God's Love For Us, Allowed for the Death of Jesus Christ
Two men were driving to a football game on a beautiful Sunday morning.The top was down on the car and they could hear church bells ringing in the distance.The driver said to the man with him, “we really should be at church.”His passenger responded by saying, “I couldn’t go anyway, my wife is sick.”
We all understand this is a clear example of a man who was looking for any excuse not to be in the worship service to the Lord.The question I have is what motivated this man to ever go to church?What did he get out of a worship service to God when he attended?
The last Sunday in October 2000, I had the opportunity to preach on how, as Christians, our stance on moral issues should hold considerable weight when determining how we should vote in elections.We discussed sins such as abortion, homosexuality, embryonic stem cell research, and many other issues that we are faced with every day in this country.After the sermon, I had a number of people make comments to me but two stood out in my mind.The first was a woman who simply said, “Chuck, that is exactly the kind of sermon I like; thirty minutes or less.”The second comment came from a man who stated, “I’m glad you got that off your chest.”This sermon was not presented from my point of view on the subject.It was backed by what God Almighty had to say on the subject!Yet, these two people did not seem to grasp that.It is no different than what you find with many people who don’t decide until the last minute on Sunday morning whether they will make worship (you can forget class), or those who reach in their pocket at the last minute to find “something” to throw in the contribution because they have given no thought of what is due the Lord through their financial planning.It causes you to want to ask them the question, “WHY ARE YOU HERE?”
I have asked this question to myself on several occasions based on the actions and attitudes of those you come in contact when you preach.Most people either don’t think or don’t care that the preacher can see all that goes on in the audience.The passing of notes, the constant checking of watches, the whispering between adults and/or children, and there are those who want to anticipate the “closing thoughts” of the sermon so they can speed down the isle like they were coming out of pit row at a NASCAR event and get to wherever they feel they need to be.I wish they would stop to realize that their actions may have thwarted someone from responding to the Gospel invitation.
Why is it that we can sit 2-3 hours in a movie, sporting event or any of a hundred other activities, but if the preacher dares to preach over thirty minutes, you would think a catastrophic event had taken place.
Preachers always try to determine why the audience is there for if we know the answer to that question, we can tailor sermons to help reach the heart, strengthen those in need and/or prick the heart of those who find themselves estranged from God so that they might repent.
The answer a Christian should/must find in their heart is that we are there to worship God because of our deep love for him, and that love is not/cannot be displayed in just those few hours we enter a church building but is a way of life that we show to people around us each and every day based on how we live.Christian’s live above matters of this life because we have a home waiting for us in heaven and our goal is to serve Him on this earth!God has promised that home to those who are found faithful.
Why do we have such a deep love for God?The scriptures tell us.1 John 4:19 says, “We love Him because He first loved us.”How did God show this love for us?
Will you give me 45 minutes?Will you click on the presentation on this page and learn about the love of the cross?Television will get 45 minutes of your time today.Will God?