The Love of God Compels Us
Notes
Transcript
Introduction
Introduction
Have you guys ever experienced something so good that it kind of took over the rest of your day? I think back to the first time I had Chick-Fil-A. The firs time I bit into that chicken sandwich, life was just different. Nothing was ever gonna be the same again. By the second bite I was texting my friends about it. Everyone that I loved needed to know how good this chicken was. By the time I was done with my meal I was already planning on coming back for dinner that night. I loved Chick-Fil-A so much that it literally started to control the way that I acted. In fact if today wasn’t Sunday we would be heading to Chick-Fil-A right after this is over. And obviously we aren’t talking about Chick-Fil-A this morning, but we are going to be talking about an experience that takes over not just the rest of our day - but the rest of our lives.
So we know the “what” of where this whole weekend takes us, but do we know the “why?” Let’s look to Scripture so see that question answered for us.
And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience— among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved— and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.
Christ has reconciled us to God (Verses 14-18)
Christ has reconciled us to God (Verses 14-18)
The love of God finds its ultimate culmination in this - that Jesus Christ has reconciled us to the Father. The reason that this act of love is so great is because it should not have been possible in the first place. Normally reconciliation is just a matter of two people being able to swallow their pride, set aside their differences and apologize to one another. There are normally two guilty parties, and normally there is not something done that cannot be undone.
When Adam and Eve fell, they committed a crime of cosmic treason as R.C. Sproul likes to say. Mankind was nothing but dust until God breathed life into him, and God elevated mankind higher than all the other things that God made. His love for us was immense and not even fully comprehensible. Yet rather than live a life of gratitude towards this loving God, man decided to turn against him and oppose his authority. Humankind is just a rebellious dust, mounting an assault on the Lord of all creation!
So when Adam formed this rebellion, it would have seems more than right for God to give the punishment that was prescribed for such a rebellion - eternal separation from Himself. It only seems like a fitting punishment, and if anyone thinks that this punishment may be too harsh for us, the fact that we continue to sin ourselves is further proof that what we truly deserve is enmity - separation. We have found ourselves in a pretty helpless estate, completely powerless to change our situation and with no options but to face the charges that we have brought on ourselves. This truly is the state of human beings, and it is exactly what we deserve. This is no average disagreement or textbook reconciliation. A wrong against a person may be paid back, but a treason against an all-powerful God is a crime that we cannot bring ourselves back from.
However, there is one possible hope for humankind. There is only one way out of the situation that we placed ourselves in, and that is through divine intervention. Normally when we need to be reconciled to a friend or even someone we don’t like all that much, there are lots of paths we can take to get to reconciliation. If we stole from them, we return it with maybe a little extra. If we were rude to someone, a heartfelt apology might be enough. We can get someone flowers, chocolates, a card or go a hundred other routes in order to seek reconciliation. In our situation with God there is only one path to reconciliation. God does not desire our gifts, and all the apologies in the world can’t right our wrongs.
The cost that needs to be paid for such a heinous crime is death, and no other payment will satisfy. This is obviosuly out of our ability to pay. The only possible way that we can ever hope to have community with God again is if God Himself desires to redeem us and bring us back to himself. As we look into all the possible scenarios going forward, there is only one where we will ever get to have a relationship with God again. In fact, this is exactly the scenario that we see playing out before our very eyes. As we read in Scripture:
For the love of Christ controls us, because we have concluded this: that one has died for all, therefore all have died; and he died for all, that those who live might no longer live for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised. From now on, therefore, we regard no one according to the flesh. Even though we once regarded Christ according to the flesh, we regard him thus no longer. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation;
They very Gospel of Jesus Christ is the one possible scenario where we get to have a relationship with God again. As Paul says, one man has died for all, so we have all died with him and are all raised with him as well. But it isn’t just a clean slate that we get - we are raised as a whole new creation.
God looked upon these creatures from the dust that rebelled against him and decided to make them his children. And not only that - God so much desired to have these rebellious creatures as his children that he was willing to send his Son to die so that we could become his children! What an immense love we have observed and experienced! What an amazing reconciliation!
That Jesus Christ, God incarnate, was willing to condescend and take our punishment so that we won’t have to is an act of love on such epic proportions that we have never seen anything close to it throughout all of history. In fact, although it could be argued that we are the least deserving of love because of what we have done against God, it is without question that we are by far the most loved creation that has ever lived.
The life we now live is for Christ (Verse 15)
The life we now live is for Christ (Verse 15)
And so we are no longer vile rebels, but children of God. We are no longer condemned to live a life that is rebellious to God, but are invited to walk in His Kingdom. If you could make the choice, what would it be? It’s a pretty easy choice, one that Paul didn’t struggle with at all. In verse 15 he says
and he died for all, that those who live might no longer live for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised.
You don’t experience a love like God’s love for us and not experience change. It isn’t possible to feel the weight of sin, yet also experience the wonderful love of God and continue to live as though God doesn’t exist.
The love of God will change us in a way that will cause us to love God more.
Our lives are no longer for ourselves - in fact we think of ourselves far less now that we are presented with how wonderful God is.
And here’s the thing: it isn’t like God saved us so that we could be guilt-tripped into being his slaves. God didn’t send Jesus so that we could live in a constant guilt trip. He doesn’t hang his love over our head in a way that is supposed to make us feel horrible - quite the opposite. The love of God is genuine and sincere love, love that redeems and wipes away all record of wrongs. It does not keep a record of all that you’ve done, but Gone has chosen to completely forget all of it. He loves you so dearly that he will never bring a single charge against you no matter what you’ve done in your life. If you believe in Christ, then you are spotless, as white as snow.
So our love for God is not a guilt-inspired, obligatory love. When we see the true love of God that is directed towards us specifically, what can we do but love him back? As John said:
We love because he first loved us.
This life that we live is no longer dedicated to self-achievement. It is not longer dedicated to a rebel cause against God. It cannot be, the love of God is too strong, too compelling. As Paul said at the beginning of this section,
For the love of Christ controls us, because we have concluded this: that one has died for all, therefore all have died;
Or as some of the disciples in Acts
for we cannot but speak of what we have seen and heard.”
This love that we have experience is not something you just make a Facebook post about so it’ll pop up on your memories once a year, this is an experience that changes things on a very fundamental level, it shakes up our day-to-day and even the way that we approach life. It causes us to tear ourselves from the center of our lives and to live for God instead.
The love that God has for us ought to increase our love for God.
The love of Christ compels us to love others also. (Verses 18-21)
The love of Christ compels us to love others also. (Verses 18-21)
But thats not all - The love that God has for us will motivate us to love others as well. Verses 18 through 21 say:
All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.
The same love that you have experienced from God is available to all people everywhere. Everyone who is experiencing the pain that we ourselves know well can find relief. Everyone who struggles with anxiety can find their peace. Everyone who is far off can be brought home again - and its through the gospel that brought you home.
Seeing the great love that God has for us and for others ought to motivate us to love everyone as though they are God’s
wayward creation needing to be called home - because they are.
Who knows what an ambassador is?
God has made us ambassadors of this ministry of reconciliation, so that all people everywhere would know that their relationship with God is possible. That Jesus has cut a path where there seemed to be no possible way back to the Father. God made his Son, who never sinned, to embody all of our sins so that we might be made as clean and righteous as Christ himself.
Why do we share the gospel with people?
Colossians 1:28-2:
Him we proclaim, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all wisdom, that we may present everyone mature in Christ. For this I toil, struggling with all his energy that he powerfully works within me. For I want you to know how great a struggle I have for you and for those at Laodicea and for all who have not seen me face to face, that their hearts may be encouraged, being knit together in love, to reach all the riches of full assurance of understanding and the knowledge of God’s mystery, which is Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.
In one sense it is because God commanded us to and we want to be obedient to him. But it cannot be just that. It must also be because we have a deep love for those who are lost and hurting, those who are still rebelling against God. We must recognize the love that God has for these rebels, remember that we once counted ourselves among their ranks, and desire more than anything to see them come home to God through the blood of Christ.
This is where the love of God is calling you. As we’ve spent a weekend exploring the love of God, and hopefully we will be exploring that love for a lifetime after this, it is calling you to something. It is working inside of you to bring you somewhere. The love of God ought to bring you to a place where you love God more and you love others more. As you have experienced the love of God that loves without limit or border, so too we must love in the same way.
Now let us close with the words from Colossians that so beautifully capture all that we have been discussing:
Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God. And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.