Laid Down For Love, Risen For Reconciliation
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Jeremiah 31:1-7 & Romans 5:8
Jeremiah 31:1-7 & Romans 5:8
Prayer Coming Down
Welcome Online & First Time Visitors
Fellowship Moment & Dismiss The Youth
Call back to seats
Please remain standing while we read the Word Of God
Main Scripture - Jeremiah 31:1-7 & Romans 5:8
1 “At that time,” declares the Lord, “I will be the God of all the families of Israel, and they shall be My people.” 2 This is what the Lord says: “The people who survived the sword Found grace in the wilderness— Israel, when it went to find its rest.” 3 The Lord appeared to him long ago, saying, “I have loved you with an everlasting love; Therefore I have drawn you out with kindness. 4 “I will build you again and you will be rebuilt, Virgin of Israel! You will take up your tambourines again, And go out to the dances of the revelers. 5 “Again you will plant vineyards On the hills of Samaria; The planters will plant And will enjoy the fruit. 6 “For there will be a day when watchmen On the hills of Ephraim call out, ‘Arise, and let’s go up to Zion, To the Lord our God.’ ” 7 For this is what the Lord says: “Sing aloud with joy for Jacob, And be joyful with the chief of the nations; Proclaim, give praise, and say, ‘Lord, save Your people, The remnant of Israel!’
8 But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
Prayer Over The Message...
So y’all have heard me talk about how I grew up listening to all kinds of music. Bluegrass, Motown, R&B, Hip Hop, I even enjoy Fats Domino like my Pa did back in the day, but I listened to a lot of country music when I was a kid so 80’s and 90’s kinda stuff.
How many of y’all know who Randy Travis is? Randy Travis was on the radio every time I turned it on as a kid, and he had a ton of hits, but one of his biggest songs was Deeper Than The Holler. I know those lyrics like I know my own name I listened to it so much. You might be wondering why I’m talking about Randy Travis today, I’m focused on the lyrics he sang in this song…
First he sings about city singer, singing about how they can love deeper than the ocean and higher than the stars above, but then he flips it, the next line he says “I’ve heard that ocean’s salty and those stars they sometimes fall.
I look at those lyrics different today, that describes us when we are living OF THE WORLD. But just like in the song we HAVE A HOPE...HIS NAME IS JESUS! And just like Randy Travis went on to sing in that song… let me tell you about Jesus’ love...
HIS LOVE IS...
Deeper than the holler
Stronger than the river
Higher than the pine trees growin' tall upon the hill
His love is purer than the snowflakes
That fall in late December
And honest as a Robin on a springtime window sill
And longer than the song of a whippoorwill
AMEN, NOW HONESTLY HOW MANY OF YOU HAD RANDY TRAVIS IN A EASTER SUNDAY SERMON ON YOUR 2026 BINGO CARD???
Let’s get into this word...
We often look at the story of Jesus’ resurrection and we focus on POWER, and VICTORY! Amen?
Now there’s nothing wrong with that, WE DO HAVE POWER & VICTORY IN JESUS! HALLELUJAH!!! But today I want to focus on what brought us that POWER & THAT VICTORY, and I want us all to see where the TRUE POWER RESIDES.
The passage we just read from Jeremiah speaks to the RESTORATION of A RELATIONSHIP between God and His children. You see that’s not just a new testament thing, God has been after bringing US back to HIM the whole time. It’s what we mean when we say GOD SEEKS US!
2 This is what the Lord says: “The people who survived the sword Found grace in the wilderness— Israel, when it went to find its rest.”
Where is grace found? IN THE WILDERNESS! The wilderness here speaks to the Israelites after being led up out of Egypt. They wandered, they complained, they even wished they were back in Egypt, but what did God do???
He gave them GRACE, He provided them with water and manna, they traveled with God leading they way, GOD LOVED THEM!!!
Today that love remains, God is the same yesterday today and forever!
Even if we are in a bad season, God still loves us.
Even if we have made mistakes, God still loves us.
Even if we struggle with our faith because we see the immediate trouble in our day, GOD STILL LOVES US.
HIS LOVE IS UNCONDITIONAL, AS HE SAID IN JEREMIAH 31:3, IT’S EVERLASTING, AND HE KEEPS POURING IT OUT.
God pours out His everlasting love to draw us out! Out of our nonsense, out of our old ways, out of our own thinking, OUT OF THIS WORLD!!!
God pours out His everlasting love to rebuild US INTO WHAT HE CREATED AND HAS FOR US!!!
God pours out His everlasting love on US because the CUP DID NOT PASS FROM JESUS!
As Jesus prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane, He prayed “My Father, if it is possible let this cup pass from me”
But it didn’t pass. Jesus took the wrath, Jesus took the punishment, Jesus took the pain, Jesus took the humiliation, Jesus took the beatings, and the flogging...
Then Jesus took the cross,
Then He took His last breath on it...
AND THEY LAID HIM DOWN IN A TOMB, HE WAS LAID DOWN IN LOVE...
LOVE FOR THE FATHER IN HEAVEN, AND LOVE FOR ME AND YOU AND YOU AND YOU, AND EVERY SINGLE PERSON IN THIS WORLD.
13 Greater love has no one than this, that a person will lay down his life for his friends.
Jesus laid down for love, HE LAID DOWN HIS LIFE FOR US!!!
The debt that we all owed was paid in full. The love of God poured out now as a never-ending flow of the BLOOD OF CHRIST!!!
But we must remember that story isn’t finished there...
Because ON THE THIRD DAY, Y’all say it with me, ON THE THIRD DAY...
JESUS ROSE FROM THE GRAVE!
Death defeated, Hell made powerless, the grave deemed inconsequential!
Because when Jesus rose the HOPE WAS RESTORED, the LIFE WAS RENWED, AND THE CHILDREN OF GOD COULD BE RECONCILED TO HIM!!!
HIS LOVE POURED OUT THAT WE MAY RUN BACK TO THE FATHER, THAT WE MAY LEAVE THIS WORLD IN THE REARVIEW, THAT WE MAY TAKE REST IN THE KINGDOM!!!
We run back, we leave the world, and we join the Kingdom… All of this is done at the point in our lives that we are still sinners, but I have good news...
JESUS LAID DOWN IN LOVE FOR SINNERS, JESUS IS RISEN TO RECONCILE SINNERS WITH GOD!!!
Romans 5:8 says it plain...
8 But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
Period, end of discussion. We are born into this world as sinners, we don’t have to leave this world as sinners! Jesus paved the way with His body, with His blood, with His sacrifice, WITH HIS LOVE!!!
Earlier I said I wanted us to look deeper today, deeper into this story and bring away more than VICTORY and POWER. Take those truths and hold them dear, but know that with all the POWER and ALL THE VICTORY that Jesus possessed...
HE STILL WENT TO THE CROSS, HE STILL DIED FOR US, HE DID THIS WHILE WE WERE STILL BROKEN, STILL SINFUL, STILL SEPARATED, STILL LOST!
AND TODAY HE IS RISEN! RISEN TO RECONCILE, RISEN TO RESTORE, RISEN TO REMIND US OF HIS LOVE FOR US!
Today we hear about victory and power concerning every topic of worldly life… CONFLICTS, SPORTS, SCHOOL, EVERYTHING. Victory has become a commodity, the world is selling it to us every day...
Elections are won and lost, and highly publicized
Sports teams are chasing after it, and it’s highly publicized
Stock Markets have a victories and losses multiple times a day, and it’s highly publicized...
BUT WE ARE THE CHURCH Y’ALL. WE SIT IN THE MIDDLE OF ALL THIS NOISE OF VICTORY THAT DON’T MATTER AND WE NEED TO BE SHOUTING ABOUT THE ONE THAT DOES MATTER......
THE VICTORY OF RECONCILIATION TO GOD! WE ARE NO LONGER SEPERATED! WE ARE WELCOME! WE ARE LOVED!
As the Worship team comes back up...
Today we are not fighting the war that is found in this world, Christ did that already, HE OVERCAME THE WORLD! Today we are fighting a KINGDOM WAR! And let me assure you of something,
THE KINGDOM VICTORY LOOKS NOTHING LIKE WHAT THE WORLD CALLS VICTORY!
KINGDOM VICTORY LOOKS LIKE JESUS, IT LOOKS LIKE GLORY, IT LOOKS LIKE A MANSION WITH MANY ROOMS, AND WHEN YOU ARE IN CHRIST JESUS IT LOOKS LIKE ME AND YOU!!!
KINGDOM VICTORY LOOKS LIKE LOVE...
BECASUE KINGDOM VICTORY BEGINS WITH LOVE, AND IT NEVER ENDS!
Altar Call...
Communion Service Prayer
Now I have said enough today. i believe this time of communion is meant to be a personal reflection for all of us, a reflection of the sacrifice of Jesus, done out of love and for total reconciliation to The Father.
As we take the elements just remember, today you are not who you once were, His body was broken for us, His blood shed for us, IN JESUS WE ARE MADE NEW!!!
22 While they were eating, He took some bread, and after a blessing He broke it, and gave it to them, and said, “Take it; this is My body.” 23 And when He had taken a cup and given thanks, He gave it to them, and they all drank from it. 24 And He said to them, “This is My blood of the covenant, which is being poured out for many. 25 Truly I say to you, I will not drink of the fruit of the vine again, until that day when I drink it, new, in the kingdom of God.”
Prayer after communion.
