Gospel—Robert Boulard
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I thought maybe we would begin with #18 on our hem sheet.
Maybe somebody can raise that tune.
I'd like to read the most famous verse, perhaps in the whole of the Word of God. Perhaps everyone of us could say it. We wouldn't even have to turn to it. John's Gospel, chapter 3, verse 16.
For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world or to judge the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.
That's the first time that word saved is used in the Gospel of John.
But you know, I wanted to speak tonight or this afternoon on this love of God. You know, I see evidence of love in this room and I was noticing, I couldn't help but notice it in the room.
And in the hallways and different places during this these three brief days together.
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Love of a young man for a young woman. Love for a young woman, young man. Some love of an older man for an older woman. An older woman for an older man. A little picture of Christ in the church.
Just a little picture. You know the Jews in the Old Testament never understood what marriage was. They asked the Lord Jesus in Matthew's Gospel 19 chapter 19. They said is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for any cause?
And then he told them about the purpose that God had for marriage.
He told them the purpose of what love meant and that it was a little picture. He didn't tell them in that particular instance, but in other passages of Scripture of that it's a picture of Christ in the church. And so in the Christian era we have a little picture.
By the God called it a great mystery in connection with Christ in the church in Ephesians chapter 5, but we have a great revelation of God as to the type of Christ in the church.
And so God is the one that loved. You know, years ago when I was in business, I used to give out Bibles to different ones that I did business with because my father got saved when a man gave him a Bible. 8 years old, didn't have enough money, he was a poor farmer, but he gave that young boy a Bible.
Two boys real my father and Roland.
Didn't have enough money. He gave him a Bible just once so that they could share. And uh, Roland wasn't too interested. I do believe he did get saved later on in his life, but Real took an interest in that Bible and started to read it changed his life. I won't tell you the whole story here this afternoon.
So I gave this man in San Antonio Bible. Ordered one from BTP. Nice leather bound Bible.
I gave it to him when I was down there doing business one day and he called me on the phone a couple of days later after I got home. And he said, you know, I was reading where you told me to read in John's Gospel. And he said I got to Chapter 3, my wife and I, and he said.
My wife said, I think that's the most famous verse in all of the Bible. And he said I tried to learn it and in a very halting way, he, he kind of quoted it to me over the phone. He said, for God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son and he stumbled a little bit. But you know, he said that verse, he only had his Bible for two or three days.
Well, I wanna look at that love.
Who is it that loved? Who is it?
I see some couples, brother Bill and Charlotte, Wally and Lynn, brother John and his wife Eleanor, different ones. And you say love.
And there was a person and there was a work of the Spirit of God, a little magic moment at one time, and there was an attraction.
And love began.
But with God, you know, who is it? Who is he? Why would he love? Why would he love this world? It's not that he loved the globe, didn't love the world the the object. He loved the people that were in this world.
And so it's the lover of our souls, the one.
Who is the source of all love? It says God is love. But let's look at Colossians chapter one. We don't have a lot of time and perhaps we'll be able to condense our little talk a little bit this afternoon so that we don't drag on.
But I'd like to look at a few points in connection with this Love and the Source of Love, chapter one of Colossians.
And perhaps we could read in verse 16.
For by him were all things created.
That are in heaven, that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be Thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created by Him and for him, and He is before all things, and by Him all things consist. He is the head of the body, the Church, who is the beginning, the first born from the dead.
That all things in all things he might have the preeminence.
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Oh, this is the one that loved.
This is the one that loved.
The creator of the universe.
The one who always existed.
The one who created you.
Loves you. He didn't just create an inanimate object. He did create the earth. He did create all those things that are in it.
But he loved you.
The Creator, you know, if we turn to Daniel Chapter 7, we would find something of the glory of that person. We could turn to different passages of scripture, but I just thought of this one in Daniel Chapter 7.
Verse 9.
He says, I beheld till the Thrones were cast down, and the ancient of days did sit, whose garment was white as snow, and the hair of his head like the pure wool. His throne was like the fiery flame, and his wheels as burning fire. A fiery stream issued and came forth from before him. Thousand thousands ministered unto him.
10,000 * 10,000 stood before him and the judgment was set. The books were open.
I beheld then, because of the voice of the great words which were the horn spake, I beheld till the beast was slain, and his body destroyed and given to the burning flame. Let's read verse 13. I saw in the night visions, and behold, one like the Son of Man came with the clouds of heaven, came to the ancient of Days, and they brought him near before him, and there was given him dominion and glory.
And a Kingdom that all people, nations, and languages should serve him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion which shall not pass away, and his Kingdom that which shall not.
Be destroyed.
This is the one who loved, the one who is the king of kings.
One who is the Lord of Lords, the one for whom all things were created and by whom all things consist. You know, Isaac Newton, the great scientist said in the his writings, he said that the universe, he was the one that came up with the theory of how the solar system was constructed by God, designed. And he said.
In his opinion as a scientist, it required the insertion of energy into the solar system consistently for it to continue to for the for the.
Planets to continue to orbit. He said it wasn't all in a vacuum as some thought, but that there was a reduction in energy and it required the creator to insert energy into the solar system so that it would continue in perfect order.
He's the sustainer of the universe. That's who loved the world, That's who loved you. That's who came into this scene to bring you into the greatest blessing that is possible for a man, a woman he brought. He came into this scene that he might manifest his love.
Not only did he love the world, but that he proved it. Now when did he love?
We'd like to know when that love started. You know, it says we read some of these verses before, but I'm going to turn to them again in Ephesians chapter one.
Love begins with a human, doesn't it? We're born into this world.
Love begins. A mother sees a little child. The love begins, perhaps before the child is born.
And it never ceases.
Well, you know, the love might not be displayed the way it ought to be, but umm, sometimes a child can be forgotten.
But God never forgets.
Says in verse four, chapter one of Ephesians, verse four, according as he hath chosen us in him before.
The foundation of the world, that we should be holy without blame before him in love.
God's love existed for you, and it existed in the past eternity. It had no beginning and has no end. You know we often quote that verse, don't we? And John's Gospel chapter 13 having loved his own, which were in the world, He loved them unto the end. When will his love end? It never will.
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It never will. He's the source of love. God is love and He loved you so much.
Then he came into this world. The Son of God, born into this world, took a body that he might be able to die as a man, and that body was given to him, wholly harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, that he might live for the glory of God in this scene.
And that he might offer himself a sacrifice for sin, a sacrifice to God for a sweet smelling savour. That's who loved you.
The one who loved you is the Creator. The one who loved you is the Lord of Lords, the King of kings, the ruler of the universe, in fact, the one who is the heir of all. We're not going to read those passages of scripture, but it says in Romans chapter 8 that we are sons of God, heirs of God.
Joint heirs with Christ. What's his inheritance? Is he going to inherit you?
No, he's going to inherit all created things, all created beings, they're all his. And he hasn't taken that possession yet of the inherent, but it belongs to him. And he's going to share that inheritance with all those that belong to him, and particularly his bride, that he's come into this scene and lay down his life, shed his precious blood.
Blends each one of us from our sins if we would receive him as Savior and to make us a part of that bride, He's going to express that love to us in a future day. I want to just look at the character of his love. You know, there are perhaps four different characters that come to mind, the characters of divine love. Let's look at Jeremiah chapter 31.
What kind of a love is it that God loves us with?
We know his character is Holiness.
It's light. God is light. God is love.
And if you accept him tonight for this afternoon as your savior, if you don't know him as your savior.
You know what Ross Love really is and those of us that know.
The Lord Jesus is our Savior. We know some small little bit of that love, and I'm so sorry to only be able to communicate so very poorly, a little fraction of what I might even enjoy myself in connection with that love.
Buddy, in Jeremiah chapter 31, this is one of the things that God says about his love in verse three. The Lord hath appeared of old unto me, saying, yeah, I have loved thee with an everlasting love.
Therefore, with loving kindness have I drawn thee.
It's everlasting.
Never ceases. You know, there's all kinds of.
Sorrow and heartache in this world that's filled with sin.
There was a little boy in Reynosa when I was there not too long ago.
And he came to the little Sunday schools, the hobby classes, dirty little smudge faced and so on. And.
Not well addressed and so on He came and we spoke of love, the kindness and love of God.
How many of you here have a mother and a father that love you?
He put his face down.
He said nobody loves me.
I said surely, surely you have a father at home, He loves you.
No, his mother didn't love him, he said. He said, yeah, he didn't have anyone in this world that loved him. And so he spoke of the Savior. You know, often times some here have gone to the jails, to the prisons. I don't know if it's like this in every prison, but if you go to a prison sometimes and you hand out this little gospel sheet to the prisoners so that they can sing little songs.
Gospel songs, the very first song that is given out.
Is what?
That's the one Jesus loves me every single time.
Y.
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I asked one of those prisoners one time.
He said. Man, nobody loves us in this place. We're treated like cattle. Nobody loves us.
Nobody on the outside comes to see me.
Some you'll see in solitary confinement if you're permitted to go visit. They don't know much about love. But you, dear friend, God sent his Son into this world so that you would know his love. He demonstrated it at the cross.
So that you could say if you accept him as savior tonight.
The Son of God who loved me and gave himself for me. Well, this is just one character. Never ends. Everlasting love. Let's look at Malachi chapter one.
Verse two, I have loved you, saith the Lord. And in chapter 3, verse six for I am the Lord, I change not.
Here's a love that is not only everlasting, will never cease, for you had no beginning and will never cease. You were loved before the foundation of this world.
But there's a love that will never change.
My love changes for my wife.
Sometimes it goes cold, sometimes it grows a little warmer. Our love ebbs and flows.
You can't do anything to make the love of God change for you.
Not possible.
It's unchangeable love. It will never change.
If you were the only Sinner on the face of the earth, Christ would have come into the world to save you. Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners.
I had a young girl brought up in a Christian home, 32 years old, went out for a meal with her and her father. Her father, a dear believer.
She looked into my face and she said I have never sinned.
I said, well, God says that all have sinned and come short of the glory of God, she said. I never sinned.
I said, well, it says too that let every man be a liar and God be true.
I never sinned, not once.
I said somebody's telling the truth and someone's telling a lie.
God is true.
All of us have sinned that young girl. Her name is Jimmy Young and she lives in South Korea.
And she's lost in her sins. One of the qualifications I said to her to have Christ as Savior is to recognize and to confess that you're a Sinner.
We were born in sin and shape and iniquity. Well, this love will never change. Now, if we look a little further into the Epistle to the Romans, we'll find that there's another aspect of divine love in chapter 8.
Let's read just from verse 38, Romans 8, verse 38. For I am persuaded that neither death nor life.
Nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature shall be able to separate us.
From the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Here's a love that is powerful love.
Christ loves you. He came into the world to save you individually, and if you've you've accepted him as your Savior individually.
None can ever separate you from His love. None can ever come in and separate you.
Oh, there were those that sought to malign, those that were believers during the dark ages, those that sought to persecute them, not only take their lives from them, they were, many of them were martyred, but many of them were slandered and told that Christ didn't love them, that they had been banished from the Church and because of their faithfulness to Christ.
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That Christ had ceased to love them.
But no, no. Wonderful to think, dear friends this afternoon.
The love of the Lord Jesus is so powerful.
None can ever release you from that love. You have been loved with a now, a love that's everlasting and unchangeable love and a love that has grasped you in His hand. If you know Him as your Savior, you put your trust in Him. He's loved you and He will never let go. Let's read this in John's Gospel, chapter 10.
Verse 28 I give unto them eternal life.
And they shall never perish, neither shall any pluck them out of my hand, my father, which gave them me his greater than all. And no man is able to pluck them out of my father's hand.
I and my father are one, you know, Brother Gordon Hale. Some of you perhaps remember him saying it's like the father had you in his hand.
And then or the Lord Jesus had you in his hand, He says, none shall pluck them out of my hand. And then the Father's hand over the Son's hand, you're doubly secure.
It's a picture in the Tabernacle of the pillars, the posts that held up the outer skirt, and they all sat in a socket of silver that had two tenons doubly secure. You could never be lost.
That's the love that God has. That's divine love. Let's look at one other aspect, the 4th aspect of divine love and Ephesians chapter 5.
In verse 25.
Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loves the church.
And gave himself for it.
It's a sacrificial love.
It's a love, that divine love that gives and gives and gives and gives and never stops giving, for all eternity.
Those of us that know the Lord Jesus as Savior are going to be received into the glories glory above, into the very presence of the Son of God. He's going to receive us. If I go away, I will come again and receive you unto myself.
That where I am, there ye may be also.
And he's going to come forth and serve. He's going to serve us with heavenly happiness for all eternity.
He's going to cause us to come and to sit down and says I think it's in Luke's gospel chapter 12 to sit and he shall come forth and serve the Son of God who loved me, gave himself for me. Can you say it?
That's the love. That's the God who loves us.
That's the God who loved us before we existed. That's the God who is the creator of this world.
Whose love will never end. But you know, it says here that he's, this is what he did in the past. He gave it. He gave himself for it. What a price was paid for that love to express that love. Where was it expressed?
When I got married.
I determined one of the things that I would do.
Was tell my wife every day of my married life if it was possible.
Tell her with the deepest feeling that I could that I loved her.
I don't know if it's the true statement or not, but uh.
I never it's true that I never remember.
My father telling my mother that he loved her publicly in front of us kids not even once.
I know he loved her.
But I do whatever I can to tell my wife every day, more than once, that I love her.
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And you know there's a future day when you're going to see the Son of God, the Lord Jesus, who went to the cross of Calvary, laid down his life for you and shed his blood. He paid the highest price as possible to express His love at the cross of Calvary.
And he's going to tell you.
Constantly that he loves you, he's going to tell you what you mean to him. And when he sees you in that glorious scene above, it says in the 53rd chapter of Isaiah, he shall see of the fruit of the travail of his soul and shall be satisfied. He's going to see you individually in that glorious scene above. The one he loved in this world, the one he died for, the one whose.
Was shed to save you. He's going to tell you how much you mean to him. Well, he expressed at the cross.
He not only said he loved us.
But He loved us, and proved it at the cross. In this was manifested the love of God.
So you're loved by God the Father, and you're loved by the Son.
God sent his Son into this world, and He expressed His love at the cross. One of the reasons that the Lord Jesus came into this world as a man to die was so that we would be able to know His love.
So that he would be able to express that love. Does God love the angels?
No, it doesn't say that he loves the angels. Why did he die for you?
He loved you.
But did you know that he wanted a return of your affection? Did you know that he wanted you a little picture of Christ in the church, that return of the affections and the communication of it? Did you know that the Lord Jesus wanted to hear you tell him that you loved him and appreciated him?
It's true.
He longs to hear your voice.
And you could read in the Song of Solomon those things and the bride saying, yeah, he is altogether lovely. Oh, you could hear those things, read those passages of Scripture. But you know, the Lord is going in and one day he's going to present this church to himself, a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that it should be holy and without blemish.
His love has accomplished something in his bride. He's going to have a perfect bride.
She'll be beautiful for all eternity and he'll love her for all eternity.
You're gonna present it to himself, That's how much he loves you.
Without spot.
We didn't begin that way, did we? If there's someone here that's still in their sins, you know what? We read it this afternoon.
In chapter 2 of Ephesians, you happy quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins, weary in time past, you walked according to the course of this world, according to the Prince of the power of the air and the Spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience.
Oh, what a wonderful love it is.
Have you ever thanked him for his love?
In your prayers, do you ever tell the Lord you're so thankful for His love? You tell Him?
Oh, He wants to hear your heart opened up to Him and to express your love and appreciation for what He has done for you in time and for eternity.
Well, let's look at the expression of the love we began with.
Revelation Chapter 3 in connection with.
Philadelphia. I'd like to read just a little bit in chapter 3, the last part of the not chapter, verse 14.
Revelation chapter 3, verse 14.
And under the Angel of the Church of Laodiceans, right these things sayeth the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God. I know thy works.
That thou art neither cold nor hot.
I would not work cold or hot.
So then, because our lukewarm and neither cold nor hot, I will spew the out of my mouth, Because thou sayest I am rich, increased with goods, and have need of nothing, and knoweth not that thou art wretched and miserable, and poor and blind naked. I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich.
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And white raiment that thou mightest mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear. And anoint thine eyes with thyself that thou mayest see.
As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten. Be zealous, therefore in repent, Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If any man hear my voice and open the door, I will come into him, and will Sup with him.
And he with me, to him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame and am set down with my Father in his throne. He that hath an ear, let him hear.
What the Spirit saith unto the Church?
It's very striking to me to think of the name Ephesus, you know, means amiable or lovable, we might say in our terminology.
And uh, we just read in chapter 5 of Ephesians that Christ loved the church and gave himself for it.
That he might sanctify and cleanse it with washing of water by the Word. That he might present it to himself, a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing.
What kind of a response does he get from the heart of the believer in the day that we live in?
Well, the Christian testimony is characterized by indifference.
By every other thing having a priority. Not his love, not his things. It's more important to do this or that or the other. It's more important something else.
But Christ has taken the last place. Oftentimes in our schedules, if we have time, if it's convenient, we'll go to meeting if it's convenient.
Tonight, dear friend, if you don't know the Lord Jesus as Savior, the highest priority on your agenda right now.
Ought to be.
To bow your head in his presence and to confess that you're a Sinner. Guilty of hell, guilty of judgment.
And to thank him for his love, for coming to Calvary to die for you and to express his love.
A changeless love. A powerful love.
An everlasting love.
A sacrificial love that will never cease.
But you know in a lost eternity you're going to be if you don't know the Lord Jesus as your Savior and you leave this scene and sin against that love, you'll never know what love is for all eternity. You'll never experience the voice of the Lord saying, I love you, I gave myself for you.
You never will.
For all eternity.
But may our hearts.
Just, uh, as we read these little verses.
This short portion in connection with the Laodiceans, you know, it means the rights of the people.
Speaks of democracy, a day of democracy that we live in. I have a right. My vote counts. My opinion counts.
That's the what characterizes Christianity, and so the will of God and the Word of God often times are set aside in our own personal lives and perhaps even in the assembly, The Word of God and the will of God and the love of God is not enjoyed the way it should be.
Wasn't it nice here? It says.
That I stand at the door and knock, if any man hear my voice and open the door, I will come into him and Sup with him and he with me. I just want to suggest to you if you want to enjoy those of us that know the Lord Jesus as Savior, you just trace those two little words in the New Testament with me, that the Lord Jesus.
Uses he says, Father, I will that they also whom thou hast give given me, be with me.
That may they need to hold My glory for Thou Lovett Me before the foundation of the world with Me is not what you want with one that loves you. You want them to be with you, don't you?
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Love desires the companionship and the affection of its object.
And the Son of God is going to have the desires of his heart fulfilled. He's going to have you at His side for all eternity. I was going to be so thankful if you've received them as Savior. Oh, he's going to rejoice to have you in that glorious scene above. Have you thank them?
May we desire to keep close to that Blessed One and have the privilege of enjoying fellowship with him individually and in coming day. If we can overcome this indifference of the day that characterizes the Christian era that we live in. If we can overcome that indifference, and who cares? I've got other things to do. I've got a life to live.
And we make his priorities our priorities and that we give him the first place in our lives.
We overcome that umm spirit of things of indifference. It says here in verse 21. Him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne.
The bride of Christ will sit beside.
Her bridegroom.
But you individually will be rewarded for that affection, that devotion to Christ in your life, and God will see to it. He always rewards faith. He always rewards faithfulness, and He desires that.
You might enjoy the thought of reigning with him and receiving a reward from him. You know, I'm going to read the last in chapter 22, the last time that he uses that little expression in, uh, chapter 22 and verse 12 of Revelation.
Behold, I come quickly, and my reward is with me the last time he uses the expression.
His reward is with me.
Oh, when the Lord Jesus comes, I used to think when I was younger that he would, he had a lot on his plate after the rapture, the tribulation would be beginning shortly and so on. And, uh, there would be all kinds of activity, uh, there would be, uh, things to get done, you know, and it would be perhaps sometime before he get around to giving the rewards.
But no, that's not how Scripture puts it.
He's gonna receive you into his presence.
You're gonna look upon you.
He won't be able to wait to look into your face for the judgment seat of Christ, to have an individual meeting with you and say, I appreciated your love and your affection. I appreciated your devotion to the cause, to my cause in the days of your sojourn in this world. It meant so much to me.
And he's going to give you the reward.
Going to tell you how much it meant. Going to express his love to you.
Then in chapter 4 says at the end of chapter 4 of Revelation, it says we'll cast our crowns before him because the truth of it is that there would be no response in your heart or mine to the love of God.
Apart from His intervention, apart from His working in your heart and mind, in His sovereignty that there might be a response. So He desires to give us a new life. Those that are lost in this room, I hope there's no one that is lost in your sins. What a loveless situation to be in for all eternity without God and without hope in this world.
Well, May God bless His word and may you.
Just enjoy something of the love of that blessed one.