“When I was asked to come here today and talk to you, your pastor asked me to tell you what was the greatest lesson ever learned in my 50-odd years of preaching. I thought about it for a few days and boiled it down to just one thing that made the most difference in my life and sustained me through all my trials….

The one thing that I could always rely on when tears and heartbreak and pain and fear and sorrow paralyzed me.…the only thing that would comfort was this verse:

“Jesus loves me this I know.
For the Bible tells me so.
Little ones to Him belong,
We are weak but He is strong.

Yes, Jesus loves me….
The Bible tells me so.”

The old pastor stated, “I always noticed that it was the adults who chose the children’s hymn ‘Jesus Loves Me’ (for the children of course) during a hymn sing, and it was the adults who sang the loudest because I could see they knew it the best.”

“Here for you now is a Senior version of Jesus Loves Me”:

JESUS LOVES ME

Jesus loves me, this I know,
Though my hair is white as snow
Though my sight is growing dim,
Still He bids me trust in Him.

(CHORUS)

YES, JESUS LOVES ME.. YES, JESUS LOVES ME.
YES, JESUS LOVES ME, FOR THE BIBLE TELLS ME SO.

Though my steps are oh, so slow,
With my hand in His I’ll go
On through life, let come what may,
He’ll be there to lead the way.

(CHORUS)

When the nights are dark and long,
In my heart He puts a song.
Telling me in words so clear,
“Have no fear, for I am near.”

(CHORUS)

When my work on earth is done,
And life’s victories have been won.
He will take me home above,
Then I’ll understand His love.

(CHORUS)

I love Jesus, does He know?
Have I ever told Him so?
Jesus loves to hear me say,
That I love Him every day.

(CHORUS).”

My question for you today is “DOES HE KNOW YOU LOVE HIM?” Have you told Him today?  Have you SHOWED Him today?

Face it, the Lord is crazy about you.
 

What is most valuable . . .
Is not what we have in our lives, but . . .
WHO we have in our lives!

‘ Do not ask the Lord to guide your footsteps if you are not willing to move your feet’

Then Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron. “This time I have sinned,” he said to them. “The LORD is in the right, and I and my people are in the wrong.” – Exodus 9:27

Have you sinned?

Even if you have, there is GOOD NEWS!

“People who conceal their sins will not prosper, but if they confess and turn from them, they will receive mercy.” – Proverbs 28:13

Take time now, pray to God and confess, He will be merciful on you.

.  .  .

.  . .

. . .

How do I know? Becuase He has been merciful to me.

Yes, I have sinned, but I have confessed and have received mercy.

 ⁴⁵ ‘I tell you the truth, when you refused to help the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were refusing to help me.’ ⁴⁶ “And they will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous will go into eternal life.” (Matthew 25:45-46)

¹When Jesus had finished saying all these things, he said to his disciples, ² “As you know, Passover begins in two days, and the Son of Man will be handed over to be crucified.” (Matthew 26:1-2) 

It’s only 2 days away from Good Friday, maybe we all ought to take some time and remember what Jesus did for us on that solemn, but victorious day.

Husbands . . . be considerate as you live with your wives, and treat them with respect . . . and as heirs with you of the gracious gift of life, so that nothing will hinder your prayers. – 1 Peter 3:7

Wow! We are not only to treat our wives with respect, but if we don’t . . . then our prayers could be hindered. I’ve heard the illustration of: if you are the father of a daughter and your son-in-law has treated your daughter with disrespect and abuse all of their marriage, how would you react to him if he came to you to ask for a large sum of money?

I’m guessing you might laugh in his face for even suggesting it.

However, now think about how God might react as the father of your wife. We are God’s son-in-laws relative to His daughters. And He might just laugh in our face if we treat His daughters with little or no respect.

Now, think twice, and read the Scripture again, and HONOR YOUR WIFE!

Psalm 127:3 – Behold, children are a gift from the LORD

Many of my classmates also have young children, as do many of you.

I never really understood how parents loved their children so much. But now, as I have a young son about to turn 2 years old, I constantly realize how much I truly love him. His character and actions are so cute and loveable.

But let’s take this a step further:

Ephesians 1:5 – God predestined us to be adopted as His sons through Jesus Christ.

So, If we become sons of God, through Jesus Christ’s actions, then we become children of God. Children are a “gift from God.” How does this work? Well, Jesus’ actions were purely a gift to us. His sacrifice on the cross was for us . . . a gift! When we accept Jesus as our Savior, we become a part of God’s family – His children.

Now let’s apply the love we have for our children, and take this to the ultimate step. How much MORE then, does God love each of us? We are His children. He loves us in a similar fashion to how we love our children, EXCEPT . . . He is divine. His love is PURE. His love is that which we cannot describe.

So the next time you may feel down, or depressed, remember that God is with you, loving you, caring for you, wanting to help you. Open your heart to Him, at ALL times.

God loves you!         Jesus loves you!

faith, hope, love, . . . but the greatest of these is love. 1 Cor 13:13

As I wonder exactly why Paul chose “love,” I think it becomes clear…when we join the remaining passages of Love throughout the Bible (and there are many) with this  verse.  Recall 1 John 4:8

He who does not know love does not know God, for God is love. – 1 Jn 4:8

Therefore, if we believe in who God is, then it’s clear that if God is love, then LOVE is the GREATEST of all things.

Jesus commanded us to Love the Lord (the “first” commandment – Mark 12:30) and to love one another  (and the “second” commandment – like the first – Mark 12:31). It seems as though Jesus summed up ALL the commandments in just this simple act of LOVE!

There is no other commandment greater than these – Mark 12:31

As one scribe put it…

So the scribe said to Him, “Well said, Teacher. You have spoken the truth, for there is one God, and there is no other but He.  And to love Him with all the heart, with all the understanding, with all the soul, and with all the strength, and to love one’s neighbor as oneself, is more than all the whole burnt offerings and sacrifices.”  – Mark 12:32-33

“Love is communicating grace and identifies us as children of God.”
- Gaebelein, pg 270 of The Expositor’s Bible Commentary

• Talk to them, tell them “I love you”
• Spend time with them
• Get to know them
• Do things THEY want to do
• Include THEM in things you like to do

 “Love” originates in God 

Jesus told us the greatest commandment in Mark 12:30:

“And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind and with all your strength.”

How will you show God your love?

Will you…

• Talk to Him, tell Him “I love you”
• Spend time with Him (Pray)
• Get to know Him (read the Bible)
• Do things HE wants to do (witness)
• Include HIM in things you like to do

“Abiding love surrounds those who trust in the Lord.” – Psalm 32:10

Some translations change the word “abiding” to “unfailing.” Whichever translation you use, realize that God’s love for you is TOTAL…and…COMPLETE. You need nothing else when you fully trust in the Lord!

Psalm 97:12
“Rejoice in the Lord, O you righteous, and give thanks to His Holy name.”

Recently, I found a song titled “What do we know of Holy” by Addison Road.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N6J5TzSE_18

This song pretty much signifies the essence of who God is. He is someone that we can’t even understand. His Holiness is beyond our comprehension. When we talk about “being good,” we generally mean that we haven’t got into any serious trouble and have “behaved.” We might have done some “minor” things that appear, in what we refer to as a “gray” area – something that isn’t bad, but isn’t necessarily good either – it’s neither black nor white, but gray.

But when we use the word “Holy,” we are describing something that is totally void of ANY and all sin. It is absent of even the slightest bit of gray area. There is NO body and NO thing anywhere that can associate any type of even the slightest bit of wrong with anything “Holy.”

Thus, when we “give thanks to His Holy name,” we are recognizing God’s goodness, but more than goodness, it’s a Holiness that we can’t even understand. We might say that we can imagine a life absent of sin and immoral conduct, but unfortunately as mere mortal human beings, we constantly have immoral thoughts and/or ideas that race across our minds on a weekly, daily, or maybe hourly basis.

Thankfully, God’s love and Holiness will not allow Him to think like we think. He is far superior and greater than that. And because of that, He will always faithfully fulfill His promises to us, without even the slightest thought to not fulfill them. His Holiness is greatly to be praised!