Pray

Give Honor:

Majah,

John Russell,

Dad and Mom (family) Go with me to John 3:16-17

John 3:16–17 NKJV

16 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. 17 For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.

What it Really Means to Love

Love a word that comes and goes

But few people really know

what it means to really….love some……body Love though the tears may fade away I'm so glad your love will stay 'Cause I love you and you show me,

Jesus,

what it really means to love

And as we close out this Advent season,

I feel it’s only right to reflect on the reason for His coming.

Let’s not get it twisted—Jesus didn’t come for an applause.

He didn’t come to show off His glory or to receive accolades.

He came for one reason and one reason only: and that reason, is love.

God didn’t send just anybody.

He didn’t send an angel or a prophet.

He sent His only begotten Son To die on a cross for our sins.

knowing that some would still reject Him.

knowing that humanity might still not believe.

Yet He did it anyway, because that’s what love does.

Love moves.

Love sacrifices.

Love gives.

And love keeps loving.

My father reminded us just the other day,

Love is a word we say often but practice rarely.”

Real love isn’t just a word—it’s an action.

It’s a choice.

And church, if we truly want to understand what real love looks like, Jesus is the perfect depiction of what love really means.

and I believe this is what Jesus was trying to explain in his conversation with Nicodemus.

You see, Nicodemus had seen the signs and wonders Jesus performed, and something stirred within him.

He recognized that there was something different about Jesus—something divine.

So Nicodemus came in the middle of night to ask Jesus a few questions,

and While answering his questions,

Jesus What it really means to love.

and this is what I am trying to answer today,

“What does it really mean to love?”

If you’re taking notes,

1.To Love is to be Selfless

The bible says,

John 3:16 (KJV 1900)

16 For God so loved the world, that he gave

Love is selfless.

As Jesus is having this conversation with Nicodemus, Jesus reveals the heart of the Gospel.

He tells Nicodemus, that “God’s love is so deep, so wide, and so all-encompassing,

that He gave His Son—not for His benefit, but for ours.”

and I like this because

When God looked down at a broken world

a world full of sin,

a world full of rebellion,

and a world full of people who didn’t even love Him back—

His response wasn’t selfish.

His response wasn’t to turn His back

His response wasn’t to throw us away.

But, His response was to give.

His response wasn’t to let the devil , devour us,

But His response was to give.

And if you want to know if someone really loves you, Ask yourself the question

Are they selfish, or are they selfless?

Because love doesn’t take—it gives.

Love doesn’t hold back—it’s selfless.

and Jesus came into this world to take a beating for a world who would never take beating for him

and he did it, so that we could live.

The songwriter said "You gave that I might live,

you gave that I might be set free.

Exchanged your life for mine

—what a marvelous thing You’ve done!"

And I don’t know about you,

but I’m so glad God loved me enough to be selfless.

I’m glad He didn’t hold back His best.

I’m glad He gave His Son so that I could live,

I’m glad He gave His son so that I could be set free,

I’m glad He gave His son so that I could have eternal life.

and Church, if we’re going to reflect God’s love in our lives,

we’ve got to learn to be selfless.

We’ve got to stop making it about us.

Stop asking, “What can I get?”

and start asking, “What can I give?”

Stop asking, “How much can I get paid”

and start asking, “How much can i sow”

Stop asking, “Who’s going to bless me?”

and start asking, “Who can I be a blessing to?”

Stop asking, “How much can I keep?”

and start asking, “How much can I give away?”

Stop asking, “Why isn’t anyone helping me?”

and start asking, “How can I help someone else?”

Stop asking, “What’s in it for me?”

and start asking, “What can I do for others?”

Stop asking, “Why don’t they love me?” \

and start asking, “How can I show them love?”

Stop asking, “When will they notice me?”

and start asking, “Who can I encourage today?”

Because to love is to be selfless.

Not only to love is to be selfless, but

2. To Love is to Sacrifice

John 3:16 (KJV 1900)

16 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.

When Jesus is talking to Nicodemus,

He’s breaking down the magnitude of what God did.

He says, “God so loved the world.”

Not just a few people.

Not just the good people.

Not just the people who loved Him back.

But the world.

That means the broken,

the sinful,

the rebellious

The democrat

The republican

The white

The black

and all of the above. . God loved them so much that He gave his ONLY.

You see

The essence of love is not found in what’s convenient or easy—it’s found most in what it cost you.

The Bible says in John 3:16, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son.”

Let me tell you, love without sacrifice isn’t love at all.

HE GIVES HIS ONLY BEGOTTEN SON,

In the original language, the term “only begotten” means

unique,

one-of-a-kind,

or the only one.

God didn’t give a replacement or a spare.

He gave His only Son.

That means He gave the most precious, the most valuable, and the most irreplaceable thing He had.

And let me tell you, church, sacrifice means giving up something you love for someone you love even more.

I’m It wasn’t easy for God to send His Son.

It wasn’t painless for Jesus to go to the cross.

But that’s what love does.

Love endures the pain.

Love pays the cost.

and Love lays it all down.

When God sent His Son, He wasn’t thinking about His own comfort or glory.

He was thinking about you.

He was thinking about the sin that separated us from Him. He was thinking about the eternal life we needed but couldn’t earn on our own.

So He sacrificed.

and this is the perfect picture of the Grace of God.

He sacrificed for us, even when all of us would not believe in HIM. Amazing grace shall always be my song of praise For it was grace that brought my Liberty I'll never know just why he came to love me so

He looked beyond my faults and saw all my needs

That’s sacrifice. And church, real love requires sacrifice.

Sacrifice means saying, “I’m willing to be inconvenienced so you can be blessed.”

Sacrifice means, “I’ll put your needs above my own.”

Sacrifice means, “I’ll give up what I want so you can have what you need.”

And here’s the hard truth: If it doesn’t cost you anything, it may not be not Real love.

God showed us this through the ultimate sacrifice

—sending Jesus to die on the cross so that we could live.

And if God could sacrifice His only Son for us, how much more should we be willing to sacrifice for Him and for others?

Because to LOVE is to SACRIFICE.

To love is to SAVE

To love is to Sacrifice. and

3. To Love is to Save

John 3:17 (KJV 1900)

17 For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.

In this verse, Jesus reveals the heart of God's mission.

The purpose of Jesus’ coming was not to condemn but to save.

The Greek word for "save" here is sōzō, meaning to rescue, to deliver, or to make whole.

This is not a partial saving; it’s a complete redemption

God’s love is proactive.

It doesn't wait for us to clean ourselves up;

it reaches us in our brokenness and pulls us out of the depths of despair.

song writer said, His love goes deep enough, to forgive the unforgivable,

it’s strong enough, to hold you up wheh you are falling down,

How do I know?

Because i’m standing in this moment here to tell you, I

know it sounds crazy, but that’s the way that he loves you and me.

and Church, this kind of love is not just something we talk about—it’s something we’ve experienced.

I don’t care what you’ve done or how far you’ve fallen;

His love reaches further.

It’s strong enough to hold you up when life knocks you down.

When you’ve hit rock bottom, His love is the rock that you stand on.

And the truth is,

If we are to love as Christ loves, we must also be agents of saving love.

Do you love enough to forgive the unforgivable?

Do you love enough to extend a hand to someone who’s fallen?

Do you love enough to share the gospel with someone who’s lost?

I’m reminded of a story of a man who fell into a deep pit.

He tried everything he could to climb out, but the walls were too steep, and his strength failed him.

Along came different people offering advice.

One said, "You shouldn’t have fallen in."

Another said, "Here’s a ladder—figure it out."

But none of them could truly help.

Then came someone who didn’t just look down from above

but he climbed into the pit, lifted the man onto his shoulders, and carried him out.

That’s what Jesus did for us. He didn’t just stand at a distance and point out our failures.

He stepped into the pit of humanity, took on the weight of our sin, and carried us out.

and I wonder is there anybody that know’s that God saves

Because

He loved me❗️❗️❗️❗️❗️❗️❗️

I was sinking deep in sin,

far from the peaceful shore,

very deeply stained within,

sinking to rise no more

BUt the master, of the sea heard my desparing cry and from the waters, he liften me, now safe am I.

"Love lifted me! Love lifted me! When nothing else could help, Love lifted me!"