JEREMIAH 31:3 – The Lord appeared to him from far away. I have loved you with an everlasting love; therefore I have continued my faithfulness to you.”

THEME OF THE DAY:  WHY DOES GOD LOVE US?  Has there been a time when we tried to figure out why God loves us?  If not, don’t.  If we have, how did that work out?  Study the why questions human beings ask God in His Word especially the book of Job.  What we will find out is God rarely, if ever, answers our why questions.  And really, faith doesn’t ask why questions.  For Job?  Oh, he got answers, but not to the why questions.  He received a greater revelation and understanding of who God is and who he was and those took care of His why questions.  But let’s go where we shouldn’t and ask the why question of God’s love – Why does He love us? And we will begin with reasons why He doesn’t.

First, God doesn’t love us because we are good. We are not – No one does good, not even one (Romans 3:12).  Next, we are not loved by God because we earned it.  We cannot – We have all become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous deeds are like a polluted garment. We all fade like a leaf, and our iniquities, like the wind, take us away (Isaiah 64:6). Still yet another reason why God doesn’t love is because we are lovable.  We are not, in fact, here is how the Apostle Paul defines all of humanity – As it is written: “None is righteous, no, not one; no one understands; no one seeks for God. All have turned aside; together they have become worthless; no one does good, not even one.” “Their throat is an open grave; they use their tongues to deceive.” “The venom of asps is under their lips.” “Their mouth is full of curses and bitterness.” “Their feet are swift to shed blood; in their paths are ruin and misery, and the way of peace they have not known.” “There is no fear of God before their eyes” (Romans 3:10-18). So, if we have proved that in and of ourselves, and by our actions, God doesn’t love us, then the other side of the question is to be asked – Why does God love us?

Well, the answer to that question is simple, not open to analyze, figure out, or worse, doubt it. God loves us because God loves us. Period. Stop. No more debate. No more quizzing, No more reasoning.  God loves because God loves.  And that because it is His nature to love.  The Apostle John reminds us in his first letter of this truth, not once, but twice in the fourth chapter – Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love (1 John 4:8), and 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 (1 John 4:16).  Jerry Bridges wrote in his excellent book Trusting God these encouraging words on God’s love – God’s unfailing love for us is an objective fact affirmed over and over in the Scriptures. It is true whether we believe it or not. Our doubts do not destroy God’s love, nor does our faith create it. It originates in the very nature of God, who is love, and it flows to us through our union with His beloved Son.

So, why does God love us? Because God loves us. Let’s rejoice and rest in such amazing truth!

PRAYER: “Father, I praise You for loving me for no other reason than You do.”

QUOTE: “Rest in God’s love. Don’t try to analyze it, figure it out, or refuse to believe it.  He loves us. Period. Rest in it.”

In the affection of Christ Jesus,

Pastor Jim