God is love, love is an attribute of God. Love is a central aspect of God’s character, his Person. God’s love is not in any sense in conflict with his holiness, righteousness, justice, or even his wrath. All of God’s attributes are in perfect harmony. All that God does is love, just as all that he does is just and right.
The greatest expression of God’s love is communicated to us in:
John 3:16: “For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, so that everyone who believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.”
God’s love it is not imposed on anyone. Those who come to him do so in response to his love. Love God shows kindness to all. Love Jesus was doing good to everyone without partiality. Love Jesus did not covet what others had, living a humble life without complaining.
love to jesus he didn’t boast about who he was in the flesh, though he could have dominated anyone he came in contact with. Love God does not demand obedience.
God did not demand obedience from his Son, but Jesus willingly obeyed his Father in heaven. “The world must learn that I love the Father and that I do exactly what my Father has commanded me” (John 14:31). Love Jesus was/is always looking out for the interests of others.
1. We can trust in God’s love
1 Corinthians 13:4-8 gives several descriptions of love:
“Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not selfish, it is not easily angered, it does not keep any record of its mistakes. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. Always protect, always trust, always hope, always persevere. Love never fails.”
At the center of these qualities is the unwavering and infallible aspect of love. God has proven this nature on himself to mankind through the ages. He has maintained a covenant relationship with humanity since creation. Even in our sinfulness, God continued to be patient with us and show us mercy.
When Adam and Eve sinned, before they had to leave the garden, God lovingly provided them with clothing to cover their nakedness. Even through the rebellions of the Israelites, God maintained his covenant relationship with them.
After Jonah fled from the Lord, God delivered him from death through the big shots. By observing the faithfulness of God’s love throughout history, we can trust that He will continue to act accordingly in our lives.
2. Our salvation is an expression of God’s love
The greatest demonstration of God’s love was this gift of his Only Begotten Son.
“For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, so that everyone who believes in him should not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16).
God did not send Christ as a reward for the obedient, but as a ransom for the defiant. We see Jesus display his love through his life and ministry. He healed the sick without the need for gratitude. He showed humility despite being King of Kings.
Even while on the cross, Jesus prayed for the forgiveness of those who placed him there (John 3:16, 1 John 3:16, 4:10, Romans 5:8). Salvation is open to all who believe in Christ. God’s love does not have any kind of discrimination. Salvation is how we can know love
Why is real love so rare?
“To truly love, we must first know God. Love begins with God and ends with God because God is love. We see this in 1 John 4:7-8. God is not physically love, but it is one of his attributes. He cannot and does not do evil. His display of love is the purest and truest there is.
Love perfectly. And because we are made in the image of God, we can love. Love is not something that derives from ourselves. It’s radical. It’s supernatural. Because of the kind of love to which God calls us – the love that loves our neighbor as much as ourselves – that must come from Him. We cannot love like that without being born of God.”
3. Our ability to love is enabled through the love of God
Jesus gave us the example of love and commands us to follow his example (John 13:34-35; 1 John 3:16-20). When Jesus washed the feet of his disciples, he took on the role of a servant and put the needs of others before his own dignity.
He instructed His followers to do the same. He tells us to love our neighbors as well as our enemies. However, this task is not burdensome, because love is a fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22). When we rest and abide in God, we love others as a result (1 John 4:7). It is through our love that the world will know that we belong to Christ.
What do we do with this capacity to love?
“God’s love, truly perceived, always elicits from us a response of love. The contemplation of divine love in its biblical fullness is never something that ends in itself. Our rest in God never finds its fulfillment in ourselves, but instead it always leads us outside of ourselves to him and to others.
God’s love must be lived and learned. God’s love for us engenders love in us for him and for others. The true Word of love that we have in the Bible, if we truly have it, will remain in us, and will not return empty since, by miracles of grace, we make visible in our own lives the reflections of God’s immeasurable love.”
4. We can rest in God’s love
because the nature of God is loveHis love is unconditional. Because He knew before creation that we would be disobedient, He chose a way to save us from our sins (Ephesians 1:4-5). This gives us hope as his children. We don’t have to see God as our “chief punisher” but rather as our Heavenly Father who has a plan and purpose for our lives. Jesus personified this message and called people to rest (Matthew 11:28-30). When we recognize that Christ is our Advocate, we can rest in the assurance of God’s love.
5. We can have confidence in God’s love
Psalm 136 wonderfully describes the God’s Love as infallible. The psalmist recalls (26 times!) how in his sovereignty, the Lord upholds his creation and his people in love.
As we look back on His loving faithfulness from the beginning of time, we can grow in our assurance that God will continue to vindicate His children and further His kingdom until His plan and purpose is fully realized.
prayer about love
Father God, in the midst of the chaos we call life, may we still be enough to recognize the love you have for your creation. May we trust in Your unconditional and unconditional love.
As You have loved us, that we love one another. Forgive us for the moments when we have forgotten the cost of your love, the life of your Son Jesus. I pray that we live confidently today, knowing that we are Your children whom You have chosen with a plan and a purpose in mind. Help us live for you. Amen.