen to us.

They can move us away from the previous truth that we know about God. God is love. When the circumstances like these happen they make a lot of us question the love of God or find yourself in the circumstance that you didn't plan on you don't like makes you question God's love.

It's very dark it's inexplicable and you're kind of thinking okay God's obit.

This is you loving me because I'm not feeling the love one counselor said when counseling people who are suffering from anxiety and depression.

I often hear them ask this God even love me. I bet you've asked that question before you could be tempted during any of these experiences to conclude that God is against you.

God doesn't care about you or perhaps there is no God. He doesn't even exist. Now look at the first that he lists shall tribulation, if you don't mind if you feel free to do this right in the margin of your Bible. The pressures of life. That's what this means tribulation could be translated the pressures of life. The word means to be squeezed or placed under pressure.

We all face Joe who suffered immensely.

Said man is born to trouble as certainly as the sparks fly upward so the pressures of life tribulation second on the list distress now. I'm particularly interested in this word because the Greek word is Stan Correia. We get our word stenosis from that for years I've had a severe spinal stenosis in my lower back. It means a narrow or confined place. It's the feeling of being hemmed in any money listening to this message is in a hospital room feels that way if you're a prisoner in jail and this message comes to you. You feel hemmed and you are hemmed in. Some people say I feel hemmed in and imprisoned by my work. Some people feel when a marriage. I'm a prisoner in this relationship man like Joseph or Daniel or Jeremiah or Paul the apostle all had a period of incarceration in their lives where they felt they were in distress hemmed in. Look at what's third on the list. Persecution he's writing to a church in Rome who is about to face some of the most severe persecution ever infect 200 years of persecution. Two centuries of and then we will go through all of them but notice the last four famine nakedness peril sword you could go through it all, those individually, but I think it's safe to say that those four are the results of persecution. Whether you experience all or one of those things. It can make you wonder the truth that you say you believe in the God loves you.

But notice the question. Who or what shall separate us from the love of Christ that word separate Lorenzo is the typical word Paul uses for a divorce in the Bible. What can give you. What could bring distance between you and God. Is there anything that could divorce you from God's love. What could separate us from his love.

Now, he asked the question but notice verse 36 how he answers the question, he says, as it is written, for your sake we are killed all day long we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. What is that me while he says as it is written, meaning he's quoting something from the Old Testament and he is is quoting Psalm 44 Psalm 44 was written by one of the sons of Cora and Psalm 44 is about how we the Jewish people, your chosen people to people you love you've given us the land you put us in the land but were surrounded by enemies who have persecuted us, told us taken us into captivity and so you might say why is Paul quoting that verse to answer that question here is what he is saying we shouldn't be surprised if we suffer for Christ because God's people always have. That's their history. Jesus told his disciples you're going to be hassle you're going to be hated by nations for my namesake. They hated me they're going to hate you. But then he said, rejoice and be exceedingly glad for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

In other words, when you suffer persecution. You're not alone. You are standing with the best possible company with the best lineup when you are persecuted you stand next to Moses, Jeremiah, Elijah, Daniel, Jesus. This is why historians carefully noted that when the early Christians were persecuted by the Roman Empire when they marched to their death. They often stood tall and counted it as an honor to do something that's give message from the sewage heart right now you Skip to tell you how your support helps keep these messages coming your way would connect more people to the gospel. The gospel of Jesus Christ is the message that opens the doors of heaven to all people, and today you can help share that message with many others so they can live boldly for Christ knowing they'll be with him for eternity.

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Again, that's 800-922-1888. Tune in tomorrow SQ secures a powerful message about the extent of God's incredible love for you is likely scouring the universe for any contingency at all any possibility that could separate us from God's love and can't find one you notice what he mentioned first in that death I persuaded that death cannot separate you from God. It will unite so Skip visitation of connection communications to God's unchanging truth