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In this episode of the Gary Wilkerson podcast, Nicky Cruz joins us to explore the topic of love when it comes to the people who can seem the farthest from that term: prisoners, gang members and drug addicts. Nicky recalls how Gary’s father helped bring him to Christ along with his own experiences ministering inside prisons and cities’ darkest alleys where only God can bring light.
Key Questions from the Podcast
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How do you approach violent, seemingly unlovable gangs, with the message of God’s love?
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How can churches and families keep their love from growing cold?
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Is love weak and polite, always bending over backwards for people? Or can it have power that confronts people?
Notable Quotes from the Podcast
God uses you and me. That's the only weapon we have to change the world, through the power of love, through the power of Christ that loves us so much. – Nicky Cruz
And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not alarmed, for this must take place, but the end is not yet. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and there will be famines and earthquakes in various places. All these are but the beginning of the birth pains. Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and put you to death, and you will be hated by all nations for my name's sake. And then many will fall away and betray one another and hate one another. And many false prophets will arise and lead many astray. And because lawlessness will be increased, the love of many will grow cold. – Matthew 24:6–12
The devil's last hurrah is going to be an attempt to destroy love, that we have loveless churches, loveless marriages, loveless families going through the motions. That's why kids will turn to drugs. That's why kids will turn to gangs. They think they're going to find some form of love there. – Gary Wilkerson
The opposite of love is not hate. The opposite of love is apathy. – Gary Wilkerson
America and the world need an amazing wake-up call. We claim we know Jesus, but Jesus was the greatest man of love of all time. So, we need to wake up to that and just say, enough of this “me” mentality—build my kingdom, build my world. Love exists for the other person. – Gary Wilkerson
I believe before I die there's going to be a revolution upon the young people that you have never seen. They're going to start denying evil, and beginning to just say, “Give me God.” I believe with all my heart! – Nicky Cruz
What we need is the Holy Ghost hospital. Open the door and let those wounded people, hurting people come in, rich and poor, black and white. We need to start preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ straight and never give up. – Nicky Cruz
The love we're talking about today is much more than roses, Hallmark cards, or a Shakespearean sonnet. It is the power to transform hearts, lives, families, and cultures. It is the single power of the love of God. It's our only hope. – Gary Wilkerson
We are meant to engage in culture. We are meant to make a difference in the world, and the tool of our trade is love. – Gary Wilkerson
In the heart of Christ is this kind of love that is able to confront every form of darkness. The cross of Jesus Christ is the greatest manifestation of love in all of history, that a perfect man would lay down his life for imperfect people. Then he says, "As I have loved you, you go out and love the world." That's self-sacrificing. That's confrontation with dead religion. It's confrontation with government that has no power to really transform culture. Then, it's a man who bears his own life and says I am love, and you're going to try to kill love. – Gary Wilkerson
Love is action. It's not just a sentiment. – Gary Wilkerson
Jesus loves us all, but Jesus wants some people to go out to this world with some skin on and say I'm going to demonstrate it. – Gary Wilkerson