Grace Corner… The LOVE of God!
by Velma Albert
I think one of the ‘hardest’ concepts to grasp as a person is the idea that GOD, the creator of the universe, the omnicient, omnipotent and omnipresent GOD, truly LOVES us! Even in understanding Grace, as believers, we still sometimes think that we have to ‘earn’ God’s love or that He only blesses us because we’ve been ‘good’!
We forget John 3:16 that confirms WHY God sent His only begotten Son (Jesus) into the world…simply because God SO LOVE the world! That one verse assures us that whoever believes in Him (JESUS) will not perish but have everlasting life! That’s love!! Romans 5:8 NKJV… “But God demonstrates His own LOVE for us in this: while we were STILL sinners, Christ died for us. 1 John 4:19 says we love because He (God) first loved us”. What I’ve noticed in these verses is that ‘Love is a Choice’* and not a feeling! God CHOSE to LOVE us whether we were (are) aware of Him or not; whether we believed (believes) in Him or not or whether our actions were (are) pleasing to Him or not! That’s where we shake our heads and can’t wrap our natural minds around this type of love! Ours is usually based on feelings and it’s hard for us to show sincere, hearfelt love when our emotions are involved. Dr. Creflo Dollar of World Changers International Church often says it’s okay to have emotions but don’t let emotions have you!
God is so aware of us and He knows how emotions can affect our health, mind and relationships—especially negative ones! So I Peter 5:7 NLT commands us to ‘Give all (y)our worries and cares to God, for He cares about you’! God knows excessive worrying leads to stress, depression, anxiety and even fear! He want us to give that ‘concern’, that ‘issue’, or that difficult relationship over to Him…because He loves us! If it concerns YOU… it concerns Him! (Psalms 138:8a KJV). Ultimately, this Gospel of Grace loudly proclaims and confirms God’s LOVE for us!
The LOVE of God is so complete because it encompasses ALL that He IS. Pastor Joseph Prince of New Creation Church once said that God’s love for us does NOT depend on the ‘loveableness’ of the person because God. Is. Love; it’s who He is! We just have to accept that love as it’s only in knowing how much God loves you can you love others! Again, we see the importance of having an intimate, authentic relationship with God through our Lord & Savior, Jesus Christ…for guidance, for healing/wholeness, for protection and for peace! NO ONE does LOVE like our God and I’m so grateful and thankful for who He is in my life!
*Love is a Choice: Drs R. Hemfelt, F. Minirth & P. Meier
