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Tag: God's Love

Unlimited love

Written by LWOM Amsterdam on . Posted in The Character of God, What’s new?.

What does it mean that God’s love is unlimited?

God’s love is a one of His foundational attributes (see Psalm 103:8–12; John 3:16; Ephesians 2:4–5; 1 John 4:9–10). God’s love has the power to melt hard hearts and make rebels surrender. It is unlimited, far beyond human comprehension, and serves as a wellspring of all forms of human love. However, human affections pale in comparison to the unlimited love of the Father, who is love Himself (1 John 4:8).

When we say that God’s love is unlimited, we mean that it knows no boundaries, measurements, or exceptions. It is inherent to His nature; since He is infinite, His love is also infinite. Because God’s love is unlimited, no one is beyond redemption. Even some of the most monstrous people have experienced transformation through the revelation of God’s grace. A striking example is David Berkowitz, the infamous “Son of Sam,” a serial killer who was saved by the grace of God in prison (see his testimony at www.ariseandshine.org). What’s the limit of God’s mercy? What sin is too great for Him to forgive? Praise the Lord, “as people sinned more and more, God’s wonderful grace became more abundant” (Romans 5:20, NLT), and He delights in saving even “the worst” of sinners (1 Timothy 1:15).

Questions about God’s unlimited love troubled the mind of author Lee Strobel as he followed the account of a Khmer Rouge killer who later found redemption at the cross. Comrade Duch committed grievous atrocities, and his record is enough to sicken anyone. Yet, the man described as an efficient killing machine in Cambodia ended up as a testament of God’s unlimited love. His life and that of Berkowitz demonstrate that even the vilest sinner can find forgiveness. “When the Bible says God loves the world, it doesn’t footnote any exceptions. God’s grace is inexhaustible” (Strobel, L., The Case for Grace, Zondervan, 2015, p. 103).

God’s unlimited love is further evident in the love shared by the Father, the Son, and the Spirit among themselves. Love, as seen in this eternal and unending relationship, is selfless and sacrificial. Jesus proclaimed, “The Father loves the Son and has placed everything in his hands” (John 3:35). The Father also expressed His love for His Son in Matthew 17:5, saying, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!”

This love of the triune God secures our salvation. The Father’s justice was satisfied through the sacrifice of the Son, who bore the penalty for our sins. When we place our faith in the Son, the Holy Spirit regenerates us and takes residence within us (Ezekiel 36:27; 1 Corinthians 3:16; Galatians 4:6; 1 John 3:24). Salvation is a complete and unified work of all three Persons of the Trinity.

God’s love is unlimited, and that fact can offend skeptics and baffle believers. The open invitation of God’s grace gets negative reviews from those who don’t fully understand the gospel. Testimonies of individuals like Berkowitz and Duch make the gospel look foolish to some, but to the undeserving sinner, such reports are a reflection of God’s power (1 Corinthians 1:18).

While God’s love is unlimited, deep, and profound, it is not His only attribute revealed in Scripture. God is also infinitely holy and perfectly just (Isaiah 6:3; Leviticus 19:2; Psalm 89:14; 99:9; Romans 2:5–6). Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross reflects not only God’s love but also His holiness and justice. The cross vividly demonstrates how seriously God views sin, as He poured out the just penalty on Christ while, in His boundless love, offering His Son for our transgressions.

He first loved us

Written by LWOM Amsterdam on . Posted in What’s new?.

What does it mean that we love Him because He first loved us (1 John 4:19)?

John makes the powerful assertion that “we love Him because He first loved us” (1 John 4:19) in a section in which he is writing about how we should be expressing the love of God to others. He says a bit earlier in the letter that, “if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another” (1 John 4:11). John explains that we have come to know (experientially) and believe the agape love that God has for us (1 John 4:16), and because of that there is an expectation that we should act on that love. If love originates with God, then the one who is walking with God should be demonstrating love (1 John 4:17).

But what kind of love should we be expressing, and with what kind of love do “we love Him because He first loved us” (1 John 4:19)? His love is completed (or perfected) in us, in that we have confidence in the day of judgment. His love has kept us (by His grace through faith in Jesus Christ) from condemnation—that kind of life-saving love is what He has showed us and is what we are expected to show each other. That kind of love is free from fear, because there is no punishment in our futures (1 John 4:18). His love has given us great confidence, because He has removed our fear.

“We love Him because He first loved us” (1 John 4:19). Love made the first move; our love for God is simply a response to His love for us. We have the capacity to love, now understanding what love really is and how we can express that without fear because He first loved us—because He modeled for us what love looks like. As John said a bit earlier, we have come to know and believe His love (1 John 4:16), so we are neither ignorant nor incapable of showing His kind of love to others. In fact, loving our brother is not only an expectation; it is an imperative.

“We love Him because He first loved us (1 John 4:19), and because He first loved us, we can and must love others. If someone claims to love God whom we have not seen but doesn’t love his brother whom we have seen, then John says that person is lying (1 John 4:20). If we aren’t loving our brother, we aren’t loving God. John goes further, reminding his readers of Jesus’ commandment that we love our brother (1 John 4:21). John adds to the logic of love when he asserts that the believer in Jesus is born of God, and anyone who loves the Father should obviously love the child born of the Father (1 John 5:1). It would be nonsensical for a believer, then, not to love his brother in Christ. John explains it from a different angle as well: when we are loving God and observing His commandments, we can know we are loving the brethren (1 John 5:2).

To love God means to obey Him, especially considering that His commandments are not burdensome (1 John 5:3). John reminds us that our love should be a sincere love—like the love the Father has for us. We should not love simply with words, but with sincerity in our deeds (1 John 3:18). Loving in truth and sincerity is so important that John lists it as a logical next step after believing in Jesus—“This is His commandment, that we believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ and love one another, just as He has commanded us” (1 John 3:23, ESV). But God hasn’t simply told us to do something He wasn’t willing to do first, instead, “we love Him because He first loved us” (1 John 4:19).

God demonstrates His love

Written by LWOM Amsterdam on . Posted in Romans, What’s new?.

What does it mean that God demonstrates His love in (Romans 5:8)?

Love is a fundamental attribute of God, and numerous Bible passages declare this glorious truth. One such passage is Romans 5:8, which states, “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” This depiction of love has inspired many to pledge their allegiance to Jesus, even to the point of death. God’s love should be known, relished, celebrated, and held close to our hearts.

The Bible serves as God’s special revelation to us, unveiling His attributes and showing us what love is. God manifested His love through sacrifice, by taking on human flesh in the Person of Jesus and redeeming us from the consequences of sin. John 3:16 immediately comes to mind, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”

Love is not a static emotion; love acts. Sacrificial love of the type God demonstrated toward us amazes us because we know how challenging it is to give up something valuable for the sake of another. Movies like Titanic achieved global success due, in part, to the theme of sacrifice. What is even more astounding about God’s demonstration of love is that He gave His life for His enemies. Even on the cross, Jesus prayed for the forgiveness of those murdering Him (Luke 23:34). Christianity is unique in this regard as it is the only religion that welcomes the ungodly: “You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly” (Romans 5:6). In other belief systems, humanity is left to work their way up toward God, but in Christianity God came down to us.

The apostle John also reflected on God’s love in his letter: “This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins” (1 John 4:9–10).

It is worth noting that God demonstrated His love in a manner that does not contradict His justice and holiness. On the cross, Jesus fulfilled the just requirements of the law and displayed God’s holiness by bearing God’s wrath against sin. Christ’s atoning work granted God the freedom to exhibit His grace and mercy side by side with His judgment, all for His glory.

The transformative effect of God’s love and grace has softened many hard hearts and filled them with gratitude. Countless depraved individuals have experienced what was described in the old hymn: “The vilest offender who truly believes, that moment from Jesus a pardon receives” (Crosby, F. J., “To God Be the Glory,” 1875). A prime example is the apostle Paul, who converted from an enemy of Christianity to one of its greatest evangelists.

God’s love was not theoretical. It was demonstrated; it was proved in Christ. Ultimately, God’s love provides the foundation for our love toward others. Once again, we find guidance from John: “Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God” (1 John 4:7).