Passion

Introduction

Passion

Week 1: Fueled by Love

Big Idea: God so loves the entire world and does not want to condemn it, so he sends Jesus as an atoning sacrifice. God’s motivation to send Jesus was fueled by love. And Jesus’ ministry here on earth, all the way up to His death on the cross, was fueled by the same unconditional and all-powerful love.

Prayer: “Lord Jesus, thank you for setting the example of love for us all to learn from and follow. Thank you for trading your life so that we might have eternal life. Grant us the courage to be more like you; humble, obedient, and kind… So that we may have the opportunity to share the gospel with others.”

Scripture: John 3:16; 1 John 4:8; John 13:34; Matt. 21:33-42; Matt. 18:21-22

(All Scripture quotations are from the NIV unless otherwise noted)

Introduction

Welcome church. We are counting down the days to one of my favorite days of the year: Resurrection Sunday!

This is a time each year that we as believers come together specifically to celebrate the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

Now, I know what you’re thinking: “Pastor, don’t we celebrate those events every Sunday?”

This, indeed, is true.

So, I thought it would be fitting for us to spend the next few weeks, leading up to Resurrection Sunday looking more intently at the Passion narrative, as it’s often called, that leads to resurrection Sunday.

If you grew up in the church, chances are you’ve heard the story of Jesus told many times.

Maybe some of you today are new to the narrative.

Either way, it’s extremely important and powerful.

When Jesus was hanging on the cross, He was paying the penalty for our sin that we ourselves could not pay.

When this happened, many of those standing around the cross believed it was the nails that held Him there.

However, we are going to see over the next few weeks that it was His passion for humanity instead.

Jesus loved others, and His instruction to those early disciples was for them to love others as well.

In the gospel of John, Jesus says,

John 13:34 NKJV

A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another.

And even as he was giving this instruction, they were still learning from, following, and watching Jesus and the way He loved others.

Over the next few weeks, we are going to do the same. Just like the early disciples, we are going to learn from Jesus, through the word, how to love others. What was Jesus’ motivation and mission? What kept Him engaged through the difficulty of His mission?

Why did He trade His life for ours?

Main Teaching

As we get started please open your Bible or Bible app up to one of the most well known verses of all time, John 3:16.

Read John 3:16

John 3:16 NKJV

For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.

Today, I want us to focus on the beginning of this verse. There are two crucial statements made by Jesus in the opening segment of this verse, both of which have implications for us. Let’s take a look…

God so loved the world

If you were to ask any Christian how to describe God, most of them would say something about love. It is clear to see, all throughout the Bible, that God is a God of love, compassion, and care. In fact, 1 John 4:8

1 John 4:8 NKJV

He who does not love does not know God, for God is love.

What a powerful statement, right?

The word for “love” used in verse 3:16 by John is the Greek word “agape.” Of the 4 different words in the Greek language for love, this is the one that is willful, pure, and sacrificial. Sound familiar?

This is the type of love God has for His people, including you and me.

This love fueled God to send His son in the first place.

And this is the love that fueled Jesus throughout His ministry.

And this is the kind of love God wants to pass onto all those who believe in Him through Jesus.

Read John 13:34

John 13:34 NKJV

A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another.

As I mentioned earlier, we are commanded by Jesus to love one another in the same manner that He loved.

This leads us into a conversation about sacrifice.

The key to loving people well is often found in sacrifice, when we lay aside what we want for others.

Are you willing to sacrifice your schedule for someone who needs to chat with you?

Are you willing to sacrifice your own desires to align them with God’s?

Honestly, the list of sacrificial love opportunities is endless.

However, John 3:16 tells us something else important after we first recognize God loves the world.

We learn how God so loved the world.

God sent His Son

ILLUSTRATION: Talk about a time you sent a gift to someone you loved. You sent them this gift because they either wanted or needed it. Additionally, it allowed you to display your love for them through the thought and care you put into the gift.

Throughout Jesus’ earthly ministry, He tells many stories to help people understand the arguments He is trying to make. These are frequently called Parables. And there is a parable in Matthew 21 that talks about the “why” behind God the Father sending Jesus to earth.

Read Matthew 21:33-42

Matthew 21:33–42 NKJV

“Hear another parable: There was a certain landowner who planted a vineyard and set a hedge around it, dug a winepress in it and built a tower. And he leased it to vinedressers and went into a far country. Now when vintage-time drew near, he sent his servants to the vinedressers, that they might receive its fruit. And the vinedressers took his servants, beat one, killed one, and stoned another. Again he sent other servants, more than the first, and they did likewise to them. Then last of all he sent his son to them, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’ But when the vinedressers saw the son, they said among themselves, ‘This is the heir. Come, let us kill him and seize his inheritance.’ So they took him and cast him out of the vineyard and killed him. “Therefore, when the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those vinedressers?” They said to Him, “He will destroy those wicked men miserably, and lease his vineyard to other vinedressers who will render to him the fruits in their seasons.” Jesus said to them, “Have you never read in the Scriptures: ‘The stone which the builders rejected Has become the chief cornerstone. This was the Lord’s doing, And it is marvelous in our eyes’?

All throughout human history, God has been sending people to deliver His message of salvation and restoration. The landowner in this parable is God, the vineyard is His people, and the landowners’ servants are the prophets. But who are the farmers?

They are the ones who think they have it all together.

The ones who think they are without sin.

How often do we slip into a similar mindset?

“Well, my sins aren’t as bad as their sins.”

The Bible says that we are all guilty of “falling short” of God’s glorious standard for humanity.

Therefore, we needed someone to save us.

That’s why God sent Jesus.

Jesus is the gift that God sent humanity to show just how much he loved us.

Jesus is the gift we didn’t know we needed, but learned we cannot truly live without.

What this means for us

So now that we know God does indeed love us, regardless of where we’ve been or what we’ve done, and we also know God displayed His love for us by sending His own Son, what does all of it mean for us?

I think God’s desire for us in response is utterly clear: love Him back and love others the same way He loves us. We already read in John 13:34 that Jesus says to do this, He calls it “a new commandment.” However, like many things we are told to do it takes great effort, commitment, and devotion.

STORY: Talk about a time you sought to love someone who was hard to love, difficult, obstinate, and maybe even rude or mean.

It can be easy to love friends and family. But what about the person who wronged you? What about the person who stole from you? What about the person who cheated you? It all seems to come down to how willing we are to show the same amount of grace we have received. Here is what Jesus says, when asked how often we should show others grace.

Read Matthew 18:21-22

Matthew 18:21–22 NKJV

Then Peter came to Him and said, “Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? Up to seven times?” Jesus said to him, “I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven.

Another way to say this?

Forgive, forgive, forgive and then when you think you’ve done it enough, forgive again.

It doesn’t make sense.

It sounds backwards based on the rest of our culture which more and more tells us to simply walk away from people who hurt us or complicate our lives.

We are taught to cancel, but Jesus taught we should reconcile.

Jesus taught us, as much as it is in our power to do so, to make things right with others.

As with many other things we learn about the kingdom of heaven, this sounds upside down, difficult, and to some in the room, impossible.

But God loved the entire world; the good and bad, rich and poor, and everyone in between.

He was impartial in His love. He was unconditional.

And, as impossible as it seems, that’s what we are being called to as well.

Unconditional, sacrificial, agape love.

Conclusion

Loving others is a tough business.

So often, our love is tied to how we feel or how our wants/needs are being met.

And when our feelings change or our wants/needs are no longer being met then our love changes as well.

This is called conditional love, and thankfully, it’s not the kind of love that fuels God for His creation.

God loves even when it’s unreciprocated.

God loves when you’re nasty, rude, and mean.

God loves when He’s not getting anything out of the relationship.

And this specific love of God is ever ready for us in His Son, Jesus.

Over the next few weeks we’re going to learn more about the love that fuels Jesus.

It’s humble, perfect, and unstoppable.

Not even the grave could stop the love of Christ. Not even death could hold Him back.

Our challenge is to consider how we can love others like Jesus did.

Who in your life needs to experience that kind of love.

Who needs to be at the upcoming Resurrection Sunday service with you?

Who needs to experience a love free of demands, conditions, and rules unlike anything they’ve ever experienced before?

Who needs your forgiveness this week?

Who needs your sacrifice this week?

As we worship and pray, please take some time to consider these questions.

And if you’re like me, you’ll also need to pray for the strength and courage to respond in righteousness.

Let’s pray together.