FAITH
When you begin to talk about FAITH, you are talking my love language. I love to speak the word of FAITH.
That’s what Noah did when he built the ark.
“By faith Noah, being warned of God of things not seen as yet, moved with fear, prepared an ark to the saving of his house; by the which he condemned the world, and became heir of the righteousness which is by faith.” Hebrews 11:7
That’s what David did when he defeated Goliath.
“Then said David to the Philistine, Thou comest to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a shield: but I come to thee in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom thou hast defied.” 1 Samuel 17:45
All of this is so biblical and it is needed on our spiritual journey. Even still, it is NOT greater than love.
HOPE
There are certain ingredients you know without a shadow of a doubt that are missing when you are baking or cooking.
It is the same thing in your walk with God.
There are certain key ingredients that we need, and if they are missing, you know something is not right.
One of these is HOPE.
If hope is gone, it’s immediately noticeable in someone’s life.
Hope is a non-negotiated key ingredient that everyone needs in their walk with God.
Without it, life is miserable.
Listen to the words of the Prophet Isaiah:
“Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard, that the everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary? there is no searching of his understanding. He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength.
Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall: But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.” Isaiah 40:28-31
And as great as hope is, it is not greater than LOVE!
“Master, which is the great commandment in the law? Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.
This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.” Matthew 22:36-39
We have talked about loving God and loving others. Today, I want to talk about God’s love for us. It is greater than we could ever imagine. As a matter of fact, our minds cannot comprehend how big and how wide His love is for all of us.
Although He hates the sin, He loves the person.
He sees beyond what you are today to what you can become in an instant when you give your life to Him and submit your life to His death, burial and resurrection.
Yes, if you murder, you have broken a commandment.And we know that an unrepentant murderer will not make it to heaven according to scripture.
The same is true for ALL sin.
Sin that remains unrepented will keep you from entering into His Kingdom.
Paul lists several sins that are works of the flesh (this is not a comprehensive list of every sin).
“When you follow the desires of your sinful nature, the results are very clear: sexual immorality, impurity, lustful pleasures, idolatry, sorcery, hostility, quarreling, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambition, dissension, division,
envy, drunkenness, wild parties, and other sins like these. Let me tell you again, as I have before, that anyone living that sort of life will not inherit the Kingdom of God.” Galatians 5:19-21 NLT
There is no doubt in my mind that everyone in this room wants to make it to heaven… or you wouldn’t be here today.
If you are living in sin right now, God loves you so much, He made a way of escape for you.
WHY? Because He loves you despite your sin!
“But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;)” Ephesians 2:4-5
Your first step is repentance.
This step is a change of mind and a change of direction.
“Jesus entered Jericho and made his way through the town. There was a man there named Zacchaeus. He was the chief tax collector in the region, and he had become very rich. He tried to get a look at Jesus, but he was too short to see over the crowd.
So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore-fig tree beside the road, for Jesus was going to pass that way.
When Jesus came by, he looked up at Zacchaeus and called him by name. “Zacchaeus!” he said. “Quick, come down! I must be a guest in your home today.” Zacchaeus quickly climbed down and took Jesus to his house in great excitement and joy. But the people were displeased. “He has gone to be the guest of a notorious sinner,” they grumbled.
Meanwhile, Zacchaeus stood before the Lord and said, “I will give half my wealth to the poor, Lord, and if I have cheated people on their taxes, I will give them back four times as much!” Jesus responded, “Salvation has come to this home today, for this man has shown himself to be a true son of Abraham. For the Son of Man came to seek and save those who are lost.” Luke 19:1-10 NLT
The first step is repentance.
His love is waiting for you to just make the first move.
Repent, ask for His forgiveness, and you’ll be amazed at how your life will change!
