Songs, poems, and books have been written to define the love of God, but none can fully describe its depth and all encompassing power. Man’s finite mind can only explain and understand our interpretation of love for one another, a love that fluctuates with our emotions and responds differently to various situations and people groups. Even our love for God can vacillate, depending on our interpretation of what God has done, or is doing, in our life. For example, if Uncle Bob doesn’t get healing, Aunt Suzy doesn’t get the house she’s been praying for, or any number of other situations don’t come to fruition, we can have a tendency to not love God as much; in fact, we may blame God for the “poor” outcome. Yet, through it all God loves us.
Imagine the typical born-again Christian. We have Christ in our heart, we belong to Him, and when we die, we will be in heaven for eternity. Until then, we are instructed to live a life that is different from the world, a life that pleases God and shines the Light of His Word. However, our tendency is to get wrapped up in the world’s system. We enjoy its entertainment and material possessions, which take our attention away from serving God, possibly out of Church, but God still loves us. We often avoid God’s Word and witnessing to our friends and family, and God still loves us. In these cases, He is not pleased with our lack of service to Him, but He still loves us.
To the one without Christ who may not acknowledge God, He still loves them. To those who vehemently oppose Him, He still loves them. The Bible tells us that God’s love is so deep for the entire world that He sent His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ, to die on the cross for the sins of the entire world (John 3:16). God’s love is go encompassing that He doesn’t want anyone to die without His Son and perish in hell (2 Peter 3:9). God loves even the most violent offender.
You might think that if God loves everyone (and He does) then He must love me as I am, living as i want to. God does love you, but God’s love is not to be mistaken for acceptance of our sin. We can see this in parents who love their wayward children though they may not approve of the lifestyle choices their children have made. It is God’s love through His Holy Spirit that calls you out of your sin and invites you to accept His Son as your Savior, which is the only way to enter heaven (John 14:6). God is not waiting for you to get better, to become a more acceptable citizen, to stop sinning; He loves you now! The Bible tells us that even while we were sinners, Christ died for us (Romans 5:8).
As deep as God’s love is, it will not force you to make a decision for Him. It is up to you. Imagine yourself swimming in the ocean of sin, living life your way. No matter how strong a swimmer you are, your body will eventually wear out. God has thrown you a rope of hope by sending His Son to die on the cross for your sins, but you must take hold of the rope and trust Chris to pull you ashore. If you choose to neglect His salvation, you will eventually die and drift into hell. God’s love is as deep as His justice and cannot be separated from it. If you are without Christ, please follow this link.
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