and bless the Lord for his great faithfulness to us, his people. Brethren, as we come this morning once again to the glorious theme of the Christians' Communion with the Triune God from our verse-by-verse expositions through the book of Romans, I ask you please to turn with me in your Bibles once again to Romans chapter 8. Romans chapter 8, picking up at verse 9, and I'll read to verse 11 in your hearing. Chapter 8, verse 9, here is the Apostle Paul, continues to speak about matters pertaining to the personal experience of the child of God. He writes the following and says, Romans 8, verse 9, follow with me closely, he writes, but you, emphatically Christian, are not in the flesh. But, rather, yes, but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you, now if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his, verse 10. And if Christ is in you, the body is dead because of sin, but the Spirit is life because of righteousness. But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you. He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his spirit who dwells in you. Brethren, let's once again pray and ask the Lord's blessings on our time. Let's pray. Our Father, we're so thankful for your wonderful word. We're thankful, O God, that, as David said, it is a lamp to our feet and a light to our pathway. We thank you, O God, that in your light we see light, that from your truth we see truth. And we're asking, O God, this day that you would give us much truth from above. O God, that you would give it to us in copious measures, that we might understand you all right. Oh God, that you would break in, and this day you would rescue some and claim them for your own. We ask, oh God, that for those here who do not know you in truth, that this would be the day of their salvation. And Lord, for us who do know you in truth, that this would be the day that we would grow in greater measures of sanctification and Christlikeness. Oh God, we pray that you would draw near to us as we draw near to you. Oh God, that you would do us good in the inner man. Lord, that you would speak from your word. For your servants, listen. Come and do us good by the mighty Holy Spirit. And for these things, we'll praise and bless your most wonderful name. We ask them all through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen. As we begin for this morning, I ask all of you here this day to carefully consider the following statement made by a well-known preacher of the gospel from another generation. This preacher said, quote, to be sound on the doctrine of justification by faith alone, which was the great watchword of the Protestant Reformation, is not enough. For that doctrine can be held as an intellectual opinion. And if people merely hold to a number of orthodox opinions, they are not, I repeat, in a truly Christian position. And this is because the essence of the Christian position and the Christian life is that we should be able to say with the Apostle John in 1st John chapter 1 truly my fellowship that is to say my communion is with the Father and with his son. Now dear friends here this morning, dear brothers and sisters, let that statement sink down deep into your hearts and ask yourselves the question, do you agree with it? Ask. Do you agree that merely having an intellectual assent to great biblical doctrines such as the doctrine of justification by faith alone is not enough for one to truly claim that they are saved and on their way to heaven? If you are thinking correctly, then I trust all of you are saying that this is absolutely the case, right? Dear ones, you're saying within yourself that it is not enough just to believe in certain doctrinal truths with the head without having in the heart a realized, spirit-wrought experiential fellowship with the true and living And so who was it who wrote these very provocative words? Well, it was the very sound, the very biblical, the very orthodox, and the very reformed preacher from another generation named Dr. Martin Lloyd-Jones. It was the good doctor, as he was called, who, of course, was in no way denying or downplaying the importance of the doctrine of justification by faith alone or any other Christian doctrine for that matter. No, rather, he was simply pointing out that one can nod their head to all of these things without ever really knowing in truth the God of the Bible. That's what he was saying. They can have all of these truths in their heads, but have a heart which is very far from God. What is then this matter of communion with the triune God that we've been considering together for the past few weeks in this place as Paul speaks about it in our passage in view. Here as he's been writing about our salvation and our sanctification he tells us each of these verses that each distinct member of the Trinity dwells in the heart of every true Christian, and the word dwells here in all of these verses, really verse 9, verse 10, and verse 11, denotes intimacy of relationship. The word dwells, denotes close fellowship with the ones in view, and thus again I say, listen carefully, I say again that far from true biblical Christianity being that of one merely receiving truth into the mind, dear ones, it is also that which radically affects the inward life of the one who has been converted. Now concerning this matter at hand, this topic and view of communion with the triune God, as I said last week, really This is a profound mystery. Paul calls this whole thing in Colossians, as we saw last time together, Christ in you. He calls it a great mystery. Now, dear ones, in many senses of the word, the fact, listen carefully, that God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit live in us, who are Christians, is mind-boggling. Ah, but brethren, nevertheless, it is the very thing. which separates all true Christians from false ones. I say that it is that which separates the mere professor of faith from the true possessor of faith. For as God himself says to us in his word in 2nd Corinthians chapter 6 and verse 16, concerning all those who know him in truth, God himself says, and I will quote, dwell in them, God says, and I will walk among them and I will be their God and they shall be my people. Now, why do each and every one of us, all of us here this day, why do we all need to be instructed about our topic in view for this morning. Why do you specifically who name the name of the Lord need to grow in your personal communion yes your personal fellowship with the triune God? Well brethren the answer is that as you do this no doubt you will be blessed beyond all telling. The answer is you will walk closer to your God, knowing him more deeply in what John Flavel, the great Puritan, called, quote, the heavenly privilege. And so as we come then for our time together this morning, To consider our topic in view, I trust for our good, I ask you to note with me in verse 11 of this chapter the matter of communion with the indwelling person and presence of God the Father. Here is the Apostle, speaks about this matter in 11a, note it with me again in your Bibles, he writes, but if the spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you. Now again as we've seen over the last two weeks, the last two messages, the past couple weeks, the previous verses that we considered, with reference to the word if here again you've got it in verse 9 and verse 10 as well this word if here is not presenting doubt in Paul's mind with reference to the spiritual state of these believers know and thus the Greek word here if could really be translated as Paul saying since or if as the case is Here this little Greek particle, again it's translated as if in the English Bible, but really the Greek particle assumes a condition fulfilled and thus again it could be translated as Paul saying here, seeing that in fact the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you. Now perhaps more importantly concerning the language here of quote look at it in your Bibles, the spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead being a reference to God the Father as I've said it. Brethren, this seems quite plain to me from the context of these words. I mean again, As we saw some weeks ago, picking up in verse 9 of this chapter, Paul speaks about the Spirit of Christ, also known as the Holy Spirit, as we looked at it a few weeks ago together. And then in verse 10 he speaks about Christ in us, so you've got the Holy Spirit in verse 9, and then Christ in verse 10. And so it seems very logical that Paul would now speak about the Father as the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead in these wonderful Trinitarian verses. This is the interpretation that several commentators take, including John Calvin, Douglas Moo, and Morris, etc. And of course we know that, scripturally speaking, the New Testament plainly affirms that with the Lord Jesus Christ raising himself from the dead, even as he predicted he would do in John chapter 2, the Holy Spirit being involved with raising our Lord from the dead. As Paul speaks of in Romans chapter 1, brethren, we also know, correct, that this was what would be so with God the Father as well. This is the case. Thus, for example, if you're taking notes, the Apostle Peter says in Acts chapter 2 and verse 24 that God That is to say, God the Father specifically raised up Jesus from the dead, having loose the pains of death, and Peter says that this is because it was impossible that he should be held by it. Further, The Apostle Paul says a similar thing in Galatians chapter 1 and verse 1 when he wrote, Paul, an apostle, not from man nor through man, but through Jesus Christ, he says, and God the Father who raised him from the dead. Now having said these things with reference to God the Father and the resurrection of Christ, we should pause for a moment to ask, what's so significant about it? In other words, Why does the Bible even mention that God the Father was involved in raising His Son from the dead? Well, as most of you will know, I'm sure, the reason for this is that it made plain the fact that the sacrifice of His Son on our behalf was completely accepted by Him, right? We ought not pass that over. The Spirit of Him who raised Him from the dead. The Father raised Jesus from the dead. So what? What's the point? Well friends, the point is, if Christ never came out of the grave after He paid for our sins on the cross, then we would always be wondering, were our sins really atoned for? We would be wondering, did something go wrong? Because Jesus repeatedly said throughout his ministry that after paying the penalty for our sins to God as our sin-bearing substitute on Calvary's hill, that he would be raised three days later. Brethren, I say, blessed be God, that this is exactly what happened with Christ. blessed be God that though he was dead he was raised again and thus our faith is not futile thus we are no longer in our sins to quote the Apostle Paul in 1st Corinthians chapter 15 yes brethren our faith is rooted in the reality of Jesus' resurrection, and thus I say that the fact that God the Father raised His Son from the dead is proof positive that He accepted Jesus' sacrifice on our behalf. This is the Father's receipt, that is to say, raising Christ from the dead. It's His receipt to all mankind that are complete. once for all atonement for sin has been made through his son and that all who turn from their sins and put their complete trust in who he is and what he has done alone for their salvation will be forgiven of all of their sins. Praise be to God. Now concerning God the Father, that is to say the first one in the Holy Trinity who was in view here in our passage, the spirit of him who raised Christ from the dead. Again Paul says to these believers at Rome and to all of us by way of extension, look at the language, he says that he dwells in us. Here he says quite literally that because we have been saved the Father who is Spirit continually inhabits us and this of course is because we have been born again. Now as we saw last time together With reference to the Holy Spirit dwelling in us and Christ himself dwelling in us, this fact with reference to God the Father also is really quite striking. I mean, brethren, to think that through the work of salvation, God the Father, who is omnipresent like the Son and the Spirit, permanently resides in the believer is truly remarkable. I mean think about it it's mind-boggling but dear ones I say it's true nonetheless it's 100% so and thus Jesus himself could say for example in John chapter 14 and verse 23 that if anyone loves me he will keep my word and my father will love him and then Jesus says and we will quote come to him and make our home with him. So there's the biblical data. Jesus spoke about it and Paul is confirming it here in our passage. Well, because then the indwelling person and presence of God the Father is in us who were saved. Our key question for today is what is our fellowship our communion with Him to be rooted in. In other words, what is this fact that He's dwelling in us permanently, what is it to be based on? Well friends, I answer my own question by saying that it is to be based on the Father's great love for us. What's the essence? What's at the heart of this communion with God the Father? Answer, His great, His tremendous, His awe-inspiring love for us. Now let that thought sink into your hearts for a few moments. What's the essence? What's the basis? What's it all about? It's God's love for me in Christ. Let that thought marinate in your mind for a minute. I mean, as we think about this whole matter of communion with God the Father, which consists in the operations of our souls towards Him, I ask, what is to be the main thing that is to capture our hearts as the people of God with reference to this God? Answer, His great love for us. his great and wonderful love for us. Now of course this idea here that I'm throwing out now, this statement, is not novel with me, no not at all. As a matter of fact, other writers have spoken about this matter. And thus, for example, the great John Owen, in his outstanding work entitled Communion with God, says that, quote, the chief way, underscore it, the chief way by which the believer has communion with God the Father is, quote, in his love for him, in his love for him. Owen says this is the love which the father pours on the Christian and thus believers are to see God as quote full of love to them and they are to receive him as the one who loves them. Now brethren, in view of this wonderful statement and wonderful biblical truth, I must pause to ask all of you here today, who name the name of the Lord, do you see God the Father as one who is full of love for you? Full of love for you. I mean, along with everything else that you know to be true about God the Father, that he's holy, and that he's just, and that he's sovereign, and that he rules over all things, et cetera. Brethren, I ask you, do you know him as the one who is absolutely abounding in love for you? Well, brethren, truly, I hope that this is the case, right? I mean, I really hope it is. I mean, God forbid that there's any of you here today who are truly converted, that you should see God the Father as angry with you because this thing or that thing. For friends, to do that, I say, is to completely misunderstand Him. I say to do this is to completely misunderstand the good news of the gospel. So God forbid that would be so for any of you here this day. Now concerning the Father's love for us, who are his people, the Bible tells us everywhere that which is summarized very nicely in 1st John 4 and verse 8, namely that God is love. Right? 1st John 4, 8. The Bible tells us everywhere what these a few words tell us in a small scope. That God is love. Specifically, the reference there is a reference to God the Father. This is the most significant statement concerning Him. And you see, dear ones, it's not just that love is a quality of the Father, no, but it is that in His person He is essentially and everlastingly love itself. Not just a quality. But it's part of his being. Simply stated, love is not merely one of the father's attributes. But as A.W. Pink, the great scholar, rightly says, love is his very nature. And that's a wonderful statement to be sure. Love is his nature. not just an attribute, not just something outside of him here, but it's his nature. It's his very being. Love is his nature. Now of course, biblically speaking, we know that the greatest demonstration of the love of God for us who are Christians is that of him sending his only begotten son into the world to die for our sins, right? We know that very plainly. Some people are quite confused about how God's love is manifested towards them. Well, we know, scripturally speaking, that the greatest demonstration of the love of God for his people is that he sent Christ into the world, sinners to save. Dear friends, this is the case. And thus, for example, the Apostle John could say in 1 John 4 and verse 10, in this is love. Well, John, tell us, what is it? What is it all about? In this, he says, is love. Not that we loved God, but that he loved us. And what did he do? He sent his Son into the world to be a propitiation, that is to say, a wrath absorber for our sins. A wrath absorber for our sins. How do we know the love of God? Here it is. The Father sent his Son into the world to be a propitiation for our sins. Again, Paul could say the same thing. Romans 5 and verse 8, here it is. that God demonstrates, quote, His own love toward us. How did He do it? Paul tells us. In that while we were yet sinners, Jesus died for us. Tell me about the love of God, would you? Where is it seen? How is it demonstrated? Answer, the cross. The doing and the dying and the rising of Jesus Christ, our Lord. This is what the Bible teaches. That the Father is love and that His greatest demonstration of His love for us is that He sent His Son into the world to pay the penalty for our sins. Now having said this about the Father's love, for us who know Him, you might be wondering What is this love about more specifically? You here who was saved this day might want to know what is truly at the core of the Father's love, and so how can I define it? Well, let me do this by saying that concerning the Father's love toward us, his people, there are seven things about it that you should note. And so in summary form concerning it, I say that the love of the Father is a love which is eternal. Purposeful, unmerited, unending, unconditional, unchanging, and unambiguous. And so first, explain to me what the love of the Father is like for me. Okay, here you have it. Number one, it's eternal. It's eternal. What do I mean by this? Well, friends, what I mean is His love, which He has for us, is a love which He had even from before the foundation of the world. It's an eternal love. Simply stated, brethren, before you and I were or had done the least good thing in his sight, the Father's loving thoughts were toward us. And thus he says, for example, to his people in Jeremiah chapter 31, I have loved you, quote, with an everlasting love. Therefore, with loving kindness, I have drawn you. Second, the love of the Father for us who are Christians is a purposeful love. a purposeful love which is to say that even when at times the father he needs to chasten us for our sins against him and even at times he allows various trials to come our way friends the point is his great love for us always has an end in view A purpose in view, and that purpose in view is that we would be conformed more and more to the moral image of His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, just as Paul goes on to speak of at the end of this chapter. Third, the love of God the Father for us who are believers is an unmerited love, which is to say, it is a love which is freely bestowed upon us because of God's kind heart toward us. A church, this is the fact, for it is a love which cost us absolutely nothing. We didn't have to twist God's arm for it. We didn't have to do anything for it, no. But as you know, it is a love which cost the Lord Jesus Christ everything, for he gave his life for us in order to purchase this love for the people of God. Fourth, if you're taking notes, the love of God the Father for us who are believers, is an unending love. It's an unending love, which is to say that it is a love which will continue forever and ever. You see, friends, unlike human relational love, which is temporal and seasonal and conditional, etc., the love of God the Father for his people is enduring. It shall last forever. It is absolutely steadfast. And thus he can say in Isaiah 54 in verse 10, though the mountains be shaken and the hills be removed, yet my unfailing love for you will not be shaken. It will endure through all the ages. Fifth, the love of God the Father for us who are believers is an unconditional love. And by this I mean that the Bible makes plain that the Father thoroughly loves us because of who He is rather than because of who we are. And thank God for that. It's unconditional. Or I could say in one sense it's based on one condition and one condition only. And it's not the condition of how well we act or perform before him, but it was based upon how well Christ acted and performed before him on our behalf as our federal head and representative, and praise be to God that Christ acted perfectly before the Father. He behaved perfectly as our representative, and thus because of Jesus' representative life for us before the Father, he loves us forevermore. He loves us unconditionally because Christ met the condition for God to love us. Six, the love of God the Father for us who are Christians is unchangeable. It's unchangeable. What does it mean? It's permanent. By this I mean that although you and I change every day concerning this thing or that thing, praise be to God, He does not change. He says, I am the Lord, I change not. No, His love is not like ours towards others, which at times is fickle, which at times is up and down based upon this thing or that thing. No, God's love is not like that. It's unchangeable, seeing that according to James 1 and verse 17 with God. There is no variation. There is no shadow of turning. Well, secondly and finally then in this regard, not only is the Father's love, His kind and compassionate heart for us who are saved, that which is eternal, purposeful, unmerited, unending, unconditional and unchangeable, but now it is also that which is unambiguous, unambiguous. Now, what do I mean by this? Well, what I mean is, That while, of course, in common grace, God is good to all people on the face of the planet, and that he causes the sun to rise on the believer and the unbeliever alike, as we're told in Matthew's Gospel, for example. Brethren, the point of the matter is, listen carefully, with reference to the salvation of the soul, God's love is very specific. point of the matter is his love is for a people who have or will believe on his son alone for life and salvation and thus is it any wonder why we're told for example in 1st John 4 and verse 19 that we that is we who are believers love him why because he first loved us I ask friends is it any wonder that Paul could say in Ephesians chapter 1 and verse 5 that in love the father predestinated us that is us who are Christians and he did this so that we would be adopted as his sons. Well friends, I say there's no wonder at all with reference to these things. And in view of all of them, I say, what should it cause in us who are the true people of God? What should it cause in us who have experienced this special, this specific, this electing love of God? What should it cause in us? I mean, should it make us proud? Should it make us arrogant because this is so? Should it make us self-righteous, etc.? Well, dear ones, not at all. And I say this because we who are saved are no better than anyone else on the face of the planet. No, we're not better than anyone else. And surely God could have left us also in a state of sin and misery so that we would receive his just condemnation, do us for our sins against him just like the others. But brethren, blessed be God that in his love he decided to do something different. blessed be God that in mercy he decided to do something completely undeserved by us which was to draw him to himself through the preaching of the gospel to the saving of the soul blessed be his name what a wonderful God he is amen He could have left us in a state of sin and misery to quote our own confession of faith, but in love he did something else. Praise be to God. And so here then. are some essential matters concerning the Father's love towards believers in Christ. Church, I say that this is a love which is completely and utterly unmatched by any other. It is a love which, as the hymn writer says, excels all other loves. And so, having seen from the first part of our passage for this morning. What the essence of this matter is all about, concerning God the Father dwelling in us, it's a foundation which is based upon his love for us, and what that means personally speaking. Note with me now, secondly, more briefly, from 11b, what this will mean for us in the future. us who are true believers. Here as Paul just told us in the previous verse we considered last week verse 10 that our physical bodies are dead because of sin you see it there in the verse that is to say these bodies of ours are dying and one day will die because Adam's sin has been imputed to us 10 out of 10 die. Paul says now very positively speaking look at the words in your Bibles again he writes That He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through or by means of His Spirit who dwells in you. Now again, as I said, these words here are very positive to be sure. And I say this because they give us, who are Christians, a very positive outlook concerning things to come. You see, dear ones, the point is, even though our bodies are failing and are falling, and even though there's much remaining sin within, and that after death they will return to the dust and they will see corruption, just like the bodies of every other person in the world who dies before Christ returns, friends, The point is, nonetheless, that at the last day when Jesus Christ returns and closes out this age as we know it and ushers in the age to come, these bodies of ours, these falling and failing bodies, will rise again, and this not to dishonor, like the unbelievers' body, but to honor, again, to quote our own confession of faith. Friends, this is the good news of the Bible. which tells us that the Father, through the agency of the Holy Spirit, as Paul speaks of it here, will give life to our bodies, which is to say that one day they will be glorified without any imperfection. They will be raised immortal, just as Christ's body was raised from the dead. For as the Apostle Paul says in 1 Corinthians chapter 15, although our bodies will be sown in, quote, corruption, they will be raised in incorruption. Glory be to God. Well listen then to Lloyd-Jones, as he summarizes this matter. We quoted him in the beginning, we begin to close by quoting him now. Here's what Lloyd-Jones says concerning this matter. Quote, the Apostle's argument here, again in the second part of verse 11, his argument here is that what God has done for Christ in this regard, resurrecting his body, he's also going to do for us. Lloyd-Jones says here Paul is working up to a climax which is that although at the moment and while we are in this world the body is dead because of sin nonetheless all is well why Lloyd-Jones says, for there is coming a time when our bodies are going to be raised up. And thus Paul here is aiming at giving us comfort and assurance. And that is encouraging. Again, verse 10, the body is dead because of sin. It's dying. It's going back to the ground. It's failing and it's falling at every point. But Paul reaches a climax and he says, just as the case was with the Christ, the same will be true for his people. firstfruits is the guarantee that all who are connected with him will also rise again. And so you see this beautiful aspect, this upward arrow that Paul is pointing at saying that even though this is true, even though our bodies will die off one day for the believer who's in union with Christ, that body will rise again. and it will be a glorified body just as Christ's body was glorified. Praise be to his name. Here is great hope for us in this regard for the future, dear Christians, which should encourage us, knowing that in the final analysis, death will be swallowed up in victory. It's triumphant, it's triumphant. And the older we get and we see our bodies failing and falling and all this stuff, we say, oh Lord, what are you gonna do with this carcass? It's such a mess. It gives me so many problems on this level, on that level. Oh friends, one day it's gonna be glorified. Without any imperfection, it will be perfect just as the Lord himself is perfect. And so here then, is where we end the exposition of this third verse here in this glorious sequence of verses, which speaks about the Christians communion with the triune God. His communion with the Holy Spirit, verse 9. His communion with Christ the Son, verse 10. And now his communion with God the Father, which is rooted in the fact that he has loved us. and I say what a wonderful thing it is to commune around the fact that he has loved us even with an everlasting love. And so having discussed this from our passage for today, I want to begin to close by making some applications. To those of you first who know the Lord in truth, to you who are Christians in this place, you've been saved. The triune God dwells in you. Your life is proof positive that you've been converted and God is in you and he's changing your life, not only inwardly but outwardly. What can I say to you, my dear friends, with reference to our passage in view? Well, there are three things. In view of the love of the Father for us, what should this produce in us? Number one, a longing to want to experience more. of the Father's love for us. Second, a desire to express that love to others. And then third, a passion to exalt God because of this love for us. And so first, dear believer here this day, from our considerations this afternoon, concerning the love of God. So what? God has loved me. What should it produce in you? Number one, a desire to know more and more of his love. More and more of it. You say, how can I learn experientially in my own communion with Him and my own soul? How can I know more of the love of God for me? Friend, I say, it's by saturating your soul upon Scripture. It's by thinking deeply about all that God has said to you in His Word. We often talk about the Bible being God's love letter to us. Friends, I ask you, Christian friends, do you read the Word of God as His love letter to you? This is God speaking to me. He has loved me with an everlasting love, with an enduring love. He has loved me in this way, me specifically, This is just not some generic love. This is a special love for His people. Oh, friends, I say that the more that we marinate, the more that we think upon these things and let it marinate in our souls, His love will be experienced by us. The more we consider it, and how deep it is, and how vast the Father's love is, as the popular song goes, We will be enriched in our souls of this God, from whom I only deserve his wrath and his judgment, that in grace and in mercy, he would love me. Oh, I say, friends, it's enough to make us bless his name. Like the hymn writer said, why was I made to hear thy voice and enter while there's room, when millions make a wretched choice and rather starve than come? Why was I made to hear thy voice and enter while there's room? Only one answer, God, God. God enabled me to do it. God opened my heart as he did Lydia's heart as we considered this morning that we might heed the things which are being spoken. Oh friends I say that as we meditate upon the Father's love for us we will grow in a personal experiential experience of the whole matter. But secondly then dear believer here today concerning the Father's love for you specifically. I say that because He has loved you, this is to produce in you a desire to want to express that love to others. This is a very practical so what. Friends, I ask you, what does John say in 1 John 4 and verse 11? Well, there he says, Beloved, if God so loved us, We also ought to love one another. You see, there's the hook. Oh, I'm loved by God. I'm eternally loved. I'm specifically loved. That love is unending. Oh, it's so good that His kind heart has been set upon me, even from before the foundation of the world. Oh, you better believe it's so good. But having experienced that love, John says, if God has so loved us, or we might translate it, since God so loved us, we ought to love one another. And so ask yourselves here this day, we'll do it real practically in this place, do you love one another? And of course, John also says in his epistle, not only love in word, but in deed. Let us not love in word only, John says, but in deed. in action. So do you love the brethren in this place, each and every one? All of them. We should love one another. Do you love every single brother who names the name of the Lord in this place, every single sister who does the same? Or is your love just upon a few of the believers in this place. I love these ones because, you know, I get along with them, but that guy over there, eh, or that girl over there, eh. No, friends, our love is to be for all of God's people. Every one of them are to be loved by us because God has loved all of us. We're in the same family. Can you imagine not loving someone? whom the father loves? He's loved them. He sent his son to die for them, but you say, oh, I'm not going to love them. I'm not going to interact with them. How you doing? Doing fine. How are you? I'm just going to soak up the love of God for my own soul. Friend, I say it's wicked. It's sinful. Since we have been loved by God, we are to love one another. Not in word only, John says, but in deed. And so what does that mean? When there's a need, how can I help? In deed, tell me about how you're doing. Let me enter into your life. Ah, maybe we're not gonna be the best of friends on every level, but we need to be loving brethren, to be engaging brethren. We need to be prayerful as the people of God, loving each one. truly in intangible ways. How can I serve you? What can I pray for you, brother, sister? Since God has loved us, we ought to love one another. Thirdly and finally then, for us who are Christians, not only should the love of the Father for us cause us to want to know more and more of that love as we see it in the Word of God. And not only should it produce in us that we would express that love to others, but also it should give way to a great passion in our heart to want to exalt God for the great love wherein we have been loved by Him. The singing was really good today, really, really good. And brethren, I say it ought always to be that way. We ought to be a people when we read the hymn, oh, bless my soul. The Lord, my God, my maker, all that is in me, bless his holy name. Well, we ought to be, as it were, blowing the windows out of this place. Bless the Lord. The unbelievers should either be here or if they walk by as we're praising the Lord, say, man, those people are enthusiastic. They're excited because God has loved them. We should be exalting this God. Praise your name that you have loved us. Praise your name that you have not passed us by, but that you sent Jesus into the world to pay our penalty in full. Oh God, how we bless you. Brethren, here's where we must live as a church, singing out great praises to the Lord our God. I close then with a word to any non-Christian in this place, having spoken to believers about what the love of God ought to do for them. For you here who are not saved, what can I say but simply this? You must endeavor to know the love of the Father for you personally. You must endeavor to know it. You must endeavor to know it. Again, as I said earlier, where is the love of the Father seen? For the ungodly. It's seen at Calvary. For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have everlasting life. The love of God is seen towards sinners, and that he sent his Son into the world to die for them. But that death is received, the benefits thereof, the salvation which Jesus procured 2,000 years ago is only for those who believe. He loved the world that he gave his only begotten son to be the sacrifice for our sins that whoever believes on him should not perish but have everlasting life. Even in that verse we see the selective love of God. It's for those who believe. It's for believers. And thus John can say in that same chapter, he who believes not, the wrath of God abides upon him. And so my dear non-Christian friend here today, what's the call for you? Simple. Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. Where do I see the love of God for sinners? like me, a sinner, which I am. It's seen that he sent his son into the world to die on behalf of guilty sinners. The Bible says all who turn from their sins and put their faith in what Jesus did at Calvary's cross, and that he paid the penalty for sinners, he took their sins upon himself, and he took the judgment of God, do them on their behalf and he made a once for all full atonement to God the Father for the sins of everyone who believes upon him alone in life and salvation. Friends, the call of the Bible is turn from your sins and put your faith in the accomplished work of Jesus Christ the Lord. Now remember again, as I said in the beginning of the message, it's not enough just to believe a certain doctrine with the head only. Remember Lloyd-Jones? It's not enough just to give mental assent to the doctrine. Oh, justification by faith alone. He who believes on the Son is justified before God by faith alone and not works. No, it's not enough just to have that thought in the head without having the heart exercise, true faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. There is many a man, many a woman, many a person who will go to hell with a head full of knowledge. Full of knowledge. Although believe Jesus is the Son of God, He died for our sins, He was buried, He rose again, that salvation is a free gift from God the Father for sinners who believe upon Him, not by our works, but they will never personally exercise saving faith in Christ alone for salvation. May it not be so for anyone here today. Turn with me in your Bibles to Romans 10. We end with this verse, Romans 10. Look what Paul says in this regard. Romans chapter 10. not enough just to have sound doctrine in the head but he says in Romans 10 and verse 9 that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and look at believe in your heart that God has raised him from the dead you will be saved why for with the heart Do you see it? Not just the head, not just, oh I agree with that, that's all good, but with my heart I could say, I must believe unto righteousness and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. Why? For the scripture says, whoever believes on him will not be put to shame for there is no distinction between Jew and Greek for the same Lord is rich to all who call upon him for whoever calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. You must believe not only sound doctrines with the mind, but with the heart you must cry out, oh God, save me. Oh God, I see that I'm lost. I see that I'm a sinner. I see that I don't have the salvation that others around me have. Oh God, save me for your namesake. We must believe with the heart, for with the heart a man believes unto righteousness. And so may it be that for some of you this day, who have heads full of knowledge, but hearts which are far from the Lord. May it be that heart and head this day will be meshed together so that what you know to be true in your head will respond from a believing heart and will trust in Christ alone for life and salvation. May God grant it to be so. May this be the day of your salvation. Let us pray. Our Father, again, we thank you for the magnificent consideration of God dwelling in his people, the Holy Spirit, the Holy Son, and the Father. Lord, we are struck with how profound this whole matter is, oh God. But we know it to be true for your word tells us. And we're thankful that you've made your abode in us. And that through you being in us, you change our lives. You change the course of our lives, the pattern of our lives, the habits of our lives, oh God. And we're so grateful. And we ask, oh God, that as the fact is that you dwell in us, that we would commune with you in deeper levels, that we would be led by you in greater measure, Lord, that we would be sanctified by You through and through. Help us, we pray. And Lord, for those this day who do not know You, might this again be the day that they come to Christ. Might they believe with the heart that He is their Savior, who loved them and gave Himself for them. Do it, we pray, for Your namesake. And do it for their own good. We pray and plead all of these things through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.