THE GOD WHO LOVES SINNERS
MF Blume
August 7, 2016
Luke 23:27-39 And there followed him a great company of
people, and of women, which also bewailed and lamented him.
(28) But Jesus turning unto them said, Daughters of Jerusalem,
weep not for me, but weep for yourselves, and for your children.
(29) For, behold, the days are coming, in the which they shall
say, Blessed are the barren, and the wombs that never bare, and the
paps which never gave suck. (30) Then shall they begin to
say to the mountains, Fall on us; and to the hills, Cover us.
(31) For if they do these things in a green tree, what shall be
done in the dry? (32) And there were also two other,
malefactors, led with him to be put to death. (33) And when
they were come to the place, which is called Calvary, there they
crucified him, and the malefactors, one on the right hand, and the
other on the left. (34) Then said Jesus, Father, forgive
them; for they know not what they do. And they parted his raiment, and
cast lots. (35) And the people stood beholding. And the
rulers also with them derided him, saying, He saved others; let him
save himself, if he be Christ, the chosen of God. (36) And
the soldiers also mocked him, coming to him, and offering him
vinegar, (37) And saying, If thou be the king of the Jews,
save thyself. (38) And a superscription also was written
over him in letters of Greek, and Latin, and Hebrew, THIS IS THE KING
OF THE JEWS. (39) And one of the malefactors which were
hanged railed on him, saying, If thou be Christ, save thyself and us.
This event of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ is the entire basis for Christianity.
• It’s the core and focus of everything I the entire bible from front to back.
• It occurred because of what happened in the
Garden of Eden where Romans 5 teaches us one man’s obedience made
many people sinners.
• The book of Revelation at the end starts with
Jesus saying He was dead, is alive forevermore, and shows him as a
sacrificial lamb who stands in resurrection life after he’s been
crucified and buried.
And it’s highlighted and described as having occurred when He
knew the judgment of God would pour out on the people of Jerusalem.
• So, He told the weeping women they better weep for themselves for judgment would come.
• And they mockingly killed him between two thieves.
• They cast lots so carelessly for his robe.
• They derided Him.
• Bystanding people challenged him to save
himself if he could save others, spitting at the thought he actually
brought salvation.
• The soldiers joined I as well and said if He’s king he should first save himself.
• They mockingly put a sign over his head
hailing him as king of the Jews as he wore the crow of thorns to
spitefully laugh at his rulership.
• And even those crucified beside him railed on him to take them all down if he was Messiah.
But in the middle of all that hatred and murder and mockery and blasphemy, He prayed for them.
• And his prayer shakes the core of every person to this day.
• FORGIVENESS for his ENEMIES!
• His murderers!
And that example is taught all through the New Testament, for us to love our enemies as well.
We are in a world that is currently persecuting Christians and the church.
• Our own country and nation, as well as our
neighbours the USA, are speaking against the bible’s positions.
• There are those who know homosexuality is
forbidden in the bible as an abomination, so they’re trying to
discredit the bible by seeing what else it claims is sinful, and
mocking how such things could be sin, so that homosexuality can be
viewed as non-sinful in reality.
• If the bible is silly on some things, the it’s silly on homosexuality
• Others try to hold onto the bible while at the
same time excusing these sins, and claim the bible does not literally
forbid homosexuality, and claim it is figurative.
• Others claim it is an ancient necessary law
due to the small population during times of the world when there were
wars slaying people.
• Other think people not born that way are not the target of the bible’s sinfulness.
• (Let’s say people are born that way. STILL, YOU MUST BE BORN AGAIN!)
• So, there are churches that propose it’s not a sin.
But one of the chief accusations the world throws at believers is that
we are hateful if we say lifestyles and certain practices are sinful.
• And we can see something powerful when we
watch how the world reacts like this, and makes these kinds of
accusations.
• First of all they fail to understand that it is possible to love people who are sinful.
• Because they cannot comprehend that kind of
love, and cannot believe it exists, they claim we are liars when we say
we love the sinner.
• Their love doesn’t include loving sinners.
• And because they cannot love sinners, they
believe that people are hateful if they think someone is a sinner.
• They are revealing their lack of the highest love that exists when they do this.
• They cannot imagine LOVE for sinners, and the
only way they can love is to not believe a person is in sin.
• They don’t love like that, so they think there is only hate for belief there are sinners.
And if you tell them about Jesus and the cross, they cannot believe
there can be a real love for sinners so much so that they think the
cross is a myth.
• They think nobody could love their enemies and
people who are considered sinners enough to do what Jesus did when His
enemies murdered Him…. When
He cried “Father FORGIVE THEM, they do not know what they do.”
• And they think the entire bible is a myth.
• They might vocalize what they think is
mythical, like Noah’s flood, or Adam and Eve, but their real
aversion and actual resistance is toward the fact THAT GOD LOVES
SINNERS ad COMMANDS HIS PEOPLE TO DO THE SAME.
So, you can talk about the love of God all you want to them.
• They cannot get past the idea that you can believe a person is a sinner and yet still love them.
• So they ignore all the words we say about
love, and persecute us as though we are unloving people, because all
they hear is THAT LIFESTYLE IS SINFUL, or THAT PERSON IS A SINNER.
• If they could comprehend the reality that
God’s love exists and IT IS A LOVE FOR SINNERS, they would never
think to call us hateful.
And the truth of God’s love for sinners comes through even stronger after Jesus resurrected and left this world.
Acts 7:51-60 Ye stiffnecked and uncircumcised in heart and
ears, ye do always resist the Holy Ghost: as your fathers did, so do
ye. (52) Which of the prophets have not your fathers
persecuted? and they have slain them which shewed before of the coming
of the Just One; of whom ye have been now the betrayers and
murderers: (53) Who have received the law by the
disposition of angels, and have not kept it. (54) When they
heard these things, they were cut to the heart, and they gnashed on him
with their teeth. (55) But he, being full of the Holy
Ghost, looked up stedfastly into heaven, and saw the glory of God, and
Jesus standing on the right hand of God, (56) And said,
Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of man standing on the
right hand of God. (57) Then they cried out with a loud
voice, and stopped their ears, and ran upon him with one accord,
(58) And cast him out of the city, and stoned him: and the
witnesses laid down their clothes at a young man's feet, whose name was
Saul. (59) And they stoned Stephen, calling upon God, and
saying, Lord Jesus, receive my spirit. (60) And he kneeled
down, and cried with a loud voice, Lord, lay not this sin to their
charge. And when he had said this, he fell asleep.
Someone else aside from Jesus told people they were sinners and would receive the judgment of God.
• He preached to them about how they were the
betrayers and murderers of one who was promised to come as the JUST one.
• And they were enraged and gnashed their teeth at him, and set out to kill him as they did Jesus.
• They ran to him, stopped him from preaching, and dragged him out of the city to stone him to death.
• And while the stones were striking Stephen,
the man whose accusations were the kind people today accuse Christians
of being hateful for – saying they were sinners – started
praying his own murderers, asking God to not count those murderous
actions against them on judgment day, but to forgive them.
• He did the same two things Jesus did on the cross.
• He committed his spirit into Jesus’
hands, like Jesus committed His spirit to the Father’s hands.
• And he proceeded to ask God ‘s forgiveness for his own murders.
• AND THEY SAY THERE IS NO LOVE FOR SINNERS
• Here is someone apart from Jesus who did the same thing in his death that Jesus did.
What will they usually say?
• It’s a myth like the crucifixion is a myth,
• Why?
• Because when you get down to it, THEY CANNOT
BELIEVE THERE IS A REAL LOVE FOR PEOPLE WHOM WE CONSIDER TO BE SINNERS.
I’VE HAD THEM CURSE AND SWEAR and speak vulgarity to me while they talk about real love.
• What a contradiction!
• What do people know about real love when they
cannot disagree with you without cussing and speaking the filthiest
words you can hear people speak?
And all through the bible we not only see the entire basis of our
religion being this LOVE FOR SINNERS, but we are taught to love our
enemies, let alone people whom we consider to be in sin.
• They think there is only hate if you say someone is a sinner.
• If they cannot imagine loving sinners, they certainly could never comprehend loving ENEMIES!
Romans 12:14 Bless them which persecute you: bless, and curse not.
1 Corinthians 4:12-13 (12) And labour, working with
our own hands: being reviled, we bless; being persecuted, we suffer
it: (13) Being defamed, we intreat: we are made as the
filth of the world, and are the offscouring of all things unto this day.
1 Peter 3:8-9 Finally, be ye all of one mind, having
compassion one of another, love as brethren, be pitiful, be
courteous: (9) Not rendering evil for evil, or railing for
railing: but contrariwise blessing; knowing that ye are thereunto
called, that ye should inherit a blessing.
Luke 6:27-35 But I say unto you which hear, Love your
enemies, do good to them which hate you, (28) Bless them
that curse you, and pray for them which despitefully use you.
(29) And unto him that smiteth thee on the one cheek offer also
the other; and him that taketh away thy cloke forbid not to take thy
coat also. (30) Give to every man that asketh of thee; and
of him that taketh away thy goods ask them not again. (31)
And as ye would that men should do to you, do ye also to them
likewise. (32) For if ye love them which love you, what
thank have ye? for sinners also love those that love them.
(33) And if ye do good to them which do good to you, what thank
have ye? for sinners also do even the same. (34) And if ye
lend to them of whom ye hope to receive, what thank have ye? for
sinners also lend to sinners, to receive as much again.
(35) But love ye your enemies, and do good, and lend, hoping for
nothing again; and your reward shall be great, and ye shall be the
children of the Highest: for he is kind unto the unthankful and to the
evil.
From Jesus to Paul to Peter, we are taught over and over to love people whom the world cannot imagine anyone loving.
• Our entire faith is built upon doing this as
Jesus did it on the same cross that we believe is the foundation of
everything we believe about God and eternal life and heaven.
Romans 15:1-5 We then that are strong ought to bear the
infirmities of the weak, and not to please ourselves. (2)
Let every one of us please his neighbour for his good to
edification. (3) For even Christ pleased not himself; but,
as it is written, The reproaches of them that reproached thee fell on
me. (4) For whatsoever things were written aforetime were
written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the
scriptures might have hope. (5) Now the God of patience and
consolation grant you to be likeminded one toward another according to
Christ Jesus:
In other words, what Jesus did for people when He willingly died, we must do the same.
That includes forgiveness.
And this concept of the world that cannot comprehend loving sinners,
and demands we don’t have love at all but hatred instead if we
believe people are sinners, has also been the reason so many people
have never yielded to God who want to be saved and go to heaven one day.
• The way they think like the world’s way
of rejecting claims of love for people if we think people are sinners
is by thinking GOD DOES NOT LOVE THEM BECAUSE THEY KNOW THEY ARE
SINNERS.
• How many people are out there who can’t
get themselves to commit to serve Jesus and become part of the church
around the world who is his body, because they feel they’re no
good, and they’re not good enough for Christianity?
• If they only knew what the world does not
know, that GOD LOVES SINNERS, they would not hold themselves back.
The truth is GOD knows we cannot be good enough, so He loved us even though we are serious sinners.
• The whole gospel is based upon the fact that NO ONE is good enough.
• EVERYONE who is saved DID NOT GET SAVED BECAUSE THEY WERE SO GOOD.
Titus 3:3-5 For we ourselves also were sometimes foolish,
disobedient, deceived, serving divers lusts and pleasures, living in
malice and envy, hateful, and hating one another. (4) But
after that the kindness and love of God our Saviour toward man
appeared, (5) Not by works of righteousness which we have
done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of
regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost;
God is not doing what you’re thinking.
• He’s not waiting for you to be good enough.
• If you wait til you’re good enough
before you come to serve God, you’ll be lost I a devil’s
hell.
• I accepted the truth that God loves me despite all my sins!
• And Jesus died FOR SINNERS, not for people good enough in themselves.
1 Corinthians 6:9-11 ISV (9) You know that wicked people
will not inherit the kingdom of God, don't you? Stop deceiving
yourselves! Sexually immoral people, idolaters, adulterers, male
prostitutes, homosexuals, (10) thieves, greedy people,
drunks, slanderers, and robbers will not inherit the kingdom of
God. (11) That is what some of you were! But you were
washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of our Lord
Jesus the Messiah and by the Spirit of our God.
Why?
Because GOD LOVES SO MUCH THAT HE FORGIVES AND WASHES US FROM THOSE LIFESTYLES.
Yes, he loves sinners!
• When we can see a sinner and show the love of
God to such a person, and repeat what Jesus did, then we show the world
it’s not a myth.
• You will bring people to their knees to bow to
God when you go to people and forgive them for anything they did to you.
• When you no longer hold anything in your heart
to them when you see them, and you can treat them like your best friend!
So, don’t hold back if you think you’re too sinful for God.
And sinners, we don’t hate you because our faith says you’re in sin.
• All of us were in sin.
• Your sin makes people lost as much as my sin did!
• As far as what makes us lost, ALL SINS CAUSE PEOPLE TO BE LOST, not just some.
• But we grasped the fact God loves sinners, and
it’s so entrenched in our faith, that we know that anyone who
claims Christianity and insists God hates sinners simply doesn’t
read their bible.
• And our teachings to love sinners like He does are all through our bibles.
Romans 5:18-19 Therefore as by the offence of one judgment came
upon all men to condemnation; even so by the righteousness of one the
free gift came upon all men unto justification of life.
(19) For as by one man's disobedience many were made sinners, so
by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous.
Your good acts of obedience do not make you righteous.
• One man’s act of obedience made us righteous!
• JESUS CHRIST is that one!