Audio Version HERE.
Sunday, March 18th, 2001
speaker: Roger Dermody
text: John 8:1-11; Luke 7:36-50; Luke 8:42-48
Jesus the Lover
INTRODUCTION:
My times here at Covenant - Presbytery + CPM
My role & years at Bel Air
Megan and our girls
Commissioning of Linda &
Today’s Goal:
To convince you that Jesus loves you deeply.
We know that in our head…
but does our heart know it?
Many of us feel very unlovable
Illustration: The Blind Date… (gag, cough)
Many of us feel very unlovable
Karl Barth’s summation:
“Jesus Loves Me
This I know
For the Bible tells me so”
Jesus loves you deeply…
Despite what you’ve done,
or what’s been done to you;
Despite who you’ve hurt,
or who’s hurt you;
No matter how low you’ve been,
or how low you are right now;
No matter what any church, pastor,
or televangelist says
Jesus loves you!
Not just some image of you…
Not just what He hopes you’ll become…
YOU!!! as you are right now!!!
So Hard to Grasp:
because we’ve never truly experienced this
type of love…
We all need Love:
Ollie & Olga - “When we were married I told you that I loved you, and if I ever change my mind, I’ll let you know!”
We need a lot more than that!
Too many guilt producing sermons:
Portraits of a Lover:
3 familiar stories
illustrating different aspects of this love:
I. Loving the Lowly:
down & out…
recipients of society & churches scorn
1. Cleanses a Leper (Mark 1:40-45):
Despite “appearances”…
physically validating one broken & despised
The scandal of touch:
Any contact with lepers defiled the
persons who touched them.
The power of touch
illustrate: Russian Babies - neo-natal wards
schizophrenia
catatonic… neuromuscular issues
We live in an age where human touch is increasingly rare (internet age):
illustrate:Relationship via internet
UCLA on-call
Some of us feel so unloveable…
so distant from necessary contact…
so untouchable…
Jesus Loves You
b/c Jesus Loves the Lowly,
& reaches to touch you,
Loves the Lowly…
II. Loving the Lofty:
have it all by societies standards
at least they did before last week!
some at Bel Air…
2. Zaccheus (Luke 19:1-10):
An extortionist!
Someone who robbed the elderly of their
inheritance!
& didn’t even work for congress!
vs. 5 “Zacchaeus, come down immediately. I must stay at your house today.”
Transformation
_ to the poor
4x’s back (restitution)
Some of us literally have it all… but there’s an inner ache… we’re missing something money can’t buy…
Some of us feel guilty b/c we know we’ve ruined
others in our climb up the ladder…
some of our ladders are leaning against the wrong building!
Jesus says, “I love you, and today I must stay in your house.”
Jesus loves the lowly, the lofty…
III. Loving the Lost:
you? neither lowly nor lofty…
somewhere in-between?
3. Woman caught in Adultery (John 8:1-11):
Shame… humiliation… where’s the dude?!
Some of us feel the condemnation of the crowd… we know we’re messed up…
we feel so exposed… so humiliated… so lost…
illustrate: Brennan Manning’s story:
“Jesus loved me just as much in my state of disgrace, as he did in my state of grace.”
Some of us feel like junk… we have made such a mess of our lives… we sit here today thinking, “if people only knew me, they’d never tolerate MY being here!”
Jesus says, “You’re not junk… I love you!”
vs. 10 - “Jesus straightened up and asked her, ‘Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?’ ‘No one sir,’ she said. ‘Then neither do I condemn you,’ Jesus declared. ‘Go now and leave your life of sin.’”
Jesus loves lost people… so much, that He won’t let them remain in that which causes their lost-ness.
The Gospel Summarized:
Bart Tarman (former chaplain Westmont College):
Created by love; fallen from love, visited by love, estranged from love, invited back to love.
“Love did not walk the earth full of condemnation”
John 3:17 - “For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.”
Q: What can separate us from this love?
Romans 8:35-39 - “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
Image of God vs. Image of Jesus?
Bible Study - questioning…
The Jesus I Never Knew (Phillip Yancy)
Jesus = loving, accepting, tender, gentle,
compassionate
God = strict, demanding, harsh, judge
Q: What else does the Bible say?
Colossians 1:15,19 - “He is the image of the invisible
God…” and “For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him.”
Hebrews 1:3 - “The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and
the exact representation of his being.”
John 12:45 & 14:9 - “And whoever sees me sees him
who sent me.” and “Jesus answered; ‘Don’t you know me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a long time? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father.”
Q: What’s this saying?!
Not only is Jesus a lover… but God is a lover.
Everything we have said about Jesus today,
we need to also say about God the Father!!!
God is just as loving as Jesus!
Romans 5:8 - “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”
CONCLUSION:
illustrate: Jesus loves Porn Stars
Craig Gross @ BAPC for Porn & Pancakes
Lowly -
You’re not junk
I want to literally touch you & reassure you of my love…
Lofty -
Inner ache
“Today I must stay at your house”
Lost -
Know full well the condemnation
of others
of yourself
“Neither do I condemn you…
Go and sin no more”
Jesus the Lover
the exact representation of God’s love
who love’s Porn Stars
who love’s those affected by HIV & AIDS
who loves those in Guatemala
Who love even me, and you.
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