I don’t mean to be repetitive, but the love of God has been on my heart recently.
God loves you. No doubt, you’ve been told that a zillion times, probably to the point where those three words have little or no impact on you.
Think back to the first time when someone said to you, “I love you” and meant it. Perhaps it was a boyfriend or girlfriend, maybe your mom or dad, or perhaps someone that took you under their wing.
Steadfast Love
In Psalm 103:8 (ESV), we find, “The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.” It’s very likely that the first time someone romantically said they loved you, their love was not steadfast. That person is probably now so far in your rearview mirror. But that’s not God.
In 1 John 4:19, we read, “We love because he first loved us.” When my wife and I got married, we each had expectations, but they were not the same expectations. It took years to work through presumptions. But that’s not God.
God’s love is strong. His love is resilient. His love is steadfast. It hardly notices a wrong (1 Corinthians 13:5 ESV). God’s love is grounded in truth and reality. He knows all of you.
Just a Reminder
So, today, I want to remind you that God’s love for you is active, it’s not lost when you mess up. “But God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” (Romans 5:8 ESV)
Does God love Christians differently from non-Christians? Yes. His love is different because believers have exercised faith in God’s Son. As a Christian, God’s in your life for eternity. For you to grow in God’s love, you reciprocate His love.
How do you reciprocate God’s love towards you? You do this by practicing the presence of God. One way is by “addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart,” (Ephesians 5:19 ESV)
Be joyful, for you are loved!
Photo by Blake Barlow on Unsplash
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https://rockexcavationservice.org/2019/08/10/adventure/