GOD’S LOVE IS…

Victor M. Eskew

 

INTRODUCTION

 

A.    The Bible says that “God is love” (I John 4:8, 16).

1.      His nature is love.

2.      All of His being is permeated with love.

3.      All that He does springs from love.

4.      All love that exists in the world springs from the God of love.

 

B.      God’s love carries many attributes with it.

1.      In this lesson we want to look at some of those qualities. 

2.      We have entitled the lesson:  “God’s Love Is…”

 

I.                   GOD’S LOVE IS DIVINE

 

A.    The word “divine” means “relating to God.”

1.      It is not human love, even though the love of some humans is wonderful.  It springs from a being who is much higher and holier than man.

2.      It is not an imperfect love.  It is perfect, that is, without flaws, without agendas, without hypocrisy, and without insincerity.

3.      It is not an incomplete love.  It is complete in all of its attributes (See I Cor. 13:4-8a).

4.      It is not a partial love.  It is a love that accepts the entirety of our being.

5.      It is not a façade.  It is real and genuine in every way.

 

B.      Verses:

1.      Ephesians 2:4

 

But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us.

 

2.      Jeremiah 31:3

 

The Lord hath appeared of old unto me, saying, Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love:  therefore with lovingkindness have I drawn thee.

 

a.      This verse expresses God’s love for His people under the old covenant.

b.      We live under the New Covenant, a better covenant.  Can you imagine the love that He has for us?

 

II.                GOD’S LOVE IS VOLUNTARY

 

A.    God was not forced to love us. 

1.      We often think that because He created us He had to love us.  Not so.

2.      He could have looked upon us simply as clay in the hands of the potter (Jer. 18:6).

 

O house of Israel, cannot I do with you as this potter?  Saith the Lord.  Behold, as the clay is in the potter’s hand, so are ye in mine hand, O house of Israel.

 

3.      God chose to love man.

 

B.      The interesting thing is that He chose to love us even when we set ourselves against him as enemies.

1.      Paul says that there was a time when we were alienated and enemies in our minds by wicked works (Col. 1:21).

2.      Even so, He made us friends with Him again through Jesus Christ.  That sprang from God’s voluntary choice to love us (Rom. 5:8-10).

 

But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.  Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath though him.  For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son; much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.

 

III.             GOD’S LOVE IS PRICELESS

 

A.    The word “priceless” simply means “there is no price.” 

1.      There is absolutely no price that you can put upon the love of God.

2.      All of the goods and services produced throughout the world (GDP) in 2017 totaled to be $80.684 trillion.  If all of it were laid before the throne of God, it would not purchase God’s love.

 

B.      Ephesians 3:17-19

 

That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height; and to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fullness of God.

 

C.     Think about this seriously.  You and I can have in our possession something that cannot be priced.  It is priceless.  It is the love of God.

 

IV.             GOD’S LOVE IS GENEROUS

 

A.    Generous involves two things:

1.      The abundance of the love that is given.

2.      The warmth and the sympathy with which the love is given.

 

B.      When God gives, it is never just a meager amount.  He gives in superabundance.

1.      Example:

a.      God created the cosmos on Day 4 of Creation (Gen. 1:14a)

 

And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven…

 

b.      The psalmist David contemplated the wonders of the heavens often as he tended the flocks.  He was overwhelmed by them (Ps. 8:3-4).

 

When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained; what is man, that thou art mindful of him?  And the son of man, that thou visitest him?

 

c.       David did not have a telescope.  He certainly did not have the Hubble Telescope.  We now know just how vast the Universe really is.

 

      

 

2.      When God poured out His love upon man, it was a generous portion.

a.   In Ephesians 3:18, Paul speaks of the breadth, length, depth, and height of God’s

love.

b.   God’s love could never be bottled.  We could take every bottle on the earth, fill it

with God’s love, and it would be, as it were, only took a thimble of water out of the oceans

c.       Psalm 103:8, “plenteous in mercy, can be translated “abounding in lovingkindness”.

 

C.     God’s love springs from the depths of His heart.  It is an extremely warm and compassionate love.

1.      Jesus demonstrated this love in His ministry often.

a.   “Then Jesus beholding him, loved him…” (Mark 10:21).

b.   Oftentimes the compassion of Jesus flowed out upon mankind (Matt. 9:36).

 

But when he saw the multitudes, he was moved with compassion on them, because they fainted, and were scattered abroad, as sheep having no shepherd.

 

2.      When Jesus sees us, He is still filled with compassion.  That warmth is poured out upon us in the form of love.  (See Ps. 86:15).

 

But thou, O Lord, art a God full of compassion…

 

V.                GOD’S LOVE IS SACRIFICIAL

 

A.    The sacrificial aspect of God’s love can be summed up in two words:  “He gave.”

1.      He gave an equal.

2.      He gave a Son.

3.      He gave a sinless Son.

 

B.      Verses:

1.      John 3:16

2.      Romans 5:8

3.      I John 4:9-10

 

In this was manifest the love of God toward us, because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him.  Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and send his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.

 

VI.             GOD’S LOVE IS LASTING

 

A.    God never quits loving. 

God’s love never dies.

God never removes His love.

God’s love is everlasting.

 

B.      Psalm 103:17

 

But the mercy (lovingkindness) of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting upon them that fear him…

 

C.     NOTE:  God’s love for us does not indicate His acceptance of us. 

1.      Because God’s love lasts forever and ever, some surmise that He could never reject us.  Thus, all will be saved.

2.      Not so.  God will always love us, but He will only accept us “in the beloved” (Eph. 1:6).

 

To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved.

 

a.   The Father loved the prodigal, but knew he was lost and dead in that foreign land.

b.   Jesus loved the rich young ruler even though he could not part from His riches in order to follow the Christ.

 

CONCLUSION

 

A.    God’s love is…

1.      Divine

2.      Voluntary

3.      Priceless

4.      Generous

5.      Sacrificial

6.      Lasting

 

B.      This love is designed to cause man to respond thereunto.

1.      Psalm 36:7

 

How excellent is thy lovingkindness, O God!  Therefore the children of men put their trust under the shadow of thy wings.

 

2.      Psalm 63:3

 

Because thy lovingkindness is better than life, my lips shall praise thee.

 

3.      I John 4:19

 

We love him, because he first loved us.