1 John 4:16

One thing is certain: God does not love us because we are lovable or because we deserve His love. The human condition since the fall has been one of rebellion and disobedience. The Prophet Jeremiah 7:9 describes man’s condition: “The heart is deceitful and desperately wicked. Who can know it?” In our natural state, we do not love God; we do not desire God. St. Paul in Romans 3:10-12 clearly describes the state of the natural man: “There is none righteous, no, not one. There is none who seeks after God. They have all turned aside. There is none who does good, no not, one.” How then is it possible for God to love us? To understand this we must appreciate something of the goodness of God.

St. John declares that “God is love.” (1 John 4:8).This short sentence says it all. God does not only love; He is love. His nature is love. Love permeates His being. Because God’s very bring is love, He must demonstrate love; He must express it.

He demonstrates His love by lavishing it on undeserving people like us. His love is not sappy, sentimental, or transitory. His love is agape love; it is without strings. He demonstrate this sacrificial love by sending His Son to the cross to pay for our sins (1 John 4:10); by drawing us to Himself (John 6:44); by forgiving us and sending His Holy Spirit to dwell within us so that we might love as He loves. He does this in spite of the fact we do not deserve it. St. Paul states: “God demonstrates His own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, He died for us” (Romans 5:8).

God’s loves is also personal. He knows us individually and loves us by name. His is a mighty love that has no beginning and no end for He is the Alpha and the Omega.

Why then does God love us? It is His nature; it is who He is.

“God is love”

Kurt Johnson