Sermon Tone Analysis

Text: Romans 5:6-8

Illustrate: Kids compare themselves

Who is tallest

Who is strongest

Who is fastest

Who can kick a Soccer ball the furthest

Who has the strongest dad

I. God's Love for you is Bigger than you can Grasp.

Trans: Our entire understanding of love is based on a comparison.

Christ said it himself best he said,

He was telling us how to compare our love for our family for our love for Christ.

It humors me that we have this one expression for this great emotion called love.

Like I love my wife, my kids, mom, dad, brothers grandparents, I love pizza.

II.

God wants you to understand this Massive Love.

God lays out a picture for us to see in the death of man for man

Paul takes a righteous man and stands him in front of the firing quad.

What are the chances that someone will come creaming from the crowd, "Take me instead"?

The chances re scarce (not probable, probably not going to happen.

If you take this man on person merit alone even his innocence there are still few who would take his place.

“Yet peradventure, (possibly) for a good man some would even dare to die.”

Our odds go up here.

It is more possible that someone would die for a good man than for a man who just hadn't done anything wrong.

The word good denotes a relationship, it is someone who has made a difference in your life.

Someone on whose personal merit is important to you.

They are your mailmen that put your mail in a plastic bag.

It is the grocer that delivers your groceries to your car.

Or even more personal your pastor, deacon, father, mother.

Good denotes the kind of relationship they have with you.

Let's say that it is your son that sits on death row.

Would you take his place?

Chances go up.

Verse 8 shows us that when there is so few that would be willing to die Christ died for you.

There are so few in this world that would take your place.

Chances are scarce that someone could see you righteousness enough, or even good enough for such a sacrifice.

III.

God knows there is not Comparison.

Since we are trying to make a good comparison here we have to even the score.

Jesus wasn't dying for the righteous.

Illustrate: glasses

You and I are not innocent of the Law we have broken the law of God.

We stood guilty worthy of death.

We are not asking God to take the place of a righteous man you have none.

We are worthy of its Torment, Shame, Lonliness.

Death is the highest form of proof is possible.

IV.

The Gospel of Christ is God's Proof of Love.

Christ died driven by love, proved at the highest cost.

Not to a friend or the righteous or good but for the lowest and least deserving.

AS DESCRIBED BY A DOCTOR... Simon is ordered to place the cross beam on the ground, and Jesus is quickly thrown backwards with His shoulders against the wood.

The legionnaire feels for the depression at the front of the wrist.

He drives the heavy, square, wrought-iron nail through the wrist and deep into the wood.

Quickly, he moves to the other side and repeats the action, being careful not pull the arms too tightly, but to allow some flexion and movement.

The cross beam is then lifted in place at the top of the vertical beam The left foot is pressed backward against the right foot, and with both feet extended, toes down, a nail is driven through the arch of each, leaving the knees moderately flexed.

The Victim is now crucified.

As He slowly sags down with more weight on the nails and the wrists, excruciating, fiery pain shoots along the fingers and up the arms to explode in the brain--the nails in the wrists are putting pressure on the median nerves.

As he pushes Himself upward to avoid this stretching torment, He places His full weight on the nail through His feet.

Again there is searing agony of the nail tearing through the nerves between the metatarsal bones of the feet.

At this point, another phenomenon occurs.

As the arms fatigue, great waves of cramps sweep over the muscles, knotting them in deep, relentless throbbing pain.

With these cramps comes the inability to push Himself upward.

Air can be drawn into the lungs, but cannot be exhaled.

Jesus fights to raise Himself in order to get even one small breath.

Finally carbon dioxide builds up in the lungs and in the blood stream and the cramps partially subside.

Spasmodically He is able to push Himself upward to exhale and bring in the life-giving oxygen.

Hours of this limitless pain, cycles of twisting, joint-rending cramps, intermittent partial asphyxiation, searing pain as tissue is torn from His lacerated back as He moves up and down against the rough timber.

Then another agony begins.

A deep crushing pain deep in the chest as the pericardium slowly fills with serum and begins to compress the heart.

It is now almost over--the loss of tissue fluids has reached a critical level-- the compressed heart is struggling to pump heavy, thick, sluggish blood into the tissues--the tortured lungs are making a frantic effort to gasp in small gulps of air.

The body of Jesus is now in extremis, and He can feel the chill of death creeping through His tissues His mission of atonement has been completed.

Finally He can allow His body to die.

- C. Truman Davis,

"The Crucifixion of Jesus.

The Passion of Christ from a Medical Point of View," Arizona Medicine 22, no. 3 March 1965: 186-87, as quoted in The Expositor's Bible Commentary Vol. 8, ed.

by Frank Gaebelein ([1984] pp.

779-80.

[Even the doctor's description cannot adequately express what suffering Jesus endured on the cross for our sins.

Before we close, let's summarize what else is revealed surrounding the crucifixion...]

V.

The Church is the Conduit of God’s Love.

Saved from Wrath

Reconciled to God

Atonement Recieved

Salvation Some here this afternoon have one major need, to be saved.

To know heaven as your home is not based on how good you are.

Rather, it is based on the fact that someone stood in front of the firing squad for you.

Christ stood in your place and died to pay for your crime.

You did the crime he did the time.

(Wallet Illustration)

Christ likeness This is just a big way of saying that Christ has made a way for you to think, act, and live just like Jesus.

Paul said,

As we pursue after Christ (faith) Christ does a work inside of you.

There are many today who look at Christianity as a list of rules.

I never knew such freedom as the day I realized that Christianity is not about Christ it is about letting Christ live in me.

I don't stress about the rules, because as I pursue or chase after him I transform to be like him.

Walking with God Did you know that there is a sincere happiness that comes with walking with God.

I am not talking about reading a chapter a day, or praying for ten minutes a day.

I am talking about reading the bible not for how long I can read but for what I find about him as I read.

Not praying for ten minutes, but praying until I have put everything in his hands.

There is a communion that Christ gives to us with His father and all of us are invited to have a part.