“How priceless is your unfailing love! Both high and low among men find refuge in the shadow of your wings.“
Psalm 36:7
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God is perfect love. God created this world out of love, and for love. Out of love, God remains faithful in redemptive fellowship towards us—even when creation is not faithful to Him.
But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, make us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions–it is by grace you have been saved.
Ephesians 2:4-5
To say that God is love is to state unequivocally that creation is perfectly loved by God. A God whose nature is perfect love would not create a world where we must fend for ourselves apart from the Creator. We were made to be in fellowship with the God of love.
Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life…
Psalm 23:6a
Everyone wants to be loved. Everyone longs to be valued, listened to, and understood. We have a universal desire to be treated with respect and dignity. God placed these things in our hearts when He created us. The best relationships we humans can experience are characterized by love. Stories of babies failing to thrive because of a lack of physical affection testify to our need for love even from birth.
Have mercy on me, O God, according to your unfailing love; according to your great compassion, blot out my transgressions.
Psalm 51:1
Everyone needs mercy. Honest self-appraisal reveals our need for forgiveness. None of us has ever been in a relationship in which we did not somehow violate the other party. Sustainability of any friendship, marriage, or family requires forgiveness. Our relationship with God is also marred by offenses against Him. Even more than the forgiveness of our fellow humans, we need the forgiveness of God. His mercy is an integral part of His love for us.
This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.
1 John 4:10
Love comes from God. Our nature is to pursue self-preservation and self-interest. We seek personal advantage and satisfaction. Love is contrary to these attitudes. Real love flies in the face of the world’s values. Our acts of love are often soiled by impure motives and orchestrated for personal gain. By contrast, the love of God is unconditional, extended independent from any response, or lack thereof, on the part of the recipient.
Who loves like that? God alone.
Questions for reflection and discussion:
- How much do you value the love of God?
- How have you experienced the love of God in your life?
Church Reading Plan: Jeremiah 5; Matthew 19