The perfect love of God.
We're going to turn to the scriptures and
we are reading from Romans 5 tonight.
Romans 5 and we'll commence reading at verse
1.
Therefore being justified by faith we have peace
with God through our Lord Jesus Christ by
whom also we have access by faith into
this grace wherein we stand and rejoice in
the hope of the glory of God.
And not only so but we glory in
tribulations also knowing that tribulation worketh patience and
patience experience and experience hope.
And hope maketh not ashamed because the love
of God is shed abroad in our hearts
by the Holy Ghost which is given unto
us.
For when we were yet without strength in
due time Christ died for the ungodly.
For scarcely for a righteous man will one
die.
Yet peradventure for a good man some would
even dare to die.
But God commendeth his love toward us in
that while we were yet sinners Christ died
for us.
Much more than being now justified by his
blood we shall be saved from wrath through
him.
For if when we were enemies we were
reconciled to God by the death of his
son much more being reconciled we shall be
saved by his life.
And not only so but we also joy
in God through our Lord Jesus Christ by
whom we have now received the atonement or
the reconciliation.
Wherefore as by one man sin entered into
the world and death by sin and so
death passed upon all men for that all
have sinned.
For unto the law sin was in the
world but sin is not imputed where there
is no law.
Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Moses even
over them that had not sinned after the
similitude of Adam's transgression who is a figure
of him that was to come.
And the Lord will bless to us the
reading of his word.
The greatest fact in the universe is the
fact of God.
The greatest subjective fact is the fact that
that God is a God of love.
There is a verse in the bible that
causes the mind to boggle.
It says fear has torments but perfect love
cast out all fear.
You will agree with the preacher tonight we
live in a world of imperfection.
For instance everything in this hall that you
see is marked by imperfection.
The platform upon which I stand, the pews
that you sit on, the clothes that you
wear, the fans that keep the air cool
are all marked by perfection.
Something more the preacher that you see, the
verbal communication that you hear is all marked
by perfection.
And yet in this world of imperfection isn't
it marvelous that we can speak tonight of
not only something that's perfect but speak of
the greatest fact of all as far as
we are concerned, perfect, perfect love.
Now the scripture in Romans 5 gives us
a wonderful demonstration of this perfect love.
And first of all I wanted to show
you from the scriptures that I have read
that perfect love is never blind.
Perfect love is practical it's right down to
earth it works.
And then lastly perfect love is supernatural.
God is able to do something that no
other person can do or will ever be
able to do.
He is actually able to take the love
of God and put it right in your
heart so that it's shed abroad in your
heart and that is the transforming experience of
the gospel.
Love that's knowledgeable.
A philosopher who had a tinge of humor
actually wrote these words love is blind but
marriage is an eye-opener.
Now in one way dear friends that is
right.
When two people fall in love they don't
really know one another.
When two people marry they don't know each
other.
It sometimes takes us years to understand our
partners.
And so you can see in that statement
there is truth and humor.
But God's love is not like that.
When God looks upon the human race he
knows the human race intellectually.
He knows the human race emotionally.
He knows the human race morally.
In other words he knows man far better
than man knows himself.
And yet this is the miracle.
God knows us thoroughly and yet has the
capacity to love.
And that is why in this chapter he
describes the human race under three headings.
First of all he tells us that we're
ungodly.
Then he tells us that we're sinners.
Then he tells us that we're enemies.
And then he comes in with this great
fact.
I know the worst about you.
But still have the capacity to love.
Now that should be uplifting for every one
of us.
What then does the word ungodly mean?
Well it means exactly what it says.
Totally unlike God.
When God made man he made him in
his own image and in his own likeness.
Now my dear friends that statement is marked
by profanity.
So man even today has a propensity to
create.
He has a propensity to love.
He has a propensity to make.
He has a propensity in his own personality.
And that gives him shall I say a
lift above all the animals and all the
birds in nature.
And no one can deny that fact.
But obviously as you look at man today
there is something missing.
Now why?
The greatest fact that God gave to man
or perhaps I should say the greatest faculty
was his spirit.
And when God made man he made man
so that he might live in two worlds.
The world of the material that we call
earth or terra firma that is limited.
And then he made him with a spirit
so that he could live in the world
of God that we call the kingdom of
God.
Now the big thing about man that made
him in the image and in the likeness
of God was not the fact that he
lived in the world.
It was in the fact that he had
intimate communion with God.
And had the propensity if you like another
word the ability to move into that immeasurable
world.
Now when man deliberately sinned and rebelled against
God he became terribly damaged in every single
way.
But the greatest damage was in the realm
of his spirit.
The spirit was still there but it went
dead.
If you can imagine the fuse going out
or the breaker not working in your house
and everything goes dark and dead.
It doesn't mean to say that the installation
has disintegrated.
It simply means there's not a diffusion of
electricity going through it.
Now man still had a spirit but it
was dead toward God.
So that when the almighty God came to
him instead of being God conscious he became
self-conscious.
I was afraid.
I hid myself.
I was naked.
You see he lost his vital intimate contact
with God.
And therefore if I may put it in
mechanical words man was God's Rolls Royce but
when he sinned he was like a Rolls
Royce between two steam rollers.
He was badly damaged and this made him
ungodly.
And therefore we see today in the modern
man he has brilliance he has physical strength
but when it comes to morality he's still
a pygmy.
Now I know this is a shocking comparison
but it's true.
The modern young student that goes to university
may have cultured brains, may have physical strength
but morally he's a pygmy.
Three thousand years ago when the old Britons
were living in caves and they had the
curvature of the spine because they were living
in caves they lost their temper they told
lies they got angry one with another and
the modern student still does it today.
Can you see the point?
We have changed our environment but we haven't
changed ourselves and therefore man is being weakened
by sin and that's what the word ungodly
means here when we were yet without strength
in due time Christ died for the ungodly.
Now can I prove that in a very
clear way?
God has given to every one of us
a wonderful piece of mechanism we call it
conscience.
Now here's a fact there has never lived
one single person since the fall of man
apart from the Lord Jesus that's always kept
the dictation of his own conscience.
That's a fact.
God has given to us ten commandments, simple
commandments, five positives five negatives and ever since
those commandments were given there has never lived
a person apart from Jesus Christ that's gay.
Now why?
Because we haven't got the moral muscle to
keep them and I hear many people saying
this to me now especially in my own
country when they're coming very near to Christianity
but I haven't got the power to keep
it neither have you neither have I.
You see sin has weakened us and as
we shall see tonight when a person becomes
a Christian God not only forgives his sin
but gives him a supernatural power to live
but this is the thing that struck me
this morning.
God knows all about our organic and constitutional
weakness he knows all about our failures but
still loves us still loves us.
Isn't that marvelous?
You know when I've read that I felt
my heart being softened why should God ever
love me and why should a holy God
ever love you?
The word sinner is a contrast to the
word ungodly and it basically means a strong
man.
The word sinner basically means someone who is
self-willed someone who is determined to have
his own way someone who has a constitutional
strength given from his forebears that turns him
in the wrong direction and therefore it's a
contrast between the word ungodly.
The word ungodly means some man that's weak
or some woman that's weak the word sinner
means someone that's strong.
Now here's the problem how can the human
family be weak and strong at the same
time?
Well the question is easily answered.
We are weak to do that which is
good and strong to do that which is
evil.
Now how did we become like this a
sinner?
Did we come by habit?
No immediately a child is born there is
something beautiful about that child and there is
something malignant about the child.
When you hold in your arms a little
baby you are seeing a masterpiece of God's
creation no doubt about that but no matter
how cultured the mother might be no matter
how disciplined that mother will never stop that
child from sinning.
Where did the sin come from?
It came right from the seed that caused
the conception and it was actually in the
formation of the child whilst it was in
the womb and therefore when that child is
born it's born with the potential to sin
and that's the world's number one problem.
My dear friends if only our modern philosophers
would believe that fact it would save them
many headaches and the Lord Jesus put his
finger right on the spot when he said
that which is born of the flesh is
blessed and therefore if you look at the
modern man you will see that there is
moral weakness to do that which is good
and yet there is strength and power to
do that which is evil.
Now can I prove that by demonstrations?
Here is a husband and wife and they're
having an argument this happens in every home
and suddenly he becomes over cross and he
shouts then he loses his temper completely and
he throws something and damage is done that's
very intense.
Why did that man not control his temper?
Because he was overcome with a power that
he couldn't control.
Here are two young people who are very
much in love but suddenly because of foolishness
they become too involved and they fall into
a lust for land and they lose their
virginity.
Why did he do it?
Why did she acquiesce?
Because there was a power that they couldn't
control.
Here is another woman and she's got jealousy
and it's so rampant in her mind she
cannot sleep and before long she is mentally
exhausted.
Why doesn't she control the temper?
There's a power within her that's defeating her.
Now dear friends this is the language of
one of the greatest moralist that ever lived
and this is what he said.
The good that I would not that I
do.
The evil that I hate that I do.
I find in a law that when I
would do good evil is present with me.
Oh wretched man that I am.
Who shall deliver me?
What was happening?
He was overcome by the gravity of sin
and therefore dear friends we can see by
those simple citations that sin is something that's
gone right into our deep nature but this
is the miracle.
God knows all about our weakness.
He knows all about our potential strength to
do evil but he still loves us.
Still loves us.
What love?
Then the apostle uses a word here that
seems very jagged and rough.
He says when we were enemies.
Now this needs a very careful explanation.
We must remember that there isn't a tinge
of bitterness in the heart of God.
God is love.
Therefore when he uses the word enemy it's
always manhood.
It refers to us.
Now you might say well how is a
man an enemy?
Now I wonder if I can use an
illustration in order to get to this point
that is completely fantastic.
But I believe you will see the point
when the illustration is made.
Supposing now it was possible for us to
make someone that was almost human and then
we brought this person into our home.
We'll call him a person and then we
heaped upon him all the blessings of our
family so that we were actually going to
share our inheritance with him.
Now supposing after about six months we found
him violating our properties, breaking all our laws,
hurting the other children and supposing the man
came home one night and noticed that his
wife had been hurt by this being.
What would he say?
I must do something seriously here.
It's damaging everything that we possess.
And then supposing he came home one night
and found one of his children completely unconscious.
Have you got it?
What would he do?
Now as human beings we would not like
to answer that question.
But what do we do with a dog
that bites?
What do we do?
We have it destroyed.
Now listen.
God has been putting up with the inconsistency
of the human family for six thousand years.
So that today his moral laws are being
broken, millions of families are separated, hundreds of
children are on the run all over the
western world and yet this is the miracle.
He still loves us.
He still loves us after six thousand years
of sinning.
Don't misunderstand me.
He doesn't love our weakness.
He hates that.
He doesn't love our rebellion.
He loathes that.
He doesn't love the enmity.
He detests that.
But he loves us and loves us infinitely.
Now you will say well prove that love.
Well I can only prove it through the
scripture.
First of all he gives us a glorious
intervention of his love.
If you go through the old testament I
think my memory is correct here.
There are 24 divine interventions and most of
those interventions are in judgment.
But these two words that God commended his
love toward us relate to the fact that
the Lord God intervened in love.
Now every time you write the date you
put on your letter I trust the date
and then 1998.
Now what does that mean?
It means if I may use round figures
nearly two thousand years ago God intervened.
He came right into our world not in
judgment but in love.
And therefore dear friends we live in a
period when God is dealing with the human
family in grace and in love.
It's one of the most wonderful periods that
we have known.
And so you can see by those two
words that God it was that moment when
God intervened and Jesus Christ came into this
world in order to reveal the love of
God.
But then he gives us a very brilliant
illustration of love.
It's seen in verse 7.
Let me quote the scripture and let me
explain it.
For scarcely for a righteous man will one
die, yet perventure for a good man some
would even dare to die.
Now what does that mean?
In the time of the Apostle Paul they
had a sentence called a vicarious sentence.
We haven't got that sentence in England and
I don't think you've got that sentence in
Australia.
In some parts of America they have a
vicarious sentence.
But it simply means this.
If the judge would allow it, it's possible
in Roman law in the time of the
Apostle for another person to die instead of
the friend that is guilty.
The other point that we must always follow
is this.
In the time of the Apostle there were
those judges that were not worth their Take
for instance Pontius Pilate.
He condemned the Lord Jesus when he knew
he was absolutely the man of truth.
And some of these judges because of a
bribe would actually condemn an innocent man.
Now the Apostle is describing a law court
and he brings into the law court someone
that's righteous and the judge knowing that the
man is righteous and probably because of a
bribe actually condemns a righteous man.
Now says the Apostle, who would die for
him?
Just a few.
Then he brings into the courtroom a man
who is a good man, a benefactor.
Someone that we would salute if we saw
in the street.
And the judge cruelly condemns him because of
a bribe.
Now says the Apostle, who would die for
a good man?
Just a few.
Then he brings into the courtroom someone that's
hard, sadistic, vicious, vandalistic.
And as we see him coming into the
courtroom he's being held by two soldiers.
We look and we say that man's weak
to do any good.
We look again and we can see fire
in his eyes and we can see that
he's an enemy of society.
He's a rascal.
And then the judge says with a cynical
chuckle, would anyone die for him?
And we're all shaken.
The door of heaven opens and the Son
of God says, I will.
I will.
So this is how he puts it.
But God commends his love toward us in
that while we were yet sinners, Christ died
for us.
Now that's love.
But then he comes to a point where
that love is going to be manifested.
Now how is God going to manifest that
love?
We hear every day of parents that give
their life for their children.
For instance just before I came here there
was a sister that gave her kidney to
her other sister who needed it and her
sister lived and she died.
But you see it's someone giving their life
for a relative.
During my time in the navy I heard
of a sailor that went through a line
of fire in order to get his friend
to a sickbay and was shot dead.
But someone picked up his friend and took
him to the sickbay.
But he gave his life for his friend.
Now note this.
When Jesus Christ the Son of God went
to that Roman gibbet he didn't die for
his friend.
Note this.
He died for the ungodly.
He died for downright sinners.
He died for enemies.
That's love.
But it goes deeper than that.
Dear friends if I can put it to
you like this.
If I could take out one sin from
my life and one sin from your life
and I could actually put it visibly in
that cup so we could see it.
And then if you could see that particular
sin shall we say a lie or an
act of lust or some bad thought that
goes through the mind.
If we could see that as God sees
it we would say something like this.
Oh no.
One sin to God is far worse than
all the sins of the world to us.
When Jesus Christ went to the cross he
not only died on that cross to show
to us his love for those who were
opposed to him.
But on that cross he was willing to
bear our sins in his own body on
the tree.
And that meant this.
He allowed almighty God and only almighty God
could do this.
To bring together the sins of the whole
believing world.
And what a mass that was.
No mind could measure that.
Then he allowed the holy God to bring
together the sins of the whole of the
believing world.
Not just the sins, the sins.
Then very carefully he measured meticulously his judgment.
And he brought that sin and the judgment
upon his own son.
And the Lord Jesus was made so realistically
one with our sins.
Mind you he never became a sinner but
a sin bearer.
That he actually cried the language of a
man that was separated from God.
My God my God why hast thou forsaken.
Now if that was the last cry that
ever came from the lips of the Lord
Jesus.
That would be love beyond revival.
That would be love beyond compare.
But there would be a tragedy.
Immediately that forsaken cry fell from his lips.
There was this victorious cry.
Finished.
Done.
Complete.
Or better still polished off.
You say what does that mean?
You see when the sin came and was
laid upon him and when the judgment fell
upon him.
He wasn't consumed by it.
But hallelujah he consumed the judgment.
And my dear friends at that moment God
revealed to us his intimate love.
Now can I say this to not as
a preacher but as a friend.
Did you know that God loved you so
much that Jesus Christ hung on a Roman
gibbet and bore your sin in his own
body on the tree and the judgment.
And that's love beyond any compare.
But my dear friends if I was to
stop there I haven't exhausted the scripture.
But God commends his love toward us in
that while we were yet sinners Christ died
for us.
What does that mean?
In other words God takes up people who
were ungodly and sinners and enemies.
He reveals his love to them and he
breaks them with his love.
And they receive the forgiveness that comes through
his love.
And then by the power of the Holy
Spirit he anoints their lips.
And then he tells them to go into
all the world and preach the gospel and
to commend the love of God.
And dear friends for 51 years now I've
been commending the love of God to people
and I never get tired.
And I think I can say here before
God it's as fresh to me tonight as
when I first preached it.
Oh the mighty love of God and isn't
it a wonderful thing to look at this
congregation and to say in my own soul
God loves every man every woman in that
congregation so much so that he hung on
the cross for their sins.
We commend the love of God but there's
something more than that.
In this word commend if you look at
it carefully it also can mean communicate.
I remember on one occasion being taken up
that great mountain the table mountain and seeing
the largest reservoir in the world.
And when I saw it I could hardly
believe that human beings could make almost a
human save.
And as I came down from that lovely
mountain I was coming near some little rondables
where the native people live and I saw
something that was lovely.
I saw an old lady with a rusty
old kettle and she went to a little
tap that was near her little hut.
And she was putting the old kettle under
the tap and all that water at least
some of it was being communicated into that
kettle.
You see it was coming through the pipeline
and there she was making a cup of
tea.
Did you know that Calvary's love is a
mighty reservoir.
But the channel is coming right to you
tonight.
And I don't know who you are dear
friends thank God that's a mystery to me.
But there's someone here and I'm almost afraid
to look and God is channeling his love
to you just as you sit there.
He wants that love to come right in
you.
Now we come to this great scripture when
we were yet without strength in due time
Christ died for the ungodly that's clear.
But God commends his love toward us in
that while we were yet sinners Christ died
for us that's clear.
Now we come to this hope makes not
ashamed because the love of God is shed
abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost.
Now what does that mean?
Now can I explain it in a way
that's very literal perhaps not very theological but
literal in order to help.
God actually takes Calvary's love and
he can actually sow it, pour it into
your heart.
But it's not like water going into a
glass that's the illustration.
It's a divine person who is co-equal
with God who comes into your life so
that the love of God is put inside
you.
And that's the greatest miracle that God ever
performed.
Now I want you to see the glory
and the majesty of this.
When Jesus Christ hung on the cross it
moves me when I say that.
At that moment the greatest demonstration of love
was seen and that demonstration will never be
seen again.
But God is able in the power of
the Holy Spirit to take that love and
sow it right into our weathered heart so
that the love of God is shed abroad
in all its effusion in our lives.
That's why when a person becomes a New
Testament Christian he will never have any excuse
for bitterness because the love of God has
been shed abroad in our heart.
Now if I may do this with the
glass so as to make it very simple.
If you're going to put water into a
glass and you're going to give it to
a friend what do you do?
First of all you make sure the glass
is clean and if it's not clean you
put it under the test and you wipe.
And when it's sparkling clean then you put
in the water.
God will never give you the Holy Spirit
until you have been cleansed from your sin.
And the reason why you can be cleansed
from your sin is because the Lord Jesus
bore the judgment of your sin and through
his precious blood God can make you clean
once and for all.
You see when God cleanses a man through
the blood of the Lord Jesus he doesn't
do it by bits and pieces he does
it once and for all and it never
has to be repeated again.
And immediately you are cleansed from sin the
Holy Spirit as a divine person comes and
the love of God.
Now dear friends to me this is so
wonderful it's indescribable.
The Holy Spirit is in this room right
now.
It's here.
And God is waiting to cleanse you from
sin and give you the Holy Spirit so
that the love of God is shed abroad
in your heart by the Holy Ghost.
But you have to receive him.
You say how is this done?
It's coming to the Lord Jesus as a
sinner.
Don't hide it.
It's coming in all your weakness.
Don't hide it.
Coming with all your guilt.
Don't cover it.
It's receiving forgiveness that comes through his blood
and it's receiving Christ into your life.
And quite recently a man knelt down I
shall never forget it in Bundaberg who had
been seeking the Lord for weeks and years
and he just knelt down and quietly said
Lord Jesus I receive you as my Saviour
and Lord and there the love of God
was poured into his heart.
One of the most stirring things I think
I've ever seen and with this I close
was a man there in Toowoomba a farmer.
Quite an affluent farmer too.
And he had been seeking God for a
long long while and he came to the
meetings and one night he stayed behind and
I spoke to him about his sin and
I spoke to him about the judgment of
God upon sin and I said to him
do you understand that?
He said yes I do but I wondered
if he really gripped it.
You see dear friends we can't lead a
person to the Lord until God has worked
in a man.
Then another night he came and he stayed
behind and I explained to him how that
Christ died on the cross for all his
sins.
I said do you see that?
He said I do but somehow I didn't
feel that he was quite ready.
And then he came back on a Thursday
evening and he said Mr Brandon I desperately
want to be made right with God and
I could see that the man was really
in earnest.
And I said well this is the scripture
I'm going to give you whosoever shall call
upon the name of the Lord shall be
saved and he read it and he got
down on his knees he was 82 he
didn't look 82 he looked about 65 quite
a young looking 82 but he got down
on his knees and he just couldn't pray
he was choked up and then he cried
out Lord save me and be the Lord
of my life and the Lord met him
and the love of God came in and
what a transformation.
But now you listen to this a week
later he came to me and said I've
been fighting a battle.
I said what's that?
He said the man in the next farm
shot three of my lovely sheep dogs.
When did he do that?
Six months ago and I planned to kill
him but he said I can't do it
now as a Christian would you pray for
me?
I want to go to him tomorrow and
say that I forgive him and I love
him and I want to show him the
love of Jesus in my heart.
Friends that broke me right down that's the
evidence of the love of God in a
man's heart.
May God give that to every one of
you.