Welcome to ECB's weekly sermon podcast. ECB is
an international church in Bangkok, Thailand,
with dozens of nationalities worshiping together.
We invite you to connect with us from wherever
you are through our website, ecb .asia, or our
mobile app. And now we pray that you are blessed
by this week's sermon. Today we will continue
this study on Advent series, and we have talked
about hope, peace, joy, and today we're going
to be talking about love. So will you please
join me as we pray? Father, as we come to this
point, we thank you for your word, but thank
you for giving us truth. That we can understand
these things that you have told us. We can get
to know you better, understand your heart better
so that we can also love you. And as we started
your word today, Lord, would you encounter us
in this space? If there's anyone that is not
experiencing your love, would you break through
any barrier that is just keeping that from happening?
Bring transformation. And Lord, I ask too that
you will use me in the power of your spirit.
Use me in your grace, in your strength. These
things I ask in Jesus' name. Amen. Just give
me one second as we get to the screen already.
With our media team. You can give me a heads
up. Okay, good. Thank you. Today we are talking
about love. And one of the amazing things about
the Bible and how it describes God is that love
is at the center of our relationship with God.
So if you want to have a relationship with God,
if you want to have a deeper relationship with
God, you have to start understanding love. Because
that is the way in which God wants us to experience
Him. God does not just want you to believe in
Him. He doesn't just want you to obey Him. He
actually wants you to love Him. How does this
work? Let me tell you a story. Many years ago,
I got to visit a friend that was suffering from
a very unique health condition that requires
surgery. And she had been going through treatment
for many years about these things. The family
had suffered through that for many years. But
as she was at the hospital awaiting for surgery,
I went to talk to her, encourage her, and we
prayed together. But I will never forget what
she told me in that conversation. She said, you
know, my father came to visit me. And even though
he is not a believer in God, but he loves me
as his daughter. And he said to me, I wish I
could do something. I will gladly take this illness
that you have on me so that you can be healthy
and I can have this instead. She said, when my
father told me that, I realized that in his love
for me, he loved me so much that he was willing
to take this illness upon himself, but he couldn't.
But God loved me so much that he was willing
to take my sin upon him, and he did because he
could. And at that moment, in that hospital bed,
My friend, for the first time, got a glimpse
of what it means that God loved her with the
heart of a father. And until we understand the
love of God as a father, we will never be able
to understand how God loves us. Operate from
that place of freedom in God's love. And you
will either be doubting God's love. You will
be either thinking that it's too good to be true.
Or you will feel that you are. Not deserving
of his love. And always walking in shame. And
guilt. Instead of freedom. This concept of love.
The Bible defines with an actual word. That is
found in the. Greek language, which is the language
in which the New Testament was written, and is
the word agape. This form of love, agape, is
a sacrificial love that is given out of the desire
of the person that is loving, and is not depending
on the worth of the person who is being loved.
In other words, it doesn't matter Where you are,
what you've done, what you have not done, it
doesn't matter whether you deserve it or not
deserve it. All of that is irrelevant. Because
agape love only depends on the one who gives
it. And the Bible says that the way God loves
us is with this type of love. He loves us out
of His love for us, not because we deserve it.
And not only the Bible says that this is how
God loves us, But it goes an extra step to tell
us that actually God is love. God is agape. In
other words, God cannot not love. It's in his
nature. And not only he cannot not love, but
the only way that he can love is through agape
because that's who he is. It defines his character.
God is love. And in the historical context in
which these things are written, was the time
of the Roman Empire. Previous to them, the Greeks
were the main empire. And in both cultures, the
same was true. You will never think of a God
as being love. Powerful? Yeah. Strong? Yeah.
Victorious in war? Yeah. But loving? Why would
you want a God that loves you? Who cares about
that? But when Christianity comes in, and Jesus
comes in, and we start learning what the Bible
says, it actually says, look, love is at the
center of who God is and how we experience Him.
So needless to say, the idea of God being love
is completely revolutionary. It's almost like
just confusing because I can think of God as
a judge, like that. Or God as angry. Okay, God's
someone that I need to be afraid of. Okay, but
God loving me? Me? Just because He is love? And
when people encounter this concept, I've talked
to some people that say, okay, I get what you're
saying, but I don't believe it. It's too good
to be true. And that is the answer. Too good
to be true because why am I so special that God
would love me like that? You see, you are trying
to understand God's love from the perspective
of whether you deserve to be loved like that.
And again, God's love is agape. It depends on
him, not on you. Why does he love us so much?
It's because he is love. That's it. And this
concept completely reframes the way we understand
this time of Christmas. Because during Christmas
we are celebrating the birth of Jesus. And the
way that the Bible talks about the birth of Jesus
is very clear. And there are two moments in which
the birth of Jesus is announced. One to Mary
in the Gospel of Luke. And another one to Joseph
in the Gospel of Matthew. And in both Gospels
when the announcement of Jesus being born is
given to the parents. We are told that not only
the fact that this person was going to be born
being the Messiah, the promised Messiah from
all, but that this person had to have a name,
and the name had to be very specific. Take a
look with me at how the announcement is given
to Mary. It says, you will conceive and give
birth to a son, and you will name him? Jesus.
You have to name him Jesus. And this child will
be very great. And will be called the son of
the most high. The son of God. And the Lord God
will give him the throne of his ancestor David.
And he will reign over Israel for how long? Forever.
And his kingdom will... Never end. This child
that is going to be born is the fulfillment of
these promises where this child is going to become
one who will have a kingdom that will never end.
And we're going to study this a little bit more
next week. But you are going to name this child
Jesus. Why Jesus? Why not? John or Pablo. I mean,
why Jesus? Well, because Jesus has a specific
meaning. The word Jesus means God saves. Whether
it be Hebrew, Yeshua. Whether it be Greek, Yesu.
Or whether it be English, Jesus. You're going
to call this child God saves. Why the emphasis
so much? Look at what Joseph hears when the announcement
is given to him. Mary will give birth to a son.
And you are to give him the name? Jesus. Why
Jesus? Because he will save his people from their
sins. In these two announcements, we are already
given the nature of who this Jesus is. He's going
to be called the Son of God, a King, that is
going to establish a kingdom that will never
end. And we are given the purpose for Him to
come. He is coming in order to save people from
sins. And that's why He's going to be called
God Saves. So it turns out that the Bible brings
Jesus at the center of understanding God's love.
God demonstrates his love for us in which when
we were still sinners, Christ, Jesus died for
us. Jesus is the very expression of God's love,
is the face of what love looks like. And if I'm
going to understand, How to relate to God and
how to experience His love. I have to understand
who Jesus is and what He came to do. That's why
when I read this section, even though so short,
it's so profound. And I circle these things.
And I noticed that this Jesus is going to save
us from our sins. But why do we need to be saved
from sins? And what is sin to start with? And
why was it even allowed? And why do we need to
be saved from this thing? And why Jesus has to
be the one that saves? Can it be something different?
And understanding the answers to these questions.
is what brings this picture of what God's love
is. So I'm going to spend the rest of the study
looking at these things. First question, what
is sin? Often we think of sin as doing bad things,
misbehaving, an action. But it's so much more
complex than that. Even though there's no Bible
verse that says, this is the definition of sin.
A, B, C. The Bible does talk a lot about these
things. And it can be summarized like this. Sin
is a condition of your soul. It's like an illness.
It's like a sickness of your soul. Your soul,
my soul, is sick. And is sick with this condition
that has three very specific defining elements.
The first one is that my soul exists under spiritual
oppression. There is a spiritual realm of darkness
that is real, not fantasy. The Bible calls this
realm of spiritual darkness as a realm that has
authorities and entities. And the head of all
this darkness, the Bible calls the devil, calls
it Satan. This is the realm of spiritual oppression
in which we exist and we are born. And not only
that, the second part of being sick with this
condition means that I have within me this distortion.
I have distorted desires. I desire things that
are harmful for me, but I desire them anyway
and I can help it, but I do them and I pursue
them. This distortion of desire. As well as this
distortion of understanding. The way I think
of myself is distorted. The way I think of others
is distorted. The way I think of God is distorted.
And this distortion is an expression of this
condition. But not only that. The physical manifestation
of this condition of my soul is that now I am
mortal. I die. And every time that I get sick,
every time that someone dies, it's simply a manifestation
of this condition that the Bible calls sin. My
soul is sick with it. Imagine, for instance,
that one day I start sneezing. Achoo! Achoo!
And I tell you, you know, I have a headache and
I think I have fever. What would you deduce?
Ah, you have a cold, Pastor Pablo. What are you
doing here? Go back home and stay in bed. Because
you're going to give it to all of us. Right,
you can read those symptoms. You can hear the
coughing, the sneezing, the headache. You can
detect these things and put it together and say
the problem is not the sneezing or the coughing.
The problem is the cold. That is the root. These
things are just symptoms. Well, we go out through
our life experiencing the symptoms of this condition,
and we never realize that actually those are
the symptoms, not the real problem. If you feel
a sense of emptiness, there's something deeply
missing within you. If you feel that you are
walking in shame and guilt and this sense of
worthlessness, If you feel like you're damaged
goods and no one will ever love you ever. If
you have broken relationships where your marriage
is just not working right. Where your relationship
with your children is all broken and dysfunctional.
All of those things are simply manifestations,
symptoms of the fact that your soul is sick with
this condition. call sin. And only yours, but
your spouses and your children and all human
beings, the Bible says, are born with this condition.
And these three symptoms are part of it. That's
why when the Bible describes us, look at what
it says. The one who does what is sinful is of
the devil. I don't like that. What? If I'm a
sinner, I am of the devil. Why? Well, because
the devil has been sinning from the beginning.
And the reason the Son of God appeared was to
destroy the devil's work. Jesus came to save
us from our sins. And part of that involved that
he had to overcome the power of Satan in order
to rescue you from under that. Oh. I'm not sure
I like that. I'm a good person. I know I'm not
perfect. Sometimes, you know, I lost my temper
maybe a few times. Or maybe I lied here and there,
a little white lie. But just to think that I'm
of the devil. I mean, I'm not a Satan worshiper.
Welcome to reality. The Bible says, That the
condition that Jesus was born to save you from
is so serious. And one of those things is that
there's a spiritual reality that you have to
come to terms with. And this is real. But how
did we get to this point to start with? When
did this begin? Well, the Bible also tells us.
There's a patient zero when it comes to sin.
The Bible says it this way. When Adam sinned,
what entered the world? What? Sin. Yeah. There
was a point in which sin entered the world. And
it was when Adam sinned. Adam sinned brought
what? Death. So death spread to everyone for
everyone sinned. The Bible says that the first
human beings that were created in God's image
and likeness were created to be in relationship
with God. And in that relationship, they made
a choice. They decided not to love God. And when
they decided not to love God, it was the first
time that they acted on this. And when they acted
on this disobedience to God, on this choice to
not love Him, they became contaminated with this
condition called sin. And who had been sinning
from the beginning, we read? The devil. And the
Bible says that Satan is the one that deceived
these first humans so that they would become
contaminated with this very condition that he
has. Which reminds me of something. During the
COVID pandemic, there was this terrible case
of this woman that went to the clinic to get
help because she was struggling with COVID symptoms.
But it so happened that there were so many other
patients waiting that when she got to the clinic,
she could not be helped and she was asked to
come back another day. So when the person at
the counter is helping her and telling her, sorry,
we cannot help you right now. You have to come
back another day. The patient became so upset
that she removed her mask and went like this.
On the face of this person on the other side
of the counter. And so it happens. And then that
person became sick with COVID and died. And this
became a legal case because that was a premeditated
act of intentionally spreading a mortal, a deadly
virus to someone just because I'm upset with
you. Terrible. Well, that's exactly what Satan
did at the beginning. He went to Adam and Eve
and coughed on their face. Deceived them. And
they became sinners. The same condition that
Satan had. Now became part of humanity. And every
human being born descendants of Adam and Eve.
Which is all of us. Have the same. I picture
the father going to visit my friend at the hospital.
He conceived this child. He saw her being born.
He saw her growing up. He held her in his arms.
He said, I love you. He never imagined. That
this child was going to become sick with this
illness that will require all these things and
the uncertainty of whether she would ever be
healed from it. That is not what he desired for
her. God did not create us so that we would become
this. Sin, mortality, the power of Satan, all
of that is not what God desires for us. And that's
why the Bible says that when Jesus was born,
he was sent to save us from this condition. God
loved us so much that he wanted to take this
condition from us. And he could, so he did. This
is God's love. So what you have to understand
is that this condition that you have is real.
And until you understand that this condition
is real, you won't be able to reconnect with
God's love. Okay. That's something, isn't it?
This is a very complex picture of what it means
to be a sinner. But I have another question.
Why do we need to be saved from it? Why not just
be with God like that? It's just... Why does
Jesus have to come to do something about it?
Well, the answer is because this condition has
two immediate consequences. The first consequence
is that it corrupts us, and the second one is
that it separates us. Think of it this way. When
my mother had cancer in her stomach, the moment
she was diagnosed with cancer, the doctors immediately
scheduled surgery they removed the tumor which
was the size of a tennis ball in her stomach
and then they decided that they also had to remove
the stomach altogether so now my mom doesn't
have a stomach but part of the treatment was
that she had to undergo this whole chemotherapy
several rounds for it because the goal of that
was that They will kill every single cancerous
cell in her body. And after they finish the treatment,
they have to go through all these blood tests
and all these details to confirm, is there even
a little single cell in her body that is cancerous?
And when it was confirmed that there was no more
cancerous cell in her body, then she was declared
cancer -free. Now imagine that as my mom is going
through all this pain of all this treatment with
putting all that poison in her system to kill
all these cells, I said to my mom, they're ready
to remove the stomach. They're ready to remove
the tumor. What can one little cancer cell do
in your body? Just stop the treatment. It's too
hard for you. Just leave it there. Would you
agree with that advice? Just one little cell.
What would that do? You have trillions of other
cells that are healthy. You're going to be okay.
Well, if you're a doctor or a scientist and you
understand how this works, you say, Pastor Pablo,
you're the pastor of this church and that's how
you think? I'm not sure I can trust you with
my soul. Right? Because you know that one single
cancerous cell in the body is just a matter of
time before... It multiplies, spreads, and takes
over the body. You have to start thinking of
sin, this condition, like that. It's so serious
that your soul is sick with it. And as time progresses,
eventually this sin condition starts growing
and takes over and becomes more and more and
more and more corrupt. Right now, you're only
experiencing some of these symptoms, but you
wait and see. Because this condition is not just
your physical body. It continues after you die.
It's your soul that is sick with it. That's why
when the Bible talks about this, it says it this
way. Those who live only to satisfy their own
sinful nature will harvest two things. Decay
and death. From that sinful nature. You're going
to become more and more decayed. And you're going
to experience death. Not just physical. But spiritual
death. With the Bible calls the second death.
That is the problem with this condition. Is that
doesn't stop when you die. It continues if your
soul still has it. And because it has this nature
to it which we don't really understand why or
how exactly works this way, God has to do something
about it to remove it. It's so serious that the
Bible says that the time is coming when God is
going to, in the future, destroy this earth as
we know it because it's contaminated with all
this stuff. And He's going to create a new earth
in which sin will no longer be. Because He is
in the business of eradicating sin from what
He has created. From us and from the world altogether.
Sin and death eventually will be completely eradicated.
And because that is going to happen in the future,
God... is going to do something that is very
radical. Before even reading what the Bible says
about this, I want to show you a picture. Look
at it. You do not know anything about it, but
just by looking at it, what is something that
you can deduct? Deduced. This is the wrong word,
deduct. Deduced. What is something that you can
deduce from this? Uh -huh. Yeah, all these people
are trying to completely eliminate any exposure
to whatever is there because it's so lethal.
I happened to visit Liberia a few months before
the Ebola outbreak happened. And because I just
had been there, Then I started following all
the news. And it so happened that later as I
was living in Dallas, there was one patient that
had come from Africa, flew into Dallas, and he
had Ebola. And they immediately took him to this
hospital and he was completely secluded from
everything. Because Ebola was a virus that was
so lethal that what started happening in Liberia
at that time spread to Ivory Coast and some other
places in the region, is that the moment someone
had Ebola, the level of death possibilities were
so high that the government immediately started
taking measures that were very drastic to control
the spread of it and to eradicate it completely.
Because not eradicating it was irresponsible.
Not trying to control it was irresponsible. So
they did like... What any government that is
responsible would do. And all these people started
going to the villages where they heard there
were people with symptoms. And they would walk
with these places. And if someone tested positive,
they had to take them out of the village into
this place that they had created to contain it.
But because it was so lethal, most of the people
went to the containment region. They would die
of it anyway. Because the virus kept... until
it took over completely. It was tragic. It was
sad to see the families that were being torn
apart because somebody had it. But if that person,
if that mother of that grandfather was not removed,
it put a risk to everybody else. And even though
painful separation, it was the right thing to
do in order to contain the spread of it. And
the Bible says that sin is more lethal Than Ebola.
It's actually the reason why we are mortal to
start with. And God is going to eradicate sin
completely. Therefore. In this new place that
God is going to create. That it will be free
from sin and death. Something is going to be
true of it. Let me read it for you. The Bible
says nothing evil will be allowed to enter. Nor
anyone who practices shameful idolatry and dishonesty.
But only those whose names are written in the
Lamb's book of life. And that is another name
for Jesus. Only those who Jesus has saved. Only
those who Jesus has healed from this sinfulness.
Are the ones that will be able to enter this
place. Everybody else. That had this Ebola of
the soul. Will have to be removed. Not allowed
to enter in this place. And it says it like this.
Cowards and believers. The corrupt. Murderers.
Immoral. Those who practice witchcraft. Idol.
Worshippers. And all liars. All liars. Even those
that lie a little white lie. All liars. Their
fate is in the fiery lake of burning sulfur.
This is the second death. Remember how we read
that sin eventually will cause decay and death?
Here it is. The Bible says that at one point,
those who died with their soul not healed from
this condition. Not only won't be able to enter
this place that God has created. But these people
will have to actually be sent to this place that
had been created for Satan. And his angels. And
this place of complete destruction. So sin can
be completely eradicated. Even one single cell
left. Gone. And that complete eradication has
to happen because of God's love for everybody
else. A tragic picture, but a real one. And this
picture reminds me of something that happened
with the Ebola patients. When these doctors would
go into somebody else's house that they had to
remove. You know what they did with their clothing
and their belongings? You guessed it right. They
had to burn it. You know why they had to burn
it? Because they had to eliminate any possibility
of the virus contaminating somebody else. And
when you see that happening, you think, wow,
how sad, how tragic. You don't think, oh, that's
unfair. Who allowed that to happen? We don't
think that way. It's a tragedy. Sin is a tragedy.
The most significant tragedy in human history.
And today you and I are still suffering the consequences
of it. Because you and I, if Jesus has not healed
us from it, still have that condition in our
soul. And we carry it with us every single day.
This is kind of heavy. I thought we were going
to be talking about love, you know, and nice.
It's like, Pastor Paulo, I think I like Jesus
better, you know. Love, Jesus, it's all about
love and accepting everyone and love. But actually,
you know, that Jesus told us about this. Jesus
warned us because he came to save us from this.
And this is what he said. Do not be afraid of
those who kill the body and cannot kill the soul,
but rather be afraid of the one who can destroy
both soul and body in hell. I know this topic
is not popular. I'm not here to try to make you
feel good. I'm here to tell you the truth of
what God says about love. And you cannot understand
the depth of his love until you understand the
depth of your condition. Your condition is so
serious. That God's strategy to solve it is so
amazing. This is why we have to be healed from
it. It's because sin will corrupt and sin will
separate you from ever from the God who loves
you. Wow. That's something else. But you know,
I have a question. If this is so bad, why didn't
God create us unable to sin? That would have
been much smarter. I mean, no offense, God. But
couldn't you have come up with a way of creating
us that we were not able to sin? Why did He create
us this way? That's why it leads me to the next
question. Why didn't God make us unable to sin?
The Bible does not tell us a specific verse to
give us the answer to this, but it gives us enough
information where we can connect the dots. When
Jesus was asked, Jesus, God saves, right? That's
his meaning. God saves. What is the most important
command of all time? Jesus could have said, well,
behave, or otherwise you go to hell. He could
have said, well, you know, you need to be good.
But that's not what he said. The most important
thing of all, you know what he said it is? It's
this. You must love the Lord your God with what?
With all your heart and all your soul and all
your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment.
But also, a second is equally important. Love
your neighbor as yourself. God created us not
only because he loves us. But he recreated us
so that we can love him and love others. And
you want to guess what is the Greek word for
love in this verse? You've been paying attention.
Good. Right. God created us so that we will agape
him as he agape us and that we will agape each
other. But the problem is that we can't because
our soul is sick. And there's something that
suddenly comes to the surface. Because God who
created me just to be someone that will be programmed
only to say, yes, sir, whatever you want, sir,
anytime, sir. That would be great. I wish we
could program our children to be like that. But
it just doesn't work that way. Because God did
not create you so that you would believe in him,
so that you would obey him. He created you so
that you will love him. And in order for you
to love him, he created you with freedom. Because
love can only be given, but not demanded. Can
you imagine? That when I proposed to my wife,
would you marry me? She says, but Pablo, I don't
love you. I cannot marry you. And I said, well,
you have to love me. So you're going to marry
me because you have to love me. Would that work?
No, that won't work. You cannot force someone
to love you. Love has to be chosen in order to
be loved. And that's what God creates us with,
freedom. And it so happens that the first humans
chose not to love God. But thank for Jesus, because
that is not the end of our story. He is giving
us the opportunity to be healed from this so
that we can agape Him as He agape us. And that
transformation that happens from the soul, from
inside out, It's what Jesus is able to do. Wow,
but why Jesus? I mean, can I save myself from
it? Maybe with diet or something? Okay, can I
be saved from it maybe just by worshiping my
parents' religion? Because, you know, it's very
nice. They're very nice people. Maybe that can
save me. The answer is no. Any religion can teach
you how to do nice things. But only one person
can touch your soul. And that is your maker.
And that is Jesus. That's why the Bible says
it this way. You know that Jesus appeared so
that he might take away our sins. And in him
is no sin. Because he's not contaminated with
this condition, he can heal. But even better,
the Bible says who Jesus is, is not just one
of us. He is more than just one of us. The Bible
says this, would you read this aloud with me?
No one has ever seen God, but the one and only
Son, who is Himself God, and is in closest relationship
with the Father, has made Him known. How do you
know God? By knowing Jesus. Why? Because Jesus
is himself. Who? What? Jesus is God? Yes. That's
why he was conceived by the Holy Spirit. And
that's why he is sinless. Human like us, but
not sinner like us. Because his soul, his spiritual
dimension of it, he is God. And I love this.
Because if there's one section that tells us
exactly as it is, it's in the book of Hebrews.
Since we humans, since we the children have flesh
and blood, Jesus too shared in our humanity.
He had to become one like us. He had to be born
so that by his death he might break the power
of him who holds the power of death. And who
is that? The devil. And free those who all their
lives were held in slavery by the fear of death.
Jesus, the Son of God, the sinless one, was born
so that by becoming a human like us, he could
enter the realm of death and overcome the power
of Satan, overcome the power of death, and now
touch our souls so that we can be transformed
from within. The soul that is touched by Jesus,
the soul that is healed by the power of the Son
of God, will experience the healing of the soul.
While sin corrupts, Jesus transforms us from
within. While sin separates, Jesus reconciles
us to the Father. That is the power of Jesus.
And that's why Jesus is named God saves. There's
no other name under heaven that can save. Because
there's no other God saves but only one. And
that is Jesus. The very expression of God's love.
So you can go and try to heal your soul. Go and
meditate. Go and worship this and that. But I'm
here to tell you, it's not going to work. Only
Jesus was the one sent by God to be able to become
the Savior from our sins. And this, It's what
it looks like. Anyone that wants to be healed
at the soul level by Jesus, anyone that wants
to experience this transformation from within,
has to only do it by this way. What do I need
to do? Tell me, tell me. There's only one? you
have to be forgiven. That is the only way in
which this becomes part of your life and your
inner being, your soul, and suddenly your soul
becomes healed is by receiving the forgiveness
that Jesus already paid for. Because when Jesus
died, And when he resurrected, he was able now
to overcome the devil, to overcome death, to
overcome sin. And now he can touch your soul.
And the only way to be forgiven is by repenting.
Not by trying hard, but by repenting. It's by
coming to God and say, God, I am a sinner. I
realize my soul is sick. And I'm asking you,
save me. I'm going to turn from what I've been
pursuing to you. Save me. That's why the very
first time in the entire history of humanity,
when this message of good news about Jesus coming
to save us was proclaimed, was proclaimed with
these words. Now, repent of your sin and turn
to whom? To God. So what will happen? So that
your sins may be wiped away. Then times of refreshment
will come from the presence of the Lord in you.
If you want your soul to be healed. You will
have to repent of your sins and turn to God.
So that the very presence of Jesus can now reach
that place and begin this treatment that only
he can give you. So I have to ask you a question.
Have you repented? I'm not asking you, do you
believe in Jesus? Demons believe that Jesus is
the son of God. But they are not cured. From
their condition. Have you ever. Repented. Because
unless you repent. Your soul will not be transformed.
And you will never be able to agape God. This.
It's how this works. This is what God's love
looks like. He saw us in the hospital clinic
bed and said to us, I love you so much that I
wish I could take your illness upon me so that
you could go and be healed. And he could, so
he did. So I would like to conclude this study.
By reminding you the very words of Jesus. And
ask you these few things. The very words that
Jesus told us. Is this affirmation. Of the assurance
of his love for us. I have loved you. Even as
the father has loved me. I have loved you with
his agape love. It is not because you deserve
it. You will never deserve it. So stop worrying
about that. I love you. But you will have to
learn to remain in my love. Are you remaining
in my love? So if you are someone who has never
asked Jesus to save you, I have a request for
you to consider today. This is real. And this
is serious. If you have never asked Jesus to
save you, ask him to save you today. Here and
now. Don't wait another second. What you carry
within you is too serious to ignore. Ask Jesus
to save you. You don't have to understand how
this whole thing works. You will learn as God
works in your life. But simply come to the Lord
today and say, Jesus. You came to save me from
my sins. Would you save me today? I repent. I
want to turn to you. I do not know how this works
or anything, but I'm inviting you today. Touch
my very soul. That is what you need to do. And
if you don't do it today, now you know what you
need to do when your heart is ready. But remember,
if you die with your soul, not healed, you know
what Jesus told you will happen. Not because
he doesn't love you, but because you refuse to
love the truth. Secondly, if you are a follower
of Jesus, perhaps you have stopped remaining
in his love. And you're in that place in which
you've been feeling like damaged goods. You've
been struggling with shame because you've been
doing things you know do not please God, but
you've been a hypocrite. And you are wondering,
does God really love me? Is he going to give
up on me? Is he tired of me? Remember, God loves
you with agape love. It does not depend on your
performance. So you will have to learn to trust
in his grace and let that place of trusting in
his grace be the empowerment to give you a breakthrough,
the addictions that are holding you back. But
don't entertain that voice for even another second.
Does God really love me? Look at the cross and
you will know the answer. And finally, If you
are following Jesus, if you are a believer in
God, but you're in this place in which you are
doubting because things have happened in your
life that have been hard and you are wondering,
God, if you really love me, why did you let this
happen to me to start with? How can you say you
love me and let this happen at the same time?
If that is the place of crisis you are in, I'm
here to encourage you. You will have to learn
to trust God's heart. Remember, God is love.
He cannot act otherwise. He is love. That's His
essence. So what you may be experiencing is that
you do not understand why these things are happening,
but you have to understand that no circumstances
have the power to define who God is. Only God
can tell you who he is and he has told you in
his word that he loves you. So rather than using
these circumstances that are waiting for you
to use them as an excuse to say, well, God, you
don't love me. You will have to change the paradigm
completely. You will have to realize, God, you
love me. Let me find in your love the strength
I need to go through this hardship because you
are with me. You see the difference? May you
find the strength in God's love to go through
this passage. So as you go through it, you may
come out of it stronger and with a love for God
that is deeper than ever before. God loves you.
That is a fact. So that is not even the question.
The question is, would you love God? That's what
he created you for. So I'm going to invite you
today, as we conclude this time together, if
you have never asked Jesus to save you, Let this
be the beginning of experiencing God's love.
But if there is any other distortion that is
holding you from experiencing God's love, let
this moment sink in and let the love of God touch
your soul. Lord, as we come to this time, thank
you for this powerful reminder. That your love
is so deep. And we can only understand how deep
it is until we understand how deep our mess is.
Thank you for loving us enough to get into our
mess, to rescue us from it. If there's anyone
here, Lord, that has not encountered your love,
or struggling to remain in your love, use this
time to touch our very hearts with your presence.
In Jesus' name, amen. Thank you for tuning in
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