"NONE GREATER!"

Written and preached by David P. Nolte

JOHN 3:16-18

1. CONSIDER THE GREATEST LOVER:
1. History has noted many who were purportedly great lovers: There was King Solomon, Rudolph Valentino, Casanova and Elvis, just to mention a few familiar names.
2. The old song says, "Everybody loves somebody sometime!" Many people may love you!
1. Some of them love you because you have done something to deserve it in their eyes. You have earned their love.
2. Some love you because you have managed to hide your imperfections and failures and weaknesses from them and they see you as better than you are. They wouldn't love you if they knew about some of your skeletons and dark secrets.
3. Some love you because you are their child or grandchild or parent or sibling.
4. But there is nothing you can do or be or have to do or be to earn God's love. And He loves you with your imperfections, failures, weaknesses; He loves you with your warts and pimples and ugliness. He loves you because He made you and wants you as His child.
3. Nobody loves you like God does. We think a lot about the suffering of the Son but have you ever thought about the suffering of the Father? Do you know anyone else who would forfeit their child for you? Could you stand and watch an angry mob spit on, beat, abuse, and kill your son? God did just that! He gave His Son because He loves us; just because He loves us!.
4. In a certain fable, a prince fell in love with a commoner. She was a plain girl, with no outstanding traits except that she was known to be moral, trustworthy, and humble. She couldn't believe that the prince would love her since she was not beautiful nor royal. So she set about trying to change herself into someone a prince could love. He kept telling her, "You don't have to do anything to earn my love, I just love you!" They married and she said, "I'll cook and clean and wash the laundry so you can really love me." He said, "You don't have to do those things to get my love! I didn't marry you to get you to do good things for me! I just love you!" She cooked and cleaned and did the laundry and finally, after awhile she came to realize that she didn't have to do those things, or anything else, to earn the love of the prince. But she kept doing those things, no longer to try to earn his love, but to give her love back to him. Good works don't earn God's love - He just loves us; but when we do good things, it says, "We love You, too!"

He is the greatest lover and there is none greater. Look again at the text and see:

2. CONSIDER THE GREATEST GIFT: 
1. There are good gifts and bad gifts; weird gifts and funny gifts; there are white elephant gifts, cheap gifts, costly gifts, gifts we never use and gifts we can hardly live without. 
2. God gave the perfect gift! He did not give material things that break and wear out. He gave the best He had in the person of His Son. The fact that He gave means there is no cost to you, nothing to be earned or paid for. He gave. 
3. God has given many gifts: blessings, peace, wisdom, and comfort to name a few - but the greatest gift comes through His Son: 
1. Jesus spoke to the woman at the well: "If you only knew the gift God has for you and Who I am, you would ask Me, and I would give you living water." John 4:10 (NLT). 
2. Paul wrote, Romans 6:23 (NASB) "For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." 
3. And Ephesians 2:8 (NASB) "For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God;"
   
4. The land of Persia was once ruled by a wise and beloved Shah who cared greatly for his people and desired only what was best for them. One day he disguised himself as a poor man and went to visit the public baths. The water for the baths was heated by a furnace in the cellar, so the Shah made his way to the dark place to sit with the man who tended the fire. Day after day the ruler went to visit the man. The worker became attached to this stranger because he came where he was. One day the Shah revealed his true identity, and he expected the man to ask him for a gift. Instead, he looked long into his leader's face and with love and wonder in his voice said, "You left your palace and your glory to sit with me in this dark place, to eat my coarse food, and to care about what happens to me. On others you may bestow rich gifts, but to me you have given yourself!"

God, the Greatest Lover gave Jesus, and Jesus gave Himself, the Greatest Gift and there is none greater. Look again at the text and see:

3. CONSIDER THE GREATEST EFFECT:
1. Some gifts have the effect of making you laugh, or feel a deep gratitude, or might even bring a tear to your eye you are so emotionally moved. Some gifts are functional and bring a benefit to the recipient - you know, fellows, like when you give your wife a new mop or a set of jumper cables for her birthday!
2. God's gift has the effect of bringing joy and gratitude and benefit to the recipient. It brings life abundant, full, rich, free and eternal. It brings forgiveness of sin. It brings reconciliation to God. It makes us His children. In every way God's love has a positive effect on our lives and destiny.
3. Consider some causes and effects:
1. Drop vase and let it hit floor (cause) and it will shatter (effect).
2. Drop a bowling ball on your toe (cause) and you'll run around yelping like a madman (effect).
3. Utilize river current to turn a waterwheel (cause) and you can grind grain or generate electricity (effect).
4. Gossip (cause) and you destroy friendships and reputations (effect).
5. Tell a lie (cause) and you can lead someone astray (effect).
6. Love others (cause) and you can change a life (effect).
4. God's love always has a positive effect. We are never the same when we come into His love! We are changed. We are not left in our lost condition when we respond to His love. Let me illustrate. A traveler fell into a deep pit and couldn't get out. Several persons came along and saw him struggling in the pit. The sensitive person said, "I feel for you down there." The judgmental person said, "Only bad people fall into the pit." The curious person said, "Tell me how you fell into the pit."  The self-pitying person said, "You should have seen my pit."  The optimist said, "Cheer up! Things could be worse." The pessimist said, "Be prepared! Things will get worse." But, Jesus, seeing the man, got into the pit and carried him out of the miserable place. That's the effect of God's Love. He finds you where you are, but doesn't leave you there. He lifts you out of the pit of depression and debt and death. He gives you the freedom of life if you believe.

Believing in Jesus is more than a head thing. It is more than agreeing with historical fact. It is more than believing that He lived and died and rose. It is a matter of faith. Faith believes, trusts and obeys. Have you put your faith in Jesus Christ? When you do, you will meet the greatest lover, you will receive the greatest gift and you will experience the greatest effect: He will change your life for now and forever. You will be the better for it. Your conscience can be clear; your motives can be pure; your sins will be forgiven; and you'll have life abundant and eternal. So to the greatest lover and for the greatest gift and the greatest effect, make the greatest response: believe, trust, and obey.

Stories from various e-mails

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