Unceasing love

Good Morning,

For those of you who do not know me, I am Pastor Lance. I work with our EM Ministry and am honored to be able to share the love of God with our English ministry every week. I know that our vision for the EM is not just for a Youth group, but to grow into a multicultural community of believers. A place where Koreans, Caucasians, Hispanics African Americans and people from every nation would join us to hear the good news and worship Our God and Savior. To do this will take much work and prayer. I thank you for your support in this effort.

As I began studying for this message, I was alerted to the news where the tragedy of the Highland Park shooting occurred. My heart was saddened for our country, as evil has taken more innocent lives. These acts have become so common that we are no longer shocked that someone could commit such an act. In truth, Scripture tell us that these things will not only continue, but will continue to get worse until Jesus returns. This is one of the most difficult truths to swallow. Our world is full of sinful people who have rejected God and our world will continue to see these tragic realities. When we think about this, life can seem hopeless.

But there is another truth that must be taken in. God loves you. God loves his Children in this world. In the book of Romans the first 7 chapters to teaches the Romans about their need for Christ and How Jesus demonstrated his perfect love on the cross, giving us Salvation and forgiveness of sins. He tells us of God’s love for us. Then in Chapter 8 Paul explains that Jesus, dying on the cross sets us free from the law of sin and instead we led to live by the Spirit.

Knowing God’s love is important... because we live in a world where the presence of evil is visible. God loves you. Satan is attempting to tell us that God’s love is not the answer, but hatred is. This brings us to the promise in Romans 8:31-38.

Romans 8:31–39 (ESV)

Romans 8:31–39 ESV

31 What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? 32 He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things? 33 Who shall bring any charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies. 34 Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died—more than that, who was raised—who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us. 35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? 36 As it is written, “For your sake we are being killed all the day long; we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.” 37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38 For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, 39 nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

The Promise of God’s love is an inseparable love. He loved us when we were sinners. When we were drowning in sin God gave His only begotten Son, Jesus, for our sake. For our Salvation. To make atonement for our sins. If God gave up His Son for us, what would he not do for us? And if we have God’s loving mercy on our side, who can do anything that can keep us from being loved by God.

Paul asks us who can bring a charge of sin against us or condemn us for our sins. It is only God that can judge or or condemn us. He reminds us that Jesus died on the cross for our sins. That Jesus is sitting at the Right hand of God, today, interceding with Love and mercy.

Today, teens are committing suicide more and more. They face of battles of old in drugs and depression. but these battles are intensified with the advent of Social media creating avenues for 24 hour bullying and self esteem attacks. The internet can present a world of perfection for everyone not named me. Added to this are a barrage of temptations from Satan which leaves us and our teens feeling unloved and alone in an age of global communication. Our teens are under constant attack from the enemy.

As much as we adults want to minimize these feelings and pressures because we faced the same things growing up, we cannot. It is their present reality. These pressures we faced are intensified today by the internet that allows the problems at school or work to follow us wherever we go.

Last year, I was at a teen gathering. As I was beginning to walk out to leave, I looked over and noticed a girl who was crying hard while talking to a boy. I walked up and asked the girl if she was okay. With tears flowing, she looked at me and said I don’t wanna do it anymore and handed me a bag with razors. She had cut herself in the past had recently cut herself again. Completely taken aside and was not prepared with what to say in the situation.

As we sat down, There was only two thoughts that I had that I felt that she needed to know. She was not alone and that she is loved. I spent the next hour listening to everything that had brought her to this point. I wanted to share in her struggle. But I also wanted her to know that God cares about the pain she was feeling. I wanted her to also know that God loves her. That He was surrounding her with His love. By the end, she was surrounded by myself, two other adults and her mom. But it was the love of God that she needed to be surrounded by.

I know that even as adults when we struggle we think that it is just us that is struggling. Or that nobody cares about our struggles. What Paul tells us in Romans 8 is that we are not alone. God is with us. That because God loves us, we will conquer those struggles through Him. Through Christ, we will conquer our trials. We will conquer our tribulations. We will overcome persecution. Notice, that Paul did not say we will not face these, because we will. There will be hard times ahead in each of our lives.

I do not know how tough it will be for any of us. We may go through famine or another plague. Some of us may face persecution like the church has not seen for over a thousand years. I fear the day may be upon us sooner than we hoped.

But, here is the promise from God, That no matter what we face in our days ahead, God will still love us. Paul ends by saying, “neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.” If I could be so be as bold as Paul today I believe he would say that no social media platform, no search engine, No Terrorist, No amount of inflation, no bully, no political party, no dictator, no President can separate me from the love of God. No matter what the circumstance in this world, MY GOD WILL STILL LOVE ME AND HE LOVES YOU TOO.