Does God Love the People He Made?
Table of Contents
"Never Enough"
Perry Ellis had it all. A designer who had won eight Coty awards, he was at the top of his profession. He was at the head of a multi-million-dollar business, with one of the most beautiful showrooms in New York City. Charm and talent had won tremendous popularity for him, both personally and for his designs. An exciting career, a beautiful home, world travel, many friends—yes, Perry Ellis had it all.
But with all this, at only 46 he lay dying in a New York hospital. Slipping in and out of a coma, he roused a little as a friend came into the room and commented on all the beautiful flowers. “Never enough!” said Perry—and those were his final words.
Never enough! Wealth—fame—friends—it was never enough. And it could never be enough. Perhaps he left God out of his life, and without Him the whole world is “never enough” to fill one human heart.
“There is an emptiness,” as “Murph the Surf” said. Do you remember Murph the Surf? He (Jack Murphy) was another young man who “had it all.” Born into a good family and in comfortable circumstances, he was a talented musician and a champion athlete, yet with it all he said there “was still emptiness there.”
So he began to look for more excitement. Looking for thrills, he tried stealing—spectacular stealing—no “small stuff” for him. He entered the gem room of the Museum of Natural History in New York and stole the 563-carat Star of India sapphire, as well as twenty-one other beautiful, valuable and well-known jewels. Capture was certain—and soon. But as soon as he was released from a short prison term he was busy trying to fill the emptiness again. At last he sat alone in a six-by-nine-foot cell in the state prison for murder. It was a total contrast from his have it all years, but one thing had not changed: The “emptiness” was still there.
The prison chaplain came to him with the message of God’s love and forgiveness for sin, but Murphy told him to “take that to somebody who needs a crutch.”
At last he began to listen and to watch. He said, “When the ‘losers’ would ask the Lord to come into their lives...the lights would start coming on in their eyes.”
Murphy, too, accepted Jesus Christ into his life as His Saviour. He said, “I didn’t hear any bells. I didn’t fall down. It was just by faith!” And, receiving the Lord Jesus Christ “just by faith,” he found the emptiness at last was filled.
One man had all the world could give, but found it “never enough.”
One man had lost everything, even his friends, but found that “Jesus Christ is the answer to filling an empty life.” Even in that six-by-nine-foot cell, Murphy knew that he had received, as he said, “a brand new life.”
The Shattered Dream
Two brothers, Raul and Sergio Gonzalez, each worked hard and saved every spare bit of cash. They hoped to get ahead by investing in real estate. They combined their savings and delivered a sealed bid on a building with six apartments which was being auctioned off. The building needed work—lots of it—but the two were capable and willing.
The dreams of the two seemed to be coming true when they received notice that their bid had won. They became the happy owners of the property. A week later, a city worker tacked a demolition notice on the front of the building. The brothers had unwittingly bought a building which was condemned to be torn down because of asbestos contamination.
Raul and Sergio tried to recover their money from the auction company. They claimed that they were not informed the building was condemned to demolition when they bought it. The sales representative responded by showing the brothers a line in the sales brochure which read, “Rooms: 000.”
He said that by this statement they should have understood that they were not buying the building at all, but only the land. The brothers replied that they had read that line, but since they could see the building, which had rooms in it, standing on the property, they had believed the statement was a typographical error.
The situation was past straightening out. The sale was final. The brothers had spent their savings and placed their hopes and dreams on that which was condemned.
Raul and Sergio Gonzalez received a harsh awakening when they discovered that they had bought a condemned building. Many people are headed for the same type of bitter discovery, only on a far greater scale. Are you living as though the only real estate you will ever know is on this earth? Are you trying to get for yourself the pleasures, possessions and properties in this life with no thought of the life to come—with no regard for God? Then, when you die you will be ushered into a Christless eternity.
Why? Because a sentence of condemnation is written over you: “This is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.” You ignored the one remedy which was able to save you: “God sent not His Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through Him might be saved. He that believeth on Him is not condemned.”
What is required of you? Only to see your sinful condition and come—come believing—to the Saviour of sinners. If you die without Christ, you will have sealed an irreversible doom. Come to Christ today, so that you stand no chance of learning what it means to pass into eternity in a state of condemnation.
Katrina: Who Is to Blame?
When hurricane Katrina’s storm surge broke through the levee and flooded New Orleans, devastating the city, who was to blame?
1. The engineers who designed the levee?
2. The public officials who permitted the city to grow up on land that was below sea level?
3. The individuals who built their homes, businesses and dreams on land that was subject to massive flooding?
4. The federal government for not making the city safe against a level 5 storm?
5. The local government for not ordering a general evacuation earlier?
Blame is a heavy load to carry, and apparently there is enough of it to go around for the devastation which occurred in New Orleans. It is an all-too-human trait in deep hardships to want to pass blame around as much as possible, but the question of who to assign blame to for the destruction may not have a simple solution.
Here is another question which is far more important to you than anything concerning Katrina could ever be: When a soul dies without ever having turned to God in repentance, who is to blame for the misery it will have for all eternity? Does it make sense to place blame on any of the following?
1. Education systems which exclude the concept of a Creator God?
2. Families that fail to impress on young minds that every human being is ultimately responsible to God for their actions?
3. The giant entertainment industry which seeks to keep minds so absorbed that they have no time for serious thoughts about eternity?
4. A culture permeated by an atheistic worldview?
These things are all sadly true, but the responsibility to receive Christ as Saviour rests forever with each person. Even though all these things are stacked against it, God has given clear and plentiful witness that Jesus Christ is the Saviour men need. From glory He came to be born as a man on earth. In His life He clearly fulfilled distinct, remarkable and innumerable Old Testament prophecies. His teachings were with words of matchless love, grace and power. God confirmed the message of the Lord Jesus through the miracles He performed. Of all men who ever lived, His words alone perfectly matched His deeds and life.
After three and a half years of ministering to the needs of those around Him, He let Himself be taken and nailed to the cross. His sacrifice is the greatest act of love the world will ever know. He is now seated at God’s right hand in heaven. He will come back to earth in judgment, but before He does, during the time of His absence, He is calling souls from this sinful world to believe on Him and receive the gift of eternal life.
Men nailed the Lord Jesus Christ to a cross of shame. They meant to get rid of Him. But God raised Him to the highest place in heaven. His name is now far higher than any other. He is the One that sinners must look to if they ever hope to be saved and to go to heaven. “Look unto Me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth; for I am God, and there is none else” (Isaiah 45:22). He is the One—the only One—who brings life to the world. “In Him was life; and the life was the light of men” (John 1:4). “I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of My hand” (John 10:28).
The word “responsible” means “able to respond.” Every member of the human race is able to respond to His love. If they choose never to do so, they alone will bear the blame and consequences of their decision forever. They are completely without excuse if they never come to Him.
"That Jesus Christ Stuff!"
Almost everyone who is offered a pocket calendar will receive it with thanks. Some even ask for another one, but few refuse them. A gentleman ahead of me at the checkout had finished his transaction. As he passed by, I offered him a calendar which he gratefully accepted. He walked toward the door reading it.
Suddenly he turned back and slammed the calendar down on the counter. In a loud, angry voice he said, “That Jesus Christ stuff!” Then he turned and stomped out the door saying, “You should have your head soaked in ice water.” I thought, Wow, I got off easy. My Saviour had a crown of thorns pressed on His blessed head. Then the soldiers struck Him on His head with a reed and spit on Him.
Two ladies behind us accepted the calendars with thanks. One of them in an astonished tone asked, “Is this what he was so angry about?”
How sad that anyone would reject the Lord Jesus who came “to seek and to save that which was lost” (Luke 19:10). Others neglect Him. Rejecting or neglecting salvation has the same result. “How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation?” (Hebrews 2:3).
In Luke10, Jesus told the story of a man who was beaten and robbed and left half dead by the roadside. By chance a priest and then a Levite came where he was and looked on him. They both passed by on the other side. As representatives of religion and the law, they could not help him. Religious activities and trying to keep the law cannot save a sinner.
But a certain Samaritan came where he was. When he saw him, he had compassion on him. He went to him and bound up his wounds and took him to an inn where he was cared for. The priest and the Levite would have despised the Samaritan. It was the despised one, however, who really cared for the wounded man.
The priest and the Levite only came by chance. The Samaritan came intentionally to where the wounded man was. This is a lovely picture of what the Lord Jesus has done for us sinners. He had come into the world on purpose to seek and “to save that which was lost.”
How sad the result if the wounded man had said, “Go away, Samaritan; don’t touch me.” He did not reject the Samaritan. Rather, he accepted what was done for him. The Samaritan bound up his wounds and brought him to an inn. He paid the host for the man’s care. Before leaving him, the Samaritan promised to come back again.
The Lord Jesus came down from heaven to reach lost sinners and to give Himself as a ransom for them. “This is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners” (1 Timothy 1:15). “The Son of Man came not to be ministered unto, but...to give His life a ransom for many” (Matthew 20:28).
Before the Lord Jesus went back to heaven, He promised to come back again. Believers today are waiting and watching for Him to come. He is coming to take all those who have trusted Him for salvation home to heaven with Him.
“I will come again, and receive you unto Myself; that where I am, there ye may be also” (John 14:3).
How sad to think of this man turning away in anger from the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ. Perhaps his conscience may repeat his own words to him— “Jesus Christ.”
“Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved” (Romans 10:13).
The Taj Mahal: A Monument to Eternal Love
The Taj Mahal sits like a jewel on the plains of Agra in northern India. Shah Jahan built the Taj Mahal in the seventeenth century, sparing no expense in the lavish construction of the famous building. Twenty thousand workers labored for over twenty years on what would be one of the world’s most beautiful buildings.
“Taj Mahal” is thought to mean “Crowned Palace,” but it is, in fact, a mausoleum. Shah Jahan built the Taj Mahal as a memorial to his favorite wife. Because of the beauty of the building and also the Shah’s heartfelt devotion to the memory of his wife, a poet has described the Taj Mahal as a “Monument to Eternal Love.”
“Eternal love” —what a phrase! With poetic license men may use the phrase to describe the bond between husband and wife, yet, in a stricter sense, the phrase “eternal love” can only rightly describe the love in God’s heart. “Thus saith the high and lofty One that [inhabits] eternity, whose name is Holy; I dwell in the high and holy place” (Isaiah 57:15). He is the great Architect of the universe, who spoke the world into existence.
Does this One who inhabits eternity love the people He made? Jeremiah the prophet wrote, “The Lord... hath appeared to me, saying, I have loved thee with an everlasting love; therefore with loving-kindness have I drawn thee.” The answer to the question, “Does God love?” is a resounding YES! And oh, how He loves! Sometimes the smallest words speak more than volumes, and this is the case with the little word “so” in the Bible. See John 3:16:
“God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”
Shah Jahan demonstrated that he loved his wife by building the Taj Mahal. God showed that He loved the world by sending His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, to die in the sinner’s place. How much did God love the world? He so loved the world.
God so loved the world that He sent His Son so that mankind which sat in darkness might see a great light.
God so loved the world that His Son went to Calvary’s cross, where the Just suffered for the unjust, that He might bring us to God.
God so loved the world that the precious blood that was shed at Calvary is able to wash the vilest sinner clean.
God so loved the world that He raised the Lord Jesus from the grave so that those who believe on Him might know that they have everlasting life.
God so loves the world even now that He sends the good news of the gospel to all the corners of the earth so that many might find great joy and peace in believing.
He does not desire that anyone should build Him a great and beautiful monument out of cold stone to commemorate His love. As the living God, He wants only living monuments. He wants men and women to become these living monuments. They must do so by realizing their lost condition and believing on the Lord Jesus Christ for salvation. Once a person is saved through faith, He wants their lives to “show forth the praises of Him who hath called us out of darkness into His marvelous light.” He takes poor, unworthy sinners and makes them monuments of His grace.
A songwriter once wrote:
Oh, have you not heard of that wonderful love,
That flows from Gods heart so free,
Which led Him to give for a perishing world
His Son to be nailed to the tree?
Greater love than this the world has never known. This is eternal love, love straight from Gods heart to you. God could absolutely do nothing greater to show us His love than sending His Son into this world, knowing full well that He would be rejected and crucified. You might be an atheist, you might be a terrorist, you might be full of dark religion, you might be a murderer—still God offers this love to you.
At the cross the floodgates of God’s grace and love were opened. Were you the most wretched sinner alive, God wants you to know that He loves you and that if you turn from your sins to the Saviour, He will forgive and cleanse you. Won’t you open the dark caverns of your heart and let His love and grace flow in?
This Man
Nearly two thousand years ago the city of Jerusalem was in a tumult. Men, women and children were running about, yelling and leering, crowding closer and closer so as not to miss any of the excitement. In the very center of the storm, the center of that shouting, swirling mob, there was a Man. Who was this Man?
This Man was one who had healed many and fed multitudes. Some among the crowd had known Him quite a while and had been touched by His compassion and gentleness. And some had even wept as He healed a loved one. But there were others who claimed that this Man has “a devil, and is mad.”
The crowd was a mixed one that morning. Some were common folk; others were men of high esteem. There were religious people too. The most religious people of that day were known as Pharisees and Sadducees, and they were the most vocal in condemning this Man. It was well-known to some of them—even the governor himself knew—that this Man was delivered to be crucified out of envy. They wanted only death for Him. “Crucify Him,” they cried; “crucify Him!”
This gentle Man slowly made His way out of the city and up the hill to die. He was bleeding and in pain and the wooden cross was heavy, so that He stooped as He walked. The crowd knew well that the Roman soldiers were cruel, and this morning they seemed specially so. They inflicted many blows on Him; His face was terribly marred, and a crown of thorns was placed on His head.
They came to the place called Calvary. He was laid on the cross, and soldiers took iron spikes and drove them into His hands and into His feet. The cross was lifted up while the people jeered and mocked at this Man hanging there between heaven and earth.
What a sight that was! This Man hanging there was full of compassion for the multitude. He was in such suffering, yet He asked His Father to forgive the crowd— “for they know not what they do.”
At about the sixth hour of the day the sun was darkened, and until the ninth hour He suffered in the darkness. He cried out, “My God, My God, why hast Thou forsaken Me?”
At last He cried with a loud voice, “It is finished!” This portion of God’s Word is familiar to most people, but what about you? Do you know who this Man was? He was the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God. Do you know that He died for you? God “made Him to be sin for us,” and He bore the penalty of sin so that anyone believing on Him and His finished work on the cross will never have to bear the wrath of God against sin. In other words, He took our place—my place, and your place if you believe on Him.
Before He went to the cross, the Lord Jesus said, “Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit” (John 12:24).
He also said, “He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him” (John 3:36).
A Lawyer's View of the Resurrection
Most people admit the fact of Christ’s resurrection, but a lawyer stated the other day that legally the question was beyond doubt, and any court of law would be compelled to admit it.
He said, “I can easily prove my case. If you read your Bible, you will see that there are thirteen witnesses, unimpeached and unimpeachable, whose names are known. They were well acquainted with Christ. They were with Him many times before His death. They saw and talked with Him after the resurrection. Five hundred persons also saw him at one time.
“In the eyes of the law, one witness (not an accomplice) is sufficient to prove the highest offense known to the law—murder. Two witnesses are required to prove treason, and three witnesses is the highest number required to prove the execution of a will.
“There could have been no case of mistaken identity. The five hundred witnesses were liable to err through bias, but where was the motive? Their cause was condemned, their leader killed, themselves outcasts. Would they swear falsely to His identification? It is incredible. The witnesses to the resurrection of Christ never contradicted or denied their testimony, but told the same story as long as they lived.
“This is always competent evidence, especially where the number of witnesses is large. These witnesses all led exemplary lives. As long as life lasted, they lived in poverty and virtue, as their Master had taught. Most of them suffered martyrdom after preaching the gospel all their lives at great personal hazard. Had they not been sincere, they would not have persisted as they did to the end. Yes, any court in the land would have to accept that evidence!”
“Him [Christ Jesus] God raised up the third day, and showed Him openly; not to all the people, but unto witnesses chosen before of God, even to us, who did eat and drink with Him after He rose from the dead....To Him give all the prophets witness, that through His name whosoever believeth in Him shall receive remission of sins” (Acts 10:40-43).
Decisions
Decisions, decisions—life is full of them. It is doubtful if we can go a waking moment without making one. The quality of our lives depends a great deal on the quality of our decisions. Some are big and some are small. What would you say was life’s biggest decision of all? Choice of spouse? Career? Area to live?
If the biggest decision means the one with the greatest consequence, for the longest duration, then there is a decision far greater than any other. This is the decision to believe on Jesus Christ as Saviour and Lord. When one makes that decision to believe in the Lord Jesus and accept Him as Gods only and beloved Son, he (or she) receives the gift of eternal life. “The gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord” (Romans 6:23). This gift will last throughout eternity. It will never cease. It will bring greater joy than any other decision. The very atmosphere of heaven will be pure joy, and in heaven nothing will ever interrupt or cast a shadow on that joy.
On the other hand, those who never come to Christ as Lord and Saviour must perish, which means to pass into the darkness of a lost eternity. Hell will be a place of no joy, no hope, and no light. The suffering of those in hell will never cease. The love of sin brings people to hell. The love of sin makes them deaf to Gods entreaty to believe on the Saviour. It is because men love sin that Satan gets so much control over their lives. Farmers used to put rings in the noses of oxen to make them do what their masters wanted. The love of sin is what Satan uses to make men do his bidding. Oh, that you would recognize sin for being as hateful to God as it is and turn to the Lord Jesus with all your heart.
Only God’s Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, can break the power of sin and set men free. The moment you believe in Christ you are forgiven, and you can be as sure of heaven as if you were already there. Then the Saviour will help you win a daily victory over indwelling sin and help you break any evil habits you may have formed when you lived without Him.
Nobody can make the decision to receive Christ as Saviour for you. It is a decision you alone must make. Others may pray for you, and they may seek to show you the way, but you must take the step of faith that brings you as a lost sinner to the Lord Jesus alone. With so much to lose (your sins and misery in this world) and so much to gain (eternal life—eternal joy!), don’t let another moment pass before you decide for Christ.
God can offer this incredible gift of eternal life to every human being because of a decision He made in eternity past. Before the foundation of the earth was laid He made the decision to send His Son into the world. He knew man would turn away from Him and plunge into sin and rebellion against Him. If anyone could ever be saved, there would have to be a redeemer. The Lord Jesus, God’s only and beloved Son, came into the world to be that Redeemer. On the cross, He gave His life’s blood to make the one atoning sacrifice that can take away sin. He could do this because He was God, and He also became Man. As Man, He could give His life as a sacrifice for sin; as God, that sacrifice would have infinite power to cancel guilt. Nothing short of this great sacrifice could ever deal with the problem of sin to God’s satisfaction.
Believers are redeemed by the blood of Christ. The word “redeemed” means to be “bought back.” Man has sold himself under sin, but at the cross the Lord Jesus became the Redeemer for every member of the human race who will receive Him.
There is no other way to be redeemed from the awful power of sin but through faith in Christ and His precious blood. Will you not seriously consider the claims of the Lord Jesus and make the decision to believe on Him for eternal life? No other decision in your lifetime will ever be as important, or bring you as much joy, as the decision to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ.