GOD'S LOVE
John 3:16 (NKJV)
16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.
John 3:16 (MSG)
16 This is how much God loved the world: He gave his Son, his one and only Son. And this is why: so that no one need be destroyed; by believing in him, anyone can have a whole and lasting life.
John 3:16 (VOICE)
16 For God expressed His love for the world in this way: He gave His only Son so that whoever believes in Him will not face everlasting destruction, but will have everlasting life.
Many people have difficulty accepting this strong love. Let’s be real. Would you and could you sacrifice your one and only child for a world that did not even acknowledge you as the Creator of the Universe? Yet, He did. God loves the world so much that He did what He did to save us from the destruction that was truly coming if we did not come to Him.
In studying the subject of love, understand that there are different types of love. For example, the love between a man and a woman; the love between a parent and child; the love between sister and brother and the love between friends.
In the Old Testament the Hebrew word aheb is translated as affectionate, benevolent, strong liking, or romantic implications.
Scripture tells us that the love of God in the New Testament is Agape or agapao. Agape is defined as affection, benevolence, good-will, high esteem and concern for the welfare of a loved one. It is deliberate and purposeful rather than emotional or impulsive love.
Love is the nature of God. God created love, not the reverse. He deliberately chose to express His love to us -- revealing the very nature of God Himself.
God Loved us First – God introduced an eternal love relationship with us before we loved Him.
1 John 4:9-10 (NLV)
9 God has shown His love to us by sending His only Son into the world. God did this so we might have life through Christ. 10 This is love! It is not that we loved God but that He loved us. For God sent His Son to pay for our sins with His own blood.
God Shows Mercy – God showed the wealth of His kindness even when we were unworthy of His love.
Ephesians 2:4-5 (NKJV)
4 But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, 5 even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved).
God Is Faithful – Even in the most extreme circumstances, God’s love for us remains steadfast and constant.
Romans 8:35-39 (NKJV)
35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? 36 As it is written: “For Your sake we are killed all day long; We are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.”[a] 37 Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. 38 For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, 39 nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
