The Numbers of Love

Introduction - Summarize

It is my joy and privilege to speak with you all this afternoon and I trust that a song that has been sung or a word that will be spoken will bring you encouragement in some way.

I plan to read a Scripture for you in just a moment, but first I want to tell you a quick story:

One cold and dark night in the city of Chicago, a blizzard began to set in. There amidst the people of the streets stood a little boy selling newspapers on the corner. It was so cold out that some of the people were coming in and out of the buildings and eventually the boy got so cold that he couldn’t sell anymore papers.

This young boy, so cold he could no longer stand it, walked up to a policeman and asked, “Sir, you wouldn’t happen to know where a poor boy could find a warm place to sleep tonight, would you? You see, I sleep in a box in the alley and it’s so cold tonight… I sure would love to have a nice warm place to stay.

The policeman looked down at the little boy and said, “Well if you go down the street, there is a big white house and you just go knock on the door. When they come to the door, you just say: , and they should let you in.”

So the young boy did as the policeman said and he walked up the steps to the big beautiful white house and began to knock on the door. Quickly someone came to the door and when they answered, the young boy looked up and said: .

The lady said, “Come on in, son.” She took him in and sat him down in a big old rocking chair in front of a great big old fireplace and she went into the other room.

He sat there for awhile and thought to himself: … I don’t understand what that means, but it sure makes a cold boy feel warm.

Just a few minutes went by and the lady came back and asked the young boy, “Are you hungry?” He said, “Yes mam, I haven’t eaten in a few days and I am very very hungry.” The lady took him in the kitchen and sat him down to a table full of wonderful food. A feast like he had never seen. He ate and ate until he just couldn’t eat any more!

Then he thought to himself again, …. Boy, I sure don’t understand it, but it sure make a hungry boy feel full.

The lady then took the young boy upstraites to a bathroom to a huge bathtub filled with warm water where he just sat and soaked for a little while. As the young boy sat there for awhile, he thought to himself again… …. I sure don’t understand it, but it sure make a dirty boy clean.

The lady came in and got the young boy and took him into a room and tucked him into a big ole bed with lots of pillows and pulled up the covers around his neck and kissed him goodnight and turned out the lights. As he laid there in the darkness, he thought to himself again… my… …. I sure don’t understand it, but it sure makes a tired boy feel rested.

The next morning the lady came back up and took the young boy back down to the same big table full of food. After he ate, she took him back to that big ole rocking chair and sat him down in front of the fireplace and pulled out here big old Bible. She looked at the young boy and asked, “Son, do you understand ?” He replied, no mam, I don’t. The first time I ever heard it was last night when the policeman told me to use it.

She opened her Bible to and read this verse: 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.

This lady began to explain to the child that just as was his number of hope for all of his physical needs, it was also the number of hope for his greatest need of all - accepting Jesus Christ as His Saviour.

reveals the purpose and heart of God.

teaches us that God loves all people, of all types and all conditions… he loves and embraces all people - for God so loved the world.

He loved the world so much that He

Gave His only begotten Son to be the sacrifice for all of our sins. God didn’t have to give us His Son, but He did it willingly so that we may

Believe in Him - we must believe in Him in three simple ways:

Having faith and confidence in Christ as God’s Son and Our Savior

To surrender ourselves to Christ as the authority over our lives and developing an attitude of submission that we will continue to obey God and His word.

Trusting that God is both willing and able to keep us in His complete and perfect will until He desires to bring us to heaven.

But why does God love the world that He gave us His son?

Why should we believe Christ?

Because God does not want us to perish or God does not want us to reject Him or not believe on Him, but He rather would like for us to have….

Everlasting life with God forever. It is the promise of life free from pain, suffering, and worry, and it is a promise that is given to all that accept this number of hope that I have given to you this morning -

It is a number of hope because it tells us that God loves us and He wants us to live with Him throughout all of eternity.

While it’s hard to understand why a God so great would love all of us that much, I hope you can say with me and that little boy…. My … I may still not fully understand it, but it sure makes a lost boy feel saved.