Good morning. Doing good. Ready to go. Let's get after it. We are wrapping up our Advent series where we've been trying to look at learning about the character of God and the coming of Christ. We want to have a better understanding of who God is. What is he like? We look to Jesus Christ. In fact, Jesus said, you've seen me, you've seen the Father. He's Emmanuel, God with us. So to get a good idea of who God is, we look to Jesus Christ, and we've looked at God's sovereignty, his generosity, his humility. And today we got something that's clearly seen about God through Christ, and that is love. Christmas is an amazing display of the love of God. There's even a verse for it. You guys know it. For God so loved the world that he what? Yeah, that's Christmas that he gave his son. And you see in Christmas just this amazing display of the love of God. And I gotta be honest, I had a completely, completely different message to give this morning that focused on what is love biblically and how do we love as we ought to by learning how God loved us through Christ? Because I think there's a lot of confusion in our world about what it really means to love somebody. And I was eager to, like, kind of correct that and, like, kind of push us to be biblically loving people, but made a hard left turn. Because until we really understand what the love of God is, we're effortless in trying to apply it. We're lost in trying to apply it. So today is not about trying to get us to be more loving people. Today is just about trying to help us understand the love of God. What does it mean that God is a loving God? How is he a loving God? Like, we have to understand this as Christians, because I think the phrase God loves you gets thrown around really loosely, almost like this. Just kind of anybody that's feeling down or blue, this is like the junk drawer term just to comfort people. That God loves you. But what does it mean that God loves you? What does it mean to be loved by God? What makes us so sure that God loves? And how exactly does he love? And does God love everybody? And does God love everybody the same? Like, DA Carson wrote a helpful little book called the Difficult Doctrine of the Love of God. And it's an interesting title because you might think, well, what's so difficult about the love of God? Well, if God is loving, why do people go to hell? Why is there so much brokenness in our world? Why do you see marriages fall apart? Why do you see teenagers rebel? Why do you see disease and brokenness and disasters? Like, you got a lot of questions, like God, if you're loving, I got a lot of questions. And when we're kind of trapped in this, when we live in this broken world, it's easy to begin to question the character of God. Are you really in control? Are you really generous? Are you holding out? Are you really loving? But what we see in the coming of Christ is a verifying of the character of God. Because can you imagine being the Israelites in the 1st century under Roman oppression? What kind of questions might come up? Has God forgot about, about us? Is he really in control? Or are the Romans, does he really love us? And then God puts on flesh and he enters into the situation and it verifies the character of God. Oh, he is in control. Like his plans are unfolding, like he promised. He is generous in the giving of his son. He does love us. Like it verifies the character of God in the coming of Christ. But, but maybe you're missing that. Maybe you don't feel the love of God like you should because you're looking at the wrong things. You're looking at the chaos in our world. You're looking at your sin struggles in your own life, and you're making conclusions about God, but you're not looking at Christ. Or maybe you're somebody who admit. I admit I know that God is a loving God. But the way that you apply that to what it should look like, you're kind of twisting it. You're putting like maybe a worldly understanding of love onto God and holding him to those expectations. But we need to accurately understand the love of God biblically, because if we don't, here's what's going to happen. Church. We're going to tend to distort it in one of two ways. Either we will see the love of God as something only reserved for really good people. Because God is good and he loves when good things. He's a lover of righteousness. So if I want to be loved by God, I got to be righteous. And it's this thing we pursue and we often feel like I'm not good enough to be loved by God. And we kind of fall into this ditch of legalism. Like I have to earn it, I have to deserve it somehow. Or you go the other way to the other ditch. And we see the love of God as something that extends to everyone no matter what. It doesn't matter how you live, it doesn't matter how you act it doesn't even matter how you, what you believe. Just God loves you. And it just kind of covers everything. And I bet even if people don't have that language of legalism or universalism, which is the other ditch, I bet those two misconceptions exist in this room. I bet there's people in this room that just feel like there's no way that God could love somebody like me. Like you just feel too sinful for the love of God. And then I bet there's other people in this room that you use the idea that God loves you to, to kind of bless your lifestyle and whatever you think it should be. But the actual biblical love of God is so wonderful. I don't want any of us to miss it in either direction. I want us to really understand what the Bible says about the love of God. Cause it's absolutely life changing. And if we don't get it, we don't get God, not accurately, we don't get the gospel not accurately, we don't get the Christian life. So we gotta kinda put on our thinking caps here. I want us to lean in and we're gonna go to the most famous verse in all of the B. What is that? John 3:16. Right. Even you go to a sporting event, somebody's holding up the sign. This is kind of the verse that gets quoted a lot. Well, we're going to be in a few other verses and definitely the context, but we're going to be anchored in John 3:16. And it's not a beginner's verse. Like it has some foundational truth, but it's not just for beginners. There's some deep theological truths in this and out of this verse and its context. I want to point out some six description of God's love. Okay, is that where we're going? You guys ready? All right, let's pray together and then we'll get into this. Father, I pray that you would help me be clear and accurate to your word, that you would help us have ears to hear, that you would give us understanding and that we would not only understand your love, but be changed by it. We pray this in your name. Amen. All right, John 3:16. You guys ready? Here we go. I'm looking for some enthusiasm. It's like the third service. Okay. Save it for appropriate times though. Okay, John 3:16, what's the very first word of this? Verse four, which is helpful because we are jumping in to a conversation that is happening. It is common to take famous verses and kind of make them stand independently because there's so much good in that verse, we want to just kind of highlight the verse, but we need to see this verse in its context and to understand this text. It's important that we get the context and we're jumping into a conversation that's unfolding between Jesus and a Pharisee named Nicodemus. Now, Nicodemus comes to Jesus at night because he's a guy who's. Who's kind of into Jesus, but he's a part of a group that's definitely not into Jesus. So he's kind of alienate himself by approaching Jesus with some genuine curiosity because he's saying, you do some things ain't nobody else do. So you have my attention, like, what's up with this? And they kind of jump into a conversation where Jesus is talking about the need to be born again. Now that term gets used kind of in Christian circles today, like, are you a born again Christian? Well, it comes from this text where Jesus is telling Nicodemus, you need to have life given to you by the spirit. And John 3:16 is a part of that conversation. So let's look at these six descriptions of God's love from this verse in this context. First one, God's love is evident. I didn't tell you all six of them start with E, so you're welcome. Had to work hard for that first one. God's love is evident, for God so loved the world that he what gave his only son. So again, Nicodemus comes at night. He has some curiosity. In fact, he says this. This is verse two. This man, which is Nicodemus, came to Jesus by night and said to him, rabbi, we know that you are a teacher that has come from God. For no one can do these signs that you do unless God is with him. Like, there's something about you that's undeniable. You have my attention. Although I'm here at night. Don't tell anybody, but I'm curious. Like, he's coming with a curious spirit to Jesus. So John 3:16 is part of the answer to Nicodemus that is leaning into Jesus, like, who are you? Why are you here? And he's like, you want to know who I am and why I'm here? I'm here because God loves this world. I am the son of God who has been sent into this world. And I've been sent into this world because God loves this world. And there's a clear, tangible expression of the love of God, and it's the giving of his son. It's not just words. It's not just a proclamation from some prophet that God loves you. It's tangible. You can point to it. It's seen beyond words, in the person of Jesus Christ. It's not just a saying that, like, there's action to it. It's tangible. I don't wanna pick fights here, but maybe you've been in a marriage where you feel like, yes, you say that you love me. I just don't see that you love me. Right? The words are there. Like, you say the right things, but I don't see the right things. God is not just saying or declaring his love. He's showing his love. You see the love of Christ or you see the love of God in the sending of Christ. It's not just words. God shows his love. Here's how Paul puts it in Romans 5. But God what shows his what? Love for us in that while we were still sinners. And this is important. So God didn't wait for you to get your life together, to declare his love for you in your mess, in your sinfulness, in that moment, God says, I love you. I want you to know it. And this is how much I love you. He sent his son to die for us. Or here's how John puts it in first, John, this is the love of God that was made what? Manifest. You guys did good. I was like, I was only gonna give you small words, but I believe in 11 o'. Clock. I think you can handle that one. So he was made manifest among us that God sent his only son into the world. That's Christmas. So that we might live through him. So he's saying in Christmas, in the person of Jesus Christ, the love of God was made manifest. Like it's tangible. You can point to it, there's evidence for it. God's love is evident in Jesus Christ. Or you could say there is evidence for the love of God. Now, maybe you don't feel loved by God. Anybody ever identify with that emotion? Like, I don't really feel loved by God. Well, perhaps you're looking in the wrong places. You're making some conclusions because you're looking at your circumstances. You're looking at the chaos in the world. You're looking at the very real sin struggle in your life. And you're making conclusions. How could God ever love somebody like me? But you're not looking at the evidence that God has given you in his declaration of his love for you. In Jesus Christ, God's love is evident. And it's evident in the person of Jesus Christ. Number two, God's love is extravagant. John 3:16. For God so loved the world that he gave what his only son. Like, you see the depth of his love in the size of the gift he gave his only son. Like, the extravagant gift is like, who does this? And you see the depth of his love and the size of the gift. Like, you ever get a gift from somebody and it's so above and beyond. It's like, uncomfortable. Like, you tried to. Like, you shouldn't have. You tried to deny it, like, this was too much. You shouldn't have anybody ever feel that way, where it just like, makes you uncomfortable at the extravagance of the gift. Or let me put it this way, Christmas time is coming up. Sometimes you do, like, family gift exchanges. Anybody with me on that one? And you make a rule like, all right, $25 or under. That's the rule. And then you come to exchange gifts, and there's always that one person in your family that's doing a little bit better financially. You know what I'm talking about? And they give a gift and it's like, oh, you found an Xbox for $25, right? Like, you're now that uncle. That's just kind of impressive. But. And it's like, it feels like you went so above and beyond. It's. This is extravagant. But. But here's the. Here's where it differs. You might be like, that's a big deal for the group. We didn't expect that. But it's not that big a deal to you because you have the resources. You can do that. You were happy to do that. I want to hear me now. That's not this. Is God rich in mercy? Yes. Is he extravagant in his love? Yes. Is he own a cattle on a thousand hills? Yes. He has the resources. But this is a big deal to God. It's not like, oh, it's no big deal. It's his only son. Like, think about this. When you look at his gift. God gave what was most precious to him. It was sacrificial. It was costly. Christ came to die, to live, to be mocked, to be ridiculed, to be spit upon, to be beat, and to be crucified. It was a costly gift. It was a big deal to God. And you see the extravagance in his giving. And what does Jesus say about this gift? This is later on in John, John 15. Greater love has no one than this. That someone lay down his life for his friends. A little foreshadowing here. Jesus saying, there is no greater expression of love than the love of God, than the way God loves. This is the greatest kind of love. And part of what makes his love so extravagant is one how costly it is. He's your only son that was murdered unjustly on our behalf to secure our future and to forgive our sins, like so extravagant. But the other part that makes this the greatest expression of love is how undeserving the recipients are. Go back to John 3:16. For God so loved what the world that he gave his only son, that whoever believes in him should not what, perish. Now, first it says that God so loved the world. January 11th, we're going to start our next book study, and I'm excited for this. We're going to get into the book First John. This is the Gospel of John, same author. And in First John, John will clearly say, don't love the world. But in John 3:16, he's saying, For God so loved the world. So which is it? Do you love the world, or you're not supposed to love the world? Well, the word world in the Bible is used to talk about worldliness, like corrupt ambitions and actions and desires that are contrary to God. So in John 3:16, God is not loving worldliness. He's not for corruption, but he is loving a world enslaved and lost in worldliness. And world here means all of fallen humanity. And the assumption is everyone in this world is perishing. Like, that's. That's the trajectory that everybody is on judgment and condemnation. And why are we perishing? Because the wages of sin is what death wages. Like, this is what we've earned, like our rebellion against God. We're due judgment, we're due condemnation. Like, that's what's owed us. But here's the wild thing. That's also who God loves. He loves sinners. He loves people who oppose him, who, who are disobedient to him, who are rebellious against Him. Like, who loves like that? Like, this is part of the extravagance of the love of God. It's not just how costly it is, which by itself is pretty wild, but it's also how undeserving we are. If we kind of pooled our money together, let's say there was a family in our church and we just gave them just an extravagant blessing, but they were this family in our church that just has served faithfully and done so much, we would just be so happy to kind of bless them in that way. Like, it would almost seem fitting. Extravagant, but fitting. Or do you guys remember the old TV show Extreme Makeover Home Edition, where they like show up at somebody's house and it's just like, we're gonna completely build you a new house in a week. And I'm just saying, if anybody builds you a house in a week, maybe not, but that's the side of the point. But they built this house really quick, and it's like every room is custom made for the kids, and it's just over the top, extravagant. And they show them the house, move that bus, and there's this big reveal. And by the way, you got a new Ford pickup in your garage too. It's just like this extravagant gift. But also along the show, they're also telling you the story of the family. And it's like, here's a veteran who has served. He was wounded defending his country, and they serve the community so well. And you almost like, oh, this is so cool that they got this. Is it extravagant? Yes. But is it fitting? Wow. Yeah, this is kind of fitting. But for God, the gift is so much more extravagant than a new house and a truck. It's forgiveness, redemption, reconciliation, enjoying the glory of God forever and ever and ever and ever. And we don't deserve it. We don't deserve it at all. We've done nothing to deserve it. In fact, we've done so many things not to deserve it. We've worked against it. And yet God in his love, still extends it. Who loves like that? It's grace. That's the point. That grace means undeserved favor. We don't deserve it. Here's how Paul puts it. Ephesians 2. But God being rich in mercy because of the what? Great love. The great love with which he loved us. Even when we were dead in our trespasses, when we were disgusting in our sin, when we were rebellious against our Maker, he made us alive together with Christ. By what grace you have been saved. Guys, don't cheapen the love of God just because it's beyond our comprehension or beyond our emotions. This is a divine expression of love, and God loves in extravagant ways. Number three. God's love is extensive. It's extensive. Back to John 3:16. For God so loved the what that he gave his only son. That whoever believes this, whoever is the free offer of the gospel to everyone. God's love is indiscriminate. It extends to all types of people. To 1st century fishermen and zealots and politicians and Pharisees, to 21st century teachers and doctors and construction workers. It just extends across its borders and boundaries. God's love is extensive. And the world here is all of fallen humanity in which the whoevers come out of. And the whoevers include all types of people. Rich, poor, Jew, Gentile, men, women. It reaches into the Amazon forests and tribes that are lost in pagan worship and into the wealth of New York City to the people who are lost in materialism. Like God's love is extensive. It's far reaching. What is Jesus, the resurrected Jesus, tell his disciples before his ascension? You. You're gonna be my witnesses. About what? About me and the love of God through me. And you're gonna be my witnesses in Jerusalem and Judea and Samaria and where else? To the ends of the earth. This message is gonna go everywhere across the world. It's extensive. And we see it accomplished because in Revelation 12, people who are praising God from every tribe, tongue and nation. God's love is extensive. Number four creates some tension with that though. Number four, God's love is exclusive. For God so loved the world that he gave his only son, that whoever what believes. Here's what the verse doesn't say. And sometimes doing good Bible study is just acknowledging what it doesn't say. Here's what it doesn't say. For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son that no one will perish and everybody will have eternal life. Doesn't say that. Like, it's really clear in this text that there is belief that leads to eternal life and there is unbelief that leads to perishment and condemnation. Like, there is a clear connection between God's saving love and belief. Now I would love to do another hour on where does belief come from? Right? And I'm sure you would love that too. In fact, nobody in any service is like, just do it, let's go. Like, yet to have that. But it's in here. Like, if you read it, you can make those connections too. Because remember, don't take this verse out of context. See it in the midst of this conversation. He's having a conversation with Nic. Well, let's just do it. So verse five, he says this. Jesus answered to Nicodemus, truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God or he cannot have eternal life. Same thing. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the spirit is spirit. Do not marvel that I said to you, you must be born again. Because he's got that confused look on his face. Like, what do you mean? Like, I don't get. How can somebody be born again and Then Jesus says this, and this is interesting. The wind blows where it wishes and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from and where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit or everyone who has eternal life. Same thing. So what is he saying here? Well, there's an independence to the wind. You don't control it, you don't tell it where to go. Like the wind is going to blow where the wind blows and you can't see the wind, but you can see the effects of the wind, right? You see the flag fly, you can see the branches move. What's the same with the Spirit? There's an independence to the Spirit. He's God. He's going to do whatever he wants, where he wants, when he wants, with whom he wants. He's God. And you can't see the Spirit, but you can see the effects of the Spirit. So what is it? What are the effects of the Spirit? Belief. Somebody believes. Well, how did that happen? The Spirit. The Spirit moves and opens people's eyes to the glory of God in Jesus Christ. So God's saving love is extensively going throughout the world to all different types of people, across borders and lands and ethnicities and social economic classes and gender. It's going everywhere. And it's exclusively being applied to those who believe. Or more accurately, the new life the Spirit is giving as he so chooses. Because God loves is evident in those who believe. So if Nicodemus is confused, like, what are you talking about? Being born again? How does that work? I'm an old man. Like, well, how does this work? How do I know if I've been born again? You believe. Do you believe? Right? Because, Nicodemus, you're coming to Jesus at night and you're curious and you're leaning in and he's like, I'm the son of God who sent. Do you believe? Are you embracing this? Is the Spirit doing something? Your life number five. God's love is effective. It's effective for God so loved the world that he gave his only son that whoever believes in him should not perish. But what have eternal life. This is what I want to tell you guys. God's love is successful in accomplishing salvation. He does not fall short. He does not fail in saving his people. It is he's successful in salvation because of the love of God. There is an escape from perishing and a bestowing of eternal life. You have it. It's not that Jesus kind of pointed the way or got you halfway there. What did he say? On the cross, it is finished, it's over, it's done. You have eternal life. He is successful in saving his people. His sacrifice is sufficient. It covers all our sins. It secures your eternity. His love is effective. And eternal life here doesn't just mean, like, length of life. It means quality of life. Because listen to me. Everybody lives forever somewhere. Did you hear that? Everybody lives forever somewhere. And eternal life here means you live forever the way you were supposed to live, reconnected with your maker, enjoying his glory before sin corrupted it. And the sacrifice of Jesus Christ is effective in reconciling that relationship so you can enjoy it forever. That's what eternal life is like. You, you can't read John 3:16 outside of the context of the conversation with Nicodemus, but you also can't read John 3:16 out of the context of the Gospel of John to really understand what he mean by eternal life. So you have to see John 3:16 in light of John 17. 3. And this is what he says, and this is what? Eternal life. So this is what we're talking about. Anybody who believes doesn't perish, but they have eternal life. All right, what's that? Because if you just take John 3:16, you might be like, he gets to live forever. That's not what John's talking about. Like, there's more to it than that. This is eternal life. That they may know you, the only true God in Jesus Christ, whom you've sent eternal life. That John's talking about is reconciliation. Back to your maker, back to God. That they would be reunited with their heavenly Father through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. That's what you get, guys. We get to be with God because God poured out his love on us. God's love is effective. It works. It accomplishes our redemption. Look at Romans 5. Again, we read verse 8, but let's read the rest of the section. But God shows his love for us, that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Since therefore we have now been justified or made righteous by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God. For while we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son. And much more now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life. More than that, we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received what? Reconciliation. That's the point. To be reunited with our Maker and enjoy him forever. Guys, listen, this is a big deal. We are not saved because of our moral performance. We are not Even saved because of how much we love God. Our salvation comes down to God's love for us. And he moved towards us while we were enemies, while we were yet sinners. He declared his love for us. And that declaration of love is effective in securing our salvation. It's effective in our forgiveness, our complete forgiveness. It takes all our sin away, past, present and future. You ever try to wash something that was stained and you almost got it out, like, it might be even still wearable? I would wear it, but it's, like, still there. That's not this. Like with Christ. Our sin is removed as far as the east, as from the west. How far is that? It's cast into the sea of forgetfulness. And they put up a sign that says, no fishing. Like, you're completely forgiven, you're completely redeemed, you're secured, and nothing can separate you from the love of God. John calls the love of God perfect, and he says, perfect love casts out all fear. And fear has to do with punishment, right? I might get punished. He says, not with the love of God, because with the love of God, your punishment has already been taken. In Jesus Christ, it is completely secured. How awesome is that? And number six, finally, God's love is endearing. It's endearing. And this is where some application comes in. I think probably a better. This is where some implication comes in. But it's important for us to understand it. When I say God's love is endearing, I mean it's. It stirs up love in us. It has a loving effect on us. It kind of awakens in us love for God and love for other people. And it's clear throughout the New Testament, like, this kind of impact that the love of God has. But it's also in this context, too, because here's what's happening in this context. They're having a conversation where Jesus is talking about the Spirit's power of giving new life. And then he gives this famous verse, John 3:16. But then after that, he says this in chapter, excuse me, in verses 20 and 21, for everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed. But whoever does what is true comes to the light so that it may be clearly seen that his works have been carried out in God. Now what's happening here? John gives us some. Some categories. In fact, he gives the same division of people he did in verse 16, but he puts new language on it in verse 20 and 21 to kind of color in the meaning more to Kind of. He's not. He's not given a different division. He's given the same division, but new language to help us understand. So in verse 16, you have a division of people. You have people who believe and you have people who don't believe, and you have people who have eternal life. And then you have people who perish. But then you get to verse 20 and he's going to give another description of division. You have people who do wicked things, and you have people who do what is true, and you have people who hate the light, and you have people who come to the light. So John 3:16 is sandwiched between the Spirit's work of giving new life and coming into the light and doing what is true. Because that's what it means to believe. Like, that's the point. That's what it means to believe. You come into the light, you do what is true. Like there's this evidence. Like God has given you new life. How do you know? Because you believe. Well, how do you know? You believe because you love the light. And you do things in your life to honor God. And you doing things in your life to honor God. And loving the light shows that you believe. And the fact that you believe shows that the Spirit has done something in your life. It all goes together, guys. It can't just mean that you agree with who Jesus Christ is. That's not what faith is in the Bible. It's not that. You just get the answer right. Jesus Christ, Son of God. That is not what faith is to John. That's not what he's talking about here. It can't be. In fact, In Luke chapter 4, Jesus is having a conversation with the demon. And the demon says, I know who you are. You are the Holy One of God. Well, he got that right. And he ain't saved. Like, what's happening here. Don't buy into the lie that saving faith is just getting the answer right to who Jesus is. It's more than that. It's the spirit of God doing a work in you and giving you new life that leads you to open your eyes and believe in Jesus Christ as the Son of God. That flushes itself out in you. Loving the light and doing what is true. Like it all goes together. You see this impact? Or put it this way, the love of God bears fruit. Like you see it. You see the impact on people. Like you've been loved by God and it's evident. Let me show you some verses. This is Paul Galatians 2:20 famous verse. He says, I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me and the life I now live in the flesh. My new lifestyle I live by faith is belief in the Son of God who what, loved me and gave himself up for me. So the fact that Paul's saying, I know God loved me and he gave himself up for me, leads me to live differently. He says it this way in Second Corinthians. For the what love of Christ controls us or compels us? Because we've 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. He said, I'm being compelled by the love of Christ. I'm being completely changed by the love of Christ. I live differently because of the love of Christ. It bears fruit. Or here's another one, one John, I don't think there's a few people in the balcony that still don't believe me. So we're gonna keep going. We? What, because he first loved us? The love of God is endearing. It goes inside of us and it changes us from the inside out. In fact, we'll get into this when we get into one John. But John, in his letter, first John says, look, if you claim to know God and you don't love, you're a liar. So we have that to look forward to starting in January, right? But he's just saying, like, you don't know God. You're lying. You're lying to the people around you. You're trying to put on this front that God means something to you and he doesn't. Or worse, you're lying to yourself. You're lying to yourself, thinking that you're a follower of Christ when you don't. But the love of God bears fruit. It's not just belief. You have to see John 3:16 in this conversation. It's the work of the Spirit who gives you new life. And you see that new life in a profession of faith. And you see that profession of faith in a life of godliness, that you love the light and you do what is true and it goes together. So church, listen. God's love is evident. It's evident. Like you can point to it. You can point to it in the manger, and you can point to it in the cross, and you can point to it in the person of Jesus Christ. There's evidence for God's love. It's not just in word, it's an Action. God's love is extravagant. He gave his only son and he gave it to a bunch of guilty people to secure for them an eternity they don't deserve. Who loves like that? God's love is extensive. It's reaching to the ends of the earth, saving all types of people. And God's kingdom is going to be full of every tribe, tongue and nation. God's love is exclusive. It is connected to belief. God's love is effective. He doesn't fail in saving his people. He completely secures their salvation. And God's love is endearing. It awakens and stirs up love inside of us. So I'm not going to try and comfort you by telling you that God loves you. Because if you don't believe that, it doesn't mean anything. Although I want to. There's a movie. I don't. I'm not endorsing the movie, but there's a scene in the movie, it's Good Will Hunting, where this young man is seeing a counselor and he's just had a really rough life. And the counselor kind of stands up and says to him, you know, it's not your fault. He's like, I know. And he's like, gets a little close. It's not your fault. Like, I know. He goes, it's not your fault. It's not your fault. Until he just breaks down. Like he's just holding on to so much shame and guilt. And sometimes I feel like with church people, God loves you. And it seems like, yeah, I know. It's like, no, no, no, God loves you. I know. No, no, no, God. God loves you. And I just want to know, like, when will you break down over that? When will it get inside? Because here's the reality. Paul tells us that this message of Jesus Christ is foolishness to those who are perishing. And we've been talking about the love of God for the last 40 minutes. And there are people in this room that have been thinking about what's for lunch or what their Christmas shopping needs to do or whatever other daydreams you've been using to pass the time. And the most important news in all of human history means nothing. It means nothing. Maybe, maybe in this room in the last 40 minutes, the spirit of God has been at work. And there's some people in here that are hearing about the love of God for the first time. Now, maybe you grew up in church and you've heard it a hundred times, but today you're hearing it for the first time, and it's just clicking and it's making sense. And if that's true, you have eternal life, and that's a work of the spirit. And there's other people in this room that we've known about the love of God for decades. And if I tell you God loves you, you might say, yeah, I know. And we just become calloused and numb to the most amazing news ever. We're going to be obedient to a command, a command that Jesus gave his followers. A command that involves some crackers and some juice. A command to remember him. And the command to remember him is the command to remember the declaration of God's love for his people. And when we remember that Christ's body was hung on a cross and his blood was shed, what God is saying is, I love you. And you cannot just say, yeah, I know. I love you. I love you, I love you, I love you. But you don't know what I've done. I love you. You don't know where I've been. I love you. You don't know the thoughts in my head. Yes, I do. I love you. I love you. I love you. And if we could be blown away by that and say, like Paul, I am compelled by the love of Christ. I have come to the conclusion that my life is no longer about me, but about him who loved me. That's the kind of church we want to be a part of. Amen. Let's pray. Father, I pray that you would give spiritual sight to people in this room, perhaps for the first time, to see you in all your glory. I pray for the numb hearts in this room that are so familiar with your love. It's become common and complacent that you would re wake us up to the glory of the gospel. We would understand how evident and extravagant and effective and endearing your love is. And we would be a church that loves not in our own strength, but because you first loved us. Pray in your name. Amen.