Senior Service - Valentine's Day

Sermon:

Good afternoon my friends. I’m so honored to be back to share this time with you!

On this Valentine’s Day, I thought it’d be a good opportunity to talk about love - specifically, God’s love. You know, that’s what I appreciate about holidays. Holidays are opportunities to remind us about the things that matter. And all of us can use a reminder to express love towards those we care about.

In the Bible, there is a famous Bible passage that expresses God’s love.

John 3:16 ESV

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.

In our brief time together, I want to talk about how this passage teaches us about God’s love… starting with the first phrase, “For God so loved the world.”

The word “love” here is unlike our current English use of love - which can be emotion-heavy . The biblical Greek word for love is much bigger than that. It involves a relational commitment that includes, but isn’t limited to, emotions. That being said, I’m confident that when Jesus spoke these words, it was describing a love that was full of emotional expression.

If you were unaware, God loves you - like his heart towards you. He has strong feelings of love towards you.

Zephaniah 3:17 NLT

For the Lord your God is living among you. He is a mighty savior. He will take delight in you with gladness. With his love, he will calm all your fears. He will rejoice over you with joyful songs.”

Much the same way that Valentine’s Day is an opportunity to express love towards those our heart is emotionally invested in, John 3:16 tells us that God is emotionally invested in us. So much so that He was willing to make a great sacrifice.

Listen to the next part of the verse… “For God so loved the world,” or we can say it this way, “For God loved the world in this way… that He GAVE his only Son.”

This year, my wife and I are working hard to pay off debt. We even have little reminders all over the house on why we’re committed to not unnecessarily spend money. So, it would be very easy for me to justify NOT spending any money on her this Valentine’s Day.

… But, I don’t like sleeping on the couch, so I spent money anyways!

…No, the real reason I spent money is because I love my wife. And though we are committed to using our money wisely, my love moves me to sacrifice so I could express my love to her through the giving of gifts. And earlier today, I brought her lunch, chocolate strawberries, and 2 dozen red roses. That wasn’t cheap. It made a dent in our checking account. I may need to eat Top Ramen a few extra days this month. But it was a sacrifice that was worth it to show my love.

In the same way, 2000 years ago, God showed us His love towards us through a great sacrifice. He didn’t just sit on the throne of Heaven and shout down, “I love you!” No, He showed us by giving His only Son.

And we know that this “giving” includes His Son dying on the cross for our sins. So that we could be forgiven and have our relationship with God restored. Without this forgiveness, we will perish. We will be eternally separated from the love of God. But God loves us so much that He did something about it. He was unwilling to pass up the opportunity to show us His love, even if it cost Him, because that’s a HUGE SACRIFICE.

You know, if you’re married and you pass up too many Valentine’s Day (even if you both agree it’s just a Hallmark holiday), your relationship will suffer. It might even die. Why? Because love needs to be expressed to be experienced. That’s the way God created it to work and flourish. When love is expressed, life is found.

Because of the love of God, which was perfectly seen in the Jesus Christ and His sacrifice, we can find eternal life. If Jesus, who is the expression of the love of the Father, had never been experienced, we would die/perish. But because Jesus did come...

We not only know the Father emotionally loves us...

We not only see Him sacrificially give to express that love...

But we get true life (eternal life) when we personally experience His love.

John 17:3 ESV

And this is eternal life, that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.

Eternal life isn’t simply living forever. It’s experiencing the love of God forever.

And so, just as Valentine’s Day is a an opportunity to let - let’s say our spouse - know that we’re still in love with them… Jn 3:16 is God’s promise to us that He still loves us and desires to be in an eternal love-relationship with us.

So, this Valentine’s Day, remember to express love to those who matter to you. But more importantly, be reminded there is a God in Heaven who has an everlasting love towards you. Amen?

We’re going to close with one final way to remember God’s love towards us. We’re going to celebrate communion together. Communion is an opportunity to remember what Jesus did on the Cross. That when He died, His body was broken for us (the bread). His blood was shed for us (the juice). So that, when we turn from our sins, and put our faith in Jesus as Savior… as John 3:16 promises… we will not perish, but have eternal life. We will be able to enter into perfect love, for all eternity, even after this current and temporary life on Earth comes to an end.

By the way, if you’ve never accepted Jesus as Lord and Savior, but want the promise of that eternal love today, simply tell God in your heart, “God, I’m sorry for my sins. Please forgive me. I’m ready to receive Your love today. And I believe that Your Son, Jesus Christ, died on the Cross and rose from the dead , so that I could have eternal life your promised.”

As Pastor Jon plays a final song, I’ll be coming around the room to distribute communion. And if you’d like to take communion, simply hold out your hand and I’ll place the elements in it. But before that, let me pray...

God, thank you for Your Son Jesus. Thank you for your love. We don’t deserve it, but we’ll definitely receive it. And also, help us to be people of love. Let us love You and love others, even when it requires sacrifice. In Jesus name, amen.