I have been thinking a lot lately about God’s vast love for us. I have been re-reading what the Bible teaches about God’s love. Many of the verses are very familiar to me, so I have been reading them in different translations, to keep my mind engaged with the words, and to capture more of the rich nuances of the original language. Here are just a few of those verses:
John 3:16 AMP For God so greatly loved and dearly prized the world that He [even] gave up His only begotten (unique) Son, so that whoever believes in (trusts in, clings to, relies on) Him shall not perish (come to destruction, be lost) but have eternal (everlasting) life.
Romans 5:8 NIV But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
Zephaniah 3:17 AMP The Lord your God is in the midst of you, a Mighty One, a Savior [Who saves]! He will rejoice over you with joy; He will rest [in silent satisfaction] and in His love He will be silent and make no mention [of past sins, or even recall them]; He will exult over you with singing. [NLT …With His love, He will calm (or silence) all your fears…]
1 John 3:1a NIV See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!
Galatians 2:20 AMP I have been crucified with Christ [in Him I have shared His crucifixion]; it is no longer I who live, but Christ (the Messiah) lives in me; and the life I now live in the body I live by faith in (by adherence to and reliance on and complete trust in) the Son of God, Who loved me and gave Himself up for me.
1 John 4:19 HCSB We love because He first loved us.
Psalms 86:15 NIV But you, Lord, are a compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness.
Romans 8:37-39 NIV No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. (38) For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, (39) neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. [In summary, nothing can separate us from the love of God.]
Ephesians 2:4-5 NIV But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, (5) made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved.
1 John 4:16 ESV So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him.
Jeremiah 31:3 NIV The LORD appeared to us in the past, saying: "I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with unfailing kindness.
As I thought about the type of love described in these verses, it struck me that love must be by choice. If we are forced to love (i.e., if we have no choice in the matter), then it is not really love.
For example, if we demanded that our children love us, would we really experience the feeling of being loved by them, or even the reality of being loved by them? Would their outward compliance alone communicate genuine love to us, if their heart is not motivating their behavior? No. Love must be voluntarily given, in order to be genuine love. Here is my point: if we are to communicate genuine love, it must be voluntary, by our choice, not under compulsion.
Jesus illustrated this concept. He demonstrated that, even within the Trinity, there is choice, and hence a demonstration of true love. Jesus was not forced by the Father to go to the cross and die. He chose to go to the cross and die.
John 15:13 NASB "Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends.
1 John 3:16 ESV By this we know love, that he [Jesus] laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers. [He laid down His life voluntarily, not under compulsion, thereby demonstrating His love for the Father (and also for us).]
John 19:30 ESV When Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, “It is finished,” and He bowed His head and gave up His spirit. [He bowed His head and gave up His spirit voluntarily, not under compulsion.]
Here is my challenge to you today: Will you choose to truly love, according to the example of Jesus?
Today, I encourage you to “Reflect on This.”